Kristian Winfield: Anfernee Simons scores 21 off bench in Knicks' 2nd loss to 76ers

Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News on Oct 30, 2026

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Moments after the Knicks picked up their first victory of the season — a 111-97 victory over the Detroit Pistons that came four games too late — head coach Mike Brown said his team, briefly, addressed a critical issue: for one night, they paid attention to the player on the opposing team’s bench who had the hot hand entering the night.

Only two nights earlier, Tristan da Silva and Anthony Black combined to pour in 37 points off the Orlando Magic bench in an Oct. 25 victory at Madison Square Garden. Neemias Queta scored 15 points in 22 minutes off the Boston Celtics’ bench on Oct. 23.

And then came Anfernee Simons, who scored 13 points off the bench on 50% shooting from the field in the Knicks’ Ring Night loss to the 76ers.

Simons poured in another 21 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field to hand the Knicks their fourth loss in six games to start their 2026-27 campaign as defending NBA champions.

Coincidentally, he is the fourth opposing player in the Knicks’ first six games to score 15 or more points off the bench.

And as a result, the Knicks missed an opportunity to get even against the team that spoiled their banner-hanging ceremony to start the season. The 76ers — without All-Star acquisition and ex-Celtics Finals MVP Jaylen Brown — defeated the Knicks, 98-93, on Halloween Eve.

The loss even further cements the 76ers as on the same level as the reigning champions in the aftermath of the pair of moves — signing LeBron James and trading for Brown — that have essentially vaulted Philadelphia into title contention.

The Knicks are now 0-2 against their biggest competition, and Friday’s loss dropped them to a 2-4 record.

“I don’t look it as a statement game. It’s the next game in front of us,” Mike Brown said ahead of tipoff. “Obviously, it’s a [NBA] Cup game and you always want to push yourself to have an opportunity to try and win something. This means taking a step toward that goal.

“But I just want to get a little better every time we play. These guys really hurt us in transition last game. Our transition defense right now stinks. But it’s gotten a little better. Tonight, it will be tested. Obviously Jaylen is not playing and he’s one of the best in transition. You look at little things and you hope to get better at the little things while getting a win.”

Jalen Brunson finished with 24 points on 8-of-23 shooting from the field and 3-of-10 shooting from 3-point range to go with six assists and five rebounds. Karl-Anthony Towns added 22 points on 8-of-15 shooting, 12 rebounds and three assists, and Mikal Bridges finished with 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the field.

The Knicks got 16 combined points from OG Anunoby (nine) and Josh Hart (seven), and 19 points from their bench.

Tyrese Maxey scored 25 points on 10-of-19 shooting, and James flirted with a triple double but finished one rebound and two dimes shy (20 points, nine rebounds, eight assists).

Next up: The Knicks have a chance to get back into the win column with back-to-back matchups against the Brooklyn Nets and Chicago Bulls. They then face a gauntlet of playoff contenders, including two games against the Cleveland Cavaliers, three games against the Indiana Pacers, two games against the Toronto Raptors, and one-offs against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Portland Trail Blazers and Atlanta Hawks before December.