Donovan Mitchell almost single-handedly had the Knicks on the ropes.
He caught fire for 21 points in the third quarter Wednesday night and gave the Cavaliers a one-point lead, undoing the Knicks’ dominant first half. The raucous Madison Square Garden had gone quiet. Mike Brown’s Opening Night party was at risk of being spoiled.
The Knicks, though, are far more than a one-man show and did not waver, perhaps the of developments. They opened the fourth quarter with a 14-2 run — with four different scorers — and quickly wrestled control right back en route to a rousing 119-111 win. Mitchell scored just two points in the fourth quarter.
For large stretches, what was supposed to be a matchup of the best two teams in the Eastern Conference looked like a mismatch. The Cavaliers looked like they had a superstar in Mitchell — the Knicks looked like they had a complete team around their superstar, Jalen Brunson.
So many of the changes Brown wants to implement were visible. The scoring was evenly distributed — Brunson, OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges all finished the first half with 12 points, and five Knicks scored double digits, led by Brunson’s 23 and Anunoby’s 24. Karl-Anthony Towns finished with 19 and Bridges added 16. There was an emphasis on ball movement, which resulted in 22 assists. There was early use of an 11-man rotation.
What was perhaps less predictable was the defensive intensity and loose-ball ferocity the Knicks possessed. Bridges served as a catalyst.
Brown raved about Bridges’ “next-play speed” — his ability to immediately transition between different phases of the game — toward the end of the preseason. Brown described it as the blueprint he wanted the rest of his team to follow.
It took just a few minutes to be evident. Bridges corralled an offensive rebound and found Anunoby for a 3-pointer to cap off an 11-0 run and give the Knicks a 17-10 lead with 6:21 left in the first quarter. A few minutes later, Bridges stripped the ball from Jaylon Tyson and beat everyone down the floor for an uncontested layup. It was part of a 7-0 solo run for Bridges that gave the Knicks a 26-16 lead with 2:37 left in the first quarter. He made his first four shots from the field.
And Bridges’ energy was infectious. Despite playing without two of their best rebounders in Josh Hart and Mitchell Robinson, the Knicks owned a 46-32 rebounding advantage, including 9-4 on the offensive glass.
A 16-2 Cavaliers run in the second quarter brought them within one point. But Landry Shamet and Miles McBride combined for 10 points amid a 10-3 Knicks run, and they quickly put the Cavaliers back at arm’s length.
McBride and Shamet are part of a bench unit that already demonstrated it is deeper than last year’s. Tyler Kolek played almost the whole third quarter and beginning of the fourth quarter and looked capable of serving as Brunson’s main backup at point guard. Guerschon Yabusele and Jordan Clarkson provided valuable minutes. Even Trey Jamison III saw meaningful action. Ariel Hukporti, who will normally be a backup but started at center for Robinson, held his own.
As a whole, the Knicks’ bench outscored the Cavaliers’ 35-30.
Brown passed his first Knicks test with flying colors. Start as you intend to go on.
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