The New York Knicks are headed into Scotiabank arena tonight to face off with the Toronto Raptors and a few familiar faces are coming back. OG Anunoby and Precious Achiuwa were traded last fall to the Knicks and they will be in for a homecoming of sorts tonight.
The Knicks offense has been one of the best in the league this season, Karl-Anthony Towns has added a new dimension to it along with Mikal Bridges. They now have several high percentage shooters in the lineup, several players who can keep advantages alive and attack off the dribble, and they still have Jalen Brunson who leads all of this. Towns is nursing a knee injury so he is questionable for tonight and that will change what Toronto has to do on defense. With Towns potentially out, Jakob Poeltl would not have to stretch out to the perimeter, and he could be camped near the paint more to help out on the Knicks drives. Even with Towns out the Knicks still have plenty of offensive talent on the floor, but the obvious focal point is Brunson.
Brunson is always aiming to get to the middle of the floor and bump and twist his way to mid range shots and floaters, and he does this both in isolation and with screens. Brunson’s burst often allows him to blow by players, and with a screen he gets his man behind them and at that point you’re at his mercy. So with Towns potentially out, the screening actions become simpler to defend because Toronto doesn’t have to worry about Jericho Sims or any other Knicks big popping out to the perimeter.
Bridges and Anunoby are not close to Brunson’s level of creation but their shot diets are both sustainable and either one is capable of having a big scoring night in any given game. Bridges is something of a mid range maestro himself, often using pin downs and handoffs to get to his middy. Anunoby is a spot up shooter who can knock down several threes if you leave him open, and he can also attack closeouts and brutalize you at the rim.
Toronto has to make sure that they don’t lose track of Anunoby who is a willing cutter, and stay connected with Bridges on screens so he can’t get to his shots as easily. The Knicks defense has seen a substantial drop off compared to last season, so this is where Toronto has a shot in the game. Bridges has not been able to return to his former defensive identity this season which has caused the Knicks defense to be worse as a whole. Towns’ defensive woes have also sunk their defense as well, not to mention Brunson’s lack of defensive impact. Bridges’ screen navigation this season has been subpar, he is having trouble sticking with size, and just overall staying in stride with players. Anunoby has been the only standout defender in the Knicks’ lineup and his impact on that end will be felt undoubtedly, but with so many weaker defenders in the lineup there’s only so much he can do.
RJ Barrett will likely draw the Bridges assignment, and it is Barrett’s style of bruising play that has given Bridges trouble this season. Scottie Barnes showed off his passing vision last game and he will have the opportunity to do that tonight out of screening actions because Sims is not the best at defending in space, so New York will have to help him with tags which should make the reads for Scottie very simple.
The outcome of this game is very contingent on whether or not Towns suits up, but even if he does, the defensive issues that plague New York will still be there, so it will be on the Raptors offense to pull out a win for them tonight.
Game Info
Tip-Off: 7:30 p.m. ET
Television: TSN
Radio: Sportsnet 590 The Fan
New York Knicks
PG: Jalen Brunson
SG: Josh Hart
SF: Mikal Bridges
PF: OG Anunoby
C: Jericho Sims
Toronto Raptors
PG: Scottie Barnes
SG: Gradey Dick
SF: RJ Barrett
PF: Ochai Agbaji
C: Bruno Fernando
Knicks
Karl-Anthony Towns(Knee) – Questionable
Cam Payne (Elbow) – Questionable
Raptors
Immanuel Quickley (Elbow) – Out
Bruce Brown Jr. (Conditioning) – Out
Lines
The O/U for tonight is 230.5 and New York is favored by 6.
All Toronto Raptors odds are provided by NBA Betting Site Betway!
The post Gameday: Knicks @ Raptors, December 9 first appeared on Raptors Republic.
