Knicks’ failed comeback ends with Julius Randle storming at ref

It was an ugly ending to an otherwise encouraging and scrappy effort from Julius Randle and the Knicks.

Randle, who had led the Knicks to a comeback from 18 points down, had a chance to tie the game on the final possession, receiving the inbounds in the final seconds. But his 3-point attempt was hit on the way up by Kyrie Irving, and Randle came down with the ball for a travel call.

Fuming, Randle had to be physically restrained by teammates and staff from going after referee Scott Foster. Knicks executive Worldwide Wes even stepped on the court and pulled back his star player. They both retreated to the locker room with a 117-112 defeat, with Kyrie Irving and James Harden getting the best of the borough battle.

“I was frustrated obviously. We fought so hard to try to come back and win the game,” Randle said after finally emerging for his Zoom interview nearly 40 minutes after the buzzer. “So I was just frustrated. And that was pretty much it.”

Randle struggled early and was spectacular in the second half, dropping 12 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter. But his final possession turned controversial, if only because of his reaction. Through a pool reporter, Foster clarified that Irving touched the ball but did not dislodge it from Randle, who clearly waited until his feet hit the court to drop the ball himself. Hence the travel.

Right or wrong, it’s hard to imagine the call changing the outcome of the game. Even if the referee called a jump ball, there wouldn’t have been much time left for the Knicks to get possession and a final shot. Still, coach Tom Thibodeau backed his player.

“That’s what (the referees) said they saw,” Thibodeau said. “I didn’t see it that way.”

Steve Nash naturally saw it the Nets way.

“(Irving) made a good play. Just took Randle out of his rhythm,” Nash said. “He came down with it and it was a travel.”

Randle said he was anticipating Irving to foul him right away.

“We had a play designed obviously and I thought Kyrie was going to come up and foul right away so I tried to go a little bit quicker,” Randle said. “But the play happened — whatever happened is what it is and it’s in the past.”

The Knicks appeared ready to roll over in the beginning. Brooklyn stormed out to a commanding lead, riding the wave of Irving (34 points, 13-for-18 shooting) and Harden (21 points, 15 assists, 15 rebounds). But the momentum shifted midway through the fourth quarter, when the Knicks cut their 12-point deficit to 3 with 10 seconds remaining.

That set up Randle’s big chance, and his furious exit off the court.

“It’s an emotional game. He calmed down right away,” Thibodeau said. “It was a hard-fought game by both teams. Sometimes it goes your way, sometimes it doesn’t. I thought Julius played a terrific game.”

The Knicks clearly wanted this victory against a crosstown rival that has snatched away stars and headlines. Their eagerness was personified by Worldwide Wes pacing behind the basket, animatedly furious after a foul call on Frank Ntilikina.

Two seasons ago, the Nets were the Knicks.

They were coming off two miserable seasons, bottom of the barrel stuff. They carried an inexperienced and underwhelming roster, littered with castaways and reclamation projects.

Then they shocked the projections. D’Angelo Russell went from bust to All-Star. Caris LeVert, Joe Harris and Spencer Dinwiddie emerged as viable starters. The Nets lost in the first round to the Sixers that season, but suddenly the franchise could sell hope with their cap space. Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden soon followed. Everybody else became expendable.

That’s the way of the NBA and the universe. Stars tend to cluster.

“It’s today’s modern NBA this is part of it. You can see players whether it’s through All-Star games or Team USA where they’re all talking to each other, this is what happens,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. “When you get those type of players to commit to play with each other it makes it attractive for other players to want to go there.”

The Knicks, of course, had nothing to sell in the summer of 2019. We don’t need to rehash the Steve Mills/David Fizdale era. But now, at least, they have an identity, and they’re scrappy, and they can hang with the league’s elite until the final possession.

Whether this translates to free agent stars or anything more than a spirited playoff push remains to be seen. Either way, the road isn’t easy. The Knicks are still a success story given the expectations, but breaking an eight-year playoff drought isn’t a given. The schedule only gets tougher in the second half, and the Knicks, currently just 1 1/4 u00bd games ahead of the 11th spot, haven’t beaten a team currently over .500 since Feb. 6 against the Blazers.

They came close Monday. But Irving disrupted New York’s chance to tie, and Randle took it out on the refs.