The New York Knicks brought in head coach Mike Brown to modernize their approach, particularly on offense. The organization clearly did not feel that the previous staff was getting as much out of the roster as possible. Through the first 19 games of Brown's first season, they've shown that they've raised their offensive ceiling. The Knicks have scored 40+ points in a quarter nine times thus far, more than any other team in the NBA.
Knicks lead league in offensive explosions
New York hasn't caught fire in every quarter of every game. They recently had a franchise legend question their toughness amid a rough stretch of what was eventually a win against the Toronto Raptors. But when the team has gotten going offensively, they show the high level of potential that fans know they have.
It's still early, but this is what the organization was looking for when they changed coaches. Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns were the first pair of Knick All-Star starters since Clyde Frazier and Earl "The Pearl" Monroe. The duo comes with widely publicized issues on the defensive side of the court. It did not stop them from leading the Knicks to their first Eastern Conference Finals berth in a quarter of a century.
Brunson and Towns are a dynamically talented duo that the team has chosen to spearhead its offensive attack. Racking up three more 40-point quarters than any other team thus far is indubitably a way to prove to the rest of the NBA that they can dole out smackdowns. It's whether or not these scoring explosions are sustainable, or simply a result of beneficial shooting variance.
New York's sharp shooting needs to stick to keep this up
Through 19 games, the Knicks have averaged the fifth-most attempts from behind the 3-point line in the NBA. They have the fourth-highest average of made 3-pointers and are ninth in 3-point percentage, which is impressive given their high volume of attempts.
If the team isn't successful in the postseason, having scored 40 points in a quarter against the Raptors on a Sunday night in November won't carry any weight with fans. They will likely be upset that the team abandoned the coach who oversaw a resurgence that was decades in the making. If the Knicks are 2026 NBA Champions, though, everything the team did to get there will be copied around the league throughout the offseason because of its ingenuity.
All fans can do, for now, is take note of the process and wonder what playoff results it might bring. Brown clearly values the approach more than the outcome, with the Knicks seemingly behind him. 40-point quarters don't sound too bad in the meantime.