One consistent message that Mike Brown has preached since he was named head coach of the Knicks is that he wants to play faster. The Knicks' first preseason game at Madison Square Garden is proof that he is already turning that message into action.
The Knicks defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves 100 to 95 in overtime for their third preseason win, in what was their first preseason game at Madison Square Garden. Because their first two preseason games were played overseas in Abu Dhabi, this was the first game where tracking data was available.
While the naked eye indicated that the Knicks were playing faster, the tracking data proved that they were, a promising sign for a team that has consistently been among the slowest teams in the league over the last few years.
The Knicks are playing faster already
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It is important to note that the sample size is quite small. One game isn't enough time to draw any serious conclusions about whether or not the Knicks will be playing fast for a whole season, but it is at least an indication that they are trying to use Mike Brown's plans for an up-tempo offense.
Last season, the Knicks averaged roughly 4.5 seconds to cross halfcourt and about 6.5 seconds to get into their first offensive action, both of which were among the slowest in the league.
During their third preseason game, the Knicks averaged 3.64 seconds to cross halfcourt and 5.1 seconds to initiate their first offensive action, both noticeable improvements from last season. In fact, both would have been the fastest times in the league last season. Of course, it isn't reasonable to expect those types of numbers to hold for an entire 82-game season, but it is certainly a good sign that the Knicks are executing Brown's philosophies.
Extended rotations help
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Brown has been playing essentially his whole roster in these early preseason games. Last game, 17 members of the Knicks' preseason roster got minutes. Playing with that many players allows the Knicks to keep up a blistering pace without burning out.
Once the roster gets finalized, and the preseason rolls into the regular season, the Knicks' rotation will be whittled down to nine or 10 players on most nights. While that is still a deeper rotation than what the Knicks used last season, it is a sizeable difference from what we've seen in the preseason. So while fans should expect the Knicks to play faster, they shouldn't expect these staggering stats to hold.