Jalen Brunson takes responsibility for Nixslow start after the reigning champions lost 3-0 at home to Orlando on Sunday night, writes ESPN’s Vincent Goodwill. The star guard led the team in scoring with 28 points, but it came on a shooting-heavy night as he went 12-of-28 from the field and 1-of-7 from beyond the arc.
“Everything falls on my shoulders” Branson told reporters about it. “I just have to be a better leader when it comes to making sure our guys are ready to go in the right places. There’s a lot of other little things, but that’s organization on my end.”
New York became the first title-winning team to lose its first three games of the following season since Dallas did it in 2011, according to Goodwill. There have been a variety of issues so far, but the most obvious has been the difficulty in scoring, as the Knicks entered the game ranked 29th in offensive efficiency and continued to miss from three-point range, hitting just 9-of-37 (23.7%) on Sunday. The defense also crumbled with the game on the line, allowing 40 points in the fourth quarter and letting a double-digit lead slip away.
“One thing I’ve been saying throughout training camp and honestly to this day is we’re going to see who we are in the first few weeks of the season.” Brunson said. “So we are now facing difficulties. How are we going to respond?”
There are more from New York:
- Backup Center Andre Drummondwho was signed in free agency for a replacement Mitchell Robinsonwas pulled from Sunday’s game in the second quarter for an apparent lack of effort, according to Stefan Bondi of The New York Post. That came after Drummond slowly worked his way back into defense, allowing Orlando to center Wendell Carter Jr score in transition. coach Mike Brown called a timeout and removed Drummond from the game for the night. It was replaced by James Wisemanwho had two rebounds and no points in seven minutes. Drummond wasn’t told why he was being arrested, but he said: “You can guess for me,” adding that he “probably shouldn’t” provide an explanation.
- Brown emphasized in his pregame press conference that while his starters are ready, everyone else will have to earn their minutes, Bondi adds. “The first thing I want to make clear is that we have a starting five. Other than that, anyone can play.” – said Brown. “When you’re a backup in this league, it doesn’t mean you’re always going to be seventh or eighth.
- Brown also explained why the team broke up Kevin McCallar Jr when Dalton Knecht was signed on a bilateral contract on Friday (Link to video on Twitter from SNY). “Kevin didn’t do anything, he was great” – said Brown. “… More so to be able to bring in a guy like Dalton, just to get to know him a little bit better.”
