No D in Dallas

The Knicks certainly need to make schematic adjustments (such as less drop coverage), but they also need better 1-on-1, on-ball defense from the player they traded five first-round picks to acquire.

Final Score: Knicks 114 - Mavs 129
Record: 10-8

Here's how I started the recap of New York's impressive win against the Nuggets earlier this week: “After arguably their worst first half of the season Saturday in Utah, the Knicks responded with arguably their most impressive half Monday vs. the Nuggets."

Well, in last night's loss to the Mavs, the roller coaster continued. Just two days after setting the NBA high for most points in a game this season with 145, the 'Bockers scored just 15 points in the first quarter (their fewest in any quarter this season) and finished the first half with 38 (their lowest-scoring half this season) while shooting 26% from the floor and 12.5% from downtown).

Once again, the Knicks' offense was hampered by an opponent willing to switch everything on the perimeter and use long, versatile defenders to shut down passing lanes. Nonetheless, New York scored enough in the second half to make this contest respectable. And we've seen this team erupt frequently enough offensively that I'm not concerned with that end of the floor.

The Knicks starters are averaging a league-leading 98.9 points per game. To put that number in context, no starting unit has averaged more than 96 PPG over a full season since the NBA merger in 1976. (The 1986-87 Celtics hold the current record at 95.8 PPG).

That's the good news.

The bad news is New York's first five are giving up 85.7 points per game. To put that number in context, no starting unit over the last 20 years has allowed more than 81.0 PPG.

Wednesday night in Dallas, the Mavs were playing without their leading scorer and offensive engine, Luka Doncic. They were also missing Daniel Gafford (their best offensive center) and Klay Thompson, their leading bench scorer. Yet, the Mavs still poured in 129 points, shooting 56.5% from the floor and 51.5% from downtown.

New York went back to drop coverage on defense at times last night and paid a price. Time and again, Dallas burned the Knicks by setting high pick-and-rolls, which led to countless clean looks from behind the arc or in the mid-range as Karl-Anthny Towns watched from the paint. The duo of Towns and Mikal Bridges has been partially susceptible to such action this season.

ESPN's Chris Herring detailed this issue in a post on Wednesday morning. "Opponents are forcing Bridges to defend over 25 on-ball screens per game, which is the highest in NBA," Herring writes. The Knicks defense "hemorrhages 1.14 points per possession when screeners make contact with Bridges… That's second-worst among players who've defended 100 on-ball screens."

Per NBA tracking data, the Knicks allowed 18 "open" (closest defender 4-6 feet away) three-point attempts Wednesday and 13 "open" shots inside the arc.

(To their credit, the Mavs, and Spencer Dinwiddie in particular, made a bunch of tough, contested jumpers. Dallas shot 60% even when there was "tight" coverage.)

And, once again, as has been the case too often this season, Bridges failed to provide the point-of-attack defense that earned him a reputation as a world-class perimeter defender. According to NBA Advanced Stats Player Tracking analysis, Mavs players shot a combined 10-of-15 (66.7%) when matched up against Bridges as a primary defender.

Kyrie was 3-of-6. Dinwiddie was 2-of-3. Both Naji Marshall and Quentin Grimes went 2-for-2.

The Knicks certainly need to make schematic adjustments (such as less drop coverage), but they also need better 1-on-1, on-ball defense from the player they traded five first-round picks to acquire.

Other Takeaways and Knicks Notes:

🏀 New York wasted a brilliant offensive outburst from Jalen Brunson, who finished Wednesday's loss with 37 points (14-of-21 FGs, 9-of-10 FTs), three rebounds, seven assists, and two steals in 36 minutes. After a relatively inefficient start to the season, JB has been a heater.

Over the Knicks' last five games, Brunson is averaging 29.0 points, 10.6 assists (vs. just 2.2 turnovers) and 3.6 made treys while shooting a blistering 56.7% from the floor, 48.6% from downtown and 96.2% from the free-throw stripe.

It's a testament to Brunson's sustained excellence that this type of production is almost expected from The Captain at this point.

🏀 "We couldn't buy a basket to save our lives to start the game," Brunson told reporters after the game. "Defensively, we just weren't there. It's a long season. Honestly, got to limit the highs and lows and be as steady as we can be."

"Some nights you can look ridiculous, and some nights you can look ridiculous in the other way," Brunson said. "Like I said, we've got to level out. It can't be a roller coaster. It has to be a steady incline for us all the way."

🏀 KAT also continues to stuff the stat sheet, tallying 25 points (7-of-16 FGs, 9-of-10 FTs), 14 rebounds, four assists, one block, and two 3-pointers in 35 minutes… Josh Hart had just two rebounds and three assists but did chip in 12 points and a game-high four steals.

🏀 After we hyped him up on Tuesday, OG Anunoby (8/5/2) came crashing back down to earth Wednesday night, missing his first 12 shots from the floor. OG finished the contest shooting 3-of-15 from the floor and posted the worst plus/minus in the game (-15). Expect him to bounce back with a strong showing on Friday in Charlotte.

🏀 The Knicks got next to nothing from their bench in Dallas. Miles McBride was surprisingly quiet, attempting just two shots all night. Jericho Sims was scoreless and had just one rebound in 13 minutes. Cam Payne had six points (2-of-3 FGs) in his 20 minutes of action. Tyler Kolek was unavailable due to an illness.

🏀 After the loss, Thibodeau made it clear that his team needs to keep up its defensive intensity even when its offense isn't clicking. "We missed shots that we probably could make, and we allowed that to impact other parts of the game," said Thibs.

🏀 Up Next:
Knicks play the Hornets in Charlotte Friday afternoon (12:00 pm)

Yes, you read that correctly: the game in Charlotte on Black Friday tips off at noon.

The Hornets registered some impressive wins early this season, but they hit the skids of late, losing five of their last six. However, several of those losses have been close games, and they've been better than expected on the defensive end this season (ranking near the middle of the pack in DefEff). The key to beating Charlotte is cutting off the head of the snake: LaMelo Ball.

Over the Hornets' last four games, Ball is averaging 40.3 points, 7.5 rebounds and 8.3 assists. Yet, his inefficiency can be crippling. The Hornets are 3-3 this season when LaMelo takes 20 or fewer shots. They are 3-9 when he takes more than 20 shots.

🏀 Time to Eat?
If you are looking for something to be thankful for today, look at the Knicks' upcoming schedule.

@ CHA (6-12)
vs NOP (4-14)
vs ORL (13-7)
vs CHA (6-12)
vs DET (8-11)
@ TOR (5-14)
@ MIN (8-9)
@ NOP (4-14)
vs TOR (5-14)
vs SAS (10-9)
@ ORL (13-7)
@ WAS (2-15)
@ WAS (2-15)
vs UTH (4-14)

Over the 14 games the Knicks play between now and New Year's Day, 11 of their 14 opponents are below .500(and half the games are at MSG).

There are only six teams in the NBA with fewer than six wins. New York plays those six squads nine times over the next five weeks.

🏀 Lastly, I want to wish a very Happy Thanksgiving to my Substack family!!

I hope you enjoy Turkey Day (and a Detroit Lions victory) with your loved ones!! ❤️