The New York Knicks have revolutionized their offense, but their defense is still making many of the same mistakes from last season. Through the first 11 games of the season, they have struggled mightily to defend the three-point shot.
The Knicks are defending the three-point line poorly
The struggles were the most paramount on Wednesday, when they allowed the Orlando Magic to shoot 12-for-33 from three-point range, including some timely shots. The Knicks would go on to lose 124-107.
NBA: Orlando Magic at New York Knicks
Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
New York’s defensive ranks are a mixed bag. They’ve allowed the eighth fewest points to their opponents with 113.7 per game, but they have also allowed the fourth-highest three-point percentage to their opponents at 38.9%.
Despite New York owning the best net rating in the Eastern Conference through the early part of the season, the struggles in guarding the perimeter have made the difference in some of their games.
The Knicks are giving shooters too much space
NBA: Orlando Magic at New York Knicks
Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
According to NBA stats, the Knicks are allowing the fifth-highest frequency of wide-open three-point shots at 23.9%. A wide open shot is considered to be when the closest defender is more than six feet away from the shooter.
Additionally, they are allowing the fourth-highest frequency of open shots (defender is 4-6 feet from the shooter). The bottom line is that the Knicks are allowing too many clean looks from three to their opponents, which needs to be cleaned up if they want to reach their championship aspirations.
The defense needs to step up
The Knicks’ offense has carried them through the early part of the year, as they have established themselves as a top-five offense in the league right now. While that level of production can lead to success in the final score column, they won’t shoot perfectly every night, meaning they need to step up their defensive effort.
NBA: Minnesota Timberwolves at New York Knicks
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On Wednesday against Orlando, their poor shooting effort is ultimately what led to their demise, as they couldn’t keep up with the Magic’s physicality. They also couldn’t slow them down at seemingly any point in the game, as any slight glimmer of hope of a potential comeback was quickly thwarted by a run from the Magic.
As they head into their next game against the Miami Heat on Friday, they will look to step up their defensive effort. A bounce-back performance will be crucial to getting back in the win column.