LOS ANGELES — It came down to this: Enes Kanter said following the Knicks’ lethargic 127-107 loss to the Lakers on Sunday that they need to follow Ron Baker’s example.
Baker, still playing with a mask until early February because of a broken orbital bone, never fills up a box score. But even Jeff Hornacek made a reference to Baker’s defensive tenacity Friday that helped spur their victory over the Jazz.
“Everybody has to be ready, from the first guy to the last guy on the bench,’’ Kanter said. “Whenever Ron Baker came in the game, he gave us so much energy, and I think we should take an example from him.”
The hustling Baker got kudos despite not taking a shot in 10:42, while notching one assist and one rebound.
The Knicks need more pop from their bench as they were outscored 76-39. While Michael Beasley popped in 17 points, he committed five fouls. Doug McDermott, obtained in the Carmelo Anthony deal, has struggled, especially on the road. In 13:22, McDermott was a team-worst minus-20 and scored three points on 1-of-3 shooting — all 3-pointers.
Hornacek said he hasn’t considered using cold-shooting rookie point guard Frank Ntilikina in a G-League game. In an attempt to get the slumping Ntilikina rolling, Hornacek sat the recently signed Trey Burke until the start of the fourth quarter when the team trailed by nine points.
Ntilikina, scoreless in five minutes in the Utah win, had a strong first half, making all three of his shots and adding three assists. He was scoreless in the second half Sunday, finishing with seven points on 3-of-4 shooting in 18 minutes.
To start the fourth quarter Sunday, Hornacek put in Burke for the first time and paired him with Ntilikina. Burke hit a mid-range jumper then snaked to the basket for a layup, but then cooled off to finish with four points and four assists in seven minutes.