Knicks 116, Heat 95: Dominant today = dangerous later?
It was more winning time for the Knicks, while for the Heat zeroes abound
The Knicks returned home after an extended west coast trip which saw them lose superstar point guard Jalen Brunson to a sprained ankle. Last night’s game was their fifth straight without him, having split the first four, against a Miami Heat team that while in freefall – seven straight losses entering the game – has given the Knicks problems in the past.
That trend appeared to continue when the Knicks quickly went down 9-0. They struggled to generate any offense in the halfcourt, clearly missing Brunson, while the Heat got hot shooting from Duncan Robinson and played their trademark aggressive defense. New York found itself down 29-18 at the end the first quarter, then 13 in the second. And then Karl-Anthony Towns happened.
With rugged drives to the rim, hot 3-point shooting and sheer determination and skill, KAT willed the Knicks to a 33-31 lead after a personal 15-0 run. Miami would recover and maintain a slight lead most of the half. The Knicks tightened up their defense as well, as Deuce McBride, OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges generated steals and got out in transition, mitigating some of the creation issues they’ve faced. Precious Achiuwa, always an adventure on offense, provided very strong defense against Bam Adebayo. At halftime the Knicks trailed by two.
Towns’ scoring binge changed the game for the Knicks, but the second half belonged to a couple of Villanova Wildcats. After a quiet first half in which he only took five shots, Bridges got going with a pick-and-roll with Towns leading to a baby fadeaway. Clearly energized, he forced a turnover on the next possession, then Towns fould him with a gorgeous pass for an easy finish after Bridges slipped an inverted. Bridges scored 15 in the third, matching Miami’s total, and the Knicks took over. Suffocating defense forced the Heat to continue turning the ball over and Mitchell Robinson once again showed how badly the Knicks missed him, his rim protection, deterrence, and rebounding; Anunoby, Bridges and Josh Hart flying around the passing lanes; and McBride heating up the ball.
After Bridges’ initial flurry, it would be Hart in particular who drove the team forward, stuffing the stat sheet as he only can. Coming off of one of his worst performances in a Knick uniform (0 points on 0-7 shooting), he finished with 12 points, 13 rebounds, 11 assists, four steals and a block. Even the long ball was falling (2-of-5) for a player who’s struggled massively from deep for months. It was Hart’s eighth triple-double of the season, tying Walt Frazier’s single-season team record. With fifteen games remaining and Hart taking on an even bigger role in Brunson’s absence, that record isn’t safe!
By the end of the third, the Knicks were up 24 (in a game they once trailed by 13), and even ESPN’s incessant reminders that they’re 0-5 against Cleveland and Boston weren’t enough to dim the performance on display. The fourth quarter was academic, with the only suspense being how many minutes of playing time Pacôme Dadiet and Tyler Kolek would get (answer: three, which in Thibs-speak was a testament to the level of dominance his team achieved). The Knicks cruised to a 116-95 victory. Perhaps most encouraging was the level they reached in the second and third quarters – on both ends.
Notes
Over the last 10 games, the Knicks rank second in defensive rating, trailing only potential first-round opponent Detroit. Some may point to Brunson’s absence, but he was far from the Knicks’ biggest issue earlier in the season on defense. Robinson’s return and better cohesion team-wide seem to be the driving factors. One can point to the fact that Miami has struggled massively since the Jimmy Butler trade, but the Knicks just held the Golden State Warriors, one of the league’s hottest teams since the Butler trade, to 97 points. Before that they held the Lakers to 99. It may not mean much against Cleveland or Boston, but it does look like this team is turning a corner on defense.
And just in time, because the offense goes through plenty of ugly stretches. Still, if only slowly, it appears the Knicks are figuring out how to survive life without Brunson. Towns is still capable of getting a bucket whenever needed, and the Knicks are incrementally getting Bridges more involved on-ball. Moreover, they seem to have figured out that sometimes your best offense is defense. With Mitch back, the Knicks suddenly have an awful lot of length; against the Heat there was a clear, concerted effort to force steals. Anunoby did his patented Reed Richards impression multiple times, simply snatching the ball from a help position away from a defender, and the rest of the wings tormented Miami and pushed the ball in transition. Even the Robinson-Precious minutes, a necessity with Ariel Hukporti out, are manageable in this regard. The Knicks can win the possession battle with offensive rebounding and forcing turnovers while getting some cheap fast break buckets.
It was nice to see a different Knick step up each of the last three quarters to lead the way. In the second it was Towns. When you’re in an offensive rut, sometimes you need a guy to just get you a bucket, and Towns did all that and more. Indefatigable on drives against a physical front line, Towns was also very aggressive pulling up from three (more, please!) — crucial given how inept the Knicks’ offense and spacing looked before that. In the third, Bridges got hot and it fueled his defense. Tom Thibodeau noted earlier this week that Bridges needs to figure out how to be more aggressive within the offense, and while he has a point, it’s clear that getting Bridges more involved has a spillover effect on the rest of the team on both ends. He is also starting to develop some nice chemistry with Towns in the screen-and-roll game. Late in the third going into the fourth, Bridges’ Villanova bestie Hart imposed his will. Elementally speaking, it’s as if Towns laid the foundation (earth) by keeping the Knicks in the game; Bridges’ willowy scoring forays pushed them forward into a position to sail (wind), and Hart’s tenacity and energy (fire) fueled a relentless effort the Knicks did not let up. It’s been talked about quite a bit, but while the Brunson injury makes the Knicks worse, if the other guys can build confidence and chemistry out of necessity in big roles with Brunson out, it makes the Knicks all the more dangerous in the playoffs.
