After the Knicks' victory over the Hawks on Monday night, Mike Brown said the Knicks are still experimenting with different personnel on the court. Even in game 79, Brown said he was making in-game adjustments to allow bench players to play more. He added that the Knicks will continue to try new looks even with the playoffs right around the corner.
"We extended Mitch's minutes today in the middle of the game, and then we mixed in when we played our bigs together. We'll keep mixing it up," said Brown.
The coach's confidence in experimenting with the bench shows his faith in this team's depth. As Knicks fans know, this core has not always been backed up by a steady cast of bench players. But the Knicks' second unit is improved this year, which could be a major factor in the playoffs this time around.
Mike Brown knows he must use this team's depth accordingly
Compared to last season, the Knicks' bench is scoring about 10 more points per game while playing about 18 more total minutes per game. Additions like Jordan Clarkson, Jose Alvarado, Jeremy Sochan, and Mo Diawara have been huge. Prime seasons from Deuce McBride and Landry Shamet (when healthy) have elevated the squad, while Mitchell Robinson's defensive presence continues to demonstrate his value.
Last season, the Knicks were held back by their lack of postseason depth. New York's bench logged the second-fewest total minutes per game and scored the second-fewest points per game in the playoffs.
But from the start of the season to now in April, Mike Brown has been experimenting with different lineups. After the Knicks' win over Chicago in game 78 of the year, Brown even gave props to a player who has not even been in the Knicks' rotation for months.
He told the media that Jeremy Sochan, a player quickly stripped of his playing time, was New York's "defensive player of the game." When asked why Sochan played such a large role in a blowout win after being exiled from the rotation, Brown pointed to experimenting once again.
"I wanted to play him at some backup 5, and that's basically what he played for us tonight. [Sochan] allowed us to do a lot of things like switch, pick and rolls, and stuff like that. So I brought a different element to our game, not just offensively with the speed, but even defensively with the flexibility of switching."
Sochan is not the only player we've seen rise and fall in the Knicks' rotation. Jordan Clarkson and Jose Alvarado have been wild cards for the Knicks, logging crucial minutes one night and recording DNP's the next.
The Knicks hired Mike Brown for this exact reason
Compared with former Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau, Mike Brown has shown faith in the Knicks' depth. The front office made an effort to add new weapons to his disposal, and Brown has shown commitment to finding what works before the postseason begins.
His experimentation with personnel should help New York's staff know which players can be difference-makers in certain matchups. Only time will tell if his flexibility with the rotation will pay off for the Knicks in the postseason, but we can't say he didn't try to see what works.