A few notes on the Knicks‘ Game 1 rout of the 76ers…
BUILDING BRIDGES
Mikal Bridges‘ fingerprints were all over New York’s dominant win.
He gave the Knicks 22 points and five assists in 26 minutes. He hit seven of 10 shots. New York outscored Philadelphia by 19 with Bridges on the court.
Advertisement
On the other end of the floor, Bridges helped hold Tyrese Maxey to 3-for-8 shooting and three turnovers in the first half of Game 1.
“I give Mikal a lot of credit for is his alertness and his ability to have multiple efforts when guarding Maxey because Maxey is similar to Steph (Curry), you know, where he’s constantly moving, especially when it comes to the two game with (Joel) Embiid,” Mike Brown said. “So he’s a hard (cover). You can’t ever relax.”
Bridges certainly didn’t relax on Monday and he didn’t fold after a few ugly performances early in the playoffs.
In his last two games, Bridges has scored 46 points on a combined 17-for-22 shooting and handed out eight assists.
Advertisement
“He’s a huge factor for us,” Jalen Brunson said. “He’s been playing great.”
The Knicks used five first-round picks to acquire Bridges from Brooklyn. So his play will always be heavily scrutinized.
Bridges has had an uneven performance in his Knicks tenure thus far. But, like the Knicks a whole, Bridges may be finding his stride at the perfect time.
“Obviously, there’s times throughout the season for every player when there’s ups and downs. But he stays mentally strong,” Brunson said of his Villanova teammate. “He comes into work, does his work, does his routine and all that stuff. As long as you keep chipping away things are going to fall in your favor.”
BRUNSON BURNER
Brunson had a fantastic game on Monday.
Advertisement
He had 35 points, three assists and two steals against the Sixers. It was his 16th career playoff game scoring 35+ points. That ties former teammate Luka Doncic for seventh among active players in the postseason.
“Jalen’s pace, his change of speed, all that stuff with the basketball was really good,” Brown said after the game. “They like to play in a drop, and he was able to come off and get a couple of pocket 3s, because we had good screens. When he did that, he made them come up the floor a little bit and he was able to get by them, but when we touched the paint, if the help came, he did a pretty good job playing off of two and spraying it, which meant the next time down, guys would stay on him a little bit more.
“Now, you get the opportunity to finish. So, Jalen was really good as the head of the snake, but the guys behind him set the screen, making sure we’re spaced the right away. Being ready to make a quick decision when that ball got sprayed, that was all really good, too.”
The Knicks offense as a whole seems to have unlocked something in the past four games. They have won all of those games by at least 16 points.
Advertisement
“Obviously a lot of trial and error, seeing what works and seeing what doesn’t, and being unselfish. … I think that’s the biggest thing,” Josh Hart said after Game 1. “I think that’s where were at right now where everyone is unselfish. … we’re willing to sacrifice individual numbers and stats for the betterment of the team, and I think when we do that, we’re playing our best basketball.”
