The Knicks play the Hawks in Manhatlanta tonight, with flocks of New Yorkers expected to take over.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t get it twisted\u2014Knicks fans in town or not, the folks better get that dub and return home with a 2-2 balance at the very worst, or else.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s the latest from around NYK world.<\/p>\n
On the late-game execution in Game 2:
\u201cWe didn\u2019t execute well enough offensively. Starting with me, I didn\u2019t mix it up enough offensively going down the stretch. And then we didn\u2019t mix it up as well as we could have defensively. So there were a few things down the stretch we could\u2019ve done better.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the never-ending playoff adjustments:
\u201cFirst of all, anything\u2019s open to discussion offensively, defensively. Maybe changing this defensively. Maybe changing that offensively. I\u2019m comfortable with all of our guys playing, no matter who the five is out there. But at the end of the day, just like offensively and defensively, I mean we changed both of those things halfway through the year. Anything can happen, and when you\u2019re in the playoffs, everything should be on the table. But I do feel comfortable with what we\u2019ve had.\u201d<\/p>\n
On responding to Game 2 on the road:
\u201cThey hit us in the mouth the second half [of Game 2], not just the fourth quarter, but the second half, and we have to respond. And like I said, at the end of the day, I don\u2019t know if there are many teams that have gone 16-0 on their run to a championship. So you\u2019ve got to figure out how to win on the road if you expect to be who you want to be anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n
On facing adversity:
\u201cI don\u2019t know how much of adversity it is. I guess it\u2019s a little bit when you lose. When you lose, you tend to feel it. Like I said before, that\u2019s why it\u2019s good to go through it during the year so you can continue to have belief in the ability to bounce back because you\u2019ve been there and done it. And it\u2019s a little easier to handle when you lose. \u2026 So anytime you struggle, especially if you have a resilient group, it could be a good thing. Our group is resilient.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the Game 2 lineup struggles:
\u201cWe weren\u2019t good tonight. But we had opportunities where our starters were in and we were up eight to 10, and Atlanta closed it. So I wouldn\u2019t say that specific lineup caused it.\u201d<\/p>\n
On officiating and physicality:
\u201cI\u2019m still trying to figure out what\u2019s a bump and what\u2019s not a bump. You see a guy like CJ, he gets a drive and if you chest him, it\u2019s a foul. And I even asked the officials about it \u2014 Jalen\u2019s driving and he\u2019s getting the same bump. Now, he\u2019s not as light or as quick as CJ, so the speed might not be the same, but when he\u2019s going, he\u2019s getting hit and he\u2019s getting knocked away from the bucket. So, trying to figure that out a little bit better is something I need to do. But I thought Jalen got to his spots. I thought he could have gotten to the free-throw line a couple more times that sometimes [he didn\u2019t] throughout the course of the game, especially with how aggressive he is. But it is what it is.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Game 2 defensive breakdowns:
\u201cYou gotta give Atlanta credit. We didn\u2019t execute our defense the way that we could have. Or the way we should have, or the way that we have been doing throughout the first six quarters [of the series].\u201d<\/p>\n
On Towns\u2019 aggressiveness:
\u201cKAT\u2019s a great player. He\u2019s got to impose his will on the game. If he was a young guy, I would need to say something to him. But as a veteran guy, I don\u2019t need to tell him to be aggressive.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Brunson\u2019s need to step up his defensive game himself:
\u201cWe can talk to him. We can do those kinds of things, let him know where to force the ball. But at the end of the day, he has to take pride in it. Just knowing him, I\u2019m sure watching the film, he was probably frustrated at some of the spots CJ was able to get to. \u2026 I know the kind of guy he is, the kind of character he is. He\u2019ll be better defensively for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the team needing to help Brunson defensively:
\u201cDefensively, we need him to get stops. And we need to make sure we have his back and are talking to him when he\u2019s on those isolations on CJ or whoever it is. We can talk to him. We can do those kinds of things to let him know where to force the ball or those kinds of things. But at the end of the day, he has to take pride in it. I think that\u2019s just knowing him and watching the film, he was frustrated at some of those spots that CJ was able to get to and those kinds of things. I know the kind of guy he is and character he is and he\u2019ll be better defensively for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the lack of physicality in Game 2:
\u201cI feel like we didn\u2019t have that physicality that we did Game 1 and in the first half [of Game 2]. I think that was the biggest thing. When you lose that physicality, then you allow them to kinda move at their own pace, kinda dictate their offense instead of you dictating it. Just gotta make sure we\u2019re physical, have attention to detail and focus for a full 48.\u201d<\/p>\n
On stayed playoff-focused:
\u201cThat\u2019s why being focused and having attention to detail is so big in the playoffs, because sometimes, it goes away from plays \u2014 and it just goes into schemes, it goes into personnel. You gotta be able to react on the fly. When you\u2019re locked in, you have that attention to detail, you\u2019re able to do that pretty seamlessly.\u201d<\/p>\n
On succumbing to CJ McCollum:
\u201cHe was in a great rhythm. I\u2019ve got to disrupt it, make him play on his heels, make him react to me defensively. He was just in a rhythm.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the need for helping Brunson defensively:
\u201cYou\u2019ve got four guys that [are] behind him, that [are] gonna help him. Just know [the] personnel, who we guard and how we guard them, and then do your best to stay in front. You\u2019ve got help behind you.\u201d<\/p>\n
On whether or not he liked the Brunson matchup:
\u201cWhat do you think? Yeah.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the Garden boos and the villain narrative:
