Knicks-Sixers: 5 takeaways from dramatic Game 4
Jalen Brunson had a standout performance, scoring a playoff career-best 47 points, leading the Knicks to secure a 3-1 series lead over the 76ers.
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When Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby have both been in the lineup, the New York Knicks have a record of 22-3.
They were two of the five players who played more than 43 minutes of Game 4 of the Knicks’ first-round series against the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday afternoon, and they had their fingerprints all over New York’s 97-92 victory.
Brunson set a new Knicks playoff record by scoring 47 points, surpassing Bernard King’s two 46-point games in 1984. In addition to this achievement, he also delivered 10 assists with just a single turnover.
Anunoby contributed 16 points, 14 rebounds and three blocks, and played a crucial defensive role against Joel Embiid.
Here are a few figures, observations, and footage as the Knicks secured a 3-1 lead in the series…
1. Knicks, Brunson target Embiid
Second Spectrum tracking data shows that the Knicks set up 52 ball screens for Brunson. Out of these, Embiid’s mark set 35. Although the two MVPs weren’t directly opposing each other, the game essentially became a contest between Brunson and Embiid from the Knicks’ perspective.
The sequence began with Embiid in drop coverage, safeguarding the rim and, in case Brunson’s defender was trapped in the screen, he allowed Brunson to step into comfortable jump shots.
At times, Embiid was at a higher position and this allowed Brunson to push him back on his heels…
That “at the level” coverage can sometimes provide a runway for the roll man, but Embiid was twice able to recover and contest or block a layup attempt by the Knicks’ bigs.
Ultimately, Brunson triumphed over Embiid, scoring an impressive 47 points. The most notable among them was an insane, fading runner across his body as the shot clock buzzer rang, following a forced switch on Embiid.
A few minutes later, Embiid was well beyond the 3-point line and got caught on the wrong side of the screen as Brunson drove for a layup to put the Knicks up three with a little more than five minutes left.
It’s clear that Philly must improve on removing the ball from Brunson’s control. Assigning Embiid to more aggressively guard pick-and-rolls won’t solve the problem. The responsibility lies with the other Sixers to better maneuver those screens and be prepared to assist off Brunson’s teammates.
2. Knicks continue to dominate the glass
Those New York teammates were just 5-for-19 from 3-point range on Sunday, but are still 40-for-98 (41%) from beyond the arc on the series.
Assisting the ball can open up vulnerabilities in the defense, and once again, the Knicks capitalized on this by punishing the Sixers with offensive rebounds.
- In Game 1, the Knicks had 23 offensive boards and 26 second-chance points.
- In Game 2, the Knicks had just 12 and 12, but it was Isaiah Hartenstein’s offensive rebound that led to Donte DiVincenzo’s game-winning 3-pointer.
- In the fourth game, the Knicks converted 15 offensive rebounds and other second-chance opportunities (resulting from loose-ball fouls or rebounds going out of bounds) into 21 second-chance points.
More than half (11) of those second-chance points came in the fourth quarter. And those 11 second-chance points accounted for more than half of the Knicks’ 20 points in the period. It was a one-point game after the third quarter and it was an ugly fourth, with the two teams combining to shoot 12-for-45 (27%).
Rebounding becomes nearly twice as crucial when the field goal percentage slightly exceeds half the league average. The team that excelled in rebounding emerged as the victor on Sunday.
In the first round against the Cleveland Cavaliers last year, the Knicks retained 39.4% of available offensive boards, the highest rate for any team in any series in 10 years. Their offensive rebounding percentage in this series (38.9%) is only a tick lower than that.
3. Defending Embiid is not a one-man job
Mitchell Robinson was absent from the Knicks due to an ankle injury he sustained in Game 3. Hartenstein, who had no fouls in the first half, accumulated five in the third quarter. This led to Precious Achiuwa replacing him on the court for the last 13:25.
However, over that stretch, he did not guard Embiid. That task was assigned to the 6-foot-8 Anunoby, who had ample assistance.
“Embiid is a challenge,” said Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau after the game. “He can’t be guarded individually. It takes the entire team to guard him.”
The Sixers’ execution against double-teams was a mixed bag. There were possessions in the third quarter where Tyrese Maxey shot too quickly or Kelly Oubre Jr. stopped the ball instead of swinging it to a wide-open teammate.
A couple of good shots were taken midway through the fourth quarter. With a three-point deficit, Kyle Lowry passed the ball to Maxey. Maxey then exploited a gap in the Knicks’ defense and passed the ball to Oubre, who dunked it under the basket.
Maxey then missed a wide-open 3 on the next possession when the Knicks’ first rotation was late (and coming from too far away).
4. Knicks force Sixers to play late in the clock
The last field goal the Sixers scored was that Oubre dunk with 5:04 remaining. The Knicks did allow Maxey an open 3 in the subsequent possession, yet their defense significantly improved thereafter.
The beginning was marked by preventing the Sixers from initiating their offense. With over three minutes remaining and the Knicks leading by three, Philly attempted to transition Brunson onto Maxey. However, Brunson and Miles McBride, with some assistance from Achiuwa, successfully thwarted this attempt.
As the shot clock was down to its final five seconds, the Sixers managed to switch. Brunson successfully contained Maxey’s initial move, and McBride followed with a double-team. In response, Anunoby turned and deterred Lowry from taking a 3-pointer. Meanwhile, Achiuwa moved to block Embiid’s attempt at a 3-pointer, just as the shot clock ran out…
On the next possession, there were eight seconds left on the clock before the Sixers got what they wanted (an Embiid post catch), because Anunoby initially kept the big man from using an Oubre screen. The Knicks doubled Embiid, Achiuwa rotated up to Maxey, kept him out of the paint (as the other Knicks stayed home on shooters), and forced him into a tough, step-back jumper that came up way short.
5. Knicks double, scramble and contest
Lowry rebounded an Oubre miss when the Sixers were still trailing by just four. He instantly passed the ball to Embiid on the left side of the court with 11 seconds remaining on the shot clock. The Knicks, once again, responded with a double-team.
New York’s rotations were once again excellent, with Josh Hart making a superb challenge on Tobias Harris’ 3-point attempt from the corner…
At that stage of the game, Anunoby had been playing for over 45 minutes, Hart for over 44, and Brunson for over 42. However, the defensive energy of the Knicks was still at its peak.
After scoring 125 points on just 91 possessions (137 per 100) in Game 3, the Sixers had just 92 on 91 in Game 4, including just 16 on 21 (76 per 100) in the fourth quarter.
That 22-3 record that the Knicks have with both Brunson and Anunoby includes a 13-0 mark at Madison Square Garden, where they can end this series in Game 5 on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET, TNT).
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John Schuhmann is a senior stats analyst for NBA.com. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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