Recap: Knicks 100, Cavs 93 — “Fire Elfrid into the sun, start Quickley now”
The Knicks came back from 18 points down to secure a victory against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday night, their home opener at Madison Square Garden. Stacy Patton recaps New York’s rousing victory, led by the young core down the stretch.
Before the Knicks began their their preseason game and MSG debut against the Cleveland Cavaliers, fans knew they would see more of some players who may have seen limited or no action in the first two games. Starting center Nerlens Noel and guards Frank Ntilikina and Alec Burks were declared out before the game, and in kind, the Cavaliers were without some of their best players in Kevin Love, Collin Sexton, Larry Nance Jr., and Dante Exum.
Given this, one might have expected the Knicks to come out and dominate, but this was far from the case. The Cavaliers started out hot from three (remaining so all night) and attacked Mitchell Robinson with veteran center Andre Drummond, who quickly baited Mitch into two fouls (one aided by some Oscar-worthy acting by Drummond) and forced Tom Thibodeau to send Omari Spellman in at center barely two minutes into the game. Spellman got a couple of good looks and seemed confident in his shot, but unfortunately couldn’t get any looks to fall in a brief cameo.
Despite a stagnant offense, the Knicks received a spark from RJ Barrett, who didn’t force much but hit a nice catch-and-shoot 3-pointer and took what the defense gave him.
The Knicks stayed close in the first quarter, but as the subs came in, defensive miscues compounded. Kevin Knox and Obi Toppin really struggled with communication defensively, and without a reliable backup 5, Julius Randle and Obi Toppin were relied upon to act as primary rim protectors without Mitch. To his credit, I thought Julius Randle was engaged on defense and for the most part avoided grinding the offense to a halt, taking quick catch-and-shoot jumpers in rhythm, moving the ball, running to his spots to space the floor properly, and avoiding brutal spin moves (with one notable exception).
With Ntilikina out, Immanuel Quickley saw minutes off the bench sooner too, and his energy was palpable from the get-go. He hit a couple of nice floaters and a 3-pointer from a couple of feet behind the line. But when he had openings he used his (sorry, I’m not going to use another word just to avoid puns) quick first step to make decisive moves and get into the paint. This foretold good things for later in the game.
That said, the Knicks’ bench allowed the Cavaliers’ lead to balloon, with Kevin Knox putting up an abominable -16 in the first half. The Knicks managed to cut the lead down to four, as Robinson’s re-entry went much better than his first stint. He contested shots, generally avoided fouls, and as bad as Drummond is as a matchup for him, it’s still fascinating to see him learn and grow. Even within this game, though, Drummond did get the best of him many times. I thought Mitch had a lot of good defensive possessions and generally held up well when he wasn’t fouling.
During the third quarter, the Knicks’ offense with the starters sputtered while the floodgates opened for Cleveland from three. Whether it was Dean Wade, Matt Mooney, Levi Randolph, Darius Garland, or Isaac Okoro, the Knicks kept losing shooters on the perimeter; when they weren’t doing that, they struggled to keep Garland, in particular, along with other Cavs’ guards from getting into the paint (Bullock and Payton were culprits on quite a few of these plays).
Meanwhile, the Cavaliers exploited the Knicks’ lack of perimeter shooting by playing a zone defense and all but completely ignoring Elfrid Payton, who finished 2-12 from the field for the game. The Knicks’ only “shooter” was Bullock, but he was similarly missing, finishing only 1-6 from three. As the bricks piled up, the frustration mounted for the Knicks, culminating into a spin move turnover for Julius Randle, who had previously been content to be a facilitator and make the right play.
