Knicks 118, Jazz 111: “Not today.”
The Knicks came out inspired — whether for Tom Thibodeau’s sake, Julius Randle’s sake, or perhaps just their own sakes — and upset the Utah Jazz to start their five-game west coast swing.
“There is only one God, and his name is Death, and there is only one thing we say to Death: ‘Not today.’”
The Knicks flew to Salt Lake City in the most precarious of positions. The seat their head coach sits upon is scalding hot, and the book on their season is approaching a fast landing before it really even got a chance to leave the runway. What will happen if the Knicks’ front office decides this season is no longer consequential? Fire Tom Thibodeau? Probably. But what next? Who would get traded? Julius Randle called a team meeting, determined to put those talks on the back burner. Was it successful? Let’s dive in.
Coming out with a vengeance
From the opening tip, the Knicks looked determined to prove they were not the team many saw at the world’s most famous arena Sunday afternoon. After giving up 145 points in regulation to the lowly Oklahoma City Thunder, the Knicks came out last night flying. Rotations were sharper, and energy, across the board, was easily discernible.
The Jazz, who entered the season as premier members of the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes, have surprisingly turned into one of the league’s most efficient and entertaining offenses. Boasting a five-out offense predicated on man movement with an abundance of screens, the Jazz were set up to exploit the Knicks’ biggest defensive issue; defending the 3-point line.
But Thibodeau had the guys prepared. Or maybe Randle’s meeting did. Who even knows at this point? Regardless, the Knicks were fighting for each possession. It was sometimes ugly, but the Knicks never trailed by more than seven points and were very clearly in the game the entire way. Thibodeau himself came prepared with a noticeable adjustment, reducing the Knicks’ rotation down to nine players and adjusting his substitution pattern so that there was more staggering of lineups.
While certain aspects of the game looked different, the Knicks’ formula to staying in it and ultimately leading at halftime was a familiar one; the starters treaded water only for the bench to come in and take control. When both Immanuel Quickley and Obi Toppin entered the game for the first time, the Knicks trailed. When both exited the game for the first time, the Knicks led. At this point you can almost set your watch to it. After a Jalen Brunson buzzer beater, the Knicks headed into halftime with a 61-58 lead.
Immanuel Quickley and Cam Reddish
Knick fans should take note, because these two are rapidly becoming a two-way force as a tandem. The results aren’t always there, but there is a noticeable synergy growing between them. There were multiple instances of the two executing off-ball switches, or sliding together as if attached to the same string, in a way reminiscent of the peak Warriors in 2016. Reddish and Quickley were the Knicks’ best and most impactful players last night and it started on the defensive end, where both were consistently leaving their mark.
Quickley has become a bit of an enigma to me. Not the player himself, but the way the perception of the player impacts how he is viewed and valued. Quickley is the ultimate symbol for why you shouldn’t judge a book by his cover. Because, while he certainly looks the part of a microwave scorer, he is anything but that. Quickley is an elite defender, and his rebounding is not too far behind. He is arguably the Knicks’ best connector, always looking to push the pace and create advantages for himself or teammates. We are now in year three of him being far and away the team’s most adored player by impact statistics and advanced metrics. The hesitancy to give this guy a real shot, from both his head coach and a certain segment of the fanbase, baffles me.
And then there is Reddish. While Quickley is confounding, Reddish inspires nothing but feelings of joy and pride from this Knicks fan. If you frequent The Strickland, you may remember that I penned a preseason article calling for Reddish to embrace being a star in his role, only to proclaim skepticism that that would ever occur. In it, I wrote:
Ultimately, the answers to these questions lie in the mindset of Reddish himself. If he comes out like he has the past four years of his basketball life, dead set on being Paul George Lite, this situation will be solved very quickly. And it is very likely he’ll follow in the footsteps of the man he was traded for; a former first round pick disappearing into the deep abyss of lottery picks who failed to find their place in this unforgiving league.
But should he decide to commit to a supporting role — one that sees him moving off of the ball, shooting off the catch, attacking close-outs, and being a versatile, roaming force defensively — it is very easy to see him carving out a role for himself next to Immanuel Quickley and Obi Toppin off the bench. Fittingly enough, the best way for him to ensure that he sees consistent minutes, allowing him to potentially blossom into the star he thinks he can be, is to take a step back and round out the way he impacts games. I believe he can do it. Does he?
