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00:00Has this Knicks three-game dominance just been too good to be true?
00:04I mean, be honest.
00:05Y'all all in on the Knicks going to the finals,
00:07or are you just dipping your toe in the water?
00:09This guy we have on right now, he's all in.
00:12That's Alex Jotaros, KnicksFanTV.
00:14He's back.
00:15I need the vibes of the city, Alex,
00:17because half the people are like,
00:20Knicks to the six, we're going to win it all.
00:22Everybody else is like, I'm going to just wait and see.
00:24And I mean, you have to.
00:26Three straight wins by 25-plus points.
00:28Mikael Bridges is getting hot.
00:30Cats on fire.
00:32It's all gelling and coming together right now.
00:34This is what the Knicks fans have been waiting for for a long time.
00:37But I need you to keep it 100 with me as the kids say.
00:41Do you get a sense that there are Knicks fans that are low-key
00:46kind of waiting for the inevitable shoe to drop?
00:49Like, does it feel like you're watching this playoff run,
00:52especially these last three games?
00:54Like, it's just too good to be true right now.
00:58There are certainly fans out there, Brandon,
01:00that want the shoe to drop back.
01:01See, I told you so.
01:02Things don't work out.
01:03You know, people are about their agendas, man.
01:05No one wants to see success unless they're actually right.
01:07But you know what?
01:07If you're a Knicks fan, man, even if you're wrong,
01:10you've got to be happy with how this team is just playing
01:12because they're playing at a level that we've seen them reach
01:16throughout the regular season,
01:17like when they played the Celtics in February,
01:18when they played the Nuggets in March.
01:20Like, we've seen them just go on these sprees
01:22where the defense is there and the offense is just reaching new heights.
01:25And we didn't see it consistently,
01:27but now that we're seeing it on a consistent basis,
01:29I mean, we're seeing it four games in a row, Brandon.
01:31Like, they knocked the Hawks out in three, right?
01:34After dropping two, came back, won three straight,
01:36and in convincing fashion, we saw them put over 50-plus points
01:39to knock them out in game, what's it, game six.
01:43And then you see what they're doing to Philadelphia in game one,
01:46where they're winning by the same type of margins, right?
01:49Close to 40-some-odd points, 39, I think, to be exact.
01:52But they're showing you that this team is just reaching new heights
01:55on both ends of the court.
01:56I mean, when you're seeing Jalen Brunson getting two steals,
02:00jumping passing lanes, fighting over screens,
02:02when you're seeing Carl Anthony Towns meeting guys at the rim
02:05just doing a good job holding Joel Embiid in the paint, right?
02:09This is, how can you not be excited?
02:11How can you not be excited about what the Knicks are showing you right now?
02:13Because even for some of the miscues, right, that they had in game one,
02:17they were still able to show that they were able to get back
02:19on track and exert their dominance against the Philadelphia team
02:23who took out a reigning champ not too long ago.
02:25I know it's not the same team in the Boston Celtics,
02:27but they came back being down 3-1 and beat the Celtics.
02:30Now you're telling me that that team that took out the Celtics,
02:32you meet them game one, forget the rest.
02:34I don't want to hear that nonsense.
02:35That's where you've got to close them out and do your business.
02:37They came out there and went by about 40 points.
02:40The team's looking great right now, Brandon.
02:42You talk about them looking dominant,
02:43and that, obviously, they are led by their captain,
02:46Captain Clutch, Jalen Brunson.
02:48He's been dominant this entire playoffs, I feel like.
02:51Last series, it was Brunson versus CJ McCollum.
02:54This series is supposed to be JB versus Tyrese Maxey.
02:58They actually held Maxey in check to only 13 points in game one.
03:02Jalen dropped 35.
03:04Who do you think ends up with a better game in game two
03:09and, of course, the series overall?
03:12Is it a cop-out to say that they both can have really good games?
03:14Nah, you said no toe in the water.
03:17Jump all in, my man.
03:19Look, it's going to be Jalen Brunson.
03:20I'm going to go with Jalen Brunson.
03:22Look, Maxey's still a dynamic player, but I'm going with Brunson.
03:24I mean, this is the matchup that can work for Brunson.
03:27Defensively, he's going to still have a challenge.
03:29Look, I know they hit him on Oubre in game one.
03:31And I expect that to still happen, but he's still going to have to compete
03:33on both ends of the court.
03:35But even what we saw in game one, if you're going to play drop coverage,
03:38if you're going to let the Knicks just get Joel Embiid or anybody else,
03:43you know, outside of Paul George, guard Jalen Brunson,
03:45even Paul George, he's still got to hit his shots.
