PHILADELPHIA — Jalen Brunson enjoyed — well, if you know anything about the Knicks’ best player, he didn’t enjoy it at all — a flashy offensive game after two uncharacteristically poor shooting nights to start the first round of the playoffs playoffs.
Brunson’s 39 points were for naught in the Game 3 loss to the Sixers after the Knicks won twice in New York despite their All-Star point guard shooting a combined 29.1 percent from the field. ground.
“The ball went into the hole. I was able to create pieces, not just for myself, but for others. But while all that is good, we lost, so it doesn’t really matter,” Brunson said after practice Saturday at the Wells Fargo Center. “(It’s) about being together and reading each other on offense and defense. And just being a little quicker in everything, but most importantly staying together.
Brunson missed 39 of 55 shot attempts in the first two games of the series.
But the Knicks won Game 1 thanks in large part to huge performances from Josh Hart, Miles McBride and Mitchell Robinson, and they used a frenzied 8-0 comeback in the final 27 seconds — including 3-pointers from Brunson and Donte DiVincenzo. – to steal game 2.
The 6-foot-2 Brunson was largely guarded by taller opponents Kelly Oubre Jr. (6-7) and Nicolas Batum (6-8) through three games.
He made almost half of his shot attempts (13 of 27) overall in Game 3, including 3 of 7 from 3-point range plus a 10 of 12 from the free throw line.
“I won’t say anything too crazy, but he has the ball in his hands for 20 seconds on a 24-second shot clock,” Oubre said Saturday. “He passes the ball and recovers it immediately. He probably makes the most shots on his team, as he should.
“But at the end of the day, it gets used a lot. He is used to playing 48 minutes and scoring 40 points. He must. But it’s my job to stay in front of him, to stay disciplined and not try to pretend. He has incredible footwork. … He’s very crafty and he shoots the ball every time. We must continue to pursue it.
Added Batum: “With guys like that, you know they’re going to get shot anyway and go to their place anyway, no matter what you do. Just make them work, that’s all. They will have 25 shots no matter what you do. That’s why they’re so good, that’s why they are what they are. All we have to do is make them work for each of them.
New York Post
