Jazz Drop Fifth Straight In Loss To Knicks
Jan 1, 2025, 8:30 PM | Updated: Jan 2, 2025, 2:27 pm
SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah Jazz fell to the New York Knicks 119-103 extending their losing streak to five games.
Collin Sexton and Jordan Clarkson each scored 25 points to lead the Jazz.
Karl-Anthony Towns scored 31 points and grabbed 21 rebounds for the Knicks in their ninth-straight win.
Game Blog: Jazz Fall To Knicks
Jazz Miss John Collins Against Knicks
John Collins missed his fifth straight game with a hip injury, and his absence has been notable throughout the team’s losing streak.
Collins is the Jazz’s second-leading scorer, rebounder, and shot blocker, and his .424 three-point percentage is tied with Sexton atop the team’s roster.
Beyond his statistical production, the Jazz simply miss Collins’s 6-foot-9 frame in the paint.
The @utahjazz have now allowed Nikola Jokic and Karl-Anthony Towns to record 30-point, 20-rebound games in back-to-back nights.
First time in franchise history it’s happened in consecutive games.
They’re clearly feeling the absence of John Collins as a big body in the paint.
— Ben Anderson (@BensHoops) January 2, 2025
“In some moments, we’re maybe not quite aware of the size difference in some of these plays, and how physical and aggressive we have to be defensively around the basket,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said.
Walker Kessler’s return to form this season has lessened the blow in Collins’s absence, but he needs more support from his Jazz teammates until the veteran returns.
“Our collective thought process of protecting the rim as a group wasn’t good enough,” Hardy added. “We can’t rely on one person to protect the rim.”
The Knicks scored 70 points in the paint against the Jazz.
Cody Williams Returns To Stars
Before facing the Knicks, the Jazz assigned rookie Cody Williams to the Salt Lake City Stars after spending the last two weeks with the main roster over Christmas.
In three appearances, Williams looked improved from his stint to open the season, averaging 6.0 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.0 assists in 22 minutes per game.
The rookie also shot 60 percent from both the floor and the three-point line.
While the Jazz could have kept the wing in the rotation, they reassigned him to the Stars, and it’s paying early dividends.
Cody Williams scored 36 points for the @slcstars today.
Seems splitting time between the NBA and the G League has boosted his development.
New @utahjazz two-way guard Elijah Harkless scored 32 in his debut.#TakeNote | @kslsports
— Ben Anderson (@BensHoops) January 2, 2025
In his first game back with the Stars, Williams scored a career-high 36 points while shooting 13-21 from the floor and 5-8 from three.
The Jazz want Williams to be more aggressive with the ball in his hands, and with the offensive talent already present on the team’s primary roster, the opportunity to develop his ball-in-hand game is limited.
With the Stars, he’s getting more comfortable with those responsibilities, and he’s embracing the challenge.
Related: Jazz Sign Elijah Harkless To Two-Way Contract
Williams wasn’t the only Jazz player to shine in the Stars 121-117 victory over the Rio Grande Vipers.
Two-way guard Elijah Harkless, who officially signed with the Jazz on Wednesday, scored 32 points, grabbed three rebounds, and dished out four assists in his Stars debut.
Harkless shot 9-15 from the floor and 6-8 from three.
Jazz Get Help On Lottery Front
The Jazz improved their lottery standings Wednesday night with their loss to the Knicks, paired with wins by the Toronto Raptors and Washington Wizards.
The Raptors picked up their eighth win of the season, snapping an 11-game losing streak, and are no longer tied with the Jazz at seven wins.
Related: Are The Jazz Winning Too Many Games?
The Wizards meanwhile inched closer to the Jazz picking up their sixth win of the season after blowing out the Chicago Bulls 125-107.
The Jazz will get additional help on Friday night when the Wizards travel to face the five-win New Orleans Pelicans.
If the Wizards win in New Orleans, they’ll pull into a tie with the Jazz at seven wins. If the Pelicans win, they’ll sit just one win back of the Jazz in the standings for the worst record in the West.
Utah Jazz Next Broadcast
The Jazz will travel to Miami to face the Heat on Saturday at 6 p.m. MST. The game will be televised on KJZZ, streamed on Jazz+, and heard on 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone.
Are you on Threads yet? Let’s connect, give us a follow @kslsports.
Ben Anderson is the Utah Jazz insider for KSL Sports and the co-host of Jake and Ben from 10-12p with Jake Scott on 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone. Find Ben on Twitter at @BensHoops, on Instagram @BensHoops, or on BlueSky.