The subs would come in and stop the bleeding a bit, led on defense by a particularly spirited effort from Dennis Smith Jr. As per the previous two games, DSJ was unable to get into any kind of rhythm in the half-court; he is not a good enough shooter to space the floor for a guy like RJ, and he’s not a good enough decision-maker to center a pick-and-roll heavy offense around (even if the Knicks had real shooters). In spite of that, it looks like DSJ has tried to commit to understanding his shortcomings and trying to fill a role. He finished with eight points on 3-6 shooting, including 2-4 from three to go along with four assists and only two turnovers (though there were plenty of stagnant possessions that resulted in bad shots for which, fairly or unfairly, part of the blame must be attributed to the point guard), but what was most notable was the tenacity which he played with on defense, particularly on ball. Getting into defenders, he forced a ton of deflections and was credited with five steals and two blocks (!). He also hit a pull-up three, and while he’s not Dame Lillard, it looks like he’ll at least be able to keep defenses honest.
DSJ is no one’s favorite player, but his energy was a definite positive and helped cut the Cavaliers’ lead to seven. At this point I had resigned myself to a fake comeback being stalled with either DSJ or Payton leading an offense that did not have great process or flow, but managed to make the game interesting through running and forcing some turnovers on defense while the Cavs’ inexperienced G-League lineup sputtered. How wrong I was.
In perhaps my favorite move since he’s become head coach, Tom Thibodeau answered a million Knick fan tweets and played the youth. A lineup without a true point guard and without anyone older than Obi Toppin, featuring Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, Kevin Knox, Toppin, and Mitchell Robinson entered the game.
And the rest, as they say, is history. Despite getting to five fouls early in the fourth quarter, Robinson vexed the Cavaliers, deterring drives, contesting shots at the rim without fouling, and helping to quarterback the young defense. On offense, the world was introduced to Immanuel Quickley, point guard. Though his outside shot wasn’t fouling, Quickley consistently penetrated and showcased his savvy. He drew fouls (that would have resulted in free throws if he was James Harden) by stopping at opportune moments coming off screens and taking advantage of defenders who were baited (including Okoro). He consistently found open players and understood how to draw help defenders to free up his teammates.
And perhaps most importantly, this spark was contagious. As Quickley took advantage of his shooting gravity to tilt the defense, his teammates responded in kind, hitting open shots, running the floor in transition, and sharing the ball themselves. No player responded more emphatically than Kevin Knox. After a forgettable first half, Knox came alive, scoring 14 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter — including three 3-pointers, one of which came on an assist from Quickley (as four of Knox’s five fourth-quarter field goals did) to give the Knicks the lead.
With RJ getting out in transition and Quickley driving and kicking to Knox, finding Obi at the rim for dunks, and creating advantage situations, the Knicks steamrolled the Cavaliers’ defense in the fourth quarter en route to a 100-93 win. What was most exciting was not just the thrilling comeback, but that it came as a result of playing the Knicks’ youngest players in an offensive style that didn’t just benefit from making shots, but played with ball and player movement and to the individual strengths of all the players. The chemistry building right before all of our eyes was beautiful to behold, and even if he’s not solely responsible, Quickley’s insertion at point guard must be recognized as a catalyst.
Individual player notes
— Welcome to New York, Immanuel Quickley. If you told me before the preseason that Quickley was going to have an eye-opening game, I would have assumed it would come from hitting 4-5 3-pointers and getting really hot. The fact that it happened on a night he shot 3-11 is actually more encouraging. I know the shots will fall. It appears Quickley is still adjusting to NBA spacing and distance; he kept setting up four feet behind the 3-point line and forcing himself to take more difficult shots than were necessary. I’m not worried about this; in fact, I think this is low-hanging fruit, and combined with all of his shooting indicators, bodes extremely well. The surprises tonight were his vision, improved ball handling, and ability to run the offense. Quickley has the deadly combination of shooting ability and a very quick first step and exploited this marvelously, repeatedly getting into the paint, drawing multiple defenders, and finding the open man. When Mitch set him a screen (and made contact!), Quickley got to the free throw line, froze the defender, and threw in an alley-oop to Obi Toppin. It was perhaps the most exciting play of the preseason, but more importantly epitomized how in control of the game Quickley was when given the reins. Very impressive stuff from a rookie, and he’s improving every game. Quickley finished with nine points, seven assists, and only two turnovers. Not bad for a guy they (OK, me — yes, I’m one of them) said wasn’t a point guard.
