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Game 3 in the Garden with a late 8:30 p.m. start on ABC and Bally. The Knicks will obviously be looking to get back on track after Tuesday night’s beatdown where they trailed by 22 points after three quarters and as much as 29 in the fourth.
The Cavs were a completely different basketball team in Game 2 with different personnel, a different approach offensively, and a much more physical style of play. The Knicks stuck with the “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” approach and got hammered. Now we’ll see what, if any, adjustments they make tonight.
This time it's the Cavs who will stick with what worked and the Knicks who have to consider making changes.
Quentin Grimes is 1-for-6 in 49 minutes over the two games. How many teams have a starting shooting guard who never shoots? He’s been solid defensively on Mitchell, but Immanuel Quickley gives them a lot more offense. Having scored just 101 and 90 points the first two games I’m wondering if we’ll see less Grimes and more Quickley, who is capable of 30-point games if he gets hot.
As a starter this year Quickley averaged 22.6 points in 21 games, shooting 47% from the field and 40% on 3’s. If the Knicks continue to struggle offensively I could see Thibs going to him, maybe not as a starter, but early on like the Cavs did in replacing Okoro with LeVert in Game 2.
The Cavs managed to fix everything that wasn’t working in Game 1. They simply figured out how to beat the Knicks. Use a seven-man rotation, play LeVert 40 minutes and have him check Brunson, have everybody crash the defensive glass, have Mitchell pass out of double teams instead of trying to dribble through them (11 shot attempts, 13 assists!), let Garland run the offense, and ramp the intensity way up.
Bickerstaff’s adjustments and the players’ commitment to increased physicality paid off. Now the question is - what does Thibs do to counteract it?
The Cavs will be going with the personnel from Game 2 (as opposed to using Rubio and Wade) and that has been their best rotation by far. In Game 2 they connected on 42.4% of their 3’s. Can they come close to that on the road? Cedi was 1-for-7 on 3’s. Can he shoot better in the Garden? He is dealing with a sprained ankle and is listed as questionable. If he can’t go will Okoro or Stevens be able to adequately replace him?
The Knicks will most likely do something different. Obviously Josh Hart playing on a gimpy ankle was a factor and he may be a lot better after two days off. He was a -29 in 27 minutes in Game 2. The next worst player was a -10, so Hart really hurt them. He probably could not move as well as usual on defense and he only took three shots after coming up big in Game 1.
The crowd will obviously be trying to intimidate the Cavs and the referees so we’ll see how this untested team reacts to the noise and hostility.
I expect the Knicks to be throwing elbows around and seeing how much contact they can get away with. Allen laying out Randle on that breakaway layup with 2:22 left and the Cavs up by 21 points will have the Knicks fired up. They know that in order to beat the Cavs they need to be the more intimidating and physical team and bodies will likely be hitting the floor in this one. I don’t think the Knicks believe they can win on just basketball skills.
It won’t surprise me if they try to beat up Garland when he ventures into the lane after he torched them for 32 points and 7 assists in Game 2. The Cavs need to be ready to be bounced around and mugged with the refs possibly turning a blind eye. I’m hoping the refs start out calling it tight to prevent the game from turning into a slugfest. But the Cavs need to be ready in case it does.
Winning either of the next two games returns the home court advantage to the Cavs and puts them back in the driver's seat.
The Cavs were a completely different basketball team in Game 2 with different personnel, a different approach offensively, and a much more physical style of play. The Knicks stuck with the “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” approach and got hammered. Now we’ll see what, if any, adjustments they make tonight.
This time it's the Cavs who will stick with what worked and the Knicks who have to consider making changes.
Quentin Grimes is 1-for-6 in 49 minutes over the two games. How many teams have a starting shooting guard who never shoots? He’s been solid defensively on Mitchell, but Immanuel Quickley gives them a lot more offense. Having scored just 101 and 90 points the first two games I’m wondering if we’ll see less Grimes and more Quickley, who is capable of 30-point games if he gets hot.
As a starter this year Quickley averaged 22.6 points in 21 games, shooting 47% from the field and 40% on 3’s. If the Knicks continue to struggle offensively I could see Thibs going to him, maybe not as a starter, but early on like the Cavs did in replacing Okoro with LeVert in Game 2.
The Cavs managed to fix everything that wasn’t working in Game 1. They simply figured out how to beat the Knicks. Use a seven-man rotation, play LeVert 40 minutes and have him check Brunson, have everybody crash the defensive glass, have Mitchell pass out of double teams instead of trying to dribble through them (11 shot attempts, 13 assists!), let Garland run the offense, and ramp the intensity way up.
Bickerstaff’s adjustments and the players’ commitment to increased physicality paid off. Now the question is - what does Thibs do to counteract it?
The Cavs will be going with the personnel from Game 2 (as opposed to using Rubio and Wade) and that has been their best rotation by far. In Game 2 they connected on 42.4% of their 3’s. Can they come close to that on the road? Cedi was 1-for-7 on 3’s. Can he shoot better in the Garden? He is dealing with a sprained ankle and is listed as questionable. If he can’t go will Okoro or Stevens be able to adequately replace him?
The Knicks will most likely do something different. Obviously Josh Hart playing on a gimpy ankle was a factor and he may be a lot better after two days off. He was a -29 in 27 minutes in Game 2. The next worst player was a -10, so Hart really hurt them. He probably could not move as well as usual on defense and he only took three shots after coming up big in Game 1.
The crowd will obviously be trying to intimidate the Cavs and the referees so we’ll see how this untested team reacts to the noise and hostility.
I expect the Knicks to be throwing elbows around and seeing how much contact they can get away with. Allen laying out Randle on that breakaway layup with 2:22 left and the Cavs up by 21 points will have the Knicks fired up. They know that in order to beat the Cavs they need to be the more intimidating and physical team and bodies will likely be hitting the floor in this one. I don’t think the Knicks believe they can win on just basketball skills.
It won’t surprise me if they try to beat up Garland when he ventures into the lane after he torched them for 32 points and 7 assists in Game 2. The Cavs need to be ready to be bounced around and mugged with the refs possibly turning a blind eye. I’m hoping the refs start out calling it tight to prevent the game from turning into a slugfest. But the Cavs need to be ready in case it does.
Winning either of the next two games returns the home court advantage to the Cavs and puts them back in the driver's seat.
