Knicks working to minimize negative effects of long layoff before NBA Finals
GREENBURGH — Nine long days stood between the Eastern Conference semifinals and the Eastern Conference Finals for the Knicks.
And after they clinched their first Eastern Conference title since 1999 on Monday, nine days awaited before the NBA Finals begin Wednesday night.
Thursday — only Day 3 of a wait that must feel like more than a quarter-century for Knicks fans — marked the team’s first official practice since it completed its sweep of the Cavaliers.
As hard as it may be to believe — especially amid an 11-game postseason winning streak — the first long layoff didn’t do the Knicks any favors out of the gate in the Eastern Conference Finals. In Game 1 against the Cavaliers, the Knicks trailed by 22 with less than eight minutes to play before capturing a stunning overtime victory with a game-ending 44-11 run.
The Knicks know falling into a similar hole likely won’t work on the road against either the Spurs or Thunder in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, and the last layoff provided some lessons.
“I think, obviously, just being more ready to go by the time Game 1 hits,” Jalen Brunson said after Thursday’s practice. “Comparing our situation from last time, just being mentally and physically locked in. I think that’s really important for us and that’s what we have to focus on these next couple of days.”
Said Mikal Bridges: “Yeah, I think just more mentally, understanding the time we had off. Second time going around it, knowing that, OK, we just got to pick it up. But I think it helps even just being on the road a little bit, being in a hostile environment. That should just get the mindset right off the jump anyway.”
The Knicks still don’t know their opponent, as the Spurs forced a Game 7 in the Western Conference Finals with a 118-91 win over the Thunder on Thursday night. Considering how well the Knicks are playing, Mike Brown isn’t sweating either potential opponent.
“If we expect to be who we think we are, then at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter,” Brown said.
After the Knicks’ 130-93 win in Game 4 on Monday in Cleveland, Karl-Anthony Towns provided insight about the long layoff and what might be different this time.
“Obviously, rust will be a thing, just not having shot in an NBA game in a while, but we’ll do a better job this time around of just preparing for that kind of situation to happen,” he said. “I think that obviously the coaching staff did an amazing job getting us ready for Game 1 [of the Eastern Conference Finals], but obviously we just didn’t go out there and shoot well . . . We just got to figure out a way to get those game-like reps.
“I think the coaching staff heard us loud and clear. We want to get back to work to keep the rhythm and also maybe change up the philosophy of how we have those, I guess, scrimmages that we had last time, that we didn’t do last time. So I think we’ll be better prepared, but at the end of the day, it’s all about execution, desperation, energy. We got to bring it in Game 1.”
As far as running daily Finals-intensity scrimmages before the NBA Finals, Brown is cognizant that that probably isn’t the smartest thing.
“You can only have so many scrimmages because there’s only so many days, and you got to make sure that — knock on wood — you give them time to recover from the scrimmages,” he said. “So it can’t be about much more increased contact.”
But Brown does have experience with just how difficult long layoffs in these situations can be.
Brown was an assistant coach with Golden State from 2016-22, and in 2017 he was the team’s interim coach for the first 11 postseason games as Steve Kerr recovered from back surgery.
Sure, he coached two of the world’s best players in Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant, but Golden State didn’t lose a game before the 2017 NBA Finals began, creating a 10-day layoff after the Western Conference Finals. Golden State also had a 10-day wait between the 2019 Western Conference Finals and the NBA Finals.
“It’s hard to manufacture the competitive environment that you’re going to be in in Game 1,” he said. “So to continue to just find different ways to keep that competitive spirit or to keep that edge as high as you can is something that I’ll ask different players. I’ll ask my staff. I’ll get input from a few different people, and may roll with this, may roll with that.
“But the biggest thing that I think should help us is knowing that as a group, the last time we went through this, we started off a little slow in that game, and we can’t afford to do that again. Our guys, they’re a veteran group.
“They’ve been really resilient, and they’ve done a good job of growing quickly any time they’ve hit adversity.”
Newsday’s Steve Popper contributed to this story.
Ben Dickson is Newsday Sports' general assignment reporter. He joined Newsday’s high school sports staff in 2023 after graduating from Maryland, where he covered several of the Terrapins' teams.
