During the fourth quarter of the New York Knicks 116-95 win over the Miami Heat on March 17, Tom Thibodeau experimented with a double-big lineup. Both Karl-Anthony Towns and Mitchell Robinson shared the court.
Knicks fans have been expecting Towns and Robinson to become a front-court pairing. Towns thrived in a similar role during his latter years with the Minnesota Timberwolves. During his postgame news conference, Thibodeau broke down the value of having two bigs on the floor alongside defensive lynchpin OG Anunoby.
“When you have Mitch and KAT out there together, you’ve got two 7-footers. And, when OG’s on the front line with them also, you’re so long,” Thibodeau said. “The basket’s protected…We have two 7-footers out there. If you get by one, you got another waiting at the rim. I think that has a huge impact on the game. And then, OG’s uniqueness in the sense that he gives you another really long athletic guy…I was very pleased.”
With the regular season starting to wind down, it will be interesting to see whether Thibodeau continues to experiment with a double-big rotation. Furthermore, it will be essential to monitor Towns’ impact on offense when he shares the floor with a high-level rim protector and shot blocker, as that could unleash a new level of offensive aggression from the All-Star center.
Knicks’ Towns Has Been Expecting This Lineup
During a Feb. 7 news conference, Towns shared his expectations for the Knicks to lean on a double-big lineup once Robinson had returned from injury.
“Tall lineup,” Towns said. “It’s gonna be exciting to explore that lineup. I will probably have some familiarity from when I was with Rudy (Gobert), so it will probably be something that I tap into.”
Towns’ prediction has now come true. Once Jalen Brunson is back in the rotation, playing with a bigger rotation could ease some of the team’s defensive woes. Robinson provides a new dimension, especially with Anunoby and Towns next to him. However, Thibodeau may be cautious about using both his bigs at once, given the limited amount of depth at center.
Knicks’ Mikal Bridges Must Improve
New York paid a hefty price to pry Mikal Bridges away from the Brooklyn Nets this summer. Unfortunately, his production throughout the season has failed to meet the high expectations of the Knicks fanbase.
According to ESPN’s Peter Rosenberg, Bridges has been somewhat of a disappointment this season.
“Let’s be real before Mikal Bridges traveled 15 feet and knocked down that game-winner the other night, the conversation about Mikal Bridges was what a disappointment he’s been on this team,” Rosenberg said. “…This was supposed to be the missing ingredient that took them to another level. He has not been that guy.”
Bridges were acquired to provide elite wing defense, floor spacing and some interior scoring. He’s shown all of those things throughout the season but has rarely put it all together on the floor.
If the Knicks want to make a deep postseason run, they will need Bridges to step up and showcase the defensive versatility that enticed the franchise to trade for him. Fortunately, the Knicks have a wealth of high-level talent this season, so Bridges won’t be carrying all of those expectations on his shoulders, although there will be a lot of eyes on how he performs.
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