The Knicks rested yesterday and will probably make us suffer today.
New York visits Philly for a heated matchup with an early tip-off. What can go wrong?
Here’s a bunch of quotes!
Mike Brown
On adjusting his offense for Towns:
“He’s getting more comfortable. But also, too, I’ve had to make some adjustments to help him out, make it a little easier for him, which I’ve done.”
On specific offensive adjustments:
“It’s in the different play calls and actions that we do. We’ve made the adjustments to try and make it a little easier for him and to try and put him in positions that will help him get into stuff quicker.”
On defending Joel Embiid on Saturday:
“Embiid’s a Hall of Famer. He’s an All-Star, and he knows all the tricks of the trade. He can beat you shooting the three, he can beat you from the free throw line, and he can beat you in the post. So we have to be on point and try not to give him anything easy, especially sending him to the free throw line.”
On team defense against Philadelphia:
“It’s gonna take a team effort. It can’t just be one guy stopping them. I don’t care how good you are as an individual defender. Our team defense has to be on point throughout the course of the game.”
Mikal Bridges
On Towns learning the system:
“Definitely different and tough and him learning two positions. I think he’s been better and he’s continuing to get better. We’re still getting better in our whole offense, but I’ve seen improvements from him for sure.”
On exploiting mismatches for Towns:
“Making sure everybody’s on page with what we’re doing offensively. For him, having a small on him and taking advantage of that. Giving him opportunities. Everybody playing off each other, being unselfish and looking for the next guy.”
On team defense principles:
“The thing is focus on ourselves and know to help each other on the defensive end. It’s never one v. one. It should be one v. five. Whatever guy’s got the ball should see the guy on ball and four help defenders.”
On guarding Maxey and Edgecombe:
“You’ve just gotta prepare for what they like to get to and you can’t relax. The moment you relax, they get that first step and it’s gonna be tough. So always being engaged and prepared.”
On adapting to a new system:
“It’s a little different, but we’re basketball players and we’ve got to be able to adapt. Coaches have to adapt to their players and we have to adapt to coaches. There’s a good middle ground and we’re still trying to figure that out.”
On the priorities for Towns:
“At the end of the day, he’s a good offensive player and he’s going to figure that out. We’ve got to make sure we focus on defense. I don’t want to hear too much about him shooting. I want to hear about him blocking shots.”
On Towns’ need for balancing offense and foul trouble:
“Just trying to get him in position to be successful. We need him to be aggressive and be smart first and foremost. Put the ball in the basket but also get guys shots.”
On facing the 76ers:
“It’s going to be a challenge, but we need challenges right now. It’s the next step.”
On the Knicks-76ers rivalry narrative:
“I think the NBA wants me to say yeah, but it’s obviously a really good team, a really well-coached team. Whenever you play someone in the playoffs, you always find some type of way to hate them.”
Guerschon Yabusele
On God and glory:
“Whatever happens tomorrow, I’m extremely blessed to be in the position that I am today. Minor setback for major comeback. Love y’all.”