Friday night in Philadelphia, the New York Knicks led briefly in the opening and closing minutes. They trailed the rest of the game, falling 98-93 to the 76ers. Some losses feel unlucky, even undeserved. This was not one of those losses. In a game featuring players who can feel proud and those who shouldn't, let's review who did how.

Mikal Bridges: A-

This grade is less about how well Bridges played last night and more about how well he played last night versus the rest of the season. Entering the Sixer game, Bridges has been the most X Knick of the early going. Pick your adjective: Baffling? Disappointing? Infuriating? All apply. Bridges hasn't struggled to make an impact so far so much as he's failed to look interested in doing so.

So by his own standards to this point, Friday night was a breakout performance, if only because Bridges finally broke out and did things. Five baskets? A season-high. Two offensive rebounds? Season-high. Three steals? More than he had the first five games combined. Five deflections? A team-high.

If there were a fossil record of Friday night's game, Bridges would appear in it. That's not something you could say most of the prior five. One maddening consistency you'd like to see him shake: the free-throw attempts, or lack thereof. In 165 minutes so far, he's yet to get to the line.

Karl-Anthony Towns: B

Another efficient shooting night for KAT: 22 points on 15 shots. Another dozen rebounds. Another double-double, his sixth in six games. A season-low two turnovers. Only the point guards had more assists. Besides him, the only other Knick to block a shot was Jordan Clarkson. Another night where he did a little bit of everything, none of it enough.

Outside of the Detroit game, Towns has yet to really dominate this year. Maybe he's in a permanent state of Zen after last year's playoffs. Maybe he hasn't extended his wings because the Knicks haven't extended his contract, and cut off talks unilaterally. Towns' play last night was a microcosm of his season so far: he's giving more than most of his teammates, but you know there's more there to give.

Andre Drummond: B-

A rebound every other minute, half of them offensive? That's Drummond's job description to a tee. At the moment, he appears to be the only backup big man the Knicks have any faith in.

Tyler Kolek: B-

An assist every three minutes? That's Kolek's job description. He gets dinged a little for his first two turnovers of the season. And the Knicks may be starting to miss Jose Alvarado's point-of-attack defense, which is not and will never be a strength of Kolek's.

Miles McBride: B-

McBride reached double-digits in scoring for just the second time this season. He also grabbed three offensive rebounds, a pleasant surprise.

Jordan Clarkson: B-

Clarkson didn't play in the first half, but brought positive energy in the second. Maybe Mike Brown likes what he's been seeing of late; Clarkson's played more minutes the past two games than he did the first four. He's certainly a feistier on-ball defender than any currently available Knickerbocker.

Jalen Brunson: C

A mixed bag for the captain. He hit the three-pointer with 90 seconds left in the fourth quarter to give the Knicks their only lead since early in the first quarter. He made as many free throws as the rest of his teammates. If the Knicks had held on and won, today everyone would be writing about the never-say-die quality that separates Brunson—and his team—from the pack.

But Brunson, similar to Towns, hasn't really shone this season. Outside of the prior game in Chicago, he's yet to look like the Brunson we're used to seeing. Maybe the wrist he had offseason surgery on isn't 100%. Maybe he's still shaking off rust that gathers unavoidably after an offseason spent celebrating a championship.

Maybe this is what it looks like when the other 29 teams all circle their games on the calendar against Brunson's. Or maybe when you're used to epic sunsets night after night, the occasional cloudy sky feels foreign.

There's no reason for concern, much less panic. Just the odd truth that nearly two weeks into the season, the Knicks' two-best players have rarely looked like who we know they're capable of being.

Josh Hart: C

Not a bad game by Hart, but not a good one, either. Normally this can be a tough match-up for him, given the size of the Sixer frontcourt, but with Jaylen Brown out with a knee injury things might have been a bit easier. They weren't.

OG Anunoby: C-

The beauty of Anunoby is he's entirely capable of winning a game for his team in all kinds of ways: bombing away from three-point land, going all Revis Island and locking down the other team's best scorer—regardless of size, skill or position—or occasionally flying in for historic last-second tip-in follows. So for him to get a C- means everything had to kind of go wrong, on both ends.

Everything kinda did.

Maybe it's the matchup? In four games against not the 76ers, he's scored 19.5 points a game; in two with Philly he's scored 19 total. Last night was the first game he's failed to score in double-figures. And the first where he didn't get to the free-throw line. And the first where he couldn't get the big stop when needed, with LeBron James hitting a fadeaway over OG after Brunson put New York ahead.

The Knicks acquired Anunoby in the 2024 season. He had a plus-rating his first 23 games as a Knick. This season he's been a negative in five of six games. He's never had a stretch like that since coming to New York.

Those numbers are often more about the team than the individual. But even before they added Towns, it was the OG trade that saw the Knicks level up. He may not be the biggest reason they rise or fall, but he's the barometer, the canary in the coal mine, the whatever metaphor you like.

As OG goes, so too, generally, do the Knicks. When one gets rolling, the other usually is, too. So far, neither has. At what point do the Knicks finally dust off Mohamed Diawara?

Landry Shamet: D

In 16 minutes Shamet had the game Bridges has been having all season. No points. No rebounds. No assists. His only categories with crooked numbers were missed shots and turnovers. Shamet is a pro, though. He'll likely use those numbers to fuel a better effort Monday against the Nets.