Knicks want strong defense as much as potent offense
Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau looks on during a preseason NBA basketball game against the Washington Wizards at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
It’s worth considering the argument that the Knicks could possess the best offensive starting five in the NBA this season, but as they appeared for the first time at Madison Square Garden for the preseason home opener, it’s also worth remembering that “De-fense!” is chant that rings through the rafters.
It is the staple that made Tom Thibodeau one of the most respected coaches in the NBA, it is the principle that earned the banners that hang in the rafters. And while they do have a potent scoring potential, they also could have one of the most versatile defensive units in the league.
It was a preseason game and the Washington Wizards might have committed a fair share of their turnovers Wednesday night. But in the Knicks 117-94 win it was still hard to miss the signs. The Knicks piled up 16 steals and a hard to count deflection total, building up leads of as many as 29 points.
OG Anunoby, on hand for his first full season in New York, and Mikal Bridges both possess All-Defensive team ability. Karl-Anthony Towns, who finished with 25 points and 12 rebounds, is not considered an elite defender, but he is athletic and long. Josh Hart can switch onto almost every position and Jalen Brunson regularly is among the leaders in hustle stats, taking charges as well as anyone.
“I think to be successful in the playoffs you have to be strong on both sides of the ball,” Thibodeau said. “So that’s what we’re expecting from everybody. We want to be a five-man offense and a five-man defense. Let the game tell you what we’re going to do.”
It's easy to see the impact that particularly Bridges and Anunoby can provide. And like the offense, it will take time for the new starting five to get a feel for each other on the defensive end of the floor.
“It’s all of it: preparation, communication, everything,” Bridges said earlier in camp. “Just being on the same page, and whoever the scout is, going by scout. Not going off on your own way, just going off the scout because if one person is thinking this and another person is thinking something else, it’s going to mess up the defense because then the other guys know what you’re supposed to do as well.”
Last season it was Isaiah Hartenstein who often had the role of serving as the loudest voice on the defensive end, calling out the switches and assignments from the back line. Towns may get that role and he is familiar with Thibodeau’s style from their time together in Minnesota.
“It’s definitely takes some getting used to,” Hart said. “I think all of us, at a certain point of our career, we took on the biggest guy, the biggest matchup. Sometimes when you’re in the game, you’re in the zone, having those competitive juices firing, you don’t want to you switch anything. You want to get over every screener, you want to compete with the best of the best,
"So we’re going to have to figure that out, it’s going to be a lot of communication. I think there will be choice words sometimes and holding each other accountable. But I think I’d rather have that than the other way around. We got guys that can play and guard multiple positions at a high level. And we’re going to have fun with that.”
Notes & quotes: Deuce McBride missed Wednesday’s game with an illness . . . Thibodeau said Mitchell Robinson is not doing any on-court work, just limited to rehab for now . . . Thibodeau on Patrick Ewing joining the organization as Basketball Ambassador: “We're just thrilled about that. Obviously, we know what he means to the organization and I think all his experiences, I think it'll be invaluable to us from being involved with me, giving his thoughts. He’ll be here at times and other times he'll be remote, watching the games and giving feedback. Also [he'll be] working with Leon [Rose] in the front office and [William Wesley]. I think he can help from that perspective as well."
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
