Mike Brown, New York Knicks
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Mike Brown, New York Knicks
On Saturday, Jan. 3, the New York Knicks lost to the Philadelphia 76ers, 130-119. Mike Brown’s team has lost three straight games while struggling on both sides of the ball.
During his postgame news conference, Brown took aim at the team’s offense, noting how they’re not sticking to the principles that have become a core part of their identity since he took the hot seat.
“Our pace is not good,” Brown said. “We walk the ball up almost every time. At least two games, these last two games, our staples, our pace in the full court and the front court. We want to space the floor correctly, we want to make quick decisions, we want to touch the paint and we want the ball getting reversed. We haven’t seen a lot of any of that.”
Brown continued.
“It’s a lot of front-side actions that are happening. And if we don’t have anything on the front side, it’s almost like we’re dead in the water. We don’t know what’s next. We can’t get to the play after the play. And that’s something that we have to figure out sooner than later.”
Brown’s comments carry some weight. According to Cleaning The Glass, which has a built-in garbage-time filter, the Knicks’ offense ranks 13th in the NBA over the last two weeks. To make matters worse, over the same time period, New York is 24th in defense, allowing 121.6 points per 100 possessions.
Mike Brown Wants Knicks To Respond To Adversity
In the same postgame news conference, Brown admitted that the Knicks are working through a rough patch. With that in mind, he called on the team to respond to the adversity they’re currently facing.
“We’re in an area that we’re not used to,” Brown said. “We’ve hit a little bit of adversity. I’ve never been part of a team that has not gone through adversity throughout the course of the year, whether we won it at the end of the season, or we were in the finals, or we had a half. Every team’s going to hit it. And now for us, it’s about how do we respond? How do we come out of it? And this is a great opportunity for us to see what we’re made of while we’re going through this stretch.”
The Knicks came into the season among the favorites in the Eastern Conference. However, three straight losses have left them clinging to the second seed in the Eastern Conference. They’re only half a game ahead of the Boston Celtics, who currently sit third.
The Knicks Are Still A Threat
It’s far too early to write the Knicks off as a threat to come out of the East. The team is still adjusting to Brown’s way of playing. It will take some time before we see the offense at its best.
Mini-losing streaks are bound to happen throughout an 82-game season. And while there’s a lot for New York to clean up, they can’t be counted out. After all, in terms of both talent and depth, they’re currently the best team in the East, especially as the Cleveland Cavaliers have been imploding to begin the year.
If New York can get back on track, a deep postseason run will await them, and maybe even a trip to the NBA Finals.