The hard brilliance of the regular season hits Tom Thibodeau’s Knicks Wednesday night in their season opener at the vacant Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
A 3-1 preseason was all well and good, but even hyped rookie Obi Toppin knows it means little.
“Everyone’s talking about the difference because it’s real,” Toppin said after Tuesday’s practice before the Knicks flew to the Pacers. “My coach at Dayton always said in terms of preseason games it was rubber bullets. you get into the real games that count are real bullets. We’re jumping into the fire. ”
The Knicks had a great old days, showing positive signs against the Pistons and Cavaliers, but those are arguably the Eastern Conference’s two worst clubs.
The Knicks are also expected to bottom in this 72-game pandemic-shortened season. Thibodeau’s winning history and some flashes of hope from young prospects RJ Barrett, Kevin Knox, Mitchell Robinson and rookie Immanuel Quickley offer some promise.
“We are in a good place,” said starting power striker Julius Randle, who has lost teams throughout his six-year career. [Wednesday]. ”
But these are the Pacers, who have made it to the playoffs for five consecutive seasons, posting a 45-28 in 2019/20.
They have a new coach, former Raptors assistant Nate Bjorkgren. Sources say he started a fire under Victor Oladipo, the All-Star shooting guard who has stepped back from his knee surgery nearly two years ago and was on the trade bloc.
“I think they are a very talented team,” said Thibodeau. “They have laid a great foundation over the years. They play a little differently offensively, but they are certainly one of the top teams in the East.”
Thibodeau has not disclosed his starting line-up. It’s a tough decision. It has no stars, but many interchangeable pieces.
Thibodeau may be turning to a more experienced unit that started the first two games of the preseason – Elfrid Payton as point guard, Alec Burks as shooting guard, Barrett as small forward, Randle as power forward and Nerlens Noel in the center.
Robinson had a dynamic preseason finish and could get the start nod, especially if Noel’s knee is still sore.
Quickley, a preseason rookie reveal from Kentucky, may need more spice before being assigned such a pivotal role in the beginning. The 25th pick in the design looked more impressive than Toppin, the 8th overall selection.
Thibodeau, a fan of short rotations, said he will stay with 10 men even for the opener. That could lead to security guards Dennis Smith Jr. and Frank Ntilikina do not play.
Knox, Quickley, Reggie Bullock, Robinson and Toppin appear to be certain rotation candidates.
“You have to base it on performance and merit, what guys have done,” Thibodeau sadly. “We have a pretty good idea of who the 10 are, and then the question becomes who to start with. There are a few positions that are basically 50-50 type positions. So we are still evaluating that.
“We have a rotation, but it is not set in stone. We have an idea of what it might look like, but we still find our way around it. ”
The rotation is stuck, even without the presence of Austin Rivers’ combo guard. He missed all practice and games in the preseason with a pulled groin and is still not practicing. Rivers will be out by the beginning of the season.
“Quality depth is important,” said Thibodeau. “I feel like we have that.”
Whether the Knicks have quality perimeter footage is perhaps the biggest problem.
In the first three games of the preseason, the Knicks were a hopeless 21-of-90 from outside the 3-point arc (23.3 percent, putting teams in a 2-3 zone). They’ve straightened things out in the last five quarters – mostly on the basis of Knox and Bullock.
Burks, Bullock and Quickley are each projected to be decent deep shooters. Barrett and Randle looked vigorous enough, but they still haven’t got a closer look after President Leon Rose’s unobtrusive approach to free agency.
“I still see the Knicks as the 14th, 15th best team in the East,” said an NBA scout. “If I coached against them, I would play the entire game zone. Bullock is their only established marksman. They are light years from the playoffs. ”
Low expectations have set the Knicks on fire.
They want their identity to be a scrappy, intelligent defense club.
“[We’re] just a hard working group, a group that goes out and brings the defensive intensity, is trying to outsmart our opponent, ” said Barrett. “I feel like if you put in the energy and play harder than the other team, you put yourself in a position to win every game. I think we should hang our hats on that. ”
They will need that energy on Wednesday, when Thibodeau coaches his first official competition in almost two years.
“It’s what you miss when you’re gone,” said Thibodeau. “What you do miss after a while is the competition. I think the opening night is exciting for everyone and it is just the beginning. ”