PG: And Our Daughters Shall Be Named Kat Brunson

[mpharris36]

KAT played a fantastic game on both ends...Pacers were 6 for 22 when shooting on him!

The pacers missed a ton of shots they were making in the other games. Credit to our D but I don’t expect them to perform like that again in game 6. They’re going to try to knock us out early like they did in game 3 before we rallied. Hope our team is ready

Yes they were missing some shots...but we were also setting the pace. Picking up haliburton nearly full court and disrupting there early action matters. Also less turnovers (still too many) good shots leads to less fast breaks for Indy.

I thought our communication was better...there will always be some issues with how fast they play but overall much better.

They aren't scoring under 100 in Indy...but if we can keep them around 110 we should have a good chance to win.

[HopelessKnick]

Special thing to hear a Shamet chant.

You know fans defending Thibs been saying all year long he is unplayable....I pointed to the fact that he played close to 20 minutes on all his team which were mostly top seeded playoff teams....but still they said he can't play, is unplayable....the short rotation has been my main point of criticism on Thibs....really to me after watching Wright, Shamet etc. play the last games shows me that Thibs' reluctance to expand the rotation is what almost cost us the Pistons series....you put both of them in and get a good 15-20 minutes from them and our entire playoff run becomes more convincing.

But it took close to an entire fanbase, media, commentators etc. to force Thibs to expand his rotation.

Too late, too little.

I'm not gonna harp on Tom here because he had us prepared better than ever but yeah. These guys should have been playing all this time.

I've been saying all season long that this team is nowhere near their potential

The thing that got me frustrated really is that in his mind (Thibs mind) did he like really think he could get through the postseason with a bench consisting basically of Mitchell Robinson and Deuce Mcbride off the bench?

Like who in his right mind would think like that strategically? It's a pure and utter nonsense approach. A historic shooting slump by the Celtics helped us make the ECF after 25 years and Thibs lost us the series on his utter stubborness to expand the rotation.

Too little, too late.

[kNicksGmen]

KAT played a fantastic game on both ends...Pacers were 6 for 22 when shooting on him!

The pacers missed a ton of shots they were making in the other games. Credit to our D but I don’t expect them to perform like that again in game 6. They’re going to try to knock us out early like they did in game 3 before we rallied. Hope our team is ready

Yes they were missing some shots...but we were also setting the pace. Picking up haliburton nearly full court and disrupting there early action matters. Also less turnovers (still too many) good shots leads to less fast breaks for Indy.

I thought our communication was better...there will always be some issues with how fast they play but overall much better.

They aren't scoring under 100 in Indy...but if we can keep them around 110 we should have a good chance to win.

yea can't compare it at all to game 4. game 4 very early in the game the pacers got like 2 or 3 legit wide open, nobody even rotated type 3s. just complete breakdowns. that basically didn't happen at all this game.

with that said I agree the pacers are likely to shoot better and play better in general at home. knicks have to come out with the same desperate energy they did in game 5 and make the pacers feel the pressure of potentially having to face a game 7 on the road.

[kNicksGmen]

You know fans defending Thibs been saying all year long he is unplayable....I pointed to the fact that he played close to 20 minutes on all his team which were mostly top seeded playoff teams....but still they said he can't play, is unplayable....the short rotation has been my main point of criticism on Thibs....really to me after watching Wright, Shamet etc. play the last games shows me that Thibs' reluctance to expand the rotation is what almost cost us the Pistons series....you put both of them in and get a good 15-20 minutes from them and our entire playoff run becomes more convincing.

But it took close to an entire fanbase, media, commentators etc. to force Thibs to expand his rotation.

Too late, too little.

I'm not gonna harp on Tom here because he had us prepared better than ever but yeah. These guys should have been playing all this time.

I've been saying all season long that this team is nowhere near their potential

The thing that got me frustrated really is that in his mind (Thibs mind) did he like really think he could get through the postseason with a bench consisting basically of Mitchell Robinson and Deuce Mcbride off the bench?

Like who in his right mind would think like that strategically? It's a pure and utter nonsense approach. A historic shooting slump by the Celtics helped us make the ECF after 25 years and Thibs lost us the series on his utter stubborness to expand the rotation.

Too little, too late.

one of my general criticisms of thibs would be he doesn't look at the big picture. it's the same thing in the regular season. he's coaching every quarter/game to win in what he views as his "best chance" (also debatable). In the playoffs probably even more so he's not thinking about the next game or round - so the logical long term thoughts don't apply.

