There were moments when I couldn't help but let my imagination run wild. There are a lot of snapshots and grainy old videos of the old Knicks, championship Knicks, but the one that always does the best job is Willis Reed with the ball in the low post. That starts the windmill.
And then, in a beautiful rapid-fire dance, Willis feeds the ball to one of his corners, Dave Debucher, who swings the ball to Dick Barnett, who swings the ball to Clyde Frazier, who then feeds the ball to Bill Bill. I had a touch pass to Bradley and he was open in the corner. It might crack open the ice-cold Rhinegold. Bradley's shot flies. The garden will be in an uproar. The eyes of my heart shed tears.
There were several belongings that looked exactly like those Wednesday night. There were several times when all five Knicks players touched the ball, with the ball going from Isaiah Hartenstein to Jalen Brunson to Julius Randle to OG Anunoby to Donte DiVincenzo. In the end, three points were scored, and the Garden erupted in joy.
It was fun to watch. It's fun to watch when the ball moves like that, when the offense crackles like that, when half of the Bulls look like they're three steps behind the play. There were enough moments like that for the Knicks to win their second straight game at the Garden, 116-100. There were also gaudy stat lines from Brunson (31 points, 13 assists), Randle (35 points) and Hartenstein (10 points, 20 rebounds, five blocks).
“We found a way to win,” Brunson said. “They kept conceding goals, but we stayed calm and found a way to get it done.”
The important thing for the Knicks at this point, and for fans who seem newly fascinated by what this group can do, is not to get too carried away with how good their starters have been in the two games since the trade with the Raptors. Because it's equally important not to get too carried away with the flip side of this.
After all, at their best last year and early this season, one of the Knicks' most dangerous weapons was their second unit. That's largely due to Immanuel Quickley, who was able to get the whole team excited off the bench on the nights he played, teaming with Josh Hart, RJ Barrett, and Hartenstein (Hartenstein He was the backup and first unit nick with Barrett joining the backup).
Quickley, of course, was in Memphis Wednesday night, dropping 26 points and powering the Raptors to a win over the Grizzlies. So was Barrett. Hartenstein is currently playing as a starter. As amazingly sharp as the starting five were (three of them posted an impressive plus-minus of +30 or higher), the second unit struggled to keep the Knicks from a nine-point lead early Wednesday. This was a major reason why the gap narrowed to 10 points. We conceded a goal a few minutes before halftime.
Coach Tom Thibodeau's preferred path Wednesday was to have Randle fill Barrett's role, starting in the second unit. Ideally, this would ensure that either Randle or Brunson is on the floor at all times. That's a sound idea.
Things didn't go so well against the Bulls. Randle had a great performance with his first unit and continued his 20-game push, his best performance ever as a Knick. But his plus-minus on the night was just plus-13, reflecting how much the reserves scuffled. And when the Bulls made a final push early in the fourth, Thibodeau quickly pulled Deuce McBride and brought Brunson back ahead of schedule.
“We have to find a rhythm for the second unit,” Thibodeau acknowledged. “They need some time, but we will figure it out. Now we have to play simple, trust each other and use each other's advantages.”
That's certainly a concern. But if you're looking for an item to throw in your anxiety closet and are curating successful games…well, it's a good night. And it was a good night for the Knicks. The reaction to the trade has been positive so far, and now it's time for this new group to hit the turnpike to see where they stand against the Sixers in Philadelphia Friday night. So far, so good.
