The Knicks' offense is turning brilliant defense into missed opportunities

Before Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns went into superhero mode in the fourth quarter of Game 4, the story of the game was the Knicks' defense.

While their offense sputtered, the Knicks' defense was making big play after big play. They had 11 steals in the game, four of them coming in the first quarter. In the first half, they held Detroit to 16 of 43 from the field (37.2 percent) and two of 16 from three (12.5 percent). Yet, heading into the break, they were only leading by seven points.

Not capitalizing on advantages

The Knicks have been forcing Detroit's hands all series. So far, the Pistons are averaging 17.5 turnovers per game, the second-most of any playoff team and 2.6 more than they averaged in the regular season.

It isn't just the sheer volume of turnovers either, it is that nearly 63 percent of them have been live-ball turnovers, which are significantly more damaging to the team than just throwing the ball into the stands. For one, it is a wasted offensive possession on offense, but it also often leads directly to fast-break points for the other team.

In four games these playoffs, the Knicks are averaging 10.5 steals per game, the second-most of any team. It is a significant improvement from the regular season, where the Knicks averaged 8.2 steals per game, tied for the 12th most.

The issue is that the Knicks haven't been able to capitalize on the advantages those steals create. While they have secured the second-most steals per game in the playoffs, they are only generating one point per possession following those steals, tied for the third-worst mark in the playoffs.

The clip below is a great example of what has been happening. Bridges makes a great read to intercept Jalen Duren's pass and create a four-on-three fast break opportunity for the Knicks, before OG Anunoby smokes the layup and squanders the opportunity.

Having 11 steals is great, but not turning them into points is an issue. The Knicks had only 12 fast-break points in Game 4, three fewer than the Pistons, who had a total of six steals for the game.

Bridges stepped up

Mikal Bridges had one of his better defensive games of the series, specifically when matched up with Cade Cunningham. Cunningham took 23 shots from the field in the game. Going through each shot attempt, Bridges was his primary defender for seven of them, with Cunningham scoring three times, 0.86 points per possession.

On numerous occasions, Bridges was able to wall Cunningham off on his drives before forcing a tough, contested fadeaway

The Knicks will look to close things out against Detroit in Game 5. While blowing these advantages hasn't cost them yet, they'll need to cash in on high percentage possessions going forward, or it will certainly come back to bite them at some point.