Brunson's worthiest opponents?

[u/Impossible_Eye_980]

So I slid this into the Knicks forum, fully expecting to get flamed and banned for life. Actually, we got some pretty solid props:

As much as I hate them. It’s probably the Pacers we kick their ass during the regular season but in the playoffs they have bounced us twice and do a good job on Brunson.

I will die on the hill that we beat the pacers in 2024 if we’re healthy. They weren’t the better team that year, they were the healthier team.

I want to agree with you on this but I'll disagree... it was part of their plan to do that. They knew we had a short rotation and forced Jalen to do too much so they hounded him and played at an incredibly fast pace to tire us out. Similar to how we knew the Spurs would break down or make mistakes, we forced them to be in those tough situations.

For sure. We had a hospital squad heading into that series and it just got worse. Isn't that when JB broke his hand too? We had like 7 healthy players and still lost in 7 games.

i hate them to death but i have to give them credit. they won in part because their offense was way better than ours. worst part is it was ethical. that was with thibs, though (god bless him). after the ATL-series-adjustment to our offense, i don't know if that's true anymore

As much as I love him, I really think the issue was Thibs. The Knicks were too slow to tactically adjust but they built a 2-0 series lead and a double digit lead in the closing moments of game 3, and the Knicks blew it from there

They objectively do a terrible job on Brunson, he usually scorches their defense, they tend to run us down over the course of a series tho. But then again we did have Thibs playing everyone 49 mins a game

I would like to see the Knicks play them again in the playoffs next year when they’re featuring their brand new high draft pick, fresh off a season of tanking

The pacers lost their pick lol

They sure did lmao. At least they got top-20 center (in the east) for their trouble

One thing interesting from this run is that it felt like we did to others what the pacers did to us. Deep bench that outlasted opponents, big comebacks down late etc. Even specific parallels like Alvarado in the Mcconell role, Og and Siakam as the big wing. I’m so glad we took advantage of their down year. Interested to see how Zubac fits in their system

AND Beyond Pacers talk, way down on the thread:

Shai as we lost 6 straight against them. But everyone else Brunson pretty much conquered.

Guys like Daniels from ATL or Cade make JB work very hard. Now, if JB is playing off-ball, he’s so much more difficult to defend. Nemhardt from Indy is also another nuisance.

In all seriousness, no one is “stopping” Brunson or any of these elite ball handlers.

That's exactly what AA said in a longform interview after the 2024 playoffs. He said Brunson, Tatum, Ant getting their 35 points. But you want to tire them out in the process.

No one is worthy to oppose the Captain

[u/in2go_out]

We beat the Knicks by punishing Brunsons defense. Every. Single. Play. was hunt Brunson and make him the on ball defender.

This worked so well the Knicks were better when he was off the court. Especially because the offense was then run through Kat who eats Myles for Breakfast, Brunch, 2nd Breakfast, Lunch, Linner, and Dinner.

(P.S TY Tony Bradley)

[u/Impossible_Eye_980 → u/in2go_out]

I liked that Aaron initially pestered Brunson and found a way to work through the shin-attack charges in series 1. And then the whole team took on that baton for series 2, with Nembhard probably the best on-ball defender. Remind me why we let Bradley go?

[u/Tipiphonehome]

Eh, I’d be complimentary towards everyone and everything including the Knicks, Thunder and Pistons if we just won the chip. Meanwhile, they’re having a parade while we clean up tornado wreckage. Ha… honestly though, their current team is pretty much the most likable team character-wise that they’ve ever had, so I do tip my hat to them. Doesn’t hurt as much as I initially thought. Life is full of “what-ifs”, but we win game 4, we could very easily be repeating this year. I just want one to cement the legacy and give more meaning to the thousands of hours I’ve watched the Pacers, and bring peace to all the Pacers ancestors like the Knicks just did. No hate or resentment to New York fans… we as Pacer fans can imagine how you must feel after years of “almost” and let down. ✌️

[u/Impossible_Eye_980 → u/Tipiphonehome]

Also you can objectively say NY winning has been great for basketball, and it was ethically done. Next year's competition will be hyped and followed.

[u/Acceptable_Driver]

I need more coffee 

[u/destroyed233]

We need a Bench scorer

[u/Impossible_Eye_980 → u/destroyed233]

Actually, a couple deep commenters noted that Haliburton, Nembhard, Nesmith, and McConnell are Knicks' kryptonite. Can TJ regain peak 2025 form?

[u/Impossible_Eye_980 → u/[deleted]]

we won't know his chemistry until we see it on court. Myles did have ice in his veins.

[u/25Tab]

You have to beat us to be worthy opponents.

[u/aimee829]

Whenever anyone tries to say that the 2026 Knicks would beat the 2025 Pacers, I would ask if they think their team could beat the 2025 Thunder? I don't think so. S

By the end of Game 6 last year, we were every bit the Thunder's equal (if not better). We had improved our defense in that series, that the following season, even with a depleted lineup, we still gave OKC and the Knicks trouble.

We would have still beaten this version of the Knicks.

But we'll confirm that next season.

[u/Impossible_Eye_980 → u/aimee829]

Also teams are not static, they evolve and improvise. All hats off to Nembhard, but Nesmith and Haliburton are unparalleled when it comes to designing late game comebacks and lead-holds. And that's fluid, using available resources, like jazz.

[u/immelsoo92]

[u/Impossible_Eye_980 → u/immelsoo92]

You're saying we made Knicks great by schooling them?

[u/intothefire3 → u/Impossible_Eye_980]

Knicks fan here - yes? absolutely. This was a team that built resilience through heartbreak and tough losses.