The New York Knicks are not going to take the next step unless Mike Brown makes one immediate, obvious change, which is to get Jalen Brunson off the ball more often. Last season, Brunson led the NBA in on-ball percentage and shouldered an exhausting amount of the offensive load, and while his numbers were elite, the offense became one-dimensional and overly predictable.
As Michael Pina put it on The Zach Lowe Show, “Brunson led the league last year in on-ball percentage by a decent amount. That’s how they play… They’re boring. They are predictable in what they do.”
Mike Brown needs to make a bold realization that Thibs never did
And now, with Tom Thibodeau out and Mike Brown in charge, that has to change. Brunson does not need less responsibility; he just needs more help. In the playoffs, he averaged a time of possession of 9.2 seconds (second-most in the league). In the regular season, it was 8.6 seconds, along with 6.2 seconds per touch, all signs of a player doing too much for too long.
Yes, Brunson was named Clutch Player of the Year. Yes, he should still be the go-to guy in big moments. But outside of crunch time, the Knicks have to become less reliant on him to initiate everything.
Brown’s track record suggests he understands that. His 2022–2023 Kings led the NBA in offensive rating by trusting their depth, moving the ball, and refusing to let any one player dominate possession. The Knicks are built for a similar system; they just have not played like it yet.
This epic roster is too loaded to stand still
Karl-Anthony Towns gives them inside-out scoring. Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby stretch the floor. Josh Hart can handle, pass, and push the tempo. The new addition of Jordan Clarkson can provide a scoring punch off the bench. This is not some sort of thin roster; it is a loaded one that is too often standing still.
Pina also went on to state this: “Mike Brown probably should've never been fired by the Sacramento Kings… He was one of the reasons that they kind of were able to look competent for the first time in this era, and I think that there are some things that he can do that Thibs [Thibodeau] did not.”
This could be one of those things. Let Brunson conserve energy, get others involved, and keep defenses guessing. If Mike Brown makes that adjustment quickly, the Knicks’ ceiling can go a lot higher.