The Knicks clinch against the Sixers in Game 4 in historic fashion, winning their franchise record 7th straight postseason game.
The New York Knicks have been historically good through the first two rounds of the playoffs, outscoring their opponents by 19.4 points per game. That’s the best differential for any team through two rounds since the playoffs changed to a 16-team format in 1984 (43 years).
It’s a great time of year for the Knicks to be playing their best basketball.
A point differential like that is built with success on both ends of the floor. But based on their opponents’ regular-season numbers, the New York offense has been a little better than the defense.
In the first round, the Knicks scored nine more points per 100 possessions than the Atlanta Hawks allowed in the regular season. In the conference semifinals, they scored 14.7 per 100 more than the Philadelphia 76ers allowed in the regular season.
That latter mark is the best for any team in the 12 series that have been played thus far, and the Knicks and Oklahoma City Thunder are the first two teams in the 30 years of play-by-play data to score more than 120 points per 100 possessions in each of their first two series.
Jalen Brunson remains the catalyst. He leads the Knicks with 27.4 points per game and ranks second in the playoffs in time of possession. But for the first time in his four years in New York (regular season or playoffs), he doesn’t lead the team in assists.
That distinction belongs to Karl-Anthony Towns, who’s averaged 6.6 assists in only 28.5 minutes per game, up from just 3.0 (in 31.0 minutes) in the regular season.
With the Knicks making their second straight trip to the conference finals, Towns is making his third. Here are some notes, numbers and film on how he’s thrived as an offensive hub in the postseason…
1. Offensive hub
After totaling 10 assists in the Knicks’ first three playoff games, Towns had 10 in Game 4 of the first round. Beginning with that game, the Knicks used him as a high-post hub a little more than they had previously. He hasn’t exactly evolved into Nikola Jokić, but in the conference semifinals, he had the ball for 9.0% of his minutes on the floor, easily his highest rate for any of the 11 playoff series he’s played in.
Karl-Anthony Towns time of possession, by series
| Year | Round | Opp. | MPG | TOP | TOP% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | First round | HOU | 33.9 | 2.1 | 6.2% |
| 2022 | First round | MEM | 36.9 | 2.1 | 5.7% |
| 2023 | First round | DEN | 36 | 2.2 | 6.1% |
| 2024 | First round | PHX | 28.2 | 1.6 | 5.7% |
| 2024 | Conf. semis | DEN | 34.7 | 1.8 | 5.2% |
| 2024 | Conf. finals | DAL | 33.2 | 1.7 | 5.1% |
| 2025 | First round | DET | 37.7 | 2.1 | 5.6% |
| 2025 | Conf. semis | BOS | 33.7 | 1.6 | 4.7% |
| 2025 | Conf. finals | IND | 35.1 | 2.1 | 6% |
| 2026 | First round | ATL | 31.9 | 2.3 | 7.2% |
| 2026 | Conf. semis | PHI | 23.4 | 2.1 | 9% |
TOP = Minutes per game of possession
TOP% = Percentage of minutes on the floor with possession
Putting the ball in the hands of a 7-foot, capable scorer and passer at the high post gives him plenty of passing options and makes it difficult for the opponent to send a double-team.
If they do double-team, an open teammate in scoring position is just one pass away…
If they defend Towns one-on-one, he can go to work …
2. Efficiency by a thousand cuts
The Knicks’ offense is not heavy on ball or player movement. Through Thursday, they rank 15th in the playoffs in passes per 24 minutes of possession and 14th in miles traveled per 24 minutes of possession. But with Towns at the high post, the wheels start moving a bit.
They can use off-ball screens to free up cutters to the rim …
They can work a give-and-go to beat ball pressure. When Brunson is denied on a hand-off, he keeps moving, often losing his man as he circles around Towns and cuts to the basket. That’s resulted in a score in the paint for Brunson or an open 3-pointer for a teammate whose defender has helped on Brunson’s cut…
3. The best screener on the Knicks
Brunson has gravity. And with Towns handling the ball, the Knicks can use their leading scorer as a screener, which can create a lot of advantages.
One of the Knicks’ most common actions when Towns has the ball at the high post is having Brunson set a back-screen on the opposite side of the paint. And if Brunson’s defender doesn’t want to leave him, the guy he set that back-screen for is going to be open…
If his defender does hedge the screen a bit, then there’s some separation that Brunson himself can take advantage of.
4. The lows and the highs
Towns also leads the Knicks in turnovers in the playoffs. Some of those are offensive fouls, but he can be a little loose with the ball when he’s handling it, and one-handed passes are more likely to be off the mark.
But his playmaking hasn’t been just out of the high post, and he’s had some impressive assists on the move. His biggest passing highlight of the playoffs didn’t result in an assist, because Landry Shamet missed an open corner 3-pointer…
Whether they play the Cleveland Cavaliers or the Detroit Pistons in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Knicks should be the favorite. At the most important time of the year, they’ve been the best team outside of Oklahoma City. And this new wrinkle to their offense makes them tougher to defend.
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John Schuhmann has covered the NBA for more than 20 years. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on Bluesky.
