ORLANDO, Fla. — It started early in the first quarter, the “MVP” chants for Jalen Brunson.
Paolo Banchero, an All-Star playing in his home arena, turned to the loudest section and said, not subtly, “Shut up.”
In those beginning moments, Banchero and the Magic could do nothing to stop them. Brunson was fantastic with 20 of his 33 points in the opening quarter. He was crossing over and changing direction, draining shots and doing whatever he pleased while sporting one of his determined game faces.
An All-Star playing like a superstar.
The problem, which was predictable given the Knicks’ injury predicament, was Brunson had no help.
None.
And it quickly caught up to the reeling Knicks in Wednesday’s 118-100 loss to the Magic, their season-high fourth straight defeat heading into the All-Star break.
“We didn’t withstand,” Tom Thibodeau said.
The Knicks were missing six of their top eight players, with an injury report longer than a Disney World line on Memorial Day. Donte DiVincenzo (sore hamstring) and Bojan Bogdanovic (sore calf) became the latest to join.
The circumstances left Alec Burks as the starting point guard and the Knicks’ best offensive player after Brunson. It wasn’t a winning formula.
After Brunson’s early explosion lifted the Knicks to a 12-point lead, the bench — featuring Taj Gibson and Jacob Toppin — was a disaster. It was outscored by 20 points in about a six-minute stretch of the second quarter. The Knicks (33-22) never recovered.
“Yeah, you know, today was a rough one,” said Josh Hart, who scored just four points on 2 of 8 shooting. “I think it was just bodies are tired. … So we’re not going to put too much weight on these losses. You put any team out there in the league say, all right, take away four starters or six rotation guys, they’re going to struggle.”
Outside of Brunson, who was understandably hounded by the Magic, the Knicks shot just 38 percent. Orlando begged the other Knicks to score and nobody stepped up.
Precious Achiuwa was the lone other positive with 22 points and 14 rebounds. Burks, the new acquisition but old face from the Pistons, again shot miserably (5-for-16). He went 6-for-24 in his two games before the break.
The Knicks were outscored by 28 points in his 30 minutes Wednesday.
Thibodeau even waved the white flag early by removing Brunson for good with 8:21 left.
Banchero scored 36 points and ultimately shut up the Knicks fans invading the Kia Center.
The Magic (30-25) have won all three of their matchups this season against the Knicks, who are welcoming the All-Star break like Winnie the Pooh greets honey.
“You’re 50-some games into your season, so we’ll have 27 left after [Wednesday’s] game,” Thibodeau said. “The guys who have played, you get nicked up along the way, so I think it’s a welcome break from that standpoint. You get a chance to recharge, for everyone to recharge, and you’re headed down the stretch after.
“We have to hit the ground running. I’m proud of what our guys have done thus far to be able to withstand all the things that we’ve gone through from the heavy road schedule at the beginning, trades, injuries. But we’ve still got a long way to go and we’ve got to make sure we’re ready for what’s coming.”
The assumption is the eight-day rest will at least bring back DiVincenzo, Bogdanovic and Isaiah Hartenstein. The recovery timelines of Julius Randle, OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson are more dicey and unpredictable.
The Knicks need them ASAP.