\u201cIt\u2019s just fans booing you or cheering you on. It\u2019s really not that serious. I think when you look at it that way, it\u2019s just a game. It\u2019s fun to compete at the highest level. It\u2019s fun to be recognized by people, but I don\u2019t play for Spike Lee\u2019s approval. I don\u2019t play for Knicks fans\u2019 approval. I don\u2019t play for anybody\u2019s approval. I play for my family, myself and God, so it\u2019s just a game, at the end of the day.\u201d<\/p>\n
On McCollum\u2019s impact in Game 2:
\u201cHappy for him, he shut that Knicks crowd up.\u201d<\/p>\n
On what to expect from the Game 3 atmosphere in Atlanta:
\u201cVery, very loud. Obviously, you know, Knicks fans are gonna be there as well, but I know ATL faithful will be there as well. Excited for [Thursday] night.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Mike Brown\u2019s future if the Knicks fail in the playoffs:
\u201cIt\u2019s over with. I know how that sounds, but I\u2019m just going off of the Knicks organization. It\u2019s been over with for people who have been going in the proper direction all the time. It\u2019s been going great for some players, and they had to leave. I just know that the organization puts pressure on itself every year, and then to be so close and to have a team that we all feel like should be successful in the playoffs, built for success in the playoffs \u2026 I could totally see it happening right away.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Mike Brown\u2019s adjustments for Game 3:
\u201cIt\u2019s gonna come down to strategy with Mike Brown. It\u2019s gonna come down to structure and strategy with Mike Brown \u2014 and I believe he\u2019s going to make the adjustments.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Atlanta\u2019s screening action:
\u201cYou know that they\u2019re running a high pick and roll. It\u2019s really like a brush screen, just so you can switch. And it\u2019s slow. Like, it\u2019s like stand there, touch his body, drag him down. And now you\u2019ve gotta switch. And it\u2019s embarrassing if you don\u2019t switch, \u2018cause you on the court, on the island, by yourself in the NBA. So you standing there like, \u2018Damn.\u2019 I could literally walk real slow and just grab you like, \u2018it\u2019s time,\u2019 and that\u2019s the switch. Now, you\u2019ve gotta stomp your feet, slap the ground, and just get ready every time.\u201d<\/p>\n
On defensive coverage adjustments:
\u201cJalen will have to get over the screen on C.J.\u2019s hip and push him downhill, then whoever\u2019s man is creating the switch, they\u2019ll stay in the help position to make C.J. pass the ball. Then, the wing man will cheat over to the middle, and the [Knicks\u2019] corner man will have two men: [Atlanta\u2019s] wing man and the corner man. If Jalen blitzes the screen, now if C.J. goes to drive and the help defender is in the blue position, Jalen can switch back to his man. He can switch to the other guy. And that\u2019s how you kill it. Now we\u2019re gonna watch, and we\u2019re gonna see if they\u2019re gonna make that adjustment. Because [Atlanta is] gonna run the same play. They\u2019re gonna do it old-school and make us adjust.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Brunson\u2019s need for adjustments:
\u201cI feel like Jalen Brunson has to play like Allen Iverson and John Stockton. He has to find the balance. I don\u2019t think it\u2019s a hard transition for him because he\u2019s smart, and he\u2019s astute, and because he\u2019s smart and astute, he\u2019s aware of what happened. Right now, this is the first four years of him being the man where he\u2019s making decisions and he\u2019s going on the court. He\u2019s playing at the highest level and everything is in his hand. And he\u2019s got all of the support. We are going to support him because we believe him and we trust him. We believe that. I believe that.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Towns\u2019 need for demanding the ball more:
\u201cKAT\u2019s not going to get plays drawn up in this system with Coach Brown. He has to assert himself. He has to demand \u2014 he has to demand the ball come his way, man. It\u2019s different when you demand something. When you command it, now it\u2019s like, \u2018OK, that\u2019s what we\u2019re doing. We\u2019re going there.\u2019 When he puts his hand up and demands the ball, everybody knows to throw it.\u201d<\/p>\n
On what to expect from Brunson in Game 3:
\u201cWhat he takes from [Game 2] and how he grows from that night \u2014 that\u2019s him. That\u2019s going to be the truth and true honesty in the next game. It\u2019s not about playing harder or scoring more or not missing any shots. That\u2019s not it. It\u2019s evaluating how they play him. How am I going to play defensively? Am I going to submit and say, look, this is where I need help at? Am I thinking about knowing that I have a weakness right now and now everyone sees it? Everybody in the gym knew it. The whole world sees I can\u2019t defend C.J. McCollum, and I\u2019m gonna have to guard him in the next game. How are we gonna prep? And how are you gonna prepare to play against him?\u201d<\/p>\n
On believing he\u2019d dominate in the current NBA:
\u201cI try not to compare my era to this era or eras in the past. I know whatever era I played in, I\u2019d be dominant. I was one of the big men who could shoot, but I didn\u2019t shoot a lot of 3s. Michael [Jordan] and I always joke about – He\u2019s like, \u2018Man, but you can\u2019t dribble.\u2019 I said – \u2018All I need is two dribbles. Two dribbles. That\u2019s it. Two dribbles, I can get from the free-throw line to the hole. So, it doesn\u2019t make a difference what era I\u2019m in. I think I can still dominate.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Knicks play the Hawks in Manhatlanta tonight, with flocks of New Yorkers expected to take over. Don\u2019t…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":716773,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3768],"tags":[7,304,2964,6,1136,191,3810,3806],"class_list":{"0":"post-716772","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york-knicks","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-knicks","10":"tag-knicks-news","11":"tag-nba","12":"tag-new-york","13":"tag-new-york-knicks","14":"tag-newyork","15":"tag-newyorkknicks"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116456081588857631","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/716772","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=716772"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/716772\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/716773"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=716772"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=716772"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=716772"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}