Down the stretch Friday night at the Garden, in this bizarre turn of the Knicks’ season, dawned “The Lance and Langston Show.”
If he has said it once, Knicks coach Derek Fisher has said it a hundred times in the past week: The three new players on 10-day contracts are unburdened by that “loser’s mentality’’ team president Phil Jackson once talked about, and they do not carry “the weight of the season on their shoulders.’’
And so it was Lance Thomas, the defensive forward born in Bedford-Stuyvesant, and point guard Langston Galloway, scoring 16 of 18 points late in the fourth quarter, ignited the Knicks to their season-high third straight victory, 113-106, over the Magic.
Fisher said Orlando would serve as “a good test’’ for the suddenly resurgent Knicks, and they passed that exam. This was the best win of the three, as the first two came against a depleted Pelicans outfit and a depleted god-awful tanking 76ers squad.
“They were resilient as a group out there,’’ Fisher said. “I think what is most gratifying is seeing in them how much they are enjoying this and how much differently they feel as a group. There is more confidence and sureness.’’
The winning streak comes after the Knicks lost a franchise-record 16 straight games, and moved their record to 8-36, a half-game behind the Sixers. The Knicks lead the Timberwolves — who have the worst record in the NBA at 7-35 — by percentage points as Minnesota remains the “front-runner” in the race for Duke center Jahlil Okafor, the expected No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft. It looks like the 1972-73 Sixers of 9-73 infamy can breathe a sigh of relief.
Thomas, who went to high school at St. Benedict’s in Newark and played at Duke, had by far his best offensive night of his Knicks career, scoring three straight buckets in the final minutes and finishing with 16 points. Known as a poor jump-shooter, Thomas buried 8 of 10 shots, including a nasty putback with 2:00 left.
“We always encourage our guys to trust their game and the work they’ve put in,’’ Fisher said. “Good shots will be created if we run our offense. Lance is enjoying this opportunity to be part of this team even with our record.’’
Meanwhile, Galloway’s magic touch continued. He hit two big 3-pointers down the stretch, including the game-sealer with 54 seconds left that bumped the Knicks into a 108-102 lead. Galloway, who finished with 15 points, eight rebounds and three assists, also hit the biggest shot of the game in Wednesday’s win at Philadelphia — a long 3-pointer with 15 seconds to go after chasing down the offensive rebound.
Tim Hardaway Jr. said the three new guys — including starting power forward Lou Amundson — have “brought a sense of urgency’’ to a dead locker room. While J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert are crowing in Cleveland, the Knicks are starting to resemble a ballclub.
Fisher said despite the Knicks debacle of a loss to the Bucks in London, he felt they came back from England “a more purposeful and confident group.’’
“We’ve brought fight,’’ said Thomas, who opened the season as a starter for the Thunder. “I have fought for this my whole life.’’
All-Star starter Carmelo Anthony was quiet in the final minutes, but finished with 25 points, seven rebounds and four assists.
“It’s effort, energy, attention to details,’’ Anthony said. “The guys that’s been contributing these last couple games are hungry. We’re having a lot of fun out there. The 10-day guys are a big part of the reason we’re winning basketball games. It’s been a good feeling.”
The only sour note for the team occurred with seven minutes left in the third quarter, when starting point guard Jose Calderon went down with a bruised left knee. But it doesn’t appear serious and Calderon hasn’t ruled out playing Saturday in Charlotte, N.C., despite limping around the locker room.
Calderon banged knees with Magic point guard Elfrid Payton while defending him, then collided into Channing Frye. Calderon, who missed the first 13 games with a calf strain, crumpled to the court and couldn’t put weight on his leg as he was helped off. Nevertheless, X-rays were negative.
“We are thankful it’s only a knee contusion and not more serious than that,’’ Fisher said.
The Knicks won despite getting torched by Orlando center Nikola Vucevic, who scored 34 points and grabbed 18 rebounds. The Magic’s Tobias Harris of Long Island had a rough shooting night, finishing with just nine points on 4 of 14 shooting — 0 of 6 from 3-point land.
“We’re playing for each other and playing really hard right now,’’ Thomas said.