Could Knicks Make Surprising Defensive Change?

The New York Knicks pride themselves on being a team that fights on the defensive end of the floor.

With head coach Tom Thibodeau captaining the ship, defense will always be a priority. The Knicks had the league’s ninth-best defensive rating last season and were only 1.8 points behind the NBA champion Boston Celtics, who were ranked No. 2 behind the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Knicks have a few new faces on the roster, which begs the question on if anything will change. The NBA has seen a few teams run some zone defense despite it being far more popular in college, but SNY insider Ian Begley doesn’t believe the Knicks will follow suit in that change.

“The Knicks have not played a lot of zone under Thibodeau,” Begley writes. “With Thibodeau on the sidelines and Bridges/Anunoby on the roster, it seems logical to assume that the Knicks won’t play much zone defense this season. If they do, it would be a significant change of approach for the head coach.”

It would be a massive change for Thibodeau, who operates a man-to-man defense. That being said, there are some scenarios where it might make sense for the Knicks to switch things up.

There’s been a lot of talk during the offseason about a potential lineup where Julius Randle plays at the center position. If Thibodeau were to ever employ that lineup, perhaps it would benefit the Knicks to play either a 2-3 or 3-2 zone. That would put two or three defenders on the perimeter, where players like OG Anunoby, Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges excel. If anyone drove into the paint, it would allow Randle or Precious Achiuwa or another big man to crash in.

The big reason why zone defenses don’t happen often in the NBA is because it tends to lead to wide-open shots at the 3-point line, and perimeter shooting is far better in the pros than at any other level.

However, it may not hurt the Knicks to go against their current philosophies and try something new.

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