— RJ Barrett started out quite hot and rarely forced things. He had one horrible turnover in the fourth quarter caused by over-dribbling and then a bad decision, but for the most part he focused on taking what the defense gave him, getting out in transition, and making good passes. Though he was only 1-4 from three (and one of those was a late-shot clock bailout situation), he did finish 3-3 with his much smoother-looking shot at the foul line and was vital in the fourth with his defensive rotations and getting to the rim in transition. He also had a beautiful dish to Obi for a dunk late in the fourth to seal the game, and finished with 16 points. Third straight encouraging performance from RJ, and he’s very quickly staking a claim to THE leader on this team.
— Sometimes Mitchell Robinson’s career can feel like a season on Game of Thrones with all its ups and downs, and today was a microcosm of that. With Noel out, he started and got two quick fouls, went to the bench, and looked like he would be baffled by Andre Drummond all night long. However, he came back in, tightened up, and had some very nice possessions on D, including against Drummond (while avoiding fouls) and showed improved energy and impact on the offensive glass. At the beginning of the third quarter, he once again committed two ticky-tack fouls and was benched, eventually picking up a fifth foul as well. But 5-foul Mitch was a force to be reckoned with, finishing with 13 points, 10 rebounds, and four blocks. He also helped Coach Thibodeau win what I believe was his first challenge as the Knicks’ coach when what initially appeared to be Mitch’s sixth foul was actually an offensive foul on Dean Wade for pushing off (from being baited by Andre Drummond to drawing an offensive foul; Mitch really came full circle today).
Quickley will get a lot of the headlines, but the fact is the Knicks do not win this game without Mitch. He will be asked to anchor the defense, and especially if he’s going to be playing in lineups with Obi Toppin, Kevin Knox, and other young guys who are struggling to improve on defense, he’ll be relied on massively. Tonight, particularly in the fourth quarter, he seemed up to the task. He still contests too many shots, which can expose him to getting beat on the defensive glass (and honestly probably doesn’t help his fatigue levels); if there was one micro change I’d make, that would be it.
— In the first half, it looked to me like Kevin Knox was in danger of losing his spot in the rotation when Austin Rivers comes back. He repeatedly missed rotations or failed to communicate on defense as the Cavs got numerous open threes, and he couldn’t get involved on offense, missing both of his 3-point attempts. But playing with Quickley awakened the beast. Catching in-rhythm off of Quickley’s penetration with a quick release, Knox went off from three in the fourth and this helped his energy everywhere. Perhaps his best play was actually a pass; Knox grabbed a defensive rebound in traffic, and in the same motion, brought it down and whipped a pass over the half court line to Barrett in stride for an easy layup. I would have loved to see the reaction from outlet pass legend Kevin Love on the bench. So much of Knox’s game is confidence, and playing with Quickley was massive for that. Sixteen points on 5-8 from the field, 3-5 from three, to go along four rebounds, two assists, and no turnovers. Best game in a while.
— After the highs of the first game and the lows of the second game, Obi Toppin had a more solid but unspectacular performance in this one. Eight points on 4-6 shooting, including one nice catch-and-shoot jumper, but he missed both of his 3-point attempts. I like that Obi is willing to play whatever role is asked of him, and in the lineups where he was paired with Elfrid Payton and Julius Randle, this was often a floor spacer. It speaks to his humility that he’s willing to do that and didn’t get impatient and force offense, but the reality is the Knicks didn’t draft Obi to be Ryan Anderson.