03:47But, like, if Brunson's going to get the switch
03:49and then he's going to get the matchups that he wants,
03:51he can easily just step into his shots, get downhill, and score from anywhere.
03:55Do you expect the same type of efficiency that he had in game one?
04:00Probably not.
04:00You know, players wean back and forth between shooting 40%, 60% or higher.
04:04But I still expect him to have the dominance.
04:06And the thing about Brunson is that he's so methodical in his approach.
04:11If he's not getting the shot, okay, let me force the issue a little bit.
04:14Let me get into the paint.
04:15Let me use my physical strength.
04:16And then let me draw the foul, get to the free throw line,
04:19see some shots fall, and then get my confidence back.
04:22Or if the mid-range, if the three is not falling,
04:25I'll still get downhill and go figure out how to be crafty
04:27and use my footwork to finish around the rim.
04:30And then if all that starts to open up, he's going to get his shots, man.
04:34Jalen Brunson is going to get his shots.
04:35I mean, we saw what he did two years ago against Philly.
04:38They slowed him down in those first two games, but he figured it out.
04:40Don't let that think that Maxey won't compete, okay?
04:43He had 13 points in game one.
04:45And I'm expecting that Nick Nurse is going to come back
04:48and find the switches and the matches for Maxey to get going in this one.
04:51But it's Brunson all day, man.
04:52It's Brunson all day.
04:53Hey, I'm with you, man.
04:54Like Tyrese Maxey, it needs to be studied how they were able to hold him to 13.
04:59This is a guy that averaged 35 and around 35 and 4 against the Knicks
05:05in the regular season.
05:06And then we know what he did to them back in the 2024 playoffs.
05:09So you can't hold a guy like that down, you know, an entire series.
05:14And I feel like he's going to have to, like, insert himself in this game, too,
05:19because I think it's a must-win game, too, for Philly
05:22before they head back down to Philadelphia.
05:26But a lot of people have been talking about the fouls,
05:30the ticky-tack fouls throughout the course of game one.
05:33The Knicks feel like they fouled the Sixers way too much,
05:36and they need to clean that up.
05:38Philly actually shot 34 free throws compared to New York's 17.
05:44Are the refs gifting Embiid and the Sixers with too many calls,
05:50or are these justifiable fouls?
05:53I think some of them are justifiable.
05:55Embiid is a star.
05:56He's going to get some calls.
05:57You know, back in the day when you saw Jordan get to the line,
05:59there's star power, so he's going to get some calls, you know,
06:02a little bit more favorably than others.
06:03It's the same thing for Jalen Brunson, man.
06:05I mean, you saw Vijay in game one, so throw out the hands like,
06:07ugh, he's flopping, he's flopping.
06:10My man Vijay, I said this on postgame, like, you're a rookie.
06:13You're not going to get the calls.
06:14And Brunson, look, the thing about Brunson, and even last season I said,
06:18like, there are moments where Brunson was selling it a little too much
06:20and taking himself out of his game.
06:22Brunson this season has done a better job of just playing his game.
06:24If he gets contact, he gets hit, he gets hit, man.
06:27He gets to the free throw line.
06:28But look, in both cases, they're going to get the calls.
06:31Both Brunson and Bede, they're going to get calls.
06:34You know, Cat has not a favorable whistle, but as of late,
06:37it's been a little bit better than what it has been during the regular season.
06:39But the Stars are going to get their calls, man, and you got to be ready for that.
06:42And look, there was a moment in game one where Carl Anthony Towns had his hands low
06:47and allowed Embiid to do the rip through.
06:50And then they're going to call that all the time, and he got to the free throw line.
06:53So for guys like Carl Anthony Towns, Mitchell Robinson, you got to be wary.
06:58Stand tall, move your feet, keep your hands up.
07:00You can't give Joel Embiid any opportunity to get to the free throw line
07:03because he'll kill you there.
07:05And then for Maxie, it's going to be tough.
07:07He's going to get his free throws too.
07:08The difference is that he's just fast.
07:09So like, can you stay in front of him?
07:11And even for the shots that Maxie got when he got to the free throw line,
07:14it's like, because he's so quick, you're going to give him that bump
07:17like afterwards as you're trailing, if you're fighting around a screen.
07:20So he's going to get to the free throw line.
07:21I think some of them are justifiable,
07:23but I think it's comical that you have Joel Embiid talking about Brunson being,
07:26you know, a foul merchant when he's like the ultimate foul merchant.
07:29He looks like Shamu flopping out of water, man.
07:32Like he's on a beach.
