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Mikal Bridges #25 of the New York Knicks
It’s become plain that, for all the talent and the well-considered construction of the New York Knicks roster in the past two seasons, something doesn’t quite line up the way it should with this team. We’ve seen them at their best, looking like world-beaters, but we’ve also seen them looking disjointed and out of sorts, something that happens too frequently to not be a concern.
And it’s when it most often happens–to open games–that is the biggest worry. Since the All-Star break, the Knicks are No. 26 in the league in net rating in the first quarter, at minus-8.2 points. They’ve managed to go 7-5 in those games, but the way the Knicks have been opening game is worrisome.
The problem has befuddled coach Mike Brown, and he called a timeout in the first two minutes of the team’s win over Utah on Wednesday. He explained: “I’ve just seen too many times when I don’t, where it seems like it gets worse and the next thing you know, we’re down 16-4. I’m going to do whatever I can to not let that happen. The tough part about it is if I do that, I’m down timeouts. So I don’t like doing it. But if I have to, I will try to wake them up.”
Knicks Advised to Bench Mikal Bridges
But there is a growing feeling around the team that the problem is not anything Brown can say in the huddle, it’s the set-up of the lineup itself. The Knicks would be better off, it seems, if they pulled one of their starters and made him into an ace sixth man. And not Josh Hart–the Knicks have tried that before, and Hart is too valuable a dirty-work glue guy for that.
Mikal Bridges or OG Anunoby–and Bridges is the more obvious candidate–should be the one to assume that role. Since the All-Star break, Bridges has shot 41.7% from the field and 32.6% from the 3-point line, averaging just 10.8 points. (He was at 15.9 points, 50.4%/38.6% before the break).
Here’s how one Eastern Conference coach put it: “I think I would make it Mikal Bridges, he could be a real wrecking ball off the bench for them.”
GettyNew York Knicks head coach Mike Brown.
Mikal Bridges Not a Typical Bench Player
Of course, Bridges has not come off the bench for the Knicks or anyone since 2019-20, his second year as a pro. He has been a No. 1 option in the NBA, and the Knicks gave up five first-round picks to trade for him, along with a $90 million contract. That’s not a resume that typically winds up on the bench.
But that’s the issue here–the Knicks start four players who have been No. 1 options. They need to spread out their role players.
The coach said: “To me, it is roles. They have really good players they are asking to be role players. And that’s not easy. Sometimes you want a scrappy guy like a Landry Shamet or Jose Alvarado in there, instead of some of their stars. They pretty much start four guys who have been first options in other places. It’s hard to make that work, to keep the pecking order intact.”
Knicks Starters Struggling
Brown has addressed the issue of the starting lineup in the past, and the fact is, even with Shamet in there, the Knicks starters have struggled.
Said Brown: “We’re turning it over to start. And our opponents are not feeling us. And if they do feel us, it’s because we’re reaching and sending them to the free-throw line. … We’re not getting to shooters and they’re not feeling us on our closeouts. If we do that and we’re taking care of the ball so we’re not fueling their transition, we should start games better.
“But we’re not giving ourselves a chance and we’re letting our opponents feel good about the way the game is starting. It’s been addressed. It will continue to be addressed and we will continue to keep scrambling until we can find a way to slow that area down.”
But it has been Hart who has been out lately, with an injury. The Knicks should be maintaining Hart as a starter, and moving someone else to the bench–Bridges or Anunoby. It’s a tough change, but necessary.
Sean Deveney is a veteran sports reporter covering the NBA, NFL and MLB for Heavy.com. He has written for Heavy since 2019 and has more than two decades of experience covering the NBA, including 17 years as the lead NBA reporter for the Sporting News. Deveney is the author of 7 nonfiction books, including “Fun City,” “Before Wrigley became Wrigley,” and “Facing Michael Jordan.” More about Sean Deveney
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