00:00All right, true or false, boys and girls, if the Knicks keep going after James Harden,
00:04then they're going to win game two and they're going to win the entire series.
00:07Save your answers to the end of the test because we're going to talk all things
00:11Eastern Conference Finals with Jeff Johnson of Knicks Film School.
00:15Jeff, let's get straight into it.
00:17We got to talk about the elephant in the room from game one.
00:20The Knicks absolutely exploited James Harden's defense and, I guess, overall weakness.
00:25Like a teacher who makes a kid who can't read read in front of the class.
00:30It was bad.
00:31Let's listen to Mike Brown on going after Harden in the fourth quarter.
00:34Then I got to get your thoughts.
00:36Yeah, you know, it's sometimes you got to do what the game dictates.
00:41And they were trying to do the same thing with Jalen.
00:44And so we said, OK, we feel like we can play that game.
00:48We try not to play that game much, but we feel like we have a guy that we can play
00:53that game with.
00:54And Jalen, and so, you know, just like we have to try to figure out different ways to guard Harden
01:01and Mitchell,
01:03they got to figure out different ways to guard Jalen.
01:05But we were, there is no secret, we were attacking Harden.
01:09All right, got a quick stat for you before I get your thoughts.
01:12Jalen Brunson, 7 of 11 when guarded by Harden compared to 8 of 18 when defended by anyone else.
01:20Two-part question here.
01:21Does Mike Brown get the flowers for that adjustment, or was that pretty much all J.B.?
01:27And is going after James Harden the key to winning game two in this series?
01:33All right, so first off, I think Mike Brown gets flowers for going to Landry Shammott and going five out.
01:41Three shooters around Brunson and Cat.
01:43That was able to stretch the defense.
01:46Jared Allen couldn't pack the paint anymore and just hang out there on vacation waiting for folks to drive and
01:52to funnel towards him.
01:53So once they were able to do that and they put reliable shooters around Brunson, that opened up the entire
01:59offense.
02:00I'll also give him flowers for instituting a read and react offense early on in the season.
02:05And boy, did Brunson react.
02:08The minute they saw that they were comfortable with Harden guarding Brunson, he went to work.
02:13And I know there's been a lot of jokes over the last couple of days over Harden's defense and whatnot.
02:18He was trying out there, but he wasn't their best option.
02:22And I think this is the Cavs strategy because if you look back to the conference semis against the Pistons,
02:28there were stretches in clutch time where Harden was guarding Cade Cunningham too.
02:32So this is not a blip.
02:36This is a trend for the Cavs.
02:38I will say this.
02:39If they continue this trend, it's probably going to be a quick series.
02:44I don't think that he is the proper option to guard Brunson during the clutch or during long stretches of
02:50time.
02:51And especially if this correct personnel is around Brunson, if they're able to have more optionality.
02:57I think that is the key, Brandon.
03:00That is the key.
03:00Their offense was stuck in the mud.
03:03They were in quicksand.
03:04Their flex screen offense was getting blown up.
03:08They were sagging off of Harden with ghost coverage.
03:10And he wasn't able to make them pay in game one.
03:14So if he's able to knock down those shots and ease up the defense, the interior defense,
03:20then I think everything else will fall into place.
03:23But their goal right now is to be able to diversify their offense even further.
03:28Go to plan B through D if they're going to remain with the same alignments and exploit the Cavs where
03:35they can because their perimeter defense isn't as stout as what the Knicks have seen throughout the course of the
03:42regular season and this playoff run.
03:44So if you're going to allow Brunson to control this offense, yeah, it's not going to bode well for the
03:50Cavs.
03:51Let's stay on Jalen Brunson and his legacy because you don't get the nickname Captain Clutch without earning it, especially
03:59in this city.
04:00So where does that fourth quarter explosion rank in your JB takeover moments and overall greatest game takeover moments as
04:10a Knick?
04:11Oh, it's number one by far.
04:13When you think about the elevated stakes, it's the conference finals.
04:17They're four wins at the time away from an NBA finals run for the first time since 99.
04:23And the way in which they took over, Brandon, they had a tenth of a percent of a chance to
04:30win that game being down 22 with a little under eight minutes to go.
04:35Not one percent, a tenth, one tenth of one percent chance to win that game.
04:42And they were able to overcome it.
04:44Fifteen point explosion, masterful bucketry by Brunson, balletic footwork, elite handle, intoxicating handle.
04:54And he put the entire pharmacy in James Harden's face.
04:59He gave him Pfizer, Moderna, Walgreens, CVS, whatever have you.
05:04Affordable medication was dealt out to Harden.
05:08And you can go back to last year's playoffs and the famous crossover on Asar Thompson and even that whole
05:1424-25 season where it seemed like they were trying to win every game in the regular season.
05:20And if it was clutch time, Brunson performed when he won the clutch player of the year.
05:25That's a highlight reel in itself.
05:26But when you think about the elevated stakes, when you think about the moment and how incomprehensible it was that
05:34they would be able to come back,
05:35to be able to push it into OT, continue to make the correct plays.
05:39It wasn't just scoring.
05:40He got assists there, too.
05:42I think it has to rank at the top of his highlight reel.
05:47Jeff, you're talking medicines, fractions.
05:50Told you guys we were going to take you to school.
05:52Next up, he's probably going to do Dewey Decimal System.
05:55Hey, we got to do it.
05:56If Jalen Brunson is the Batman of this team, then who's going to be the Robin of this series?
06:04Right now, I would look at Mikael Bridges.
06:07This is a guy who's averaging 18 points, almost 19 points on ridiculous shooting.
06:14I'm talking 72% true shooting, 73% effective field goal.