07:32I'm glad you mentioned Mitch Robinson having to kind of be aware
07:36of how he's guarding Embiid, moving his feet,
07:39not getting that contact to get the fouls on the defensive side of things.
07:43But on the offensive side of the ball, he's got to be aware of fouls on him.
07:49Do you feel like at any point of this game two, or even this series,
07:54does hack a Mitch, is it going to have a major impact on the outcome of a game?
08:01I think it might have moments where it impacts the game.
08:04During the game, I don't think it'll drastically change the outcome.
08:08I mean, look, can't go into foul trouble on the first quarter.
08:11They put Mitchell Robinson out there.
08:13They went to hack a Mitch.
08:14Next thing you see, you see Ariel Huckporty,
08:16who did a solid job in game one, by the way.
08:18Got to give him his flowers for being ready and having to guard Embiid.
08:21But, look, I think it will impact from a defensive standpoint
08:26and how long you keep Mitch out there.
08:29But this is where Carl Anthony Towns and Mitch have to be aware
08:32and be careful of how they're guarding Embiid
08:34because if you get the same thing again where Cat's in foul trouble
08:37in the first quarter, they're going to do the same thing to Mitch.
08:39That way they force the issue and have Ariel Huckporty out there
08:42because, look, whether or not you want to say the Sixers retired,
08:45not having enough rest after playing game seven,
08:49then they get into game one between the Knicks.
08:51But, like, they're going to try and test Ariel Huckporty.
08:53He's still a second-year player.
08:55You're talking about Joel Embiid, an MVP-type caliber player,
08:59and he's still even on one, two legs.
09:01The man can still go get his.
09:03I mean, look at what he did against Mitchell Robinson
09:05when he got out there in the first quarter.
09:06Did a tween, stepped back, drilled that mid-range jumper.
09:09So you've got to be ready and prepared.
09:11But, look, it's going to have moments throughout the game
09:14for Mitchell Robinson.
09:16It's going to happen, but this is where both of your centers have got to be careful.
09:19And I don't think it's going to be drastic enough
09:21where it will change the outcome of games,
09:22but it will impact how long Mitchell Robinson can stay out there.
09:25But, look, here's the other side to it.
09:27If you want to go to Hack and Mitch and get yourself into the bonus
09:29and go get other guys once you take them out,
09:31that's the consequence once you do that.
09:33So let's say it's any quarter, right?
09:35And if you're using fouls early trying to get Mitch off
09:38and you use all six fouls, right, that you're giving,
09:41well, now you gave us an advantage.
09:43And if we haven't given you any fouls, now we can get to the free throw line,
09:46take them out, and slow you down.
09:48So if you want to play that game, there are consequences to it.
09:51It's not a foolproof plan, but, hey, we'll see how it all pans out.
09:55I didn't even think about it like that until you brought it up.
09:59They could actually use it in their advantage.
10:00And like you say, if Jalen Brunson, if he sees that,
10:03they're already in the bonus.
10:04He's going to attack the rim.
10:05He's going to draw contact to try and get himself to the free throw line.
10:09So, yeah, that makes sense.
10:10All right, let's wrap this one up, Alex.
10:12Nixon and why?
10:15How many did they wrap this game up in the series?
10:18Yeah, Nixon?
10:19Six.
10:20Okay, you're still standing by that.
10:22You're still standing by that.
10:23I'm standing by it, man.
10:24I called it earlier.
10:25I think it's six.
10:25Look, the thing is that we saw in round one, I think we saw –
10:30not what I think.
10:30We did see the Knicks take the Hawks too lightly in game two in game three.
10:34I think they were sniffing themselves a little too much after barely winning in game one.
10:41They're confident now.
10:42They're going to play at a good level.
10:44I do expect Philadelphia to go get theirs, though.
10:47I do expect them to get a game or two.
10:50And just because you got Tyrese Maxey, he is a tough cover, man.
10:54You mentioned it earlier in the show.
10:56He had 13 points.
10:58He ain't going to hold him down to that.
10:59And he's going to put the pressure on the rim.
11:01And then if he gets going, everything will fall into place.
11:03And you got to take into consideration that once they get down to Philadelphia,
11:06the role players are going to be a little bit more comfortable.
11:08They're going to play with a little bit more moxie, okay?
11:10Oubre's going to attack the rim more.
11:12Vijay probably can have a night where he goes crazy from downtown.
11:15So you got to calculate those things in.
11:17But regardless, I think the Knicks will still come out victorious in six.
11:20All right.
11:21Alex, appreciate you hopping on with this, my man.
11:24Brandon, appreciate you as always, my guy.
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