NEW YORK _ One of the franchise cornerstone was given the night off in the face of dwindling playoff hopes.
Detroit Pistons coach and franchise czar Stan Van Gundy talked openly of being more concerned with the team playing well and not worrying about results.
Yeah, Monday night turned out about the way you expected.
The New York Knicks (28-46), who waved the white flag on the season weeks ago, took control with a 15-0 run to start the second half and easily send the Pistons (35-40) to a 109-95 loss.
Despite the Pistons' seventh loss in eight games, they remain only 1 { games behind the Miami Heat for the Eastern Conference's eighth and final playoff spot.
But does anyone truly believe this team has a chance against the Heat when they visit the Palace on Tuesday night?
The Pistons couldn't guard Kristaps Porzingis (25 points) nor Carmelo Anthony (21 points) and the run to start the second half turned a 64-59 halftime lead into a 20-point advantage and another blowout loss for the Pistons during this horrific stretch.
Marcus Morris led the Pistons with 20 points before fouling out and Ish Smith added 15 points, six rebounds and five assists.
The Pistons had 20 turnovers. They are 1-7 in road games against the Knicks and Brooklyn Nets over last two seasons.
So many issues plague the Pistons as they hurtle toward a fateful offseason when they begin preparations in earnest to move downtown next regular season.
But they couldn't blame point guard Reggie Jackson on this night.
Twenty minutes before the opening tip, it was announced that Jackson was deactivated for rest reasons _ a stunning development considering Van Gundy's stated disdain for resting players late in the season.
But Jackson has struggled all season since missing the first 21 games of the season because of left knee tendinitis.
His numbers were solid (although the team struggled) the first two months of his return, but his game has fallen off a cliff since Feb. 1.
But when you consider the fact Jackson has three more years on the five-year, $80-million deal he signed in the summer of 2016, it makes for another disturbing issue when you ponder the franchise's future.
Van Gundy said after the shootaround Monday morning that he's more concerned with getting the team to playing well as the season ends _ whether the season ends in a postseason appearance or not.
A surprising admission when you consider job security ramifications.
"I have all the security I need for the rest of my life so I don't have any concern about that," Van Gundy said. "It's just we're trying to build something here and we haven't been playing the way we like to play. I think you look around, it's still a lot of young guys and we're still building and we've got to play the right way.
"On top of that, you don't control the results, but you do control the way you play. We want to play a lot better and then the results will take care of themselves if we play the way we want to play."
