Knicks’ Preseason Loss Exposes an Offensive Question Brunson and Towns Can’t Answer Alone
The Knicks’ cold-shooting preseason opener raised a key question: who can consistently create offense beyond Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns?
The New York Knicks can reasonably expect their shooting to improve after a difficult preseason opener. The more meaningful question is whether they can consistently generate quality opportunities when Jalen Brunson is not directing the offense.
In their 120-97 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, New York finished 35-for-91 from the field and 8-for-41 from three-point range. Those numbers reflected a cold shooting night, but they also brought the importance of Knicks secondary scoring into focus.
Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns each scored 12 points in 15 minutes, while OG Anunoby also contributed 12. Beyond that trio, Miles McBride was the only Knick to reach double figures, finishing with 10 points off the bench.
One exhibition offers limited evidence. Still, the way New York struggled to create offense deserves attention as the preseason continues.
Cold Shooting Reveals a Bigger Creation Question
Missing open shots and struggling to create them are different problems. Against Philadelphia, the Knicks’ offensive difficulties extended beyond their poor conversion rate.
Too many possessions ended with challenging jumpers, leaving New York without a dependable alternative when those attempts failed. Philadelphia made the Knicks work for scoring opportunities, and the offense struggled to find another route to efficient production.
Brunson’s ability to penetrate, draw defensive attention and control possessions gives New York a reliable starting point. Towns supplies another major scoring threat. The challenge is sustaining an effective attack when those advantages are unavailable or disrupted.
That requires more than asking another player to finish with a higher point total. The Knicks need additional ways to move defenders, open driving lanes and create easier attempts before a possession reaches its final seconds.
Anunoby’s scoring and McBride’s bench contribution were positives. Establishing a repeatable process around those contributions will matter more than any individual preseason total.
Mike Brown Needs More Answers When the Jumpers Stop Falling
New York has enough offensive talent to avoid drawing sweeping conclusions from one poor performance. Limited starter minutes and experimental combinations also make preseason results difficult to translate directly into regular-season expectations.
Nevertheless, the opener identified a useful priority for Mike Brown: developing possessions that remain productive without relying on Brunson to create the initial opening.
Quicker ball movement, purposeful cuts and decisive attacks against rotating defenders could help distribute that responsibility. Getting into the paint more consistently would also give the Knicks alternatives when perimeter shooting drops.
The goal is not to reduce the importance of Brunson or Towns. It is to make their work easier by ensuring opponents must respond to threats throughout the lineup.
New York is unlikely to shoot 19.5% from beyond the arc on a routine basis. Better accuracy alone, however, would not fully answer the question raised in Philadelphia. Over an 82-game season, dependable secondary creation could determine how well the Knicks handle nights when their stars need help.
