Thompson gives me headaches, but having him back to help cover Randle is underrated. We have our well documented offensive woes, yet the Knicks also have some real execution issues down the stretch. It is essentially put Randle on an island, surrounded by a group of poor shooters.
To me winning this game begins with pressure on their ball handlers, Payton, Barrett, Rose all have a lot of warts and their offense is entirely predictable, if Marcus and Jaylen are active defensively that sets us up well to get out on the break for the easy buckets we need, particularly with our own limited offensive options today. With Randle handling the ball a lot, I think the most effective approach is to keep him settling for mid rangers in that 18-20ft space - easier said than done. I wouldn't mind seeing Tatum given extended time guarding him, sure he gives up some muscle, but he has length to deny, can stay in front of him, and has the defensive awareness needed to push him to those spots on the floor.
On that note, it would be nice to see Jayson get his head in the game, no one on their team can guard him if he putting himself in the right spots, unfortunately its just a given we are going to rely on him and Smart a lot in the half court tonight. That really just comes down to basic execution, and as mentioned by nearly everyone... not turning the ball over.
From the bench, I'd hope to see much more of Pritchard, I think yesterday's game was just overwhelming, the 76ers length and defensive intensity wasn't ideal for a small rookie point guard, and he also got lost a number of times guarding his man (NB: Ben Simmons play in particular where he sent him 5 ft the wrong way with a hesitation). The Knicks thankfully despite being
just as aggressive dont present the same physical challenge. Strong cameos from whoever else gets their bingo number gets called all important too!
Feeling this could be a real hunger games scenario tonight, two diametrically opposed teams, each with significant limitations, yet each struggle to put teams away down the stretch...expecting a rough final 5 minutes
