Josh Hart doesn’t want to make the assumption — but the trend proved true at least through the first two games of the Knicks’ first-round playoff series against the Philadelphia 76ers, which means a similar trend could be true, too, in the second round against the Indiana Pacers.
Jalen Brunson shot the ball poorly in four regular-season matchups against the 76ers. His slow shooting start in Games 1 and 2 — where he shot a combined 16-of-55 from the field — was not a surprise.
Nor should it be a surprise if Brunson reduced the Indiana Pacer defense to ash given he’s picked them apart every time they’ve played since he signed with the Knicks two summers ago.
This season in particular, Brunson averaged more than 35 points per game on 38-of-77 (49.3 percent) shooting from the field in three games against the Pacers, including 39- and 40-point outings in early February.
It’s the sixth-highest scoring clip the All-Star guard has posted against any team this year, trailing only his performances against the San Antonio Spurs, Phoenix Suns, Sacramento Kings, Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks.
Does that mean, however, his explosive regular-season scoring against the Pacers will translate to a playoff series?
“I don’t assume nothing,” Hart said after practice at the Knicks’ Tarrytown training facility Sunday afternoon. “I mean, JB’s a guy who’s going to be aggressive. He’s a guy that can score the ball at a high level, but in the playoffs, everything’s unpredictable. So we’ve gotta make sure we get him open, get him taking good shots, and if he’s not, then some of us have to pick up that scoring punch, but he’s someone who we’re never really worried about. He’s someone who plays his style no matter what, and we’re happy he’s on our team.”
The 76ers used a combination of 6-foot-8 wings Kelly Oubre Jr. and Nicolas Batum to deploy length at the point of attack, which made life difficult early on for the 6-foot-2 Brunson. He and his teammates eventually figured out the Sixers: After his slow shooting start through the first two games of the first round, he never scored fewer than 39 points or shot worse than 46.9 percent from the field in Games 3 through 6.
The Pacers do not have Oubre or Batum, but they have their own perimeter defenders: Andrew Nembhard and Aaron Nesmith take turns defending the opposing team’s best perimeter scorer and will each take their turns defending Brunson in the second round. The Pacers also utilize T.J. McConnell off the bench, who is known league-wide as a defensive pest.
“Just let the game tell you what to do. Be ready to play, and whatever comes, that’s what Jalen’s been great at,” said head coach Tom Thibodeau. “So I think we can pose some problems, too. I think the way Josh plays, there’s times where he’s play-making and leading the break. Donte [DiVincenzo] can lead the break. So there’s a lot of versatility to our offense, as well. And I think with Isaiah [Hartenstein] playing away from the basket, we can play off that. So there’s a lot of things that we have to do, but we know our defense has to be great.”
