3 takeaways from the Knicks' season-opening loss to the Celtics
Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau calls to his players during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Boston Celtics, Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2024, in Boston. Credit: AP/Charles Krupa
1. It’s the defense
For all of the talk about the time the Knicks had to acclimate the new pieces together in the offense, it turns out that the defense might be where time was needed. It wasn’t just that the Celtics tied an NBA record for most threes in a game with 29 (and would have set the record if they didn’t miss the final 13 attempts while fans chanted, “One more three”). It was that the Knicks looked lost in rotations, a step slow might be generous. Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau pointed to the need for second, third and fourth efforts against a team like Boston and that just wasn’t there on this night. Asked afterward what he saw from the defense, Jalen Brunson said, “Nothing. Plain and simple.”
2. Something missing
Offensively, Jalen Brunson did what he does — efficiently scoring 22 points in just 24 minutes. And while Karl-Anthony Towns' presence, the little you saw of it, opened up lanes early to the rim, the Knicks were missing the drive and kick action that they had last year when Julius Randle would draw doubles in the lane. As a result, the Knicks attempted just 30 three-pointers, less than half of what Boston put up, and converted just 11 with seven of those coming from the second unit. Towns put up the quietest 12-point, seven-rebound game you can imagine. Deuce McBride was a huge contributor off the bench, scoring 22 and shooting 8-for-10, including 4-for-5 from three.
“They really junk the game up,” Josh Hart said. “So you try to find the mismatch with KAT down low, trying to get me in action with [Al] Horford … Sometimes where you’re trying to get somebody into the action and they switch it and switch it, guys are running back and forth making us look stupid trying to get the guy that we want in the ball screen. Next thing you know, we spend eight seconds trying to do that and then we’re scrambling.”
3. Wing and a prayer
The hyped-up pairing of Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby did not exactly match up with Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown in this initial test. Anunoby was 1-for-7 in the opener, including 0-for-4 from three, a minus-21 in 34 minutes. And Bridges shot 0-for-5 (0-for-4 from three) in the first half before recovering to finish with 16 points, all in the second half. But it was on the defensive end, their specialty, that was troubling, as Tatum scored at will on Bridges — with screens and early switching.
“I think my performance at the defensive end wasn't that good for me personally, as well as our team,” Bridges said. “I think I just could have been better, especially a guy getting it and having that rhythm from the three, just getting up a little bit more.”
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.
