Hint: there was some good, not a lot of bad, and an ungodly amount of ugly.
The New York Knicks lost the Eastern Conference Finals opener to the Indiana Pacers, 138-135 in overtime, blowing up a 14-point lead late in regulation.
As the title suggests, let’s start with the good. It may be difficult right now to remember and appreciate the good. And I don’t blame you. We are less than 12 hours removed from witnessing one of the most embarrassing and historic collapses of all time. You, the fans, are allowed to feel sad. You should be pissed. And you absolutely have the right to contemplate if you want to watch another Knicks game this season.
But before everyone watched hopelessly as their worst nightmares came true, the Knicks did do some good things and did have some good moments last night.
For starters, they were clearly the better team for the first 45 minutes of the game. The dynamic duo of Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns dominated their matchups as expected, got whatever they wanted, whenever they wanted, and combined to score 78 points.
Mikal Bridges was fantastic offensively in the first half. OG Anunoby came alive offensively in the second half. Mitchell Robinson and Deuce McBride picked up where they left off and looked not just like game-changers, but series swingers with just how dominant and impactful their minutes were.
And defensively, they showed that while not perfect, they had enough to slow down the Pacers for stretches. New York did a great job of limiting Pascal Siakam and Myles Turner in the second half, and they found a way to bait Tyrese Haliburton and the Pacers into a more isolation-oriented offense in the third – something Indiana would rather not do.
All of these are things that the Knicks can, and should, continue to lean on and utilize going forward.
Now, onto the bad. The Knicks had some bad moments and bad decisions, but as a whole, as far as playoff losses go, I actually think there was a surprisingly low amount of things that one could categorize under “bad.”
Anunoby’s offense in the first half was bad. I’d say the unnecessary as always, heat check from Cam Payne was bad. The inability to fully capitalize on fast-break opportunities in the first half was bad. I thought Brunson getting caught up in trying to draw contact and prove a point against Aaron Nesmith could be labeled as bad. And the rebounding for large stretches of the second half was also bad.
But a big reason why the “bad” feels like a shorter list than warranted, though, is because of the unfortunate, and incredibly frustrating number of things that the Knicks did that can, without question, be labeled as “ugly.”
Very, very ugly. Historically ugly.
Some of it can be rooted in the Knicks’ defense earlier in the game that allowed Nesmith to get into a comfortable rhythm, but their three-point defense on those Nesmith pull-up threes in the closing minutes of regulation was as atrocious as they were head-scratching.
The Knicks, up double-digits, should’ve known that the only, and I mean only, shot the Pacers had was to start hoisting up threes. Now, Nesmith and the Pacers deserve credit. They still had to execute and make those shots. And they still had to get stops. They deserved to win. But Knicks fans probably would’ve appreciated it if their favorite team didn’t make it easy for their rivals.
On multiple occasions, Anunoby, who fans have continuously, and rightfully, lauded as one of the best defenders in the league, inexplicably played drop coverage on Nesmith, despite the three-point shot being the Pacers’ only hope of making a comeback. He not only failed to hedge high or switch, but he also voluntarily backed up and watched Nesmith walk into his shot. And that was just mistake number one.
How about Brunson and Anunoby somehow not being able to connect on that bounce pass in the paint that would’ve helped give the Knicks two more insurance points? Brunson needs to hang on to the ball and waste more time, or Anunoby has to find a way to come up with the ball. Instead, neither happened, and the Knicks turned it over. That was just mistake number two.
Then there’s the missed free throws. New York left a lot of possible free-throw points on the board, but Anunoby’s last missed free throw with just a few seconds left in the game was pivotal. If he hits both, instead of just making one, we may not even need to have this conversation. But instead, just minutes after allowing Nesmith to walk into back-to-back threes, and seconds after failing to catch a more or less routine pass, he missed a freebie. And from there on out, it felt like a game the Knicks were destined to lose. But the ugly mistakes don’t end there, as this was just mistake number three.
In overtime, Josh Hart falls asleep in one of the most important possessions of the season and gives up a routine back-door cut. Mistake number four.
And when the Knicks were instructed to foul, they failed to do that, leading to a dunk. Mistake number five.
And there’s plenty more. These are just the most significant and memorable ones.
Again, tip of the cap to Indiana. For as clutch as the Knicks have been, the Pacers have somehow been even more impressive late in games. They refuse to quit and are a team full of good basketball players. But New York lost this game. They unnecessarily shot themselves in the foot many times. They shot the hearts of fans. And they may have shot their chance at a finals appearance in the throat while doing so.
But if we are to try, somehow, to both remain positive and move on, it all goes back to the beginning.
The Knicks did some things really well. They were the better team for about 85% of the game. The offense looked better than it has in months, the defense did enough, and even with the Knicks pulling off one of the worst choke jobs in sports history, it took a superhuman effort from Nesmith, a few bad calls, an incredibly lucky bounce on the Haliburton shot, and overtime for the Pacers to eke out a win.
Now, in a series that could go either way, blowing game one at home in that fashion is never a good thing. But New York, if they can replicate the good from game one, and learn from the bad and ugly from game one, should still be favored.