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The New York Knicks were on the verge of an early exit in the first round of the 2025 playoffs. They managed a few significant comebacks and had the good fortune of facing the Detroit Pistons, who struggled with turnovers and committed fouls at crucial moments.
Conversely, the Knicks also had a chance to advance to the NBA Finals. They held a 17-point lead over the Miami Heat in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, only to lose when Tyrese Haliburton sent the game into overtime with an exceptional shot.
This postseason was a rollercoaster ride in the Eastern Conference and marked the Knicks’ most successful playoff run in 25 years. As the 2025-26 season approaches, they are positioned as contenders to return to the East Finals.
A new coach will also lead them into the season. Tom Thibodeau was let go after a successful five-year stint in which the Knicks consistently ranked among the top 10 in both offensive (10th) and defensive (ninth) efficiency. They subsequently appointed Mike Brown, who has had success on both ends during his nine complete seasons (and two partial ones) with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Lakers, and Sacramento Kings.
Despite being one of the more successful teams in recent years, the Knicks have areas needing improvement. Their defense regressed last season, and although they boasted the league’s fifth-best offense overall, their efficiency slipped to 10th (112.1 points per 100 possessions) when facing the league’s top 10 defenses.
Additionally, they displayed a striking contrast in their performance records: a 39-9 win-loss record (.813, third best) against under .500 teams compared to a 12-22 record (.353, 12th) against teams above .500.
Here are some potential changes under Brown…
During Thibodeau’s tenure, the Knicks ranked among the lowest in ball movement (passes per 24 minutes of possession) and player movement (distance traveled per 24 minutes of possession). This includes two seasons prior to the acquisition of star guard Jalen Brunson, who has led the league in possession time (8.6 minutes per game over three years) since joining the team.
Stats on Knicks’ ball and player movement over the last five seasons
Passes/24 = Passes per 24 minutes of possession; Miles/24 = Distance traveled on offense per 24 minutes of possession via Second Spectrum tracking
Last season, even with Karl-Anthony Towns on the roster, the offense primarily revolved around Brunson, who has ranked first in average seconds and dribbles per touch for the last two seasons.
Thibodeau emphasized making the right decision, but when opponents have pressured a ball screen, Brunson often opted to retreat rather than quickly pass, waiting for the defense to reset to play one-on-one.
Brunson is an exceptional isolation scorer, and over the past three years, the Knicks have averaged 1.05 points per opportunity when his isolations end with a shot, turnover, or foul drawn for himself or teammates. This efficiency places him 28th among 109 players with at least 500 direct isolations during that timeframe.
Brown is likely to favor a more dynamic offensive strategy. The Pacers have demonstrated that a balanced offensive approach can thrive against strong opponents and in playoff situations. The Knicks’ scoring efficiency against the league’s bottom 20 defenses (120.1 points per 100 possessions, fifth) markedly outpaced their efficiency against top 10 defenses (112.1, 10th), while the Pacers showcased a smaller scoring differential overall (116.2 vs. 114.0).
While the Knicks need not emulate the Pacers, we can expect Brown to encourage them to adopt a style reminiscent of his Kings…
Implementing greater ball movement could enhance the Knicks’ offensive effectiveness and also benefit Brunson. He has achieved a 44.3% success rate on catch-and-shoot three-pointers over the last three years (including playoffs), compared to 36.1% on off-the-dribble attempts, with 67% of his total three-point attempts being off the dribble.
The Knicks’ pace has also been slow, ranking among the bottom five in terms of pace during each of Thibodeau’s five seasons. This slower tempo has partly stemmed from their success on the offensive boards but has also been evident in how quickly they transition into offense. Per Second Spectrum tracking, they averaged 4.54 seconds to advance the ball into the frontcourt (the league’s fourth slowest).
Taking extra time to enter the frontcourt limits their chances to secure quality shots. They ranked fifth in the league for the percentage of their attempts (21.9%) coming in the final six seconds of the shot clock, with this figure rising to 26.7% during the playoffs.
While the Knicks have performed reasonably well in late-game situations, league-wide efficiency typically decreases in the closing seconds of the shot clock.
During Brown’s tenure, the Kings were the fastest at 3.99 seconds to cross the frontcourt. Though having De’Aaron Fox as the point guard contributed to this pace, instilling a quicker tempo is a mindset Brown aims to foster in New York.
Accelerating their transitions can help build momentum for the Knicks’ guards and wings while also challenging recovering defenses to handle mismatches…
Moreover, this pace could help them steer clear of last-second shot scenarios.
One significant challenge for the Knicks is that their two primary offensive players—Brunson and Towns—are both defensive weak points. Both players can be exploited in pick-and-roll situations…
This raises the question of whether Brown will implement some zone defense strategies.
During Thibodeau’s five seasons, the Knicks played merely 16 possessions of zone defense. In contrast, other teams averaged over 250 possessions in zone during that span.
The Kings, during Brown’s time, ranked 20th in total zone possessions but still played 34 times more zone than the Knicks in those two-plus years. Brown may consider zone defense to mitigate Towns’ defensive vulnerabilities and limit his exposure to pick-and-roll attacks.
In Minnesota, the Timberwolves also utilized zone defense (with Towns at power forward and center) during his last season there…
With Mitchell Robinson returning to full health for the new season, we can expect Towns to see more time at the four. The two big men played just 47 minutes together in the regular season last year but were on the court together for 165 minutes during the playoffs. Although the Knicks weren’t particularly dominant during those playoff minutes (+4.4 points per 100 possessions), they allowed only 105.2 points per 100 and excelled on the boards. The Knicks also permitted far fewer points per chance when Robinson was the screener’s defender on a ball screen (0.89) compared to Towns (1.03).
The Knicks are retaining their top seven players from last season, while also adding depth and the chance to implement changes that could enhance their performance in both the regular season and playoffs.
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John Schuhmann is a senior stats analyst for NBA.com. You can reach him via email here, explore his archive here, and follow him on X.
The opinions expressed on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA, its teams, or Warner Bros. Discovery.
