Immanuel Quickley, New York Knicks (Photo by Don Juan Moore/Getty Images)
2. Start your engines
Out of all 30 teams in the NBA last season, the Knicks ranked tied for 29th in pace. Pace doesn’t always equal success, but teams like the Timberwolves (1st) and Grizzlies (3rd) were in the top three.
Often looking stagnant last season, the offense at points was abysmal. RJ Barrett looked overwhelmed, Randle was dribbling into double teams, and the ball movement was terrible. Ranking dead last in assists per game, a faster and more fun offense could give this team a new approach.
Jalen Brunson gives the Knicks a primary ball handler who has proven he can dish it around. Electric guard Immanuel Quickley can greatly benefit from a more up tempo offense, as his smaller size may limit what he can do in the half court. Obi Toppin is another player that could benefit from running more. Toppin works best in open space, and countless times last season, it felt like he was just standing in the corner in the half court offense. That was, in the limited time Toppin saw the court last season.
In 2021-22, the Knicks ranked last in pace. It’s a similar thought to playing the older players — all of this is great when it’s working. Winning cures all. Last season, the Knicks were not winning, not evaluating young players, and not playing an exciting style of basketball.
Tom Thibodeau needs to looks at his roster and realize faster tempo will unlock the best version of it. A team of young-to-mid-20’s should be able to run and space the floor. Another season of continuous slow play with a low point total and inefficient offense will be frustrating to watch knowing the personnel could be used better.
#NewYorkForever</a> <a href=https://dailyknicks.com/2022/09/24/3-ways-new-york-knicks-coach-tom-thibodeau-improve-2023/2/"https://t.co/ehk3VU7s2y">pic.twitter.com/ehk3VU7s2y
<p>— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) <a href=https://dailyknicks.com/2022/09/24/3-ways-new-york-knicks-coach-tom-thibodeau-improve-2023/2/"https://twitter.com/nyknicks/status/1288852076945199107?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22>July 30, 2020</a></p></blockquote>
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<p>In 2020-21, the Knicks were able to greatly outperform expectations in Thib’s first season. A 41-31 record was good enough to grant the Knicks the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference. They returned to the playoffs for the first time since 2013-14 but were overmatched by Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks, losing the series in five games.</p>
<p>Last season saw the Knicks regress back to 37-45 and miss the playoffs. It was a weird roster. Guys were getting minutes they probably shouldn’t have, and the season was a mess.</p>
<p>Without going down a full rabbit hole of things that went wrong in 2021-22, here are three things coach Thibodeau can do better in 2022-23:</p>
<h2>1. Out with the old, in with the new</h2>
<p>Last season, the Knicks seemed unsure of the direction they wanted to go. For a 64-year-old head coach, the focus would be to win now and establish your team with guys who have been in the league — older players that have seen it, done it, understand the flows of the game, and will often times be the safer options.</p>
<p>With the Knicks coming off the playoff berth in 2020-21, the strategy was to run back what worked.</p>
<p>This resulted in older players getting more minutes while the younger players sat on the bench. As long as the Knicks were winning games, all was good. The problem is, after being 22-22 a little halfway through the season, they started to tail off and the record dropped. In an extremely competitive Eastern Conference, it was pretty clear the Knicks wouldn’t reach the teams in front of them.</p>
<p>Evan Fournier (29), Alec Burks (30), Kemba Walker (31), and Taj Gibson (36), were players on the Knicks that saw more minutes than fans probably would’ve liked. It’s not to take away from those four players, it just would have been nice to see the younger players get more of a spotlight.</p>
<p>What could help the Knicks improve this season is allocating those minutes to the younger players. Obi Toppin (24), Immanuel Quickley (23), Cam Reddish (23), Jericho Sims (23), Quentin Grimes (22), and Miles Mcbride (22), should all be in line to see more minutes this season.</p>
<p>The key word is “should”. The Knicks should see what their young players can bring, but it is unknown how it will play out. The Knicks still have 33-year-old Derrick Rose and 29-year-old Evan Fournier on the roster, who will certainly both see major minutes to start the season. If things are not clicking, the Knicks should use the season to really evaluate what they have.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #007BC1" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://dailyknicks.com/2022/09/24/3-ways-new-york-knicks-coach-tom-thibodeau-improve-2023/2/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 2. Push The Pace </a>
</div><!—pageview_candidate—><hr id="pagebreak"><div id="attachment_125655" class="wp-caption aligncenter">
