Who Deserves the Most Blame for New York Knicks' Epic Game 2 Meltdown vs. Atlanta Hawks?

The New York Knicks lost homecourt advantage in their first-round series on Monday night, thanks to a late-game collapse and 107-106 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.

The Knicks took the game's first lead when Karl-Anthony Towns hit a two just over a minute into the first quarter. And they didn't relinquish it for the next 45 minutes of game time.

They entered the fourth quarter with a 12-point lead.

With just under eight minutes left in the game, they had a nine-point lead and a 97.1 percent win probability. Their win probability was still at 95.7 percent with just over five minutes left.

But the Hawks closed the game on a 15-6 run, knotted the series at a game apiece and are headed back to Atlanta with a chance to take control.

So, who's most to blame for the collapse? Let's point some fingers.

5. Karl-Anthony Towns

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It's hard to fault a big man for a lack of involvement, especially if he's playing alongside a ball-dominant guard like Jalen Brunson.

But from a pure production standpoint, KAT simply had to provide more during the fourth-quarter onslaught from the Hawks.

He played eight minutes in that final frame, went 0-of-2 from the field, didn't score a single point, didn't grab a single rebound, didn't throw an assist and didn't collect a steal or block.

Towns could not have been much closer to invisible, and your second-leading scorer just cannot allow that to happen.

Again, there is some blame to be laid at the feet of Brunson and head coach Mike Brown for this, but KAT has to be more assertive, vocal or both.

4. Jalen Brunson

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Brunson deserves some credit for sort of stemming the tide in the fourth. He scored 10 of New York's 15 points in that frame. He hit two crucial threes in the final minute that kept the Knicks alive after it looked like CJ McCollum (with a pull-up jumper) and Nickeil Alexander-Walker (with a steal) had buried them.

But Brunson's almost extreme ball-dominance was also part of what bogged New York's offense down. He's often an incredible scorer, particularly in the clutch, but he has a tendency to play with a little tunnel vision. And when he's pounding the ball, it's easy for his teammates to become a little disconnected.

All told, Brunson finished with 29 points, but he was 10-of-26 from the field and didn't have a single assist in the fourth quarter.

If the Knicks are going to bounce back, he'll have to do a better job of keeping defenders on their toes and making them think he could shoot or pass.

The predictability cost him dearly down the stretch on Monday, when he gave the ball up, immediately ran to his receiver to get it back and then got picked clean by NAW, who keyed a fast break and stretched Atlanta's lead to four with 10 seconds to play.

3. Mikal Bridges

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This analysis is going to sound similar to what you read on KAT, but Mikal Bridges may have been about as absent in the fourth if not for his role in New York's final possession.

For the entire fourth quarter, he had zero points on 0-of-3 shooting, dished one assist and had one steal.

But his final frame is going to be a little more memorable because of the way it ended.

After CJ McCollum missed a pair of free throws that could've extended Atlanta's lead to three with just under six seconds to play, Josh Hart outletted to Bridges, who put his head down, dribbled along the sideline and put up a contested, side-floating, mid-range jumper that came up short.

In fairness to Bridges, there wasn't really a great option for a pass. Brunson was streaking down the opposite sideline, with three Hawks between he and Bridges. Hart was trailing, but there wouldn't have been much time for him to make a play, and Atlanta looked to be in pretty good position to collapse on his catch.

But the result of the play was a tough shot for a player who clearly wasn't in rhythm.

And had Bridges managed to make more of an impact on either end before those final couple minutes, New York wouldn't have needed him to hit a tough game-winner anyway.

2. Mike Brown

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Mike Brown entered this season under a microscope.

He's coaching one of the most famous franchises in the league. He's in the league's biggest media market. He's following Tom Thibodeau, who just took the Knicks to their first conference finals since 2000 and was promptly fired for it.

And he's playing for an owner in James Dolan who apparently expects to win the Finals this year.

An early flameout under these conditions is going to look terrible. And if it happens this round, it'll be easy to look back on this Game 2.

As noted by The Athletic's Fred Katz, his timeout management was, at best, questionable.

His rotations were confusing too.

Brown also has to find some way to draw more imaginative offense out of his team and point guard. It's just far too predictable when possessions in the clutch amount to little more than Brunson dribbling for most of the shot clock before forcing up a tough shot.

Those possessions will sometimes end with spectacular makes, but there's a cost to the team in terms of engagement. On Monday, it hurt their efficiency too.

It's up to Brown to get his players to buy into a more dynamic attack that gets others like Towns, Bridges and OG Anunoby more involved.

1. Atlanta Hawks

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It's easy to pin the blame for a game like that on the losing team, and all the Knicks above deserve it.

But we can't leave this space without sending some credit the Hawks' way. Their defense was connected and suffocating in the fourth quarter. CJ McCollum's shotmaking was absurd down the stretch. Jonathan Kuminga may have had his best moment with Atlanta, playing the entire fourth and going 3-of-4 from the field in those final 12 minutes.

The Hawks are understandably the underdogs, but there's a lot of talent on this team. It went 18-2 over a stretch from mid-February to early April. It has one of the most productive and well-rounded forwards in the league in Jalen Johnson and the presumptive Most Improved Player in Nickeil Alexander-Walker.

On Monday, Atlanta proved that it can absolutely steal this series. And it now has a chance to take a commanding lead at home.