The New York Knicks kept their season alive Thursday night by dominating the Indiana Pacers in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals. The past three games have featured a much deeper rotation from head coach Tom Thibodeau, and they have gotten incredible value from some of the bench players.
Knicks’ Landry Shamet has provided a major spark off the bench
Landry Shamet, in particular, has been a true revelation. Despite a strong showing at the end of the regular season, he was out of the rotation entirely during the Detroit Pistons series, along with the second round against the Boston Celtics.
NBA: Playoffs-Indiana Pacers at New York Knicks
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However, he has since re-entered the rotation as New York looks for a spark, and Shamet has provided exactly that. In Game 5, he was arguably the biggest difference maker in the second unit with five points in 14 minutes. His activity on defense also made a huge difference as the Knicks held the Pacers to under 100 points for the first time this postseason.
Across the three games Shamet has appeared in this series, he is a +22, which is the second-highest by a Knicks player this series. He has come back into the rotation and provided the spark that they had been missing in the first two games of the series.
Shamet’s impact makes the Knicks look a lot deeper
He has given the Knicks some aggressive three-point shooting and active defense, two things that they badly needed from their second unit. The bench has long been a concern for New York all year, but with Shamet stepping up in the biggest moments for them, they suddenly look to be a much deeper team.
NBA: Playoffs-New York Knicks at Indiana Pacers
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Taking advantage of the bench playing well is a strength for the Knicks, and players like Shamet have been able to provide relief to some of the Knicks’ main starters. Thibodeau has been criticized for the lack of bench usage throughout the playoffs, but he has changed his ways and banked on them providing an impact at a huge part of the year.
The Knicks now have an opportunity to force a Game 7 back home if they win Game 6 on the road. To pull off the seemingly improbable series comeback, New York will be leaning on guys like Shamet to provide an impact.