For only the second time this season, Mike Brown inserted Deuce McBride into the New York Knicks’ starting lineup alongside the Core Four of Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby, and Karl-Anthony Towns. Though the team won, the question remains: Should Deuce-plus-the-starters be the new default?
Fans have been clamoring for Deuce-plus-the-Core-Four to start games since the days of Tom Thibodeau. Prior to Wednesday night’s tilt against the Los Angeles Clippers, the fivesome was on the floor for the opening tip just once, in the second game of the season, all the way back on October 24.
Absences from Anunoby and McBride have limited the opportunities for this group. Still, even when presented with the opportunity, Brown has favored dual-big looks with Mitchell Robinson, a healthy Landry Shamet, and of course, the version with Hart.
Starting McBride without Hart or Shamet available is far from a declaration about what happens moving forward. But the case for him to keep this spot writes itself. The problem? Wednesday’s experiment didn’t exactly go according to plan.
The Knicks didn’t dominate with Deuce McBride alongside the other starters
New York’s starting five was outscored by two points against the Clippers. That’s not the end of the world, and the quintet was a plus-four in the second half. But the idea behind starting McBride rests heavily on his ability to insulate Brunson at the defensive end. The results versus L.A. didn’t follow that blueprint.
The Knicks allowed over 1.44 points per possession to the Clippers with their starters on the floor. One game doesn’t prove anything, but it’s the continuation of a season-long trend.
New York is surrendering 1.35 points per possession on the year when Deuce plays with the Core Four. Just for reference, the worst defense in the league, owned by the Utah Jazz, lets up around 1.23 points per possession.
Now, the sample size is small. The Deuce-plus-starters configuration has so far racked up just 75 minutes, and could be running into bad luck from beyond the arc, where opponents are shooting nearly 40 percent.
Still, the Knicks are conceding real size when going from the 6’5” Hart or 6’5” Shamet, let alone the 7’0” Robinson, to the 6’2” McBride. Downsizing can be especially problematic against a team like the Clippers. They started Kawhi Leonard, John Collins, and Ivica Zubac on the frontline, and their point guard is the 6’5” James Harden.
The Knicks need more information on the Deuce-plus-starters lineup
None of the concerns are definitive enough for the Knicks to draw profound conclusions. More information is needed.
Plus, even as the group struggled to defend, the potential benefits of starting Deuce remained crystal clear. New York was able to put Deuce on Harden, which limited the time Bridges and Anunoby needed to take him. He also made it more difficult for the Clippers to hunt Brunson.
The upside of displacing Bridges (and Anunoby) from point-of-attack duty wasn’t painfully obvious in this particular matchup. Bridges, specifically, looked overmatched at times on Leonard. But the Knicks tightened up their looks against both Leonard and Harden in the second half, in large part thanks to McBride’s exhaustive motor.
Just as critically, starting Deuce maximized the time he spent alongside Brunson. The two totaled nearly 25 minutes together. The results, again, tilted in the Clippers’ favor. For the season, though, the Deuce-Brunson backcourt minutes have spit out reasonable defensive returns.
Whether this is enough for Brown to sign off on a permanent change remains to be seen. Both Hart and Shamet are nearing returns to the rotation. The Knicks might bring both along slowly, and have them come off the bench. This would give Brown an opportunity to keep exploring the Deuce-plus-starters look.
What happens from there might be anyone’s guess. If we’re being honest, Brown will probably default back to Hart inside the starting lineup. Whether he should is a different story. We’ll know soon enough either way.