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Thunder give the Knicks the worst Christmas defeat in NBA history, winning 123-94

The New York Knicks have been a major disappointment this season. After an impressive second-place finish in the East during the 2012-13 regular season, they started 9-19 and were riddled with injuries, embarrassing moments and their usual dose of poor explanations and bad PR. After all of these negative aspects, however, it's possible that the Knicks' season hit a new low during their Christmas game against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Madison Square Garden.

Against one of the top teams in the West without the ailing Carmelo Anthony, the Knicks suffered a brutal 123-194 defeat, which is considered the worst home defeat in the history of NBA Christmas games, as in this ESPN graphic:

Somehow the score doesn't convey the full extent of the Thunder's loss to the Knicks. The stats help a little: OKC shot 53.6 percent from the field and 54.2 percent from beyond the three-point line, allowed assists on 32 of 45 field goals, held the Knicks to 42.2 percent shooting, and had the game well under control early in the fourth quarter. Russell Westbrook posted an effortless triple-double with 14 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists in just 29 minutes; Kevin Durant and Serge Ibaka combined for 53 points on 20 of 30 field goals; and all 12 Thunder players finished the game with a positive plus-minus record.

The video reveals even more. In addition to Beno Udrih's three-pointer from the side of the backboard and the subsequent sleeve pull, Reggie Jackson served up a vicious posterization to Amar'e Stoudemire, a player who used to do this to his opponents on a regular basis (via Beyond the Buzzer):

To end the celebrations on a happy note, the fans in attendance booed JR Smith (20 points on 8 of 22 shooting and a score of -32 in 38 minutes) as he left the field with 4:04 minutes left in the game (via Ben Golliver).

It was just one of many boos during those 48 regrettable minutes. This game was truly the money in every Knicks fan's stocking.

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Eric Freeman

is an author for Ball doesn’t lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!

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