NEW YORK — Kenny Atkinson grasped Mike Brown’s thought process.
Prior to the first game of the 2026 Eastern Conference championship series, the Cleveland Cavaliers’ head strategist addressed an inquiry regarding a pivotal strategic move implemented by his counterpart leading the New York Knicks two series prior. This entailed a significant overhaul of his team’s offensive scheme, transitioning from a style heavily reliant on Jalen Brunson’s individual ball-handling and creation to a more fluid, movement-oriented system. Brown had initially attempted to implement this latter approach at the season’s outset, with Karl-Anthony Towns serving as the primary facilitator from the high post.
This strategic modification completely transformed New York’s offensive capabilities, propelling the Knicks to an impressive streak of seven consecutive victories and their second consecutive appearance in the conference championship. This formidable offense now presented a challenge for Cleveland. Atkinson’s perspective on this alteration was that dire circumstances often inspire innovative solutions.
“Trailing by two games to one, we had to adjust; something wasn’t clicking — I comprehend that,” Atkinson stated ahead of the series opener. “Atlanta possessed top-tier isolation defenders.
“Occasionally, it appears you must first encounter the difficulty, correct? Only then do you think, ‘My goodness, a revision is necessary.’”
Atkinson’s Cavaliers posed multiple challenges: Donovan Mitchell’s scoring prowess, James Harden’s facilitation, Evan Mobley’s evolving all-around game, Jarrett Allen’s growing dominance in rebounding, and reliable sharp-shooters across the roster. However, a particular issue surfaced for Brown early in the opening period: Cleveland was unwilling to simply hand the Knicks their desired defensive pairings in this series. (At least, not at that moment.)
Reasons for the Knicks’ Initial Stutter
Atkinson commenced the series with a cross-match strategy, assigning power forward Mobley to Towns and having center Allen guard forward Josh Hart. This defensive setup, which we covered in our series overview, has frequently been used by various teams against the Knicks since Tim Thibodeau’s time, aiming to neutralize New York’s primary offensive threats by directing scoring opportunities toward Hart. Hart, a sometimes inconsistent shooter, had converted 41.3% of his three-point attempts in the regular season but arrived at the conference finals having made only 11 of 40 long-range shots in the 2026 playoffs.
“You know, Josh — we’ve encountered this defensive scheme throughout the entire season,” Brown remarked following Game 1. “And we performed effectively during the year, including when we saw it against Atlanta.”
However, when confronted with this strategy against Cleveland in the series opener, the Knicks had a difficult start. New York immediately initiated their offense through Towns at the high post. But due to Mobley’s intense ball pressure, the Cavaliers’ fluid switching on off-ball screens to prevent back-door plays, and Allen’s tendency to drop off Hart and position himself in constant help defense near the basket, the Knicks failed to generate any uncontested looks on their initial possession, ultimately resorting to a challenged, late-shot-clock pull-up three-pointer from the rejoining OG Anunoby.
On their subsequent offensive series, New York swiftly devised a response, placing the ball with Hart to draw Allen into the action and away from the restricted area, simultaneously initiating an off-ball movement involving Brunson and Towns. This was intended as an alternative entry into the potent two-player synergy that had devastated both the Hawks and the 76ers. Towns received a clear pass, but Mobley’s assertive closeout (and, contentiously, a missed foul call) led to another failed three-point attempt without the ball first touching the paint.
Brown introduced yet another counter play on the subsequent offensive possession, employing Hart as the screener in an inverted pick-and-roll with Towns controlling the ball. This maneuver was designed to engage Allen in the play, drawing him away from the lane, and to leverage Towns’ uncommon skill for a player of his build to drive with the ball. However, Mobley, who was recognized as the Defensive Player of the Year last season, disrupted Towns’ dribble, causing him to lose control and commit a live-ball turnover, which propelled the Cavaliers into a fast break.
Moments later, as Cleveland once more stifled all of the Knicks’ off-ball movements while Towns observed from the perimeter, New York found itself compelled to take another late-shot-clock three-pointer. This particular attempt, a challenging shot by Hart, came with Allen positioned almost ten feet distant. It missed cleanly.
Upon Mobley’s substitution at 6:42 remaining in the first period, the 6-foot-5 Max Strus entered the game and immediately took on the defensive task against Towns, maintaining the cross-match scheme. On the Knicks’ subsequent offensive possession, Towns aggressively attacked the smaller defender, driving left, penetrating the lane, and attempting a floater. However, Allen, having abandoned Hart in the distant corner, smoothly shifted across and emphatically blocked the shot, initiating another Cleveland fast break.
Starting from Game 4 against Atlanta and continuing through their decisive sweep of Philadelphia, the Knicks had achieved an average of 137.4 points per hundred possessions. This was an astonishing output, indicative of an efficiency level that would be considered the highest ever recorded. Nevertheless, almost halfway through the initial quarter of a contest against the league’s 15th-ranked regular-season defense, they had only