Knicks insist they’ve learned from Game 1 fold, and have moved past it

When you must spend 48 hours listening to the critics, attempting to elucidate away the worst postseason collapse in NBA historical past, it’s comprehensible that the Knicks would strategy Friday evening’s Sport 2 of the Jap Convention Finals sustaining that they’d put the troubles behind them.

And though it may be arduous to consider most groups who would declare one thing like that, the Knicks may need a degree.

Within the run by way of the postseason, the Knicks have suffered heartbreaking losses — together with on their dwelling courtroom at Madison Sq. Backyard. They’ve been blown out in humiliating style, dropping 22- and 25-point disasters to Boston. And in every case, as panic set in round them, the Knicks managed to stay calm, insist that they have been shifting on to the subsequent sport, and so they have but to lose two straight video games within the playoffs.

So, whether or not it was ignoring the leprechaun dancing in entrance of them in Boston or the most recent meme created by this incarnation of the most recent Pacers villain — Tyrese Haliburton mimicking Reggie Miller’s choke gesture — the Knicks have been letting others fear in regards to the which means and looking out ahead.

“I mean, it’s our job to make history so we’re not here to repeat history,” Karl-Anthony Cities stated after Sport 1. “We’re here to make history, so that doesn’t pop into my mind. I have to think about the present and what we can do now so we can make our own history.”

That’s what the Knicks needed to put apart to maneuver on this time, needed to overlook that they’d develop into the primary crew for the reason that NBA started monitoring this in 1,415 video games with a nine-point lead or extra to blow the lead, to let the sport slip away.

“I’m pretty sure everyone’s gonna be thinking about it,” Jalen Brunson stated. “But I think our mindset has to be short-term memory . . . Obviously we gotta learn from what we did, but the short-term memory comes from the disappointment and discouragement of how we lost [Wednesday] night. Just gotta be ready to go.”

“Obviously it’s disappointing,” Josh Hart stated. “But we didn’t think it was going to be an easy series. That’s a tough opponent and this doesn’t change that.”

That’s actually the one method the Knicks may strategy it. It was Sport 1 and in the event that they selected to wallow in collapse, as a lot of town was, it wasn’t going to assist them in Sport 2. And in addition to, the Knicks had already been on the opposite facet of comebacks and collapses within the final spherical, combating again from deficits of 20, 20 and 14 to win after which answering a Sport 5 flop by taking part in arguably their finest sport of the season.

On the coronary heart of that’s they’ve a coach in Tom Thibodeau and a captain in Brunson who strategy historic victories and mind-numbing losses with the identical angle.

“I think win or lose, just have a short-term memory,” Brunson stated. “And you get ready for Game 2, regardless. It could have been a blowout, we still gotta get ready for Game 2.”

“I think that’s the playoffs, that’s the challenge,” Thibodeau stated. “You always have to reset. There’s gonna be a lot of emotional highs and lows and you’ve gotta be able to take a punch and you’ve gotta be able to bounce back. So that’s all we’re thinking about is how we move forward, be ready for the next challenge, and then what did you learn from it?”

The Knicks could not wish to, however they might look to their very own historical past, from a yr in the past towards the Pacers, to guarantee themselves {that a} collection isn’t over in a single sport. The Knicks have been up two video games to none on the Pacers final yr within the Jap Convention semifinals when every little thing started to alter. Accidents mounted. Upsets arrived. And in Sport 7 on their dwelling courtroom, the Knicks needed to watch the Pacers have a good time.

The entire issues that went improper Wednesday have been issues that went improper earlier than. And each different time the Knicks have lifted themselves off the ground, dusted off the remnants of the entire points — the senseless lapses on protection, the communication issues, the listless performances on nights after they by no means ought to occur — and moved ahead. So the successes that received them a 17-point lead within the fourth quarter and the struggles thereafter which had them screaming on the bench within the last minute of regulation are equally insignificant to them.

Whether or not you chalk it as much as motivation, a wake-up name or the crew merely being levelheaded sufficient to keep away from the emotional curler coaster, the Knicks have answered the decision — and the skeptics — each time adversity has struck.

“We’re excited to be in this situation, to be in the Eastern Conference Finals is just a blessing,” Mikal Bridges stated. “We’re excited for every game obviously. Losing that and bringing that for the next game. Even if we wouldn’t have won, I think bringing the same energy for Game 2. It’s just more knowing that there’s still another game, another day left, so we have to keep fighting.”

Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent almost three many years overlaying the Knicks and the NBA, together with nearly each sports activities crew within the New York metropolitan space.