[mpharris36]

The pacers missed a ton of shots they were making in the other games. Credit to our D but I don’t expect them to perform like that again in game 6. They’re going to try to knock us out early like they did in game 3 before we rallied. Hope our team is ready

Yes they were missing some shots...but we were also setting the pace. Picking up haliburton nearly full court and disrupting there early action matters. Also less turnovers (still too many) good shots leads to less fast breaks for Indy.

I thought our communication was better...there will always be some issues with how fast they play but overall much better.

They aren't scoring under 100 in Indy...but if we can keep them around 110 we should have a good chance to win.

yea can't compare it at all to game 4. game 4 very early in the game the pacers got like 2 or 3 legit wide open, nobody even rotated type 3s. just complete breakdowns. that basically didn't happen at all this game.

with that said I agree the pacers are likely to shoot better and play better in general at home. knicks have to come out with the same desperate energy they did in game 5 and make the pacers feel the pressure of potentially having to face a game 7 on the road.

It wont be easy but the Knicks did make a concerned effort to always have a body and stay connected to haliburton...make him feel you. Before this he had way to many possessions he could just bring the ball up facing no pressure. He isn't overly strong and he doesn't have elite handles...so make him feel you. They did a great job of that tonight.

[HopelessKnick]

I'm not gonna harp on Tom here because he had us prepared better than ever but yeah. These guys should have been playing all this time.

I've been saying all season long that this team is nowhere near their potential

The thing that got me frustrated really is that in his mind (Thibs mind) did he like really think he could get through the postseason with a bench consisting basically of Mitchell Robinson and Deuce Mcbride off the bench?

Like who in his right mind would think like that strategically? It's a pure and utter nonsense approach. A historic shooting slump by the Celtics helped us make the ECF after 25 years and Thibs lost us the series on his utter stubborness to expand the rotation.

Too little, too late.

one of my general criticisms of thibs would be he doesn't look at the big picture. it's the same thing in the regular season. he's coaching every quarter/game to win in what he views as his "best chance" (also debatable). In the playoffs probably even more so he's not thinking about the next game or round - so the logical long term thoughts don't apply.

Like Shamet and Wright (2 guys I have been advocating to be played as part of a 9 man rotation) have been a plus in all the 3 games in this series. Yet they basically didn't play at all in the playoffs.

And you are right. Thibs does not see the benefit of playing bench players early on even if it may lose a game or two in the process so he has a long and deep rotation late in the season. It's the exact same reason why he leaves startersin with 2 minutes and up 20 points. No strategic thinking at all.

His final game as a knick is upcoming...saturday!

[Fury]

KAT played a fantastic game on both ends...Pacers were 6 for 22 when shooting on him!

The pacers missed a ton of shots they were making in the other games. Credit to our D but I don’t expect them to perform like that again in game 6. They’re going to try to knock us out early like they did in game 3 before we rallied. Hope our team is ready

Yes they were missing some shots...but we were also setting the pace. Picking up haliburton nearly full court and disrupting there early action matters. Also less turnovers (still too many) good shots leads to less fast breaks for Indy.

I thought our communication was better...there will always be some issues with how fast they play but overall much better.

They aren't scoring under 100 in Indy...but if we can keep them around 110 we should have a good chance to win.

I think we tend to look at missed and made shots in the wrong lens sometimes. The key is to prevent the opposing team from taking shots in rhythm. There's an open shot where it's executed to perfection and the guy takes the jumper in rhythm, then there are possessions when dudes are trying to find someone, go to like the 3rd option and rush an open shot. Yesterday, the Pacers did not take a lot of shots in rhythm. There were a few shots Neismith took that were "open" but he really wasn't in rhythm. Either was rushing, or got it on a broken play, or it wasn't in the right spot. That's what happens when the Knicks swarm on defense.

[NoStatsGuy]

cant believe we are down vs the pacers, especially after games like these. brunson and kat are so so much better than anybody on the pacers.

pls show up for the next game. i cant handle losing to these guys again.

[robillionaire]

KAT played a fantastic game on both ends...Pacers were 6 for 22 when shooting on him!

The pacers missed a ton of shots they were making in the other games. Credit to our D but I don’t expect them to perform like that again in game 6. They’re going to try to knock us out early like they did in game 3 before we rallied. Hope our team is ready

Yes they were missing some shots...but we were also setting the pace. Picking up haliburton nearly full court and disrupting there early action matters. Also less turnovers (still too many) good shots leads to less fast breaks for Indy.

I thought our communication was better...there will always be some issues with how fast they play but overall much better.

They aren't scoring under 100 in Indy...but if we can keep them around 110 we should have a good chance to win.

Other big thing is we kept the pace down and kept them from getting out in transition

[mpharris36]

Read on Twitter

she knows her stuff on the pacers side of things. We picked up Haliburton much earlier...that matters...and OG ability to go under and recover on Nembhard eliminates a lot of what they want to do.

