The reigning NBA Champion New York Knicks (saying that will never get old) haven’t lost in the month of November so far. They picked up wins against Chicago and Cleveland since the last publication of The Big Apple.
Jalen Brunson was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week on Monday after averaging 27.7 points and 6.3 assists per game last week. His 31-pont performance against the Cavaliers on Saturday had a four minute and 24 second stretch where the Knicks captain scored 18 straight points.
Brunson’s counterpart, Karl-Anthony Towns, has also been on a tear this season, posting a double-double in all nine games the team has played. After the 0-3 start, the Knicks have won five out of its last six games, and it couldn’t have been done without Towns.
The biggest Knicks news throughout the past week came from off the court. Backup point guard Tyler Kolek made some hefty remarks regarding Taylor Swift. Kolek said that Swift is one of the “fakest” celebrity fans that the team has and calls her a “performative” Knicks fan. He stated that he’d never seen the mogul at any other Knicks games besides Game 4 of the NBA Finals, where New York came back from 29 points down to defeat San Antonio.
Kolek quickly found himself in hot water after his comments. He issued an apology later to clear the air, or maybe in this case, shake it off with Swift. Knicks guard Jordan Clarkson put out a video on Instagram of Kolek singing along to Swift’s song “Blank Space,” captioned “He’s a Swiftie.”
“Taylor Swift has been a Knicks fan for many years, has a long history with Madison Square Garden, and we are incredibly appreciative of her support of the organization,” a Knicks spokesperson told PEOPLE in a statement.
Shifting over to the first-place team in the NFC East, the New York Giants improved their record to 5-2-1 after defeating the Philadelphia Eagles by a score of 19-11. It is the first time the Giants beat the Eagles on the road since 2013.
JJ McCarthy picked up his sixth straight win as a starting quarterback, both with Minnesota and New York, which makes it the longest active streak in the NFL. Impressively enough, McCarthy became the first quarterback to win four straight starts without a passing touchdown in 40 years.
On the defensive side of the ball, rookie Arvell Reese dominated the entire game, sacking Eagles quarterback Joe Milton three times, including an unreal hit which forced a fumble that New York recovered. On top of the sacks, he finished the game with a team-high 12 tackles. The fifth pick of this year’s draft is now the current favorite to win Defensive Rookie of the Year.
The Giants take on division rival Washington on Thursday night. Winning that game would be the first time since 2007 that New York defeated every team in the NFC East in the same season.
After Washington, the schedule tightens up as the Giants host Jacksonville, a matchup recently flexed to a 4:25 p.m. kickoff, before wrapping up November on the road against the Indianapolis Colts. That trip to Indianapolis feels like a true must-win before a brutal gauntlet against San Francisco, Seattle, Cleveland and Detroit.