The Knicks and Nuggets Both Choked 19 and 14-Point Leads in Game 2: Desperation Beats Comfort Every Time

Two NBA teams stood at the edge of commanding 2-0 advantages Monday night. Two NBA teams stepped back. The Knicks and Nuggets, both No. 3 seeds in their respective conferences, squandered massive leads in their first-round playoff games and now face enemies that suddenly smell blood in the water.

Tim Hardaway Jr. put it perfectly from the Nuggets locker room: "You get too high, and you get, I don't want to say cocky, but feeling yourself." That's exactly what happened to both New York and Denver. And it cost them games they absolutely should have won.

New York Collapsed in the Fourth: 5-for-22 Kills You in the Playoffs

The Knicks walked into the fourth quarter with a 12-point cushion against the Hawks after leading by as many as 14. They had control. They threw it away. New York shot just 5-for-22 from the floor in the final 12 minutes while Atlanta caught fire at 10-for-15. The Hawks' CJ McCollum dropped a game-high 32 points, including six straight crucial ones during a key stretch while fighting through the MSG crowd.

Josh Hart nailed it after the loss: "It's a game we should've won. In the playoffs, we can't give away games." But they did exactly that. Knicks coach Mike Brown saw what happened in real time. "In that fourth quarter, you could tell the Hawks were playing with a level of desperation. There were four 50-50 balls, and they got three of the four." New York's aggression evaporated. They went 3-for-11 from three and settled into perimeter-heavy possessions that led nowhere.

Denver's Jokic and Murray Couldn't Finish: 2-for-12 Down the Stretch

The Nuggets had a 19-point lead early in the second quarter. They still led by three heading into the fourth. Then Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray went cold when it mattered most, combining for just 2-for-12 shooting in those final 12 minutes. That's not collapse territory, that's free fall.

Murray didn't sugarcoat it: "I feel like we had the game in hand, and then we just didn't make our shots." Meanwhile, Minnesota's Anthony Edwards refused to go away, pouring in 30 points and shifting the entire momentum of the series. Timberwolves coach Chris Finch praised his star's ability to recognize what was needed. "He recognized he needed to get into attack mode and get downhill a little bit more. He did that."

Now What?

Neither New York nor Denver is finished. But both teams now carry unnecessary weight climbing back into these series. The comfort of dominant leads is gone. The desperation belongs to the other guy now.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.