Could Steve Cohen be the reason for Knicks' fourth quarter collapse?

Could Steve Cohen be the reason for Knicks' fourth quarter collapse? originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here .

Many know about the New York Knicks ' loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Monday after blowing a 12-point lead in the fourth quarter. A big reason had to do with a throwback performance from CJ McCollum, who poured in 33 points, but what if the loss didn't have to do with anything with how the Knicks played during the stretch, but about who was in attendance? New York Mets owner Steve Cohen was courtside at the game Monday night, and fans cited his presence as a possible reason for the Knicks' collapse.

The correlation goes beyond the "New York curse" fans have claimed their sports teams suffer from, as the Mets are currently on an 11-game losing streak. A slow start to the season had to be the last thing on Cohen's mind, considering he has spent over $1 billion over the past four seasons to get them competing at the highest level. More : Should this response from KAT concern Knicks fans for remainder of playoffs?

While Cohen clearly didn't have a direct impact on the Knicks losing home-court advantage in their first-round playoff series against Atlanta, it definitely is not a good look. The only good thing about this situation is that both the Knicks and the Mets have time to turn their current circumstances around. For the Knicks, it has to happen almost immediately, as they can't afford to lose more than three games in the next five, with the next two on the road against a red-hot Hawks team.