How the New York Knicks can push Indiana to Game 7 at MSG

Credit to head coach Tom Thibodeau, heavily criticized for years now as the NBA’s oldest dog who would never learn another new trick. He’s adapted throughout the entire postseason, and while it hasn’t been at the pace fans prefer, New York is two wins away from its first NBA Finals in 26 years.

You’ll find no better proof of Thibodeau’s renaissance than Game 5. Those same trends will have to be repeated if the Knicks are to ensure Game 7.

Maximizing Mitchell Robinson

There are few better stories in the NBA right now than that of Mitchell Robinson.

His journey as the longest tenured player in New York would be understated if described as a roller coaster, but it’s made him all the better.

Robinson hasn’t single-handedly swung the Knicks’ playoff run—as we’ll leave those honors to stars playing like stars—but he’s been a star in his role. The interesting part of that role is how it’s ever-changing, as New York has fought off the equally altering opposition.

A member of the starting five for only the last three games, Thibodeau (and the Pacers, too) has often minimized Robinson, despite the Knicks’ contrasting intent.

It’s all about lineup combinations, and admittedly, sometimes his free throws.

Game 5 was his best performance yet, though. New York’s success with Robinson on the floor was almost undercut by Rick Carlisle deploying the “Hack-A-Mitch” strategy late in the third quarter.

The personnel-specific key moving forward seems simple yet layered ahead of Game 6: Robinson cannot share the floor with Josh Hart.

No, the Knicks’ new look, five-out offense hasn’t popped off the page this season. But spacing is ever-prevalent in today’s NBA, and the numbers say New York shrinks with its two best rebounders on the floor together.

A look at the numbers, courtesy of the Pivot Fade app:

• With Hart/Robinson on the floor in Game 5, the Knicks were outscored by 15 points in 6:38 shared.
• With Robinson on the floor and Hart off, New York outscored Indiana by 18.

Those 6:38 minutes shared took place in the first and third quarters, when the Knicks have often played their worst basketball. Thibodeau sees both Hart and Robinson as crutches in a series that could be won on the glass alone.

He should continue to view and play them that way, just not together.

That trend isn’t an exception to Game 5, either. It’s the story of the entire series.

Hart’s performance against the Pacers has been middling at best, even with his heroics in Game 5. But in order for him to do what he does best, the NBA’s rarest kind of rebounder needs open space, i.e., five capable Knicks shooters.

In maximizing Robinson, Thibodeau can do the same for Hart.

Let the unsung heroes sing

Landry Shamet and Delon Wright have earned some money in these NBA playoffs.

Count me among the skeptics who: a) thought I’d ever type that sentence, and b) ever expected Thibodeau to give them a shot.

Wright has helped to supplant some of the ball-handling that goes missing when Brunson isn’t on the floor. Shamet has provided spacing and some of the hard-nosed, in-your-face defense Indiana isn’t seeing anywhere else.

Both have bought New York’s stars some rest.

Shamet had an incredible Game 5, recording 5 points, an assist, and a steal in his 14 minutes on the floor. His defense on Aaron Nesmith, amongst others, was a tide-turner when things threatened to go askew for the Knicks.

Wright played a serviceable 10 minutes, adding 3 assists, a rebound, and a steal. He isn’t a career sniper like Shamet, but he’s garnered more respect from the Pacers defenders than Hart at times.

New York outscored Indiana 24-to-17 in the 7:35 when those two shared the floor.

This Knicks team is fighting for its life, but Shamet and Wright are fighting for their place in the rotation and a future in the NBA. Let those dogs eat, Thibs.

Play a Karl-Anthony Towns-centric offense

Here’s a sentence that may surprise you, and if it doesn’t, it should: Karl-Anthony Towns has made a three-pointer in all five games against the Pacers.

Moreover, he’s shooting 42% from three, after shooting 34% in the first two rounds.

Indiana’s pace has helped Towns more than it has limited him. Offensive rebounds and transition play have provided him with more open looks than he’s seen all postseason.

But it’s also about who’s playing with.

Running lineups with Towns and a motley mock-up of players off the bench has allowed him to be more Nikola Jokic-like: directing the offense, drawing extra attention, and converting on all three levels.

Case in point: he recorded 13 assists between the first two rounds. In the conference finals, Towns has 9 through five games. Across the entire series against Indiana, the Knicks are +25 with the starting center on the floor and Brunson off of it, according to Pivot Fade.

For all the talk about New York not having a qualified backup point guard, Towns is doing his fair share of creating and orchestrating. That +25 is only good for 56 minutes over 5 games, an average of 11.2 nightly.

Brunson is currently averaging 35.8 minutes per game against Indiana, so Thibodeau has found a winning formula for when his best player sits.

Play the right players in the right pockets, control what you can control. But above all else, show up. If the New York Knicks can check these boxes, we’ll have an all-timer of a Game 7 on the docket, and perhaps a dog in the NBA Finals fight.