Mike Brown insists the Knicks must play faster on offense
YAS ISLAND, Abu Dhabi — When the first preseason game was over, Mike Brown took a seat in front of a contingent of international media, and as NBA officials handed out microphones for the first questions, Brown paused it — offering a statement first as he detailed what he’d just seen in the Knicks’ one-sided 99-84 win over Philadelphia.
“Our guys did a pretty good job with their pace, but we have to play faster and we can play faster,” Brown said. “With being the first time we’ve seen another colored jersey, and so at times we looked a little confused — a lot of times — but we will be better. It was great because our guys got a taste of how fast we need to play. And they know we still have to take it three or four more notches.”
Brown was open and insistent that he’d seen some good but still wants more.
He had started this overseas trip by noting after Tuesday’s practice that the team was further along than he’d expected — figuring out the new offensive system and running it with the enthusiasm that Brown desires.
But when the starting five took the court against a depleted 76ers squad Thursday, the first quarter was, well, sort of like what the Knicks’ roster had done under the previous regime. The players didn’t run any faster up the floor than they had before. The ball didn’t move any better. And the acclimation to the new style was marked mostly by missed shots and mistakes.
Brown wasn’t worried. Perhaps it was just an expected first test. And the lineup included Pacome Dadiet in place of OG Anunoby, who sat out with a sprained left hand. So it was an unfamiliar combination, one that seemed to be force-feeding Dadiet, either to work him in and test him or to showcase him. The Knicks still seem set on seeking out a trade to open up roster space for the veterans they obtained this summer.
There certainly is risk with the implementation of a new style, particularly when the two All-NBA players on the roster — Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns — are tremendously skilled but not known as burners.
“Obviously, all of us are adjusting,” Towns said. “We’ve got some new stuff we’re adjusting to, offense, new defense and all in between. Everyone, including myself, is trying to find where we can be the most impactful at.”
But Brown was concerned only with the process, not yet focused on the results.
“Think about especially early on after makes, how the ball went through and it bounced, bounced, bounced,” he said, noting that the team didn’t rush to inbound and fast-break the other way. “And we walked over and picked it up and then we tried to throw it inbounds.
“As the game went along, you saw some possessions where that thing went through, boom, got it out, and before you can blink, we’re shooting a layup or a wide-open three at the other end of the floor.
“Our pace starts when the ball goes through the net. On a make, it has to be better every single possession . . . We have enough guys where we can rotate guys. But you’ve got to leave it all out on the floor every single possession.
“We’ll get to a point where we can do that, but right now, we’re not there. That’s what training camp is about.”
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
