The Knicks are two wins away from their first championship in 53 years. Excuse me as I pinch myself.
Alright, I’m not dreaming. What a wonderful world this is.
In a heart-palpitating clash, the Knicks survived a nearly disastrous choke in the fourth quarter by the skin of their teeth, prevailing thanks to a pair of mistakes by the man everyone seems to call infallible. Everyone’s gotta have growing pains, huh?
In a game where half the team played badly, and half the team played out of their minds, it’s
time for some grades. Some of the box scores are ugly, but it’s the NBA Finals. It’s not supposed to look pretty.
Jalen Brunson: C-
20 points, 6 assists, 5 rebounds, 5 steals, 7-25 FG, 2-8 3pt, 4-5 FT, 4 turnovers, -10
If the Knicks lost, this would be a full letter grade lower, but we can use rose-tinted glasses because they won.
This was not JB’s night. He seemed to be in a decent groove the first few minutes, but never recaptured it. All game, he was being hounded and harassed by the likes of Stephon Castle and company. His fingerprints were all over the team’s offensive meltdown in the final six minutes, missing some tough shots and some bunnies. He was also being exploited defensively, making De’Aaron Fox look like CJ McCollum.
And yet, they won. Down two while being on the verge of a series and potentially legacy-changing collapse with Game 2 firmly in their hands, Brunson hit a tough fadeaway jumper to tie it at 104. He got his fifth(!) steal of the game after missing a go-ahead jumper 20 seconds later, taking advantage of a mental lapse by the young Spurs before drawing a foul and making the go-ahead free throw.
He kept his composure late, which was needed. It was still just an ugly game for him overall. With the Spurs content for 1-on-1 coverage in the fourth, he tried to be a hero way too often. It looked scarily like Games 2 and 3 against Atlanta. If Wemby makes that shot, maybe it goes down like that.
He gets some bonus points for five steals. He was incredibly opportunistic in the passing lanes today and tied his career high in steals. After a hilariously good defensive performance in Game 1, that’s not too shabby.
There’s no “i” in team. Sometimes, you can’t do it alone.
Mikal Bridges: A
20 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal, 8-13 FG, 4-6 3pt, 1 turnover, +7
I told you he was going to have a big game at some point. This is the same guy who’s had some of his best offensive games as a Knick against this exact same team.
Bridges was absolutely phenomenal all game long. He nailed tough shots, he nailed open shots, he nailed momentum shots. It was absolutely perfect, aside from some misses that made you wince during the 14-0 run, but again, they won, so who cares?
His defense was also fantastic. He guarded multiple players, but was primarily on Castle, who was more interested in trying to sell a call Trae Young style than making a bucket. He was getting deflections, he was running in transition, he was moving the ball. This was a beautiful all-around game.
Bonus points from him turning into prime Kevin Durant in that stint without Brunson or Towns on the floor. That lineup has been abysmal in the playoffs, and they won their minutes.
Josh Hart: D
0 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 0-4 FG, 0-2 3pt, 2 turnovers, 5 fouls, -3
After Game 1, you kinda felt like he was either going to drop 25 and go ballistic in Game 2 or do this. Unfortunately, it was a forgettable 18 minutes for the Knicks’ glue guy.
An inconsistent whistle had him in early foul trouble, while his jumper has looked very off. You didn’t see the winning plays that he’s known for in this one, as he was benched late for Landry Shamet and Deuce McBride.
Hopefully, the Garden can bring back the three-point stroke.
OG Anunoby: A-
17 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 5-10 FG, 2-5 3pt, 5-5 FT, –9
OG had to find a way to get his game off with Victor Wembanyama in the middle. His bag is not deep enough offensively to make a true impact without being able to drive and score in the paint. After being intimidated by that alien in the middle of Game 1, he had no fear in Game 2.
He was fantastic defensively, no matter the assignment. He had four stocks, guarded pretty much everyone on the court, including Wembanyama, and played with a level of physicality that shows exactly why the Knicks traded for him. He almost fouled out, but I blame that more on a certain someone we’ll talk about later.
Big bonus for him for making his free throws. The Knicks didn’t score for four entire minutes. The sky was falling. A good challenge by Mike Brown got Anunoby three free throws. We all remember him missing critical free throws in Game 1 against Indiana last year, but he coolly sank all three like the devils of the past were gone.
Karl-Anthony Towns: A+
21 points, 13 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 8-12 FG, 3-5 3pt, 2-2 FT, 2 turnovers, 5 fouls, +11
If the series ended today, Karl-Anthony Towns would be named Finals MVP.
His work on both ends of the floor is just too transcendent to talk about simply in a small blurb that describes his grade. He’s been poised, he’s been confident, and he’s playing with swagger.
Chet Holmgren looked like a bitch on both ends with Wemby on the other end. KAT doesn’t care. He threw down two ferocious dunks in his face and constantly bumped him off his spots and made him uncomfortable on the other end.
The beauty of it all? It’s another pedestrian statline by his standards. The way this offense works might mean we’ll never see the ballistic Big Bodega drop 40 in a big game, but dammit, it feels like he’s doing that.
The only thing that held him back in this game was the officiating, which had him removed from the game after soft fouls in the third quarter while getting comically few calls on the other end.
Deuce McBride: C+
5 points, 2 assists, 2 rebounds, 2 turnovers, 2-7 FG, 1-3 3pt, -1
His points were in big situations, he played good defense, and he’s finding a way to make an impact without making everything from three.
The Deuuuuuuuce chants were still very loud, and they’ll be even louder on Monday in MSG.
José Alvarado: B
2 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 0-4 FG, 0-2 3pt, +11
Nobody was happy with my admittedly harsh grade on Alvarado in Game 1, and looking back, you guys are probably right.
He did probably play worse today, especially in the box score, but he was +11 in 10 minutes. When a struggling Brunson took a seat, he was perfect as the lead ballhandler who co-ran a mostly KAT-centric offense in his minutes. He also played some good defense and embraced the physicality of the series.
Landry Shamet: A-
13 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, 5-12 FG, 3-7 3pt, +9
Every laundromat in New York City shall hereby be renamed a Landromat.
This man was unsigned in September. If Malcolm Brogdon had never retired, he might not be a Knick right now. It’s one of the best stories in basketball.
He is an all-time role player now. The confidence I feel when this man pulls up from three is like that beautiful year of Donte DiVincenzo. This guy is awesome.
Mitchell Robinson: B
7 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block, 2-2 FG, 3-6 FT, 3 fouls, 1 OREB, -10
He had the worst plus-minus on the team and was an active detriment during that dreaded Hack-a-Mitch stretch. He also didn’t do much on the boards.
So why does he get a B? Well, he’s somehow shooting better from the line with a broken hand, and I blame the whole unit’s defensive intensity during the Hack-a-Mitch more than his free-throw ineptitude. He made three free throws, but the team allowed seven points on the ensuing three possessions. If they got one or two stops, it would be a wash.
The second reason? What did you think?
BONUS
The Referees: F-
Just an embarrassing performance from top to bottom. I was not going to blame them if the Knicks finished off a nasty 14-point chokejob, but the whistle disparity might’ve been the only thing stopping Mitch Johnson from waving the white flag midway through the fourth.
Clean it the hell up.
