Knicks fall short to the Hawks: 3 major takeaways from Game 1

The Knicks need to shoot better from downtown

Another reason for the Knicks losing in game 1 was their poor shooting from outside. As a team, they only made 10 of their 30 three-point attempts. It’s very difficult to win games shooting that poorly from behind the arc.

RJ Barrett did a lot of things well, but he only shot 1 for 6 from 3. Reggie Bullock, one of the best 3 point shooters on the team, was ice cold the entirety of the game, missing all 5 of his 3 point attempts. Derrick Rose shot just 1 of 4 from 3 and Julius Randle also contributed to the Knicks 3 point struggles, making just 2 out of his 6 three-point attempts.

Most of these misses were wide-open attempts that the Knicks players just couldn’t knock down. The poor shooting from three contributed heavily to the Knicks putrid start. Reggie Bullock, Julius Randle and RJ Barrett each shot 40% from three in the regular seasons.

As long as New York continues to generate and take open looks the law of averages should eventually lead to them knocking the open 3 pointers down. It’s also crucial for NY to knock down 3 pointers to space the floor for Julius Randle.

The Hawks’ defensive strategy of doubling Randle was aided by the fact that the Knicks couldn’t punish the defense by hitting open shots. Improved shooting from RJ Barrett and Reggie Bullock will improve the Knicks offense by giving Julius Randle more space to operate.

Continuing to move the ball and capitalizing on open looks has to be a point of emphasis heading into game 2.