Lonzo Ball had so much time, he overthought the play.
Nine seconds left in regulation. Tie game. The Knicks scrambling on defense.
Coby White ran a pick-and-roll with Nikola Vucevic, forcing Precious Achiuwa and Mikal Bridges to trap him near the right wing. Vucevic rolled freely down the middle of the paint, drawing Landry Shamet into a difficult decision: stay home on the Bulls’ skilled 7-foot big man at the rim, or rotate up close-out on Ball, who popped out to the top of the key with a clean look at a three.
Shamet hesitated, then committed to Vucevic.
Achiuwa hesitated, too, before finally closing out on Ball.
But by then, the Bulls guard had all the time in the world. Ball caught the pass from White at 9.6 seconds, took an extra dribble at nine seconds flat, and released the shot at 7.8 seconds — an eternity by NBA standards.
His three clanked off the back iron, and on the next possession, Bridges blocked Vucevic’s attempt at the buzzer, forcing overtime, where the Knicks escaped with a narrow 113-111 victory despite yet another game where their perimeter defense was a liability.
It wasn’t the first time. And if New York wants to compete for a title, it needs to be one of the last. Because better teams have already, and will continue to make the Knicks pay for their mistakes guarding the line.
“They’ve got really talented players. It’s as simple as that,” Karl-Anthony Towns said of the Bulls after the game. “They’re a really good team. They’ve got a ton of talent… and all of their players made big shots when they needed to.”
The problem? They weren’t tough shots to make.
***
The Knicks don’t just have a bad three-point defense. They own one of the worst in the NBA.
Opponents are shooting 37.9% from deep against New York this season, the highest clip in the league. The Knicks rank bottom-five in threes allowed and middle-of-the-pack (17th) in opponent threes made, but no numbers tell the story better than the film from Thursday night.
From the opening tip, the Knicks’ perimeter defense was in shambles:
- Chicago’s first two possessions resulted in open three-pointers.
- The Bulls’ three-guard lineup of White, Ball, and Josh Giddey continuously broke down the Knicks’ defense, forcing kick-outs that kept them in rotation.
- The Knicks struggled against pick-and-pops, surrendering clean looks to Vucevic (3-of-5 from deep), Julian Phillips (2-of-3), and noted stretch five Zach Collins (0-of-3 on open attempts).
- Even inbounds plays became a problem. Vucevic’s late-game three to put the Bulls ahead 104-102 was a breakdown New York simply couldn’t afford.
Chicago attempted 18 threes in the first quarter alone, hitting just five, but many of the looks were clean. The Bulls finished the night 19-of-48 (39.6%) from downtown, shooting 14-of-30 from the second quarter through overtime.
“I think that’s the challenge when you have multiple point guards on the floor,” Tom Thibodeau said after the game. “The speed of the game is gonna be a little bit different… dribble penetration, and then Vucevic, because of what he does, the ability to pop, the ability to short roll, and the ability to roll, you have to be able to guard him in all three areas.”
But it wasn’t just Vucevic. The Knicks’ poor closeouts, slow rotations, and defensive lapses let Chicago’s guards dictate the pace all night.
The porous perimeter defense is something the Knicks can’t afford: The best teams in basketball — the ones New York will have to beat in the playoffs — live at the three-point line.
***
The Bulls were just the beginning. For the Knicks, this is the home stretch.
They’ll face the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday, then travel to Boston to face the reigning champion Celtics on Sunday.
Counting the Bulls, that’s three of the NBA’s best three-point shooting teams right out of the All-Star break.
Boston leads the NBA in both three-pointers attempted and made. The Celtics tied an NBA record with 29 made threes on 61 attempts in their season-opening blowout against the Knicks. They buried another 19 threes on 39 attempts on Feb. 8, another blowout win.
Cleveland ranks fourth in three-point attempts and first in three-point percentage, and Chicago ranks second in attempts and third in makes.
The Knicks are 0-2 against the Celtics, 0-1 against the Cavaliers, and 1-2 against the Bulls — a combined 1-5 against the teams who hunt the three ball the most.
It’s not a coincidence. It’s a trend indicative of a team that has struggled to defend the line this season.
***
Some reinforcements are coming, and the timing couldn’t be much better.
Josh Hart (knee) is considered day-to-day. Thibodeau dismissed his ailment as “just knee soreness,” meaning a return could come as soon as this weekend.
OG Anunoby (foot) has now missed six straight games but is also believed to be nearing a return.
Then, there’s Mitchell Robinson, who posted his 266.1-pound weigh-in on social media Thursday with the caption: “High-flying Mitch.”
The rim-protecting center is back to full-contact five-on-five scrimmages but is still working into game shape. His return remains uncertain, if not doubtful, for both Cleveland and Boston.
Robinson’s presence would be a game-changer, a dominant rim-protecting presence allowing perimeter defenders to be more aggressive defending the three-point line.
The Knicks need him. They need Anunoby and Hart at full strength, too.
Because while Bulls rookie Matas Buzelis (1-of-6 from three) and Ball’s hesitation at the buzzer bailed the Knicks out on Thursday, Jrue Holiday and Derrick White won’t.
Neither will Darius Garland or De’Andre Hunter.
And if the Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo finds an open Brook Lopez, or Jayson Tatum dishes to Kristaps Porzingis in a pick-and-pop, the Knicks’ current defensive approach will get exposed — again.
This concept isn’t foreign to the Knicks. They know they need to improve across the board, especially where they’ve been weak this season.
Their defense will be better when their two-best defenders return to the lineup, but the Knicks want to be solid no matter who is on the floor.
“You’re talking about two really, really good and impactful players on our team, so of course things could possibly be different with them there,” said Towns. “But it’s a next-man-up mentality.”
Jalen Brunson refused to blame injuries.
“You can’t say you don’t have him or that, that’s just making excuses,” Brunson said. “I want everyone healthy. That’s what I care about the most. But whatever breakdowns happen, we talk about it for what it is. We don’t say, ‘this wouldn’t have happened if [Mitch or OG was in the rotation].’ Nah. We don’t do that.”
The Knicks escaped with a win Thursday, but the cracks in their defense are apparent and predictable.
And if they don’t patch them soon, the best teams in the league will tear those cracks wide open.
