Knicks’ balanced offense operating at historic level of versatility comes with big caveat

WASHINGTON — Before his double-nickel gem in the nation’s capital, Jalen Brunson had gone three consecutive games without a trey.

His scoring average had dipped from last season’s nearly 29 points per game — over 32 in the playoffs — to under 25 through 31 games this campaign.

And yet, the Knicks, now the hottest team in the East, were winning, and nobody could accuse Brunson of playing poorly.

Among the more encouraging trends for the Knicks (22-10) is their balanced scoring, perhaps best exemplified by a historic stat: New York became the first team ever to have four players score 40 or more in a game before Jan. 1, as Brunson joined the club with his 55 points in Saturday’s OT win over the Wizards.

The others were Karl-Anthony Towns (44 points vs. Miami on Oct. 30 and 46 points vs. Chicago on Nov. 13), OG Anunoby (40 points vs. Denver on Nov. 25) and Mikal Bridges (41 points vs San Antonio on Christmas).

“I don’t know how you guys find that stuff,” chuckled coach Tom Thibodeau, probably drawing the line at the Jan. 1 stipulation. “I love when there’s all these qualifiers.”

Still, Thibodeau and the rest of the Knicks understand the significance of what it symbolizes.

Offensively, they’re playing, in the frequent words of the coach, “the right way.”

And what that means in summation: not forcing the issue.

Everybody in the starting lineup has their weapon.

For Towns, it’s the 3-point shot.

For Brunson, it’s crafty dribbling, getting to the foul line and versatile shotmaking.

For Bridges, it’s midrange and corner 3s.

For Josh Hart, it’s elite finishing at the rim.

For Anunoby, it’s defense, dunking and, less reliably lately, outside shooting.

The end result is the NBA’s No. 2 ranked offense, behind only the Cavaliers’ 120 points per 100 possessions.

“It’s a testament to all those guys because it’s all about their willingness to sacrifice for the betterment of the team,” Thibodeau said. “And so one night, someone has it going or one guy has a better matchup, whatever it might be. And then the game oftentimes dictates who’s gonna get the shot. So just make the right play. Make winning plays. And if we do that and prioritize the team and winning, good things will always come from that.”

Brunson remains the head of the snake, the franchise’s best point guard since Walt Frazier, and typically the smartest player in the arena.

For reasons only explained by a tanking strategy, the Wizards declined to double-team or blitz Brunson as he picked them apart in the fourth quarter and overtime of Saturday’s win.

So Brunson scored.

A lot.

What if they had doubled?

“I have the utmost confidence in my teammates that they’ll knock down open shots,” he said. “So whatever the defense is, we’re going to adapt, and … find a way.”

The numbers back that up. Brunson is taking fewer shots than last season (21.4 per game vs. 17.8) and averaging more assists (6.7 vs. 7.7).

There’s a reason he was the last of the foursome to join the 40-point crew.

“That’s the beauty of his game is he can provide whatever the game needs,” Thibodeau said. “We didn’t shoot the ball well from 3, but if we need more scoring, he can provide that. If we need more playmaking, or someone else has a good matchup or someone else has it going, he’ll search that guy out.

“I think that the team plays that way. It’s a pretty balanced attack and you have four guys that are all capable of having big scoring nights.”

The big caveat is the cake schedule.

After Monday’s rematch against the Wizards, the Knicks will have played the easiest in the NBA based on the opposition’s record.

That will eventually shift.

They still have six games upcoming against the Celtics and Cavaliers.

The other warning is the overreliance on the starting lineup and how an injury — which the Knicks have been fortunate to avoid — might impact their tremendous balance.

Right now, it’s working, and the easiest way to understand that is the following: The Knicks have won seven straight and 17 of their past 21.