Mike Brown Hints at Expanding Knicks Rotation

That's certainly long-lost territory for the Knicks, whose primary men were routinely tasked to expanded workloads under previous boss Tom Thibodeau.

Such outputs were quite apparent in the minutes ledgers at the end of the year, as Thibodeau's Knicks routinely ranked at or near the top of the category. No five-man lineup in the Association, for example, played more minutes than the traditional New York starting five consisting of OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, and Karl-Anthony Towns, besting its closest competition in Minnesota by over 200.

While that had its benefits to the tune of a long-sought trip to the NBA's final four, it may not mesh well with Brown's desire to play faster.

“We want to play fast…floor spaced…a certain cadence in the halfcourt," Brown said, per Kris Pursiainen of ClutchPoints. "Then, defensively, we want to be physical, we want people to feel us, we want to do so without fouling."

It'll certainly be easier for Brown to implement his potential vision thanks to the Knicks' offseason work overseen by president Leon Rose.

Though New York mostly stayed out of the marquee player discussions, it upped its depth by signing Jordan Clarkson and Guerschon Yabusele after their respective tours with the Utah Jazz and Philadelphia 76ers. More recently, Rose and Co. made the battle for the final roster spot particularly interesting with a smorgasbord of signings, headlined by Clarkson's fellow Sixth Man of the Year Award winner Malcolm Brogdon and incumbent backcourt bench man Landry Shamet.

Knicks superfan Spike Lee should certainly be inspired by the news: while paying his respects to the department Thibodeau, Lee told Knicks on SI that he recently made a bet that no New Yorker would lead the league in minutes this season, doing so shortly after Bridges and Hart finished first and second in the category last time around.