06:18He has nine steals over his last six games.
06:20He awoke during game six in Atlanta, and he's been phenomenal since.
06:25And not just on offense.
06:26He has a highlight reel.
06:28We're talking about Brunson's highlight reel.
06:30He has a defensive postseason highlight reel for the ages.
06:33He got that steal on Max Struis as they were trying to stop the bleeding at OT, and that
06:39stopped the Cavs' momentum.
06:40He was able to hit one of the craziest threes I've seen in a postseason game, that fade away
06:46above the break three in Evan Mobley's grill, and the corner three.
06:50Without those threes, the Knicks don't complete the comeback.
06:53And more important than anything, he is seeking out contact.
06:58I swear, he looks like Michael Jordan when he's seeking out contact at the paint.
07:02And that's what I joked about or lied, but this is opening up another dimension of the
07:09Knicks offense that a lot of teams aren't prepared to handle.
07:12He has the perfect complement of skills offensively for the postseason because he can knock down
07:18the mid-range shot.
07:19But now, if he's attacking the paint as well, that just opens up everything else for everybody.
07:24And you said, who needs to be the Robin, Brandon?
07:28I would say he probably needs the entire Bat family at this point.
07:31You need Nightwing.
07:33You need the OG Robin.
07:35You need Tim Drake.
07:36You need Jason Todd.
07:38You need his son, Damian.
07:39You need everybody.
07:40And that's got to be guys like OG, who came up big in that OT, nine points, three boards.
07:46And he was one of the main people setting picks in that fourth quarter to get Harden on the
07:51switch and Cat, like you're going to need his offensive output.
07:55And eventually when they open up the offense, you'll be able to see his beautiful game, Magic
08:00Johnson that's passing that he wants to do.
08:02So this is going to be a total team effort.
08:05The Cavs can still score at, well, they're a phenomenal offensive team.
08:09So you're going to need everybody on deck along with that bench.
08:12But I would look at Macal right now, especially with OG still working back from the hamstring
08:18injury, if he can alleviate some of that burden and let OG pick his spots, that's even adding
08:24another dimension to this Juggernaut's offense that we've seen over the last seven, what is
08:30it, eight games now?
08:31It's crazy.
08:32So let's stay on the Bat family then, because let's talk about Alfred.
08:36That's Mike Brown.
08:37If you're Mike Brown, what's going to be your major game two adjustments to make sure that
08:42you guys get two games at home?
08:45Well, for one, you got to decide when and where you want a double team, if you even want
08:51a double team, Harden or Mitchell to begin with.
08:54I think that you make Harden prove that he can beat people off the dribble one-on-one.
08:58He's still super cagey with the way that he picks his spots on offense.
09:03While he might not have the speed to blow by people off the dribble, he can still bait
09:10you into a foul, he's still super crafty that way, and he still has his outside shot.
09:16I would make him prove that he needs to be double teamed before they double team, because
09:20they have too many good outside shooters that are getting left wide open on those blitzes.
09:26Also, on offense for the Knicks, I think the major adjustment is if they're packing the
09:32paint, if the Cavs are packing the paint and we're not hitting outside shots, we've got
09:35to switch up personnel, got to be quicker with the adjustments, bring in the five-out look,
09:39bring in the double big look with Mitch, just be more responsive to what the game is telling
09:44you, because if it's one superpower this Knicks team has, it's their optionality.
09:50They can throw so many different looks and lineups at these teams, and they'll eventually
09:55find something that works.
09:57You just don't want it to be in the fourth quarter when you're down 20-plus points.
10:01So just being more responsive to the game and being able to make those adjustments, I think
10:08that's something that you're going to have to see the Knicks do.
10:12But other than that, cleaning up the defense, just making sure that you're not living the
10:16shooters that you don't want to leave open, open.
10:19And doing that, I think they'll be solid.
10:23Lastly, you're going to be coming in studio, maybe even sitting in this seat right here
10:27for the New York Post, New York Got Game, Game 2 Watch Party with Dexter Henry and Brian
10:33Fonseca, one, what can fans expect, two, shout it out, man.
10:38Yeah, man, tonight, Game 2, we are in the chair, the big three, me, Dex, and Brian.
10:44We're going to be with New York Post Watch Party.
10:46You already know the vibes.
10:48Yo, we love having a good time, and we love watching the game.
10:51So if you want to see three guys talking ball from an analytical perspective, from a fan
10:56perspective, and everything in between, you can tap in with us.
10:59We're going to have a good time.
11:00We're going to give you all the stats you need.
11:02We're going to give you the insight, and I just love vibing out with those two, man,
11:06because it just feels natural.
11:08It doesn't feel contrived.
11:09It doesn't feel like we're scripted, because we're not.
11:12You're getting our raw reactions to what we're seeing on the screen, and once we're doing
11:17this for the playoffs, like the regular season is cool.
11:19Playoffs is on a whole other level, and I'm just blessed and grateful to get that opportunity
11:23to be able to tap into the New York Post studios with my guys at Talk Knicks Hoops, man.
11:29So if y'all want to be entertained, if you need people to watch the game with, and you
11:34can't get out to the bars, you can't get out to the game, rock with us.
11:38It's what you need.
11:39So definitely tune in.
11:41It's going to be fun.
11:42A lot of Knicks fans who can't get a sitter tonight, that's going to be watching, y'all.
11:46Facts.
11:46Can't get that sitter, got to watch from home.
11:49They're going to be dialed in.
11:50Hey, Jeff, appreciate you, man, and good luck in studio tonight, man.
11:54Thank you, bro.
11:55I appreciate you.
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