When a team makes as drastic a decision as the New York Knicks did this summer, with the surprise firing of Tom Thibodeau and the subsequent hiring of veteran head coach Mike Brown, the expectation is always to see immediate improvement.
Four weeks into this new regime, it's quite apparent that this mission has already been accomplished, and perhaps the most stark uptick in production can be found within the club's second unit.
Knicks bench miles ahead of where they were at this time last year
Arguably, the biggest fault of Thibodeau's approach to coaching in New York was his lack of interest in utilizing their second unit. Just last year, the Knicks ranked dead-last in minutes played (1041.0), offensive rating (48.3), field goal attempts (18.9), and points per game (21.7).
Now, granted, this was a whole season's worth of statistics. Considering they've only played 13 games in total so far in 2025-26, it's unfair to compare and contrast these two stat lines -- technically speaking, a lot could change between now and April.
However, putting their current numbers up against those posted during the first 13 games played last year should be seen as fair game, and, even with this truncated pound-for-pound examination, the difference is still quite staggering.
During this same span of games played in 2024-25, the Knicks found themselves boasting league-worst averages of 12.0 minutes, 18.8 points, 16.2 field goal attempts, and 8.8 boards per game while sporting an offensive rating of 45.0, the second-worst in the NBA.
This time around, we see New York seemingly pulling off a complete 180.
Though they may have only inched up nine spots in the ranks when it comes to their minutes distribution (standing pat at 21 with 17.4 minutes a night), they have either actually or almost doubled their level of production in scoring (35.9 points per game), field goal attempts (28.5), and rebounds (14.4).
Now, some may look to argue that this surge in second unit usage may have something to do with the new assortment of talents they brought aboard this summer (Jordan Clarkson, Guerschon Yabusele, etc.), and, to a certain extent, there may be some validity to it.
With that said, even dating back to his days with the 2010s Derrick Rose-led Chicago Bulls, Thibs-run squads have regularly resided near the bottom of the league in bench minutes played.
What a difference a year has made for these Knicks reserves now with coach Brown calling the shots!