Quickley coming in as part of a well-spaced lineup finally allowed Obi to get some opportunities at the rim and on the move — I’d like to see more of this. Obi also got stonewalled on a couple of drives in the first half, but showed impressive vision finding shooters after getting pushed to the baseline and under the hoop. Now, ideally, I’d like him to avoid having to attempt these passes because he’s falling out of bounds, but it again does speak to his vision and feel. He had an up-and-down night on defense; he was definitely the culprit of many a Cleveland drive or missed closeout, but his effort was good and he made some nice plays as well. He also did a nice job cleaning up the defensive glass — with the Knicks either playing Mitchell Robinson (who is often vulnerable on the defensive glass because of his penchant for contesting everything) or Julius Randle (who is undersized) at the center position, the Knicks needed Obi to help out on the defensive glass, and I thought he gave a good effort.
— As I mentioned above, Dennis Smith Jr. had moments where he looked like an elite on-ball defender, ripping the ball from defenders, mirroring them full-court, and jumping passing lanes too. The problem is he really struggles to run an offense. Besides Darius Garland, it’s not like the Cavaliers were sending out any dynamic guards; is DSJ likely to have similar levels of success against better competition? Still, five steals in 16 minutes is no joke. The defense is for real. The problem is, the offense lacks flow when Smith is at the reins. He’s good at pushing the ball in transition, he’s even pretty good at attacking a rotating defense; he’s not good at complex reads or understanding how to prod and weave and push and pull the strings in a defense to get good shots. But if he can keep up this level of defensive impact, he can still be a valuable rotation player, particularly if you can play him with someone who can run the offense. Now, will DSJ be able to shoot well enough and accept a role as an off-ball player? It didn’t happen in Dallas, but that’s his best shot for carving out a plus role on this team (and really, any team; don’t think he’s gonna get the keys to a franchise again, but what I described is how he can be a useful piece).
— I actually thought this was Julius Randle’s best game so far, and the statistics bear that out. Eighteen points on 13 shot equivalents, three assists, a steal, a block, and only two turnovers. But his numbers have never been the biggest issue with him. Usually, I’m critiquing him for slowing the game down, bogging down the offense, and stunting RJ Barrett’s development by forcing the team into stagnancy. That was not the case for most of tonight. Oh, the Knicks’ offense was stagnant, but for the most part it wasn’t Randle’s fault. He played with energy in transition and in the half court, was a willing passer, and mostly took catch-and-shoot threes or quick attempts at the rim after bullying a smaller player and getting an advantage. Yes, there were some hair-pulling decisions, but I believe he was trying to play the kind of style I would like to see from the Knicks (the style which helped the kids lineup explode).
— Elfrid Payton was not good. Not completely his fault; we know what his strengths are. He’s quick, he’s an excellent passer, and he’s very good at penetrating. But against the kind of zone defense the Cavaliers played today, it’s tough for him to have an impact. With the Knicks playing him next to multiple non-shooters, the Cavs could send multiple help defenders to collapse into the paint without repercussions. In well-spaced lineups that force defenses to man up, Elf’s penetration and decision-making ability is a plus. I think we’d actually appreciate him a lot more if he wasn’t starting with Julius Randle in horribly spaced lineups. But it is what it is, and if he’s going to start in lineups with only one shooter, you’re going to see more performances like this. What was more disappointing was the defense, as he was beaten off the dribble many times and I wasn’t fan of his effort getting over screens (something he was much better at last season).
— Reggie Bullock was off all game from three. That happens to shooters. But what was less acceptable was consistently getting beat backdoor, giving up dribble penetration, and being late to close out on shooters. With how well Knox played and the kind of defense we know Ntilikina is capable of, it’s tough to see Bullock sticking in the rotation if he plays like this.
That’s all for tonight. The kids are alright! And the willingness of Tom Thibodeau — who many had painted as a curmudgeon who would only play veterans — to go to this lineup and reap its rewards is encouraging as well. Do I think Immanuel Quickley is the Knicks’ answer at point guard? No. But if we learned nothing else, it’s that we have a group of smart, talented young players who still have a long way to go but can play an exciting brand of basketball; with the right structure, even some of the players much of Knicks’ Twitter has given up on are capable of valuable contributions.
As Ted said in the comments, “Fire Elfrid into the sun, start Quickley now.” Well said, Ted.