<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-125655 size-full" src=https://dailyknicks.com/2022/09/24/3-ways-new-york-knicks-coach-tom-thibodeau-improve-2023/2/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_2400,w_3200/https%3A%2F%2Fdailyknicks.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2022%2F04%2F1389400504.jpeg" alt="Tom Thibodeau tempo" width="3200" height="2400" srcset="https://dailyknicks.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2022/04/1389400504.jpeg 3200w, https://dailyknicks.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2022/04/1389400504-768x576.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 3200px) 100vw, 3200px"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:3200px;">Immanuel Quickley, New York Knicks (Photo by Don Juan Moore/Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>2. Start your engines</h2>
<p>Out of all 30 teams in the NBA last season, the Knicks ranked tied for 29th in pace. Pace doesn’t always equal success, but teams like the Timberwolves (1st) and Grizzlies (3rd) were in the top three.</p>
<p>Often looking stagnant last season, the offense at points was abysmal. RJ Barrett looked overwhelmed, Randle was dribbling into double teams, and the ball movement was terrible. Ranking dead last in assists per game, a faster and more fun offense could give this team a new approach.</p>
<p>Jalen Brunson gives the Knicks a primary ball handler who has proven he can dish it around. Electric guard Immanuel Quickley can greatly benefit from a more up tempo offense, as his smaller size may limit what he can do in the half court. Obi Toppin is another player that could benefit from running more. Toppin works best in open space, and countless times last season, it felt like he was just standing in the corner in the half court offense. That was, in the limited time Toppin saw the court last season.</p>
<p>In 2021-22, the Knicks ranked last in pace. It’s a similar thought to playing the older players — all of this is great when it’s working. Winning cures all. Last season, the Knicks were not winning, not evaluating young players, and not playing an exciting style of basketball.</p>
<p>Tom Thibodeau needs to looks at his roster and realize faster tempo will unlock the best version of it. A team of young-to-mid-20’s should be able to run and space the floor. Another season of continuous slow play with a low point total and inefficient offense will be frustrating to watch knowing the personnel could be used better.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #007BC1" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://dailyknicks.com/2022/09/24/3-ways-new-york-knicks-coach-tom-thibodeau-improve-2023/2/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 3. Team Basketball </a>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-133411 size-full" src=https://dailyknicks.com/2022/09/24/3-ways-new-york-knicks-coach-tom-thibodeau-improve-2023/2/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_2134,w_3200/https%3A%2F%2Fdailyknicks.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2022%2F09%2F1368627684.jpeg" alt="New York Knicks, RJ Barrett" width="3200" height="2134" srcset="https://dailyknicks.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2022/09/1368627684.jpeg 3200w, https://dailyknicks.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2022/09/1368627684-768x512.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 3200px) 100vw, 3200px"><p class="wp-caption-text">New York Knicks, RJ Barrett (Photo by Rich Graessle/Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>3. Share the rock</h2>
<p>Alluded to on the previous page, the Knicks did not do a good job getting assists last season. <a href=https://dailyknicks.com/2022/09/24/3-ways-new-york-knicks-coach-tom-thibodeau-improve-2023/2/"https://www.nba.com/player/203944/julius-randle" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Julius Randle</a> paced the team with 5.1 per game from the PF/C position. That ranked Randle 28th in the NBA in assists per game. The team not getting many assists would have been a fine approach if they were winning games. In 2020-21, they ranked 29th in assists but were able to counter that by winning 41 games. A one year model that proved unsustainable last season.</p>
<p>The area the Knicks greatly struggled in passing was creating potential assists. Ranking last in potential assists, it was a team that not only struggled to get assists but struggled to put teammates in spots to succeed. Unsurprisingly, they finished tied for 29th in secondary assists and 28th in assist points created. You’ll find the NBA champion Golden State Warriors at or near the top of the list for assists per game, passes made, secondary assists, potential assists, and assist points created.</p>
<p>Relying too heavily on isolation is an area that made the Knicks’ offense inefficient. They averaged 8.8 isolations per game last season, eighth-most in the NBA.</p>
<p>This is where they ranked in various isolation categories, showing glaring inefficiencies:</p>
<p>Points per possession: 0.84 (26th)</p>
<p>Points: 7.4 (12th)</p>
<p>FG%: 35.6% (28th)</p>
<p>Score frequency percentage: 38.7% (27th)</p>
<p>Percentile: 13.8 (26th)</p>
<p>Despite having the eighth-most isolations per game, the Knicks ranked in the bottom half of the important categories in the stat. This is something that will have to improve, because clearly the ‘I’ll do it myself’ mantra didn’t work out too well last season. Jalen Brunson’s arrival brings some hope of improved ball movement with someone that can be a real point guard. That increased tempo can open up the offense and create more quick assist opportunities.</p>
<p>Coach Tom Thibodeau is going to have to adapt and play a style he may not be fully comfortable with, or the Knicks could once again be searching for a new man to lead the helm.</p>
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