INDIANAPOLIS — Karl-Anthony Cities sat at his locker, legs submerged in an ice bathtub, his expression as chilly as the bathtub.
The Knicks had simply dropped their third sport in 4 outings, outscored 40-27 within the fourth quarter of a 132-121 loss to the Pacers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Sunday. For Cities, these early-season losses weren’t straightforward to shrug off.
The Knicks’ All-Star heart is a 10-year NBA veteran who final season helped lead the Minnesota Timberwolves to the Western Convention Finals. This loss — all of them, for that matter — stung as a result of he’d discovered throughout final 12 months’s deep playoff run simply how essential each sport is, even these early within the season that — on the floor — may appear inconsequential.
“I know when we were in Game 80, 81, 82 last season against the [Phoenix] Suns, we looked back at Game 1, Game 4—you looked back at the ones you gave away,” Cities mentioned. “It could have put you in a better position for the No. 1 seed, No. 2 seed, No. 3 seed, or to give us a chance to choose our destiny. That’s why I’m disappointed. Experience has taught me a lot. This is just as important as Game 82. And we didn’t come out with a win, and that’s what’s so disappointing to me.”
Sunday’s loss revealed acquainted points for the Knicks: street struggles and fourth-quarter collapses.
Permitting a 40-27 surge within the closing body is way from championship type, significantly for a group intent on strengthening its protection round wing stoppers OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges.
The offense, in contrast, held up its finish, scoring 121 factors regardless of making solely seven threes on 25 makes an attempt. The protection, nonetheless, fell brief. Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton (35 factors, 14 assists) and Bennedict Mathurin (38 factors on 7-of-9 from three) each had profession nights, marking the primary time two Pacers gamers have scored 35 factors in the identical sport. This explosion was particularly painful given the Pacers have been with out starters Aaron Nesmith and Andrew Nembhard, in addition to sixth man and former Knick, Obi Toppin.
“We have to be strong on both sides of the ball,” mentioned head coach Tom Thibodeau. “If we’re just going to rely on offense, we’re not going to be a good team. The fourth quarter is different. We’ve got to treat it differently. We understand how hard we have to play, and we have to do better.”
Thibodeau highlighted the group’s largest problem: defending the three-point line. Indiana shot 21-of-46 from deep, a scorching 45.7 p.c, and hit 12 of these within the second half alone. The Knicks’ incapability to problem these pictures successfully allowed the Pacers to outpace them, significantly within the clutch.
Indiana shot 8-of-13 from downtown within the fourth quarter alone, together with 4 made 3s within the closing 3:13 of regulation.
“If we don’t challenge shots, they’re going to make them,” Thibodeau added. “Too big of a discrepancy from the three-point line—they made 21, we made 7. That’s a problem. We scored 121, shot 55 percent [from the floor], got to the line a lot, out-rebounded them, but didn’t cover the three-point line. So we’ve got to fix it, and we’ve got to fix it fast.”
However how? How do the Knicks repair their three-point protection?
A giant a part of it, each Thibodeau and Cities famous, begins with transition protection, which regularly units up opponents for open appears on the perimeter. Whereas the Knicks felt assured of their half-court protection, Indiana’s pace on the break allowed them to fireside off 3s at a excessive clip and with confidence.
“We’ve gotta be better with transition defense,” mentioned Cities. “That allowed them the 3s that got ‘em going, that got ‘em confident in the three-ball early on—especially those transition 3s. We did a good job playing defense when we got them in a half-court set, making them take tough shots. But the transition game got ‘em going, and it hurt us again when we needed stops.”
Thibodeau echoed Cities’ considerations, pointing to communication as the muse of a simpler protection. The Knicks are nonetheless adjusting to new faces after offseason trades introduced in Bridges and Cities, and with that comes a studying curve.
“We just weren’t together,” mentioned Jalen Brunson, who completed with a season-high 33 factors. “I had a couple of plays in the first half where I just fell asleep. And it doesn’t look like a big thing then, but when you look at all the little mistakes, it adds up. That could’ve been a closer game, could’ve been a win. We’ve just got to stick together on that side of the ball.”
There’s additionally a necessity for situational consciousness, particularly when dealing with a group just like the Pacers that lives and dies by the three.
“Everyone has to be moving on the flight of the ball,” mentioned Thibodeau. “You have to be there on the catch. And you get two guys running to one, then you’re leaving someone wide open. In general, the communication has to be a lot better, especially against a team that can put points on the board.”
Josh Hart agreed, noting that the Pacers’ offensive move means any defensive lapse is rapidly punished.
A high-powered Knicks offense should rapidly deliver simply as a lot power to its protection, in any other case there shall be extra gamers like Cities on the finish of the season: stone-faced within the locker room after a loss, questioning what may have been had they not given away early-season video games they need to have gained.
“If you have one [defensive] breakdown, [the Pacers] find it, they get in the lane, they drive-kick, and they’ve got shooters all over the place,” mentioned Hart. “We’ve got to communicate better. We’re not even 10 games in. We’re going to figure it out.”
“They’re all tough,” added Cities. “Any one you lose is tough.”
Initially Revealed: November 10, 2024 at 8:09 PM EST
