The New York Knicks' historic run to the 2026 NBA Championship technically started with Game 1 of their first-round series against the Atlanta Hawks. Those who were tuned into that series, however, know that Mike Brown's group really got going in a title-winning direction in Game 4 of that same series.
The big change was putting the ball in the hands of star center Karl-Anthony Towns at the top of the key and enabling him as the control tower of the Knicks' offense. The adjustment helped the star play like a superstar. It made way for his teammates to impact the game to greater extents without the ball in their hands.
The Knicks are already reportedly excited about their offensive potential next season, given they'll have a full summer to gameplan around Towns' unlocked skillset. Three players key to New York's title defense stand to benefit from those schematic wrinkles more than anyone else.
OG Anunoby — can he make his first All-Star team?
OG Anunoby was one of the greatest beneficiaries of Towns' postseason playmaking from the top of the key. The wing feasts both at the rim and from behind the 3-point arc as a scorer.
In the 2026 NBA Playoffs, Anunoby made 69.7% of his shots at the rim and 48.9% of his 3-point jump shots. Those numbers are crazy on paper, but even better in context. The percentage at the rim came out as being an 88th percentile result in the postseason; the results from behind the arc graded out in the league's 97th percentile according to Dunks & Threes.
With the Knicks looking to get even more out of Towns' feel and court-vision, Anunoby could finally make the leap to being an NBA All-Star. The 29-year-old is now a two-time NBA Champion, and the owner of one of the most legendary moments in New York sports history, but has never been honored with a midseason All-Star selection.
With Towns helping run the show, that could finally change in 2027.
Miles McBride — a wing's skillset in a guard's body
Anunoby isn't necessarily an All-Star play creator, especially not for his teammates. It's his ability to finish plays, whether from inside or downtown, that makes him special on the offensive end of the court.
Even if to a less-impactful extent overall, the same goes for reserve guard Miles McBride. With Mitchell Robinson off to the Boston Celtics, McBride is the longest-tenured (and most important homegrown) player left on the defending champions' roster. The 6-foot-2 NBA Champion plays guard because of his size, or relative lack of it, but generally has the skillset of a versatile wing — arguably the most valuable archetype in modern basketball.
While McBride is certainly not a strong finisher around the rim, having ranked in the league's 11th and 2nd percentiles from that range over the past two seasons according to Dunks & Threes, he is a precisely-accurate 3-point shooter. His 41.3% conversion rate from downtown last season came on a career-high 6.6 attempts per game.
Perhaps most impactful is his elite point-of-attack defense, which helps the Knicks stop the ball early in defensive possessions, forcing opponents to pivot to counters and backup plans. If he can keep bringing that to the table, and move shrewdly without the ball in his hands, Towns will be able (and glad) to set him up with some open 3-point looks.
Jalen Brunson — following up on a Finals MVP won't be easy
Regardless of Towns' growth as a creator for his teammates, Brunson will enter every game as the main focus of the opposing defense. Brown said ahead of the season that his plans to enrich the Knicks' offense could take the ball out of the guard's hands to certain extents, but that fans already knew exactly who he'd lean on in crunch-time.
It happened on a larger scale in Game 5 of the NBA Finals. In what was proverbially the "crunch-time" of the Knicks' 2026 season and 53-year championship drought, Brunson delivered an all-time closeout performance.
The Captain scored 45 of the Knicks' 94 points — with 15 coming in the fourth quarter — en route to victory. Throughout all of NBA history, only Michael Jordan has scored a larger percentage of his team's points in a Finals closeout win.
Next season, 29 teams will be looking to dethrone the new King of New York. The Knicks will still turn to him throughout the course of games — he's their best player. They'll still rely on him late in games — he's one of the most clutch athletes in the world. But throughout the regular season, in the metaphorical first 46 minutes of the season, Towns can provide him plenty of relief by being the centerpiece of Brown's offense.
That could set Brunson up to follow up on his first season as an All-Star Starter with an even more efficient campaign. He simply won't have to create as many of his own shots. The guard has always shined off the ball, going back to his days on the Dallas Mavericks.
Now, he has the potential once again to be playing alongside a superstar. He just needs Towns to make it happen, one read at a time.
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