[HopelessKnick]

Read on Twitter

Mitch was the best player on the court for that stretch in the 3rd. Was dominating the game

so dominant and Thibs never put him back in the game....

Thibs just frequently loses track of many things...I mean he is also close to 70 already....you can't expect him to keep track of everything at this age. So much stuff going on....

[NoStatsGuy]

His final game as a knick is upcoming...saturday!

dont get your hopes up buddy. he exceeded expecations with a roster that was completely overhauled last summer. hes gonna get 1 or even 2 more shots. not saying i neccessarily want that, but thats the reality.

[BKlutch]

Read on Twitter

Keep. Playing. The. Defensive. Guards.

Wright and Shamet both were +4

1 steal and 1 rebound each.

Wright had 3 assists (shot 0-4 tho). Shamet hit a 3

I think Thibs needs to keep playing these guys.

Payne ate up minutes, but at a cost. Shamet and Wright bring us positive value. Who knew?

[WaltFrazier]

I counted… Hart was more good than bad. But, he should be playing 25 minutes not 35 minutes. Thibs can’t help himself so I hope we get good Hart more than bad Hart.

Counted what? I agree about minutes.

Any updates on this tweet?

Read on Twitter

His good plays verse bad plays. If Thibs sets Hart to 25 minutes and ups Mitch, Deuce, Shamet, and Wright by 2-3 mins each, we can take this series confidently.

But I doubt Thibs will reduce Josh's minutes

[3toheadmelo]

cant believe we are down vs the pacers, especially after games like these. brunson and kat are so so much better than anybody on the pacers.

pls show up for the next game. i cant handle losing to these guys again.

Losing game 1 was such a costly loss.

[dakomish23]

KAT for the series

25.4 PPG 11.8 RPG 1.8 APG
51.8% on 16.6 FGA - 3rd to Hart (52.0%) & Mitch (78.6%)
42.3% on 5.2 3PA - 2nd to Shamet (50.0%)
81.1% on 7.4 FTA
+4.8 on the series - 2nd to Shamet (+7.3)







Best big man since Patrick Ewing

This needed a bump

He's been the best player this series by a country mile. This is an IND sweep if he didn't take the wheel in Game 3. We said before the series IND can't guard him and we were right.

[dakomish23]

Read on Twitter

she knows her stuff on the pacers side of things. We picked up Haliburton much earlier...that matters...and OG ability to go under and recover on Nembhard eliminates a lot of what they want to do.

I also thought Mitch being up on Turner blew up a lot of the random DHO actions they use him for and got their flow out of sync

[Dave_R]

They always say that the way to beat a pressing team is to press them. Keep doing it because it not only throws them off balance but it eats up their shot clock and helps force them into half-court offense where they stink.

The only ones that should guard Saikam are Mitch, OG, and Precious - Not KAT

Knicks need to: (1) take a few hard but clean fouls; (2) run Nesmith through as many picks as possible to work that ankle; (3) post up Nembhard no matter who he is guarding -- he can't guard anyone in the Knicks starting lineup.

[Jalen Bluntson]

Expanding the rotation has worked pretty much EVERY time he has been forced to. Not just this series or season but, for years. Yet Thibs still refuses to do so. The Knicks starters have played what amounts to 15 more games than the rest of the league. What is it going to take? He ALWAYS reverts back to 7 man rotations immediately after having success with a deeper rotation. It's mind bending.

Precious has proven himself in the past to deserve minutes. Shamet/Wright are proving their value right now. 3 players that have been rotting on the bench most of the season and playoffs. What's the problem? Why does he refuse to adjust his entire career? He hasn't won ANYTHING doing it this way. Switch it up? Nah. Never that.

[K_ick_God]

The interview with KAT … something didn’t sit well with me. He makes these dumb fouls in droves and yet he talked to them like it was just this one game or a recent, mild adjustment he needs to make … something doesn’t add up

I love the fact that he was called out on it on National television by HOF players and experts.

Hopefully, this sparks some positive change.

I mean he didn’t foul out and he played 36 minutes. He hasn’t even fouled out in the 2025 playoffs. They act like he’s the first person to ever foul someone. Yeah he makes some bad ones that happens when you aren’t a great defender but in the moment he’s kept his poise. Look at 4th quarter game 3. All those dudes have hated him for his whole career and they’re lucky he is a nice dude. Why didn’t Shaq learn to make FTs? Why didn’t chuck win a ring? Clowns

Mostly agree and glad you said it but there are times when he appears to simply shove, grab or lock arms for no apparent reason

I think they embarrassed him a little