Knicks suffer crushing OT loss to Lakers as Jalen Brunson exits with injury

LOS ANGELES — The Knicks loss on the scoreboard Thursday night was made worse by the sight of Jalen Brunson limping off the court.The star point guard turned his right ankle badly with 1:24 remaining in overtime of the 113-109 defeat to the Lakers, crumbling under the basket after absorbing multiple fouls on a drive.Brunson remained in the game to hit two free throws — tying the score — but didn’t attempt to move from his position before heading slowly to the locker room.Without Captain Clutch, the Knicks bombed down the stretch offensively as LeBron James buried clutch free throws to seal L.A.’s win under “MVP” chants.Brunson finished with 39 points in 41 minutes — but was unavailable for those final 81 seconds.The Knicks (40-22), losers of two straight, next face the Clippers in a back-to-back Friday, with Brunson’s status seemingly doubtful.The previous time these teams faced off, the Knicks were beaten soundly.LeBron turned back the clock that night at MSG.

Hours later, the Lakers changed the trajectory of their franchise by trading for Luka Doncic.They were still in New York when the news broke.“That’s the nature of our league now, the constant change,” Tom Thibodeau said Thursday.“You have to be prepared for everything.”The Knicks were, as it turned out, prepared for most of Thursday evening and their first game against Doncic in purple and yellow.

But they lost in the clutch and then lost their top clutch player.Before Brunson’s injury, the Knicks blew it in regulation.They were up 10 with seven minutes on the clock, then succumbed to a 19-6 run that put the Lakers up by three with less than 90 seconds remaining.Brunson — who else? — converted an and-1 to tie the score on the following possession, and the teams traded misses in the final seconds to compel overtime.The Knicks, who were coming off Tuesday’s disheartening defeat to the Warriors, were close to full strength.

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