New York Knicks Week in Review: 11/2/15 – 11/8/15

Is Jose Calderon breaking out of his funk? (Anthony J. Causi/NY Post)

Two weeks ago, we got a glimpse into the New York Knicks’ bright future as they came out strong to start the season with quality road wins in Milwaukee and Washington, D.C.

Last week? Not so much.

Despite the comfort of playing three home games, they only managed to come away with one win — a hard-fought 99-95 victory over Kobe Bryant and the Lakers on Sunday. Heading into that game, New York was riding a three-game losing streak, falling victim to their own tough schedule with losses to San Antonio, Cleveland and Milwaukee. But even in relative defeat, there was plenty to feel good about. Here are some takeaways from the week that was:

6 GOD: There’s no debating that Kristaps Porzingis has been everything the Knicks expected and more so far in the young season, and this past week was no exception. The 20-year-old rookie put up three double-doubles (13 pts. & 14 rebs. vs. Spurs, 14 & 13 vs. Bucks, 12 & 10 vs. Lakers) and looks more and more comfortable with the NBA game each passing day, although he needs to stay out of foul trouble more often. His improving comfort level was most evident in the highlight reel he put together. Enjoy for yourself!

httpss://youtu.be/t95MuUIVsxA

CALDERON RISING?: Jose Calderon has struggled to find a rhythm early on in the 2015-16 season with many fans calling for him to be benched in favor of Langston Galloway or Jerian Grant, both of whom have excelled off the bench so far. The 10-year veteran finally gained some confidence in Sunday’s home win, scoring 14 points on 50% shooting from the field. He’s still a liability on defense and on the fast break, but if he can build upon this performance and continue to put his teammates in prime position to score the Knicks will be that much more dangerous.

HANGIN’ TOUGH: One of the huge differences among this Knicks team is their competitiveness. You could make the argument that the teams of the previous two seasons would’ve just rolled over and got blown out in each game of the three-game losing streak. This year feels different. Very different. With Carmelo Anthony leading the team by playing harder than ever on both sides of the ball and the energy of guys like Porzingis & Kyle O’Quinn, you get the sense that New York will be in plenty more games against the NBA’s elite teams. This will build confidence all around the team, which will lead to more wins as they push towards the playoffs.

This week New York kicks off its week with its second set of back-to-back games, traveling to Toronto and Charlotte on Tuesday and Wednesday. They will be back home at Madison Square Garden to host LeBron James and the Cavaliers on Friday, followed by rising mega-star Anthony Davis and the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday. Confidence will be high following the win over Los Angeles, so it will be interesting to see how the Knicks come out this week.