New York Knicks guard Immanuel Quickley (5) defends Jimmy Butler (22) of Miami Heat.
On a night when the New York Knicks played the fourth quarter without their best two players, a shrewd closing lineup brought home a 101-92 victory against the Miami Heat.
“I think just defensively we were really tied together,” said Immanuel Quickley, who along with Quentin Grimes, RJ Barrett, Josh Hart and Isaiah Hartenstein, outscored Miami 25-16 in the quarter. “We had a lot of guys in that unit that could switch and guard multiple positions and then everybody was just connected defensively. And when you [get a] defensive stop, that’s the best offense. We were able to get on transition, get easy buckets.”
It was the first time that combination of players, which included three reserves, had been on the floor together this season, according to a tweet from SNY’s Ian Begley.
“The game swayed right there,” head coach Tom Thibodeau said after the game. “We had a lot of guys playing roles that they’re not accustomed to, but we managed it well.”
With five games left in the regular season, the win virtually clinched a top-six finish — and a guaranteed playoff berth — in the Eastern Conference.
The New York Knicks’ Closing Lineup Was Powered by Switchability
In the modern NBA, switchability is the name of the game.
That Knicks closing lineup had it all: shooting, rebounding, perimeter defense and, most importantly, switchability.
Both Quickley and Hart have been praised for their versatility in their games.
Hart, in his sixth year, has “been a Swiss army knife for the Knicks as a versatile role player,” HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto said on March 9. In the Knicks’ win over the Heat, he grabbed 8 rebounds, including 3 on the defensive glass in the decisive fourth quarter.
And third-year player Quickley has become a leading candidate for the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award because of his defense and his role as a facilitator. According to CBS Sports, 9.3% of Quickley’s passes turn into assists.
“Remember, when a sixth man enters a game, the team’s stars often leave it. The job isn’t to build leads, it’s to hold them,” CBS Sports’ Sam Quinn wrote on March 6. “Nobody told Quickley. The Knicks are 7.9 points better per 100 possession with him on the floor.”
He led the team with 24 points against the Heat. One of his two assists in the pivotal fourth quarter was a spectacular midair bounce pass in traffic with 10:06 left that led to one of Hartenstein’s emphatic dunks. That put the Knicks up briefly 81-79. He also had one steal and contested shots that didn’t reflect on the box score.
Hartenstein, playing backup to a traditional big man Mitchell Robinson, was all over. He rolled, played the high and mid-post as he contributed 2 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and a steal in that fourth-quarter stretch.
The New York Knicks Displayed a Team-First Mentality
The Knicks started the fourth quarter with a 7-3 spree. Thibodeau saw the momentum building. But he also had just gotten Jalen Brunson, who shook off a rusty first half and found his rhythm in the third quarter, back from a hand injury and lost Julius Randle to a sprained ankle in the second quarter.
He made what seemed like an unthinkable decision by benching Brunson for the entire fourth quarter.
“So I wanted to see where it would go. And when I felt we just got into a good rhythm — and so the thing about Jalen is he’s always team first — I said, let’s see, the next couple minutes how it goes,” Thibodeau said.
Thibodeau’s guts were right this time.
The Knicks turned an 84-84 deadlock into a 95-85 lead with 4:17 left.
“So we just rode it out there,” Thibodeau said.
They never looked back.