Knicks Guard Must Bounce Back vs. Celtics

The New York Knicks are heading into their second round series against the Boston Celtics with very little margin for error.

The Knicks didn't play their best in their series against the Detroit Pistons, but they won't be able to make those same mistakes against the defending champions.

One player that needs to step up in particular is Miles McBride, who was named as New York's X-Factor for the series by The Athletic insider Fred Katz.

"The Knicks’ sixth man has not looked like himself since returning from a knee injury late in the regular season. By the end of the Pistons series, his confidence had dissipated. At one point, he passed up an easy layup in transition, flinging the ball back to the perimeter instead of trying a seamless 2-pointer," Katz wrote.

"This was not the normal McBride, the one whose trademark is his lack of hesitation.

"He scored only 23 points during the six games versus the Pistons and shot worse than 30 percent. After a regular season when he was the team’s best point-of-attack defender against guards, he strayed too often from shooters lining the arc. He can’t make the same mistakes when he’s on Sixth Man of the Year Payton Pritchard.

" ... New York could use bench help. When McBride catches heaters, he provides it — on both sides of the court. He’s come through in the playoffs, as recently as last season. Now, the Knicks could use the usual version of him back."

If the Knicks get a strong contribution from McBride during the series, it will help the team's chances of pulling off an upset against the Celtics, who come into the series as a massive favorite against New York.