The New York Knicks is 5-3. To put that record in perspective, it took 25 games to reach the five-win mark last season. It took eight games this season. His impressive game outside the gate is a testament to head coach Tom Thibodeau.
This is a totally different team with the same core as last season, and it’s not just young players who are taking the next step. Thibodeau and his technical team are getting newfound performance and production from established players. Take Julius Randle and Elfrid Payton, for example.
Randle, who appeared to be a difficult person in the lineup on the training ground, is playing at a level that deserves consideration for the Most Valuable Player Award. He is scoring on the post, off the dribble and at a distance as he hits the boards and meets the open man at an exceptional pace. Randle has an average of 23.1 points, 12.0 rebounds and 7.4 assists per game.
Although Payton is a respectable and productive general, he was never one of the main offensive catalysts for an NBA attack. This season, he is reaching the rack and finishing with ease, making pitches from outside and seeing his production translate into victories. This season, Payton averages 14.6 points, five assists and four rebounds per game, shooting 37.5 percent beyond the hoop.
Last year, Randle was a little out of control with the ball in his hands. Before re-signing with the team on a one-year contract, Payton’s team option was turned down this season, with the expectation that the Knicks would find a long-term defender. So far, both players have been integral components of Thibodeau’s attack. Speaking of guards, Austin Rivers is closing games for the Knicks.
In the team’s fight on Wednesday night against the Utah Jazz, Rivers converted 14 consecutive points to help the Knicks overcome an 18-point deficit in the first half. He’s draining shots from outside, bursting over the edge and playing defense.
RJ Barrett has been inconsistent offensively, but is providing a calming defensive presence while showing his presence at the tables (7.3 rebounds per game) and being more assertive with the ball in his hands. Mitchell Robinson remained the center of departure for the team. Novice point guard Immanuel Quickley, who was chosen with the 25th choice in the November NBA Draft, was successful beyond the arc and sinking the floats outside the dribble.
By the way, Obi Toppin and Alec Burks played four combined matches due to injuries, while Dennis Smith Jr., Frank Ntilikina and Nerlens Noel take care of their own injuries. And yet the Knicks won five out of six. The Jazz, Milwaukee Bucks and Indiana Pacers, three playoff teams last season, were victims of New York. In fact, the Knicks beat the Bucks by 20 points.
Thibodeau is known for being a defensive coach who holds his players accountable. This list seems to be buying into your philosophies.
The Knicks went to Thursday in second place in the NBA in adjusted defensive classification (104.11). Offensively, they are much less spectacular, but efficient. They entered Thursday shooting 46.4 percent from the field and 37.2 percent outside the arc.
They are swarming bees around the perimeter defensively, performing well against the postgame and playing cohesively. Offensively, they are moving the ball, and different players were up to the occasion in the closing moments.
Each NBA team had a restricted training ground and fewer preseason games. You can’t say that by watching this team.
Last season, the Knicks’ squad was composed of attractive young players mixed with a conglomerate of veterans who complemented them poorly. At times, they seemed lost. This season they are a team with direction. Thibodeau is getting the best production from veterans and has youngsters playing well at both ends of the court.
Knicks are not a finished product. They have only recently been together to be fully familiar with each other’s tendencies. The lesions altered Thibodeau’s initial rotation. What happens when they get Toppin and Burks back? If the Knicks continue to play a strong defense, what will the offensive improvement do for this team?
There were eight games. There are 64 games left to play. A month from now, the Knicks could be five games under 0.500. That said, would you have believed someone a month ago if you were told that the Knicks would start season 5-3? How about they beat the Bucks led by Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Jazz led by Donovan Mitchell and the Pacers based on continuity?
Thibodeau has the Knicks playing as if there was no tomorrow, and if tomorrow never came they would end up as the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference. This team and this season always wanted to go as far as this coaching staff could develop their young people (Barrett, Robinson and Toppin). While the healthy versions of his young core have worked well, it is the veteran tweaks that make this start so unique.
This is one of Tom Thibodeau’s best works so far.
