After playing their 28th game on Saturday night, the Knicks have completed the first trimester of the 82-game season. A few trends have stood out, including the team’s scintillating offense and the individual play of Karl-Anthony Towns. With the club in third place in the Eastern Conference with an 18-10 record, let’s take a look at these trends and if they will continue the rest of the year.
Efficient offense
The Knicks’ offense has proven to be dominant. After 28 games, New York is second in offensive efficiency, scoring 119.7 points per 100 possessions. Jalen Brunson (25.1 points) and Towns (24.5 points) have been a one-two punch for New York. The Knicks also have four other players scoring in double figures.
New York’s efficient offense has been driven by efficient shooting. The Knicks are second in three-point shooting (39.6 percent) and true shooting (60.9 percent). The perimeter threat of Towns (45.9 percent on 133 three-point attempts) has created great spacing for New York’s perimeter players to cut to the basket. The Knicks are moving the ball more than ever in the Tom Thibodeau-era of the team.
New York’s offensive success isn’t just shooting luck. The Knicks move the ball but don’t turn it over much. They are fourth in the NBA in assist-to-turnover rate, averaging 2.11 assists for every turnover. The Knicks should remain a top-three offense as long as the Knicks continue playing lineups with three shooters playing around Brunson and Towns.
Bench scoring drought
The Knicks currently rank last in bench scoring in the NBA. New York’s reserves combined for just 20.4 points. Next to last is the Los Angeles Lakers who average 24.9 points. New York relies on its starting lineup to do the heavy lifting on offense, as the Knicks have the highest starting five scoring average in the NBA. In Saturday night’s win against the New Orleans Pelicans, Knicks starters accounted for 98 of the team’s 104 points.
Though there’s been much focus on coach Thibodeau staggering the minutes of star scorers Brunson and Towns, there’s been another stagger strategy. Two of starters Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby and Josh Hart have been on the floor at all times of close games. Working the rotations like that has limited available minutes to the bench as all three wings are in the top-10 in minutes per game.
The bench hasn’t been completely nonexistent. Miles McBride is averaging double figures off the bench and Cameron Payne has been a revelation off the bench, as well. However, the depth is lacking. Expect the Knicks to finish last in bench scoring this season. There might be a slight uptick after New York agreed to return Landry Shamet on Sunday or if the Knicks make another deal or add another rotation player, but not enough to change their ranking.
Towns rebounding rampage
As previously mentioned, offense has not been a problem for Towns. In addition to his scoring forays, Towns has been a ravenous rebounder. He is on pace to set a career-high in rebounds with a league-high average of 14.0 rebounds. One of the concerns for the Knicks at the start of the season was how they would fare on the glass without the rebounding boost of Isaiah Hartenstein and Mitchell Robinson.
Towns’ presence on the boards has been more than adequate. The Knicks are tenth in defensive rebound rate and the team is snatching more defensive boards when Towns is on the floor compared to when he is off.
In Towns’ two seasons starting at power forward with Rudy Gobert in Minnesota, he averaged 8.3 rebounds. With the Knicks, Towns has played scant minutes with another big. When Robinson returns from injury, there’s the possibility of a two-big lineup with Towns at the four and Robinson at the five. That could keep Towns out of the paint and drop his rebounding numbers slightly. I predict Towns will set a career-high in rebound average but fall out of his league lead.
