Victor Wembanyama has been forced to chase around Karl-Anthony Towns for much of the NBA Finals, a matchup that is so far favoring New York. But that all changed by the end of Game 2.
The San Antonio Spurs moved their Defensive Player of the Year elsewhere down the stretch The end result was a borderline disaster—for New York.Â
The Knicks offense struggled against the Spurs’ Wembanyama adjustment
Rather than guarding KAT late in Game 2, Wemby started defending a Knicks player in either one of the corners. As the Hot Hand Theory astutely pointed out, these shooters he wound up covering were not Josh Hart, the person opposing teams like to roam off. They were Mikal Bridges, Landry Shamet, even OG Anunoby.
The Spurs didn’t care. Having Wemby lower on the floor and closer to the basket is more important to them. Rightly so, too. The Towns matchup is giving Wemby problems because it prevents him from roaming or playing around the hoop, while also forcing him to defend against one of the league’s more physically imposing downhill drivers.Â
Though it flew under the radar with the Knicks winning Game 2 and jumping out to a 2-0 Finals lead, San Antonio’s adjustment paid off. New York posted an offensive rating of just 91.3 in the final 12 minutes. That is its second-worst single-quarter mark of the series, undercut by only a ghastly performance during the opening frame of Game 1.
For their part, the Knicks didn’t do themselves any favors. Their offensive process for much of the fourth wasn’t great. But Wemby was clearly having more of an impact on their thinking, and shot profile.
After hitting 70.5 percent (12-of-17) of their looks in the restricted area through the first three quarters, the Knicks converted just 25 percent (2-of-8) of their rim attempts in the final frame. This is what happens when Wemby gets help off corner shooters instead of guarding Towns above the break. Â
New York is going to see more of this Wembanyama coverage
Surviving this approach doesn’t stop at Game 2. The Spurs are surely going to try this again in Game 3, and beyond. Basically, whenever Hart isn’t in the game, expect to see more of Wemby guarding one of the corners.Â
New York must find a way to bust up this coverage. Lifting its players out of the corner isn’t enough. The Spurs have the perimeter mobility to rotate and switch assignments. That will allow Wembanyama to wait out a replacement shooter who fills whichever corner he’s tracking, and remain in position to party-crash attacks anywhere inside the arc.
Fortunately, potential tweaks abound. The Knicks can give Towns more post touches on the opposite side of the court. They could entirely clear Wemby’s side of the floor. Or they could try setting wide pindowns in Wemby’s corner.Â
Some of those counters threaten to muck up the spacing. But the Knicks have two guys, in Towns and Jalen Brunson, who aren’t shy about working in tight spaces. Mike Brown could also simply have better ideas than any of the ones listed here.Â
The potential change isn’t as important as the need to adapt itself. Despite the loss, San Antonio reaped the rewards from a pivotal adjustment. Now, it’s the Knicks’ turn to adapt.
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