The Knicks take on a beat up Hornets team, but unlike the injured teams we’ve faced, this one is scariest. The Knicks walk into this game 31-27, on a six game win streak while holding the 6th place spot in the Eastern Conference. The Hornets have fallen to 28-28 without Lamelo Ball, fighting to keep the current 8th seed spot they have. For the Knicks, Mitchell Robinson is out with a fractured right foot, and Alec Burks is out due to COVID-19 protocols. For the Hornets, Lamelo Ball, Malik Monk, Gordon Hayward, and Nate Darling have all been ruled out of this game, as well as Devonte’ Graham being day-to-day and questionable for tonight’s game. I usually give three keys but tonight I truly only have one, dominate.

To defeat the beat up Hornets, the Knicks must play how they’ve been playing as of late. Julius Randle needs to have a signature game, RJ needs to step it up, maybe get Rose or IQ to get quality time, regardless, this should be a win for us. I’m predicting a 98-84 win for the Knicks tonight and a 30 point performance from Julius Randle. Tipoff is at 7:30 PM EST in MSG, and as always, go Knicks!