So much time is being spent celebrating the New York Knicks’ decision to shift more of the playmaking responsibility to Karl-Anthony Towns. Much less gets devoted to why they made such a noticeable change during the playoffs, largely because we assume the team deemed it necessary after falling behind 2-1 in the first round.
As it turns out, while New York' s first three games against the Atlanta Hawks were the impetus behind the overhaul, Towns’ role wasn’t reimagined because head coach Mike Brown woke up one morning and decided it needed to be done.
It’s because Towns requested it.
Karl-Anthony Towns may be responsible for the Knicks switching up their offense
KAT basically admitted to the media he asked Brown to adjust the offense and use him as a passing hub ahead of Game 4 in Atlanta. “Go in there, say how you’re feeling, with your feelings, your idea, and see if it's received,” he said, per the New York Post’s Stefan Bondy. “And it was received.”
To say Towns’ idea was received is an understatement. Look at how dramatically the number of touches he gets per 36 minutes has changed:
- KAT in the regular season: 60.8 touches per 36 minutes
- KAT through first three games vs Atlanta: 52 touches per 36 minutes
- KAT in the seven games since: 70 touches per 36 minutes
This represents a stark increase in on-ball responsibility no matter which portion of the season you measure it against. That Brown and the Knicks were receptive to such an extreme adjustment 85 games into the season is actually bonkers.
Everybody involved deserves a ton of praise for accepting it, and even more so, for embracing it. Because it’s working.
The Knicks have been unstoppable since KAT asked for more touches
New York is crushing it on offense since KAT’s request by any metric you care to use, or any lens through which you choose to look. Its offensive rating during this span, when factoring out garbage time, is 137.9—the best among playoff teams by a comically, cosmically sized 12.3-point margin. The Knicks, in turn, are breaking point-differential records on a nightly basis.
Towns looks like a completely different player through it all. Not only is he dissecting defenses with his patience, vision, size, and accuracy as a standstill and hand-off hub, but he’s even passing more while using live dribbles.
Mikal Bridges basically hasn’t missed a shot since New York reworked the pecking order. Jalen Brunson is playing off the ball more than ever, and still pumping in 25 points per game. OG Anunoby was drilling 60 percent of his triples after the change before suffering a strained hamstring.
Tougher tests await in the Eastern Conference Finals, and perhaps the NBA Finals. But this offensive reinvention is paying huge dividends when it matters most, which also happens to be when you don’t typically see wholesale recalibrations. On the occasions you do, they’re usually a last resort, even a sign of surrender.
For the Knicks, however, rolling the dice on Towns as the playmaking hub has been their savior—the vehicle through which they’ve become favorites to win the East. Credit Mike Brown and the players for being open-minded enough to try and implement it.
Above all, though, credit Towns for having both the self-awareness and gall necessary to ask for it.
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