NEW YORK _ Michael Beasley has labeled himself many things. Among them: "A walking bucket," "Your favorite player's favorite player," and (paraphrased), "Just as talented as LeBron."
At least for one unpredictable night Thursday, Beasley lived up to his own hype.
With Kristaps Porzingis struggling through his worst game in the NBA and riding the bench for the final 17-plus minutes, Beasley took over and carried the Knicks to a 102-93 win over the East-leading Celtics.
Beasley, the enigmatic journeyman, earned "MVP" chants while scoring 32 points _ including 28 in the second half _ in his greatest Garden moment.
Porzingis returned from a two-game absence because of a sore knee and was dreadful, finishing with one point while missing all 11 of his field goal attempts.
He was subbed out for Beasley with 5:37 left in the third quarter, and that's when the Knicks took control. More specifically, that's when "Beas" took over. With trailing by nine, Beasley proceeded to score 10 points in five minutes and carrying the Knicks to a 68-68 draw going into the fourth quarter.
He was showered with 'MVP' chants while at the foul line in the third quarter, and then again after his jumper sealed the victory with 1:06 remaining. He shot 13 for 20 with a game-high 12 rebounds.
Porzingis never got off the bench after being subbed out for Beasley, who had started when the Latvian was injured but was a reserve Thursday.
"Mike knows his role. If KP's out he obviously gets the bigger minutes. I thought he played great in filling in for him. He really helped us get some points on the board," Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek said.
Beasley did more than help against the Celtics (26-9). He was the driving force behind New York's fifth consecutive home victory.
The Knicks (17-14) have won five of their last six games and are tied for sixth in the Eastern Conference. Enes Kanter, who a day earlier learned he is a criminal in Turkey for insulting his home country's president, had a double-double at the half and finished with 14 points and 10 boards.
Starting guards Corutney Lee and Jarrett Jack had 12 points apiece, but it was rookie Frank Ntilikina (eight points) who was on the court again down the stretch.
For Boston, which shot just 38 percent, Kyrie Irving dropped 32 points but did it inefficiently on 27 shots. The Knicks jumped out to a 14-point lead in the first quarter. It slowly dwindled to 2 by halftime.
The Celtics then took their biggest lead of the game (nine) in the third quarter. That's when Beasley checked in and everything changed.
