In the morning, Zach Randolph admitted he has wondered why Isiah Thomas traded for him last summer. At night, everyone else did, too.
Playing without Randolph, who was suspended one game by the NBA for tossing his headband at an official in Wednesday's loss to Sacramento, the Knicks implemented last season's formula in a 97-93 loss to the Spurs at the AT&T Center. It was the sixth straight loss for the Knicks (8-23), but one of their best efforts in a couple of weeks.
The Knicks trailed by three with 10.2 seconds left after a pair of free throws by Bruce Bowen. But out of the timeout, Jamal Crawford, the Knicks' late-game assassin, drove to the basket instead of looking for a three-point shot. His runner missed with 5.1 seconds left and a tip by David Lee bounced off the rim. Bowen grabbed the rebound with seven-tenths of a second left and was fouled. He hit one of two to complete the scoring.
Crawford also lost the ball to Bowen on the previous possession with 22.3 seconds left. Nate Robinson's pull-up with 50.2 seconds left brought the Knicks to within 94-93. Robinson then came up with a loose ball on a bad pass by Michael Finley with 34.4 seconds left. (...)
