NEW YORK — Slice it however you want, but the Knicks needed Game 3 just as much as the Celtics.
Just like no team has ever come back from being down 3-0 in a playoff series, no team in NBA history has ever blown a 3-0 series lead. New York, up 2-0 going into Saturday’s game, had the chance to be on the right side of history. It was the Knicks, not the Celtics, who had the opportunity to pull out receipts and stick it to everyone who said they’d have no chance against the defending NBA champions. That should be enough motivation to come out ready to roll.
And Saturday could have been a day of celebration. It could have been a moment for a franchise, a team and a passionate fan base to take in just how far they’ve come. The scenes outside of Madison Square Garden were just as energetic as they were inside. Saturday was a chance for New Yorkers to seriously consider what was ahead instead of replaying stories passed down from parents and grandparents.
New York, just as much as Boston, had every reason to play like its season was on the line. Again, statistics were in the Knicks’ favor with a win. Instead, they got throttled by the Celtics, losing 115-93, and now have to take a real look in the mirror.
“I don’t think we came with the mindset of (not) being satisfied, but subconsciously satisfied being up 2-0,” Jalen Brunson said.
Whether true or not, New York played that way. That’s the issue. It’s not that the Knicks lost, it’s how they lost. They were once again dominated for a large chunk of the game. Only this time, that domination lasted longer, and New York wasn’t good enough or scrappy enough for as long as it needed to be to shrink the deficit as it had previously.
After Saturday’s result, there’s been one constant throughout the first three games of this series: Boston has held a 20-point lead over New York at some point in every game. For the Knicks to prevail, that’s got to change.
In Games 1 and 2, New York fell behind due to the Celtics’ ability to turn missed shots into points, as they dominated on the offensive glass despite historically bad shooting. In Game 3, the Knicks did a better job of limiting Boston’s second-chance opportunities, but those opportunities weren’t as prevalent because the Celtics were able to take and make comfortable 3s.
To Boston’s credit, it stuck to its bread-and-butter. It didn’t shy away from taking 3s after not being able to make any through the first two games. However, with that said, the Knicks weren’t as sharp defensively as they had been through the first two games. There were too many instances of poor communication. Too many instances of not meeting force with force. The Celtics shot the ball well because they’re a great 3-point shooting team, but New York didn’t do itself any favors in making life difficult on Boston from beyond the arc.
Those were back-to-back 3s for Boston in the first quarter. For Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, those are practice shots. And for a Celtics team that was lacking in confidence from beyond the arc, the Knicks’ lenient defense was a perfect way to help the opponent get over the mental hurdle.
New York gave Boston trouble by switching throughout the first two games, rather than playing in this deep of a drop. It is my understanding that the Knicks didn’t change anything with their game plan, yet it’s clear from both of these plays that Karl-Anthony Towns thinks the team is in a deeper-drop coverage. Whether there was miscommunication or Towns was just being too relaxed, it allowed the Celtics to get comfortable and find their form from 3.
In the second clip, maybe New York is expecting a second screen from Jrue Holiday. The Celtics had relied heavily on the double-drag screens in the first two games to create matchups they wanted. Boston throughout this game didn’t always set the second screen, and it looked as if it confused New York a bit. Regardless, no one contesting Tatum is a big problem that, surely, helped the Celtics find their rhythm.
“It was not what it should have been,” Josh Hart said of the pick-and-roll defense in the first half. “It should have been more physical, more aggressive. We let them get into a rhythm early and feeling good early. That’s something that we can’t do. We made the mistake on that and, like I said, we have to learn from it.”
If you’re looking for a silver lining as a Knicks fan, the offense hasn’t been good through three games and yet New York still has a 2-1 series lead. However, part of why New York’s offense has looked stagnant is due to how good Boston is defensively. The Celtics never have a bad defender on the court. They’re a versatile group that can guard straight up or switch across the board.
In seven regular-season and playoff games against Boston, New York has shot above 48 percent from the field only once, and that was the first game of the year. The Knicks still lost by 23.
Aside from New York’s resiliency, one thing we’ve learned about this team in the postseason is that the offense is better when the defense is on a string. The Knicks weren’t together Saturday. For New York to be the best version of itself, it starts on the defensive end.
“If you miss shots, you tend to not have the same type of energy,” coach Tom Thibodeau said. “There’s a lot of different ways you can help win a game. No one is going to shoot great every night. There are going to be nights you don’t shoot it well but do other things to help the team win. That’s basically what we’ve done all year. We have to take a good, hard look at the film and get ready for the next game.”
Boston’s decision to foul Mitchell Robinson whenever in the penalty finally paid off Saturday, as the big man was just 4-for-12 from the free-throw line and the Celtics were able to shoot at an elite level to push leads out. The Robinson dynamic alone puts New York in a predicament as he has caused issues for the Celtics as it pertains to offensive rebounding, but his inability to make free throws has made it hard on the Knicks to roll with him for long stretches.
“If he’s making them, he stays,” Thibodeau said. “If he’s not, you have to get him out. Is his impact on the game more beneficial to leave him in? There are a lot of factors that go into that.”
At the end of the day, New York is leading the series. That’s what is most important. How the Knicks got there, it doesn’t matter. They found a way.
From here on out, though, the Knicks must avoid playing from behind. Why that’s happening and how to stop it, well, that’s what New York has to figure out.
(Photo: Al Bello / Getty Images)