Perhaps the best indication of what’s important for these Knicks — or what’s most relevant to their status as either contenders or pretenders — was the theme of Wednesday night’s postgame locker room interviews.
The players, already solidified as one of the NBA’s best starting fives, had just finished setting a Knicks record for most points in three consecutive games.
They averaged a ridiculous 136 points over that stretch. The franchise has been around since the 1940s and never scored that much.
But there was something more notable about the way the Knicks handled their business this week. They stifled two of the NBA’s best offenses against Memphis and Denver.
They smothered both with defense and were proud of it.
“We’ve been able to show all of y’all,” Karl-Anthony Towns declared, “that we have another level or two to go.”
Indeed, levels for the Knicks are mostly measured in defensive improvement. Their offense, while impressive, was always assumed and powerful from the start.
But defense required time, most notably — but not limited to — the Towns and Mikal Bridges connection.
The pair is most likely to be involved in pick-and-roll actions with Bridges as the point-of-attack defender and Towns at center.
On opening night in Boston, they were so utterly lost the first impression took a long time to shake off — especially because the defensive struggles continued through most of November.
But as Towns and Bridges learned about each other’s preferences — and as they’ve discovered how best to utilize the strengths and weaknesses of their teammates — the Knicks are turning into a highly respectable, if not top-tier, defensive unit.
“I just think it was about being cohesive. We’re all new to playing with each other. Me, Kal, we’re new guys here,” Towns said. “We’re just trying to figure it out and understand what everyone’s strengths are.
“So I think these last couple games, me and Kal have had a good rapport with each other when it comes to the pick-and-roll defense and understanding how we want to attack the offensive players and where our margin of error is, you know? So Mikal’s done a great job at the point of attack. I’ve tried to do my best to utilize my hands to get some steals or also use my length to make passes much more difficult and have them pass them into the corner with some pressure. That allows OG [Anunoby] and J.B. [Jalen Brunson] and Josh [Hart] to do what they do best, which is being in the passing lane and get the steal and then we get to push in transition. For me, it was just getting used to these guys and what they do best.”
After a Jan. 20 win against the Hawks — which included locking up Trae Young down the stretch to kick off the current five-game winning streak — Bridges said Towns staying up on ball screens, rather than dropping back, was a positive adjustment.
“[When Towns] drops back, guards come around [the screen] snaking and get to where they want. But him being up helps the team defense and helps the guy on the ball to get back,” Bridges said, with Hart echoing that sentiment.
“Obviously, for the guys that were here before, it was a little bit different in terms of [Towns’] placement in the ball screens,” Hart said. “And I think that kind of took a second to get into a rhythm. But I think we’re doing it now. He’s been amazing in terms of communication. And guys that he has to be up [against in the pick and roll], he is and making it tough for guys.”
The numbers bear out a fairly prolonged improvement on defense that coincides, not shockingly, with winning. Before Nov. 28, the Knicks were 10-8 with the 24th-rated defense.
Since Nov. 28, the Knicks are 22-8 with the NBA’s second-most wins, the seventh-rated defense and statistics improved markedly across the board.
They’re allowing fewer 3-pointers, fewer free throws, fewer points and creating more turnovers.
Meanwhile, the offense has been steadily fantastic — going from ranked No. 2 before Nov. 28 to fourth post-Nov. 28.
So what’s the difference in winning more games?
The defense.
But it didn’t feel real until this five-game winning streak, when the Knicks — who padded their record in December against bottom dwellers — stifled the good teams and their superstars.
Against the Knicks this week, Ja Morant and Nikola Jokic averaged 13.5 points and four assists while shooting under 40 percent. Next up is LeBron James and the Lakers on Saturday.
“No one ever judges us about offense — this team has offensive firepower,” Towns said. “But I understand that we haven’t shown the best version of ourselves defensively, and I think that these last couple games we’ve been able to show execution on that side.”
