The whole Knicks bench rose to its toes — and with it, the quantity inside Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Enviornment surged.
There have been simply over six minutes left within the second quarter of New York’s 113-104 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday, and the purest model of Knicks basketball below Mike Brown had simply unfolded.
Sixers ahead Justin Edwards attacked the rim, solely to be met midair by Guerschon Yabusele. The Knicks’ new backup forward-center — acquired to fill Valuable Achiuwa’s position — exploded off the bottom and erased the shot together with his 6-8, 270-pound body.
The ball ricocheted to Malcolm Brogdon, who pushed in transition with Jalen Brunson on one wing and Mikal Bridges on the opposite. Brogdon hit Brunson. Brunson hit Bridges. Bridges rifled it out to Karl-Anthony Cities — then bought it again to punctuate the sequence with an uncontested two-handed dunk.
It was a 46–31 Knicks lead — and the clearest early glimpse of Brown’s imaginative and prescient coming to life.
Brown needs the Knicks to play quick. He needs ball motion, flooring spacing, stress protection and natural reads over inflexible units. He needs unpredictability — an offense that pulls from his time in each Sacramento and Golden State.
To date, so good.
These are usually not the Knicks of previous. And whereas they nonetheless have a protracted street to turning into a real title contender, the muse for a stylistic shift is already seen — not simply in offensive tempo, however in id.
“I thought we played good. We could be better out there,” stated Bridges, who completed an ideal 4-of-4 from the sphere for 10 factors. “We were fouling a lot. But we just got to keep learning. It’s preseason. We’re stacking days. I think we did alright.”
It’s a welcomed evolution, although actual rising pains are inevitable as soon as the Knicks face absolutely stocked opponents.
The Sixers once more held out Joel Embiid and Paul George, each nursing lingering accidents. Josh Hart was additionally unavailable for New York after struggling again spasms in Thursday’s opener.
OG Anunoby made his preseason debut after lacking Recreation 1 with a sprained hand and instantly made his presence felt. He drilled three of his 5 threes, totaled 13 factors, and delivered a lob to Mitchell Robinson for a dunk in visitors.
Robinson, who had 16 rebounds in 18 minutes within the opener, continues to play a featured position in Brown’s system. He posted six factors and eight boards in slightly below 14 minutes Saturday and appears poised to tackle extra offensive accountability this season after shouldering play-making duties in spurts within the opener.
Brunson additionally bounced again from his preseason debut, the place he shot 2-of-8 from the sphere. He scored 14 factors on 5-of-10 taking pictures in opposition to Philly, including two assists and two steals.
As in Recreation 1, Brown restricted his starters’ minutes — nobody performed greater than 17. Evaluate that to final preseason, when Tom Thibodeau performed Bridges 31 minutes and each different starter not less than 23 in Recreation 2.
Minutes aren’t the one change. The philosophy has shifted. The ball is transferring extra, even when the help totals haven’t absolutely caught up. The Knicks had been credited with simply 16 assists in Saturday’s win, however the eye take a look at confirmed clear indicators of a extra dynamic offense.
“Just new system and learning it and learning our players, our concepts and trying to make the right read,” stated Bridges. “Not thinking just playing basketball.”
The Knicks now return to Madison Sq. Backyard, the place they’ll host the Timberwolves, Wizards and Hornets to shut out the preseason.
Quickly, the take a look at run shall be over. Brown’s blueprint is taking form — and the Backyard is about to get its first actual look.
TRADE CANDIDATES
Brogdon, who helped ignite the Knicks’ signature sequence in Recreation 2, stays a veteran level guard on a non-guaranteed deal. If the Knicks plan to maintain each Brogdon and Landry Shamet on the opening evening roster, they’ll have to make a transfer — seemingly by buying and selling a participant on the again finish of the rotation.
Probably the most possible candidates: second-year execs Pacome Dadiet and Tyler Kolek.
Dadiet began in Anunoby’s place within the preseason opener however went 0-for-5 from three. In Saturday’s Abu Dhabi finale, he got here off the bench, missed his solely discipline purpose try and picked up two fouls in 9 minutes of motion.
Kolek was aggressive however inefficient, ending with 4 factors on eight shot makes an attempt. He did, nevertheless, flash his potential with a robust defensive sequence within the second half.
LONG SHOT
One other coaching camp invitee, Garrison Mathews, faces lengthy odds of creating the opening evening roster — however the sharpshooter is benefiting from his audition. Mathews shot 3-of-4 from past the arc in his preseason debut, then added 9 extra factors on 2-of-4 taking pictures from deep in Recreation 2.
