DETROIT — It only took three regular-season games for Tom Thibodeau to pinpoint the issue. The Knicks, who had just completed training camp and a preseason slate after trading five draft picks for Mikal Bridges, then shipping Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Karl-Anthony Towns, blew a 13-points lead in a six-point loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
“I thought the defense was good,” Thibodeau said on Oct. 28. “But you’ve got to strive to be a 48-minute team, and we’re nowhere near that.”
Eighty-six games later, the Knicks are singing the same-old song. They are one of the most talented teams the NBA has to offer on paper. They have two All-Star starters, two of the league’s premier 3-and-D wings and a roster rife with reliable shooters from behind the arc.
But they are inconsistent. They play with their food. And worst of all, they don’t string together complete basketball games.
Which is why they are pretenders, even in victory, even if Jalen Brunson sent the Pistons packing with a nasty snatch-back that sent Ausar Thompson sliding to the left with the game — and the Pistons’ season — on the line.
Brunson’s game-winning, ice-cold three only numbed the pain the Knicks endured — pain a better opponent will continue to impose on a team that has shown more glaring holes than bright spots.
The Knicks beat the Pistons, 116-113, to punch their ticket to the second round of the playoffs. For the third season in a row, the Knicks are going to Round 2. And for the second season in a row, they will face a Boston Celtics team that exposed their flaws during the regular season.
Flaws that were on display in a first-round series that went six games, in large part because of self-inflicted wounds the Knicks have been trying to get a hold of since their third game of the season.
The Knicks showed up to Little Caesars Arena on time — not late — and took a 37-23 lead into the second quarter. They blew that lead in the blink of an eye and entered the half down two.
The Knicks then exorcised another demon — awful performances coming out of the halftime break. It took six games for the Knicks to finally score more points than the Pistons in the third quarter, courtesy of Mikal Bridges’ bright idea for the team to come out of halftime early and get in layup line formation.
The Knicks went on an 11-0 run in the period. They blew that 11-point lead midway through the fourth quarter.
Inconsistent. Playing with their food. Far from a complete basketball game. Nothing to be happy about for a team that has its work cut out for it in the next round.
Another problem the Knicks have seems to be finding Karl-Anthony Towns, the All-Star starter who isn’t near the top of the totem pole within the New York offense. Towns took just 10 shots on Thursday and finished with 10 points and 15 rebounds on 40 percent shooting from the field. If the Knicks are going to stand any chance in their next series — a long shot already the way the Celtics manhandled them during the regular season — they will need to feature one of their two-best players far more frequently.
“Well, the thing is, they’re loaded up pretty good. Read the game, the game tells you what to do,” said Thibodeau. “You’ve gotta keep moving, we’ve gotta search them out him out. We know we’ve gotta play – we try to get out in transition a little more so we can attack before they’re set. When we can create turnovers and get into the open floor, it opens things up for us.”
Brunson scored a game-high 40 points, including 15 in the first quarter alone. Bridges added a series-high 25 points on 11-of-16 shooting from the field, and OG Anunoby scored 22 points and hounded Pistons All-Star Cade Cunningham from the opening tip.
Cunningham finished with 23 points on 9-of-22 shooting from the field. If Anunoby can have the same impact when it’s his turn to defend Jayson Tatum in the second round, the Knicks could have a chance, even if it’s slim.
They stand no chance, however, if they can’t stay locked in for a full game. Because that’s what the best teams do. The best teams string together complete performances. They don’t play with their food.
The Pistons may have been difficult to chew, but they were food the Knicks played with for far too long. The Celtics won’t give them that luxury, but for one night, the Knicks can enjoy victory.
It’s a victory that nearly slipped through their fingertips. Instead, with the game on the line, it slipped through Malik Beasley’s hands.
