PORTLAND, Ore. — Five down, Kevin Durant to go.
Fresh off their beating the Lakers, the Knicks were beaten by the Blazers 111-101 Monday at Moda Center to fall to 1-4 on their six-game Western swing.
Now the Knicks complete their two-week marathon with the NBA champion Warriors and one last look at the superstar they’d love to land in July.
It will be the first chance for the Knicks lottery-pick rookie Kevin Knox to face Durant, who can become a free agent this offseason. Knox stumbled Monday with an 8-point outing on 1-of-6 shooting, ending his streak of 12 straight games scoring in double figures.
Knox missed the late-October Garden meeting against the Warriors with a sprained ankle when Durant erupted for 41 points. The Knicks were tied with the Warriors with eight minutes left before getting blown out 128-100.
“He’s my favorite player growing up so it would be nice to play against him and a championship team,’’ Knox told The Post. “It will be cool to play against him. My favorite player growing up, but we’re competing [Tuesday] so I’m going out with a different mindset. I’ll go out and do what I do.”
After folding in the second half against the Blazers, the Knicks fell to 10-30 overall and have lost 14 of their past 16 games.
Once headed straight to rock bottom, the Knicks are tied for the third-worst record in the NBA as the teams below them — the Suns, Cavs and Bulls — have outpaced them in futility.
Facing the Warriors (26-14) on the second night of a back-to-back to cap the long journey isn’t the sweetest of scenarios.
“For us, we can have two weeks to prepare for them and it’s one of those games we have to play perfect,’’ Knicks coach David Fizdale said. “We have to be mentally and physically prepared for these games no matter how the schedule shows up.’’
If Durant is going to strongly consider the Knicks, he will have to believe in Knox as his sidekick. And if Durant does come, Kristaps Porzingis will have to move to center.
Knicks owner James Dolan, in Las Vegas with the Rangers, commented for the first time on Knox.
“With kids, it’s all about development,’’ Dolan said. “One of our stars with the Knicks is a kid named Kevin Knox. He doesn’t turn 20 until [August]. That’s young. You can’t look at Kevin Knox and say that’s the player he’s going to be. It’s totally not the case. Kevin Knox could be a really great player, it depends on how well he’s developed, how much effort he puts in, what his level of concentration is, etcetera.”
With Porzingis not back until late February at the earliest, this season has been about the ups and downs of Knox and not the won-loss record. In fact, Dolan said, “if you’re talking about what I hear, sure, fans are telling me, with the Knicks, they’re saying, they don’t want us to win. They want us to get this kid out of Duke [Zion Williamson, the presumptive No. 1 pick).’’
Dolan, who attended the Knicks’ game — a rare victory — in Los Angeles, also mentioned that if the Knicks had a star such as the Rangers’ Henrik Lundqvist, they’d be in the playoffs. The indication is Dolan believes the Knicks are a playoff team with Porzingis healthy.
Early on, the Knicks looked like they’d be blown out of the City of Roses, falling behind 8-0 missing their first six shots. They recovered to lead much of the second quarter with a burst off the bench again from Mario Hezonja and the Knicks trailed just 54-53 at halftime.
After being buried on the bench recently, Hezonja arose Friday in the Lakers’ victory after being called upon late in the third quarter. Hezonja carried that momentum into Monday when he drove for a monster dunk and swished mid-range jumpers for 12 first-half points on 4-of-7 shooting.
But the Blazers pulled away in the third quarter starting with an 11-2 burst. After five passes in the frontcourt, C.J. McCollum knocked in an open 3 for a 63-55 lead.
The Knicks never got within single digits in the fourth. Enes Kanter led with 18 points and 14 rebounds and ex-Blazer Noah Vonleh added 16 points and 13 rebounds after receiving a rousing ovation during pregame introductions. Emmanuel Mudiay had a solid night with 17 points, seven assists, three steals and no turnovers, while Tim Hardaway Jr. had a horrid night scoring five points on 2-of-12 shooting.
The Blazers placed six players in double figures. Damian Lillard (17 points) and McCollum (17) combined for 34. Blazers’ European big man Jusuf Nurkic added 20 and Seth Curry 13.
Now the Knicks get Curry’s brother.
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