The Deuce McBride Game

As well as the Knicks have played, New York's hopes and aspirations this season are now tenuous due to injury issues sidelining their starting forwards.

Final Score: Knicks 119 - Warriors 112
Record: 41-27

The day began on a sour note when the Knicks downgraded OG Anunoby from questionable to out. It got worse when Woj reported that OG's elbow injury "flared up" and that Anunoby is expected to miss more than just one game. We'll get to all the depressing medical stuff in a bit, but we must first praise this gritty, gutty team for yet another unexpectedly impressive performance. 

And the headliner from last night's inspiring victory was Mr. Miles "Deuce" McBride.  

After being bounced in and out of the rotation last season and being hit with his fair share of DNP-CDs (over the team's 11 playoff games last year, McBride never played more than five minutes and scored a total of three points the entire postseason), it was assumed Deuce would suffer a similar fate in 2023-24 after New York signed yet another quality guard (Donte DiVincenzo) in free agency. Yet McBride came into camp in great shape and was one of the Knicks' most accurate shot-makers in the team’s' shooting drills.    

Still, McBride didn't get off the bench in 13 of the Knicks' first 31 games this season and averaged less than five minutes per game in his sporadic appearances. However, everything changed in late December when the Knicks traded Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett to the Toronto Raptors. Yes, the primary reason New York pulled the trigger on the deal was to acquire OG Anunoby. And adding Precious Achiuwa as a backup big (NY had yet to learn how much they'd actually need him) was a factor. However, another reason Leon Rose and the company felt comfortable parting with RJ and IQ was because they believed Deuce was ready to shoulder more responsibility. The Knicks put their money where their mouth was by inking McBride to a three-year contract extension the same day they announced the trade had been officially consummated. 

As we know, the Knicks went on a historic run in January, posting a 14-2 record while leading the league in Defensive Efficiency. As expected, Deuce's defense was solid, but just as importantly, he continued to shoot lights out from behind the arc.

Yet, after New York traded for Alec Burks and Bojan Bogdanovic on February 8th, McBride saw his minutes reduced once again. But when Burks and Bogey began to falter, coach Tom Thibodeau started leaning more heavily on McBride.

Fast forward to Monday night in the Bay. With OG back in New York getting an MRI on his elbow, it was assumed Precious Achiuwa would slide back into the starting lineup in place of Anunoby. Instead, Thibs decided to go small, inserting McBride into the first five. Deuce's assignment was simple: slow down the greatest shooter that has ever walked the earth. 

So what did Deuce do? He knocked down three treys in the first quarter en route to 11 points over the first 12 minutes. Meanwhile, Curry missed all three of his FG attempts and scored just two points. 

By the time the final buzzer sounded, McBride had poured in a career-high 29 points (9-of-13 FGs, 5-of-6 FTs) and drilled a career-high six three-pointers.

Per NBA tracking data, in the 51 possessions Deuce defended Curry, Steph went 4-for-13 with two turnovers and one assist.

"[McBride] was huge for us, obviously," Josh Hart told The Post after the win. "Everyone's gonna see the box score and see he shot the ball very well and was very efficient, but he did that while guarding Steph, pressuring him, running around with him all game. So he was huge for us and something that we need."

On the season, McBride has converted 41.6% of three-point attempts. That ranks inside the top 20 among all qualified NBA players. Which is incredible, considering his shooting struggles early on in his career. 

Over his first two NBA seasons combined, 
McBride was:
57-for-202 from 3PT territory (28.2%)
36-for-54 from the FT line (66.7%)

This season, 
McBride is:
72-of-173 from 3PT territory (41.6%)
28-of-34 from the FT line (82.4%)

Another Knick that has wildly exceeded expectations this season is Isaiah Hartenstein. After Mitchell Robinson had gone down, iHart played at an elite level in December and January before injuring his Achilles. After some extended rest over the All-Star break and playing limited minutes in his return to action, it appears Hartenstein is finally re-finding his footing.