The Knicks will be without OG Anunoby and Jalen Brunson for the foreseeable future. The team lost Brunson to a Grade 1 right ankle sprain in Wednesday’s loss to the Orlando Magic. Anunoby injured his left hamstring in Friday’s win over the Miami Heat. In that win, Landry Shamet, Jordan Clarkson, and Josh Hart combined for 72 points. That level of offensive firepower is why the Knicks can survive injuries to key players.
Brunson sprained the same ankle last March, according to the New York Post. He missed 15 games, out for a little less than a month. The team went 9-6 in those games. Unfortunately, Anunoby also hurt the same hamstring in Game 2 of the 2024 Eastern Conference semifinals against the Indiana Pacers. He’ll be reevaluated in two weeks, but is expected to miss at least seven games, according to the New York Daily News.
Can the Knicks Survive Injuries to Key Players With Their Bench?
Lights Out Shooting Off the Bench
A year ago, the Knicks were at the bottom of the league in bench points and threes off the bench. This year, they’re 16th in points and sixth in threes per game. They’re seventh in bench three-point percentage with the eighth-best net-rating of any bench in the league. Head Coach Mike Brown has been adamant that the team share the ball and play faster. The bench has obliged, ranking second in pace and fourth in assist/turnover ratio.
Hart, Shamet, and Miles McBride have led much of that success. Since Tyler Kolek is the only other point guard on the roster, McBride will likely start in place of the injured Brunson. Brown could go with Shamet or Hart in Anunoby’s stead, depending on what he values more: Hart’s all-around game or Shamet’s ability to score.
Shamet and McBride each attempt about five threes per game. Both shoot above league average from distance. Shamet has been incredibly efficient this year. He’s in the 97th percentile in points per shot attempt and the 96th percentile in effective field goal percentage. Shot selection is a big part of that efficiency. Shamet has taken nearly every shot from three or inside the paint. He’s been accurate from the dreaded mid-range as well, knocking down 57 percent of shots in that area.
While McBride plays more like a shooting guard than a point guard, he’s a solid shooter from distance and sneakily good at crashing the offensive glass. Clarkson is in the 80th percentile in effective field goal percentage. He’s shooting better from two than Karl-Anthony Towns and will likely see an uptick in minutes.
Lineups: Who Works With Who?
Even with Brown opening up his rotation, the Knicks have rarely used lineups that don’t feature one of Anunoby or Brunson. One of the few five-man lineups that doesn’t feature those two is: McBride at the one, Clarkson at the two, Hart at the three, Mikal Bridges at the four, and Towns at the five. That’s a lineup with only 48 possessions played, one that gave up 122 points per 100 possessions.
That would put the Knicks on par with the New Orleans Pelicans and Sacramento Kings defensively. Switch Shamet for Clarkson, and they drop to last defensively. Part of that poor defensive rating is that the bench hardly plays with Towns and Robinson at the same time. Anunoby featured heavily in bench units with Towns at the five. Buoyed by his defense alongside McBride, the offense of Towns, Clarkson, and Shamet provides balance.
Hart has struggled defensively, and Shamet has been no better. Their weakness on the perimeter means either Bridges or McBride must be on the court when they are. If Brown commits to playing both bigs, then the defensive questions are much simpler. Playing Robinson more would require him to stay healthy and out of foul trouble—two big ifs. Brown will have to stagger lineups with Bridges, Towns, and Robinson alongside variations of Clarkson, Shamet, Hart, and McBride.
The Guerschon Question
In a pinch, the Knicks could turn to Guerschon Yabusele at the four. Brown has rarely used Yabusele at any position other than center. A solid rebounder, he’s been putrid on offense and offers no rim protection as a small-ball center. Yabusele is shooting 35 percent from three and 33 percent at the rim.
Play him at the four next to Robinson with shooters or Towns and Bridges, and he looks a lot better. Yabusele averaged 11 points per game in 27 minutes for the 76ers last season, shooting 38 percent from three. With consistent playing time, his shooting numbers may bounce back.
This team has been top-heavy in previous years; however, this season, the Knicks can survive injuries to key players thanks to their bench.
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