Jalen Brunson, Knicks Routed by Cooper Flagg, Mavs as NBA Fans Rip NY's Defense

The New York Knicks' defensive struggles continued on Monday as they dropped their fourth consecutive game.

The Knicks fell to the Dallas Mavericks 114-97 despite having star point guard Jalen Brunson back in the fold after missing a few games because of an ankle injury.

Brunson posted 22 points, and Karl-Anthony Towns added 22 points and 18 boards, but the main storyline was New York's sluggish defensive effort against a struggling Mavs team. The Knicks gave up 75 points in the first half alone, and it left them with too big a deficit to overcome.

Mavericks star rookie Cooper Flagg posted 18 points in the win.

After the loss, fans lamented yet another rough defensive outing for New York.

The Knicks had a top-10 defensive rating earlier this season when they won the NBA Cup, but their defensive rating now ranks 20th, per NBA.com. On the other hand, they have the third-best offensive rating this year, so if they can figure things out on the defensive end, they should be in good shape.

Still, New York is sitting in third place in the East at 25-18, so it's not quite time to panic.