Knicks head coach Mike Brown still sees the Boston Celtics as a threat in the Eastern Conference.
Sure, these Celtics are a far cry from the group that won the 2023 NBA title — Jayson Tatum’s Achilles injury triggered an offseason reset that shipped Kristaps Porziņģis to Atlanta and Jrue Holiday to Portland.
But Boston still has an All-Star in Jaylen Brown. Derrick White remains one of the league’s premier 3-and-D wings. And the backcourt pairing of Anfernee Simons and Payton Pritchard can light it up in bunches. It’s enough for head coach Joe Mazzulla to keep the Celtics afloat while Tatum continues an accelerated recovery many around the league still call miraculous.
“They’re still a really good team,” Brown said ahead of tipoff Friday. “They’ve got guys who’ve experienced winning a championship, a coach who knows how to get it done. They’ve played without key pieces before. They’re going to play hard, they’re gonna share the ball, they’re gonna shoot a lot of threes. It’s still a really good team that’s extremely well-coached.”
By night’s end, the Knicks made that praise look like lip service.
Episode 2 of the Mike Brown project went mostly according to plan. New York moved to 2-0 with a convincing 105-95 win over Boston, shaking off a sloppy start to build a lead that ballooned to 24 points midway through the third quarter. The performance provided another early glimpse of the potential ceiling for a team many expect to contend for a title this season.
THREES COMPANY
Last year, the Knicks ranked bottom-five in three-point attempts at just 34 per game. On Friday, they hoisted 33 through three quarters alone.
That’s by design. It’s the trademark of Brown’s new offense — what he calls sprays: drives into the paint followed by kick-outs to open shooters on the perimeter. The goal is at least 25 sprays a night, and Brown has 11 rotation players capable of cashing in from beyond the arc.
It’s a welcome shift for a roster that had similar shooting talent last season but too often defaulted to isolation sets under Tom Thibodeau.
Even in crunch time, the identity held. With Boston clawing back late, Jalen Brunson split two defenders and zipped a pass under the rim to Miles McBride, who drilled a contested corner three to push the Knicks’ lead back into double digits.
Two games in, New York already sits atop the league in three-point attempts — and that’s unlikely to change anytime soon in Brown’s offense.
FAST-BREAK POINTS
Midway through the first half, two numbers told the story: Knicks 4, Celtics 0 in steals. Knicks 18, Celtics 0 in fast-break points.
The connection was obvious. Brown’s Knicks aren’t just pushing tempo on offense — they’re bringing that aggression to the defensive end, extending pressure the full length of the floor.
On one sequence, McBride hounded Simons from baseline to baseline, eventually forcing him to dribble the ball out of bounds — a hustle play that sent Madison Square Garden into a frenzy.
“You just want your opponent to know, ‘Hey, I’m going to be here all night. You’re going to have to work a little bit harder for what you’re trying to do than what you’d hope for,’” Brown said pregame. “Sometimes you do it to change the tempo, to speed the game up.
“If you’re going to be out there four or six minutes, empty your gas tank. Then come sit, catch your breath, and go back out there when your number’s called.”
GLASS CRASHERS
Another decisive factor: the offensive glass.
New York bullied Boston 21-8 in offensive rebounds and scored 17 second-chance points through the third quarter alone despite shooting just 4-for-12 on those extra looks.
It’s part of a growing league-wide trend that Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla acknowledged pregame — teams hunting extra possessions to offset the modern game’s offensive firepower.
Six of Karl-Anthony Towns’ 13 rebounds came on the offensive end. Josh Hart, in his return from lumbar spasms, matched him with six of his team-high 14 on that side of the floor.
“It’s happening because teams are having success with it,” Brown said. “They understand this game is about possessions — everyone is so talented offensively, you’ve just got to find ways to create more.
“Plus the spacing now — everybody’s further out. When the shot goes up, there’s more room to crash.”
NEXT UP
The Knicks will look to stay unbeaten as they head out on a three-game road trip with stops in Miami, Milwaukee, and Chicago — an early measuring stick stretch for a team quickly finding its stride under its new coach.
