LOS ANGELES — Let’s hope Kevin Durant wasn’t watching.
If Durant leaves Golden State, there’s belief he will choose between the Knicks and Clippers. And there’s no comparison who has the better pieces.
In their first meeting this season, the Clippers blew the Knicks out onto Figueroa Avenue in the first half, administering a mighty 128-107 Staples Center shellacking in a Sunday matinee horror show.
The Knicks were coming off a respectable 2-2 homestand and resumed their tanking ways 3,000 miles away in falling behind by as many as 38 points in the second quarter.
The Clippers built an 82-46 halftime lead on their way to delivering the Knicks their 50th loss of the season, which came in a spectacular fail.
The silver lining the Knicks (13-50) failed to break the franchise record of allowing 84 points in a first half. The Clippers got to 82 in a massacre even these Knicks had yet to absorb this season. That record 84-point first half also came in Los Angeles — against the Lakers in 1966 before the Clippers existed.
The Knicks allowed the Clippers to shoot 66.7 percent from 3-point range (14-of-21) in the first half, giving them plenty of space, as LA moved to 36-29.
They own the seventh seed in the West despite recently trading their best player, Tobias Harris.
New addition Landry Shamet, who used to burn the Knicks when he was with the Sixers, tore them up from deep in the first quarter. He made six of his first seven 3-pointers as the Knicks fell behind 32-12 with 2:00 left in the first period. Shamet finished with all 21 of his points coming in the first half.
Former Knicks lottery pick Danilo Gallinari kept getting his revenge for being included in the failed 2010 Carmelo Anthony trade as the Italian Stallion put up 15 points by intermission, hurting them from inside and outside, and wound up with 20 points, seven rebounds and four assists.
The Knicks were down 33 points midway through the second quarter. At one juncture, the Clippers were just toying with the Knicks. After a second consecutive Allonzo Trier turnover, Tyrone Wallace came down on a fast break and bypassed an easy layup to toss a circus alley-oop for JaMychal Green, but it got botched. Green finished with 11 of his 16 points in the first half.
The Knicks showed little emotion — except when coach David Fizdale called timeout with his team down 53-27 and Emmanuel Mudiay slammed the ball against the hardwood.
The Knicks tightened up their defense in the second half and cut the deficit to 21 points. Rookie center Mitchell Robinson came up with another solid outing and big block at the rim of the Clippers’ young stud Montrezl Harrell (18 points). Robinson finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds with four blocks.
The Knicks starters were out of their rhythm and scored a combined 48 points. Kevin Knox kept missing more shots (1-of-6, six points, zero assists) and starting point guard Dennis Smith Jr. put forth a dud (eight points, 3-of-10, 0-for-3 on 3-pointers). Trier was awful in the first half (five points, three turnovers) before coming on to finish with 16.
The LA matinee had a 12:30 p.m. tipoff, leading one to speculate whether the Knicks got enough bed rest after their Saturday night in Beverly Hills. It’s been unusually rainy in LA and it poured on them at Staples Center.
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