How To Make A Slingshot With Household Items
“A strong slingshot depends on a firm frame and dependable elastic. That mix gives stability and solid forward movement.”
Firm, but dependable. Bend, but don’t break.
The most famous giant-killing weapon of all-time is the slingshot. Last night the Knicks, facing the mother of all giants, were firm but fluid, down but never out, tested . . . and triumphant. Fueled by yet another epic postseason run — 54-30 over the final 18 minutes — their 105-95 Game 1 win
in San Antonio gave them a 1-0 lead in the Finals, and their fans and their doubters plenty to chew on.
“Firm frame.” That’d be the Knick defense, the league’s best since January. At halftime the offense looked predictably rusty after so much time off; New York shot just 41% from the field and 30% from deep, while taking only three free throws. Jalen Brunson’s field-goal-to-injury ratio was a frightening 2.5:1. He and Karl-Anthony Towns combined to make just eight of their 24 shots. But as always, the defense didn’t let up.
San Antonio made just 40% of their first-half attempts. While Justin Champagnie got off to a hot start from deep and fantasto-rookie Dylan Harper looked like this is his 20th Finals instead of his his 20th year of life, by the break the rest of the Spurs were a ghastly 26% from the field. The Giant himself was, at least on that end of the floor, humanized.
“Rubber bands work almost everywhere. If you have thick ones, they pack more force. If yours are thin, loop several together to build strength.”
Much of the credit for slowing down the Giant goes to New York’s giants, who’s combined skills pack some force. Victor Wembanyama shot just 4-of-16 when guarded by KAT and Mitchell Robinson, including missing nine of 11 defended by Towns. The sight of KAT flicking in 30-foot bombs used to stun me. His conversion into Point Towns a month ago seemed like a bonus evolutionary leap. But watching his drives end with a Eurostep instead of a car crash, defend with his feet, not bite on pump fakes, not reach in on someone 40 feet from the hoop — all I can do is shake my head and laugh. If KAT’s final form is the three-dimensional end-is-nigh we’ve witnessed this postseason, the league’s got a second unicorn. And he was giving the other unicorn problems.
The Knicks have good thick bands, but this year they also loop several thinner ones together to build strength. In the first half Landry Shamet and Deuce McBride made three 3s, doubling the output of the opposing bench and making one more than the Knick starters. After Brunson left the game due to knee and ankle injuries, Jose Alvarado packed seven points and four rebounds into his seven minutes. Add five boards for Mitch in eight minutes and you start to see how even with the starters’ struggles shooting, even with the Spurs playing at home and presumably more in-rhythm than their well-well-rested visitors, the Knicks were still in position to pounce.
“A firm body keeps everything steady when you pull back”
After the Knicks absorbed the Spurs’ opening flurry of youthful exuberance, it was time to pull back and counter.
Before this season, every good Knick team I’ve ever seen was fundamentally flawed in some way. The ‘90s Knicks were lousy offensively. The 2013 team didn’t have the shooting. Last year’s team had the starters to run, but neither the continuity or the bench. This year, the body is firm from head to toes.
That meant when it was time to throw blows, it wasn’t all Patrick Ewing haymakers or Carmelo Anthony roundhouses. In the third quarter, when the Knicks fell behind by 14 and one or two bad possessions might have been the wave that pushed them under, it was KAT who landed body blow after body blow, giving them a lift when they needed it. His 10 points in the quarter helped pull the team even heading into the fourth.
That’s when OG Anunoby stunned the Spurs with 12 of his 17, included two critical 3s, one right in the Giant’s face. The young upstarts were still on their feet, still trading blows, but running out of ideas. Spurs not born in France combined to shoot 3-of-13 in the final frame. Wembanyama had two of his game-high six turnovers in the fourth; the Knicks had none. And when the final bell was near, when two teams who’d played 47-plus minutes of all-out ball came down to the nub, the point — per usual — was Brunson.
“Tape can turn flimsy pieces into solid ones”
Both teams will look to firm up some areas for Game 2. The Spurs have to figure out how to pair Wembanyama’s elite free safety skills against one of maybe two players in the league today who can neutralize it by virtue of their size, shooting and passing. 36% shooting and 26% from deep isn’t gonna work, either. They out-rebounded the Knicks on the defensive and offensive glass, yet were outscored by nine on second-chance points. And should Brunson suffer another in-game malady, perhaps Mitch Johnson won’t immediately stick Carter Bryant, a lovely young defender who currently shoots like Frank Ntilikina, on Brunson, allowing him to rest and recover on the defensive end.
As for the winners of 12 straight, the next game is always the hardest. San Antonio will make adjustments. Wembanyama isn’t getting any shorter. Nine Spurs took shots in this game, six made 36% or fewer. The Knicks have to keep that supporting cast unsupportive.
But they’re up 1-0 in the NBA Finals, and they’ve given Goliath more problems than any of the Association’s other tribes. Quoth Jelly Bean Formerly TLF: “This year is next year!” Three more games like last night and the rallying cry becomes reality.
