Mike Browns lineup experiments are paying off for…
At this stage in the season, successful isn’t enough for the Knicks.
The champions care more about how they win.
“Obviously, we want to play well, we want to win, but we also want to continue to grow as a team and try not to plateau,” Jalen Brunson said after apply Monday. “I think the way we do that is to continue to try to see how we can win games differently.”
New York Knicks head coach Mike Brown directs his crew against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Cleveland, Saturday, Nov. 7, 2026. AP Photo/Phil Long
That sentiment trickles down from head coach Mike Brown. Constant experimentation is a core staple to his philosophy. It seems like there’s a shock in the box rating every sport.
His gamers imagine that brings the best out of them.
“It’s kind of a freeing thing, playing that way, knowing that you don’t have to really be looking over your shoulder or thinking that one thing is gonna ruin whatever,” Landry Shamet said Monday. “And I think that he knows that we have that makeup as a group, too, that we’re all on the same page in wanting the best for each other — the next man up kind of mentality. It’s from top to bottom, and it’s a good environment to have.”
Brown used an 11-man rotation for Saturday’s 109-97 win in Cleveland. That wasn’t the end result of garbage-time minutes, as all 11 noticed the court in the first half. It was clear Brown wished to get guys concerned who are often out of the rotation, such as Mohamed Diawara and Dalton Knecht.
It represents the largest distinction between Brown and predecessor Tom Thibodeau, who established a rotation and caught strictly to it unless pressured to change. Thibodeau prioritized maximizing his probabilities of successful every single evening. Brown appears to be like at the common season more like a canvas to attempt new lineups, rotations and systems so that, by the end of the 12 months, he has more obtainable in his toolkit.
That course of could be ugly at occasions, but it’s designed to ship long-term outcomes.
Brown credit it as a big cause for their championship last season. The likes of Shamet and Jordan Clarkson spent time in and out of the rotation all 12 months but stepped up in the postseason when their quantity was called. The shift to an offense constructed around Karl-Anthony Towns as a hub was only potential because they toyed with it during the common season.
Landry Shamet #44 of the New York Knicks dribbles against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday, Nov. 7, 2026, at Rocket Arena in Cleveland. NBAE via Getty Images
“It builds trust,” Brown said Monday, “because it’s like, ‘Hey, they trust me to go out there and play right now, even though I might not have played in two or three games.’ It helps with connectivity because guys feel more part of it, because they’re getting an opportunity. It helps with everybody’s readiness because the reality of it is, if a guy is sitting on the bench and he’s been there game after game after game, which happens sometimes — I’m not saying that will never happen because it’s gonna happen sometimes — then he may lose a little interest and relax a little bit because it’s like, ‘Hey, I’m not going in.’ But then, if you call their number every once in a while, throw them in a game, now they know, ‘Oh, I gotta be ready.’ ”
Even Jaden Akins, signed to a two-way deal like Knecht, has seen a little motion past rubbish time.
“If he can go in the game during some real moments,” Brown said, “anybody can.”
It’s different from Thibodeau’s remaining season, when he inserted Shamet and Delon Wright into the rotation out of desperation in the Eastern Conference remaining, having hardly used them beforehand.
Under Brown, there’s a monitor report on which to fall back for everybody on the crew, even if they go long stretches out of the rotation.
“It builds a lot, when you’re talking about building a team,” Brown said. “And then at the end of the day, your guys get used to it, so come playoff time, if you try something new or different when it comes to the lineups, it’s not like, ‘Oh my God, what’s going on? We’ve never done this.’ Nah, we’ve done it.”
There is the flip facet, though. Playing time and roles continually are altering. Jose Alvarado began the 12 months as the backup level guard but now finds himself behind Tyler Kolek in the pecking order after lacking time due to an ankle injury. There is fixed fluctuation with the bench gamers in how a lot time each performs. That might trigger issues.
Not with these Knicks.
“That’s just kind of the makeup of our group, and that’s special,” Shamet said. “Typically, you go to a lot of NBA locker rooms, there’s some ulterior motives and personal agendas — which is part of why we’re all here, is some ego, of course. Everybody is a good player at this level and is striving to get to something or be somewhere. But very rarely does that take a backseat to just truly buying into one another, wanting the best because, ultimately, good things come from that for everyone. It’s special. It’s really special.”
It can maybe ship more particular outcomes.
Stay up to date with the latest trending topics! Visit our web site daily for the freshest Sports news and content, rigorously curated to keep you informed.