Just 14 games into the season, Reddish has taken the role player ball and run with it, exceeding even the wildest of (reasonable) expectations. Reddish’s shot chart is one straight out of a Daryl Morey fanfiction. Of his 106 field goal attempts (FGA), 86% have either come within five feet of the basket or beyond the 3-point arc. That is marvelous. Defensively, he is putting his head down and embracing being the team’s chief wing defender. Mistakes occur, but they are rarely due to a low-care factor. This man is locked in, determined to never be “situational” again. But, more importantly, he is locked into the role being asked of him. Nothing more, nothing less.
The Knicks entered the season believing Quentin Grimes, who currently is healthy but out of the rotation, would be their starting shooting guard and most important two-way player. There is still time for him to earn that. The Grimes situation is murky. But he has competition. Reddish is firmly entrenched in the starting lineup, earning every second he sees on the court. And Quickley should only play more. Should Thibodeau’s trust in Quickley as a primary initiator expand, could we potentially see the three play together? Perhaps. But right now it is an uphill battle for Grimes. Reddish and Quickley have been that good.
Obi Toppin
Per usual, you can’t talk about the rotation without talking about Toppin. Toppin was his typically impactful self. He hit one of the game’s most important shots. He moved, screened, attacked the glass, and was always active defensively. In just Obi’s 18 minutes, the Knicks clobbered the Jazz by 23 points. I’m honestly unsure which of those numbers is more remarkable. Thibodeau will defend it the way he usually does; cliches and vague-isms. He’ll talk about the need for Randle’s rebounding (the Knicks actually rebound better with Toppin on the court than Randle, but I digress) and say he liked Toppin’s energy.
Of course, this is inconsistent with his logic from the Thunder game, one that saw Evan Fournier play the final 17 minutes as RJ Barrett and Jalen Brunson sat and watched. After the game, Thibodeau said he liked the way that unit was playing and Fournier was a part of it. That unit was playing well, but Fournier had little to do with it. Well, here the Knicks were, once again, with a unit playing extremely well at the end of the game. Yet this time, Thibodeau found it paramount to make a change. And this time he pulled a guy who had his hands all over that unit playing well.
Hypocrisy aside, it’s also moronic that Thibodeau viewed the decision as Randle or Toppin. Down the stretch, the Jazz were playing a front court of Lauri Markkanen and Kelly Olynyk. Randle and Toppin together was an option. The Knicks were up 10 when Toppin checked out; you’re telling me you couldn’t try them for a little longer and have Hartenstein ready if they struggled? I don’t know what would have happened, I don’t know five percent of what Thibodeau knows about the ins and outs of NBA basketball, but I do know that Toppin has to play more. For the good of the 2022-2023 Knicks AND the good of the franchise going forward. Thibodeau has to do better. Or the decision may be made for him.
A big win
Down the stretch, it was all Jalen Brunson. As Sam, Tyrese, and Shwin noted on the postgame show, it was not the prettiest offense. The Knicks will eventually have to address that. It cannot be a repeat of last season except with Alec Burks filling in for Jalen Brunson. Against better teams, that will likely fail.
But on this night, Brunson was determined to (temporarily) remove the stink that the Knicks had on them from the Thunder game. As I’ve discussed before, his style is extremely low variance. Slumps are rare and the median outcome is high. He is the perfect weapon down the stretch of close games, especially with a lead. While he has struggled from beyond the 3-point line, Brunson has remained efficient. His true shooting percentage (TS%) is about the same as it was last season (58.7% to 58.3% last season), his assist percentage (AST%) is a career-high 32.7%, and despite him creating for teammates more than ever, his turnover percentage (TOV%) is a career-low 9.5%. He is a guy whose hands you want on the ball when the game is on the line. He was last night, and he will be every night going forward.
On the backs of a couple of young bucks and their new nine-figure star, the Knicks ended their losing streak and beat the Jazz 118 to 111. Was it the start of something new? Or will Thibodeau’s rigidity make this just a reprieve from the gloomy purgatory this franchise seems determined to remain in? Only time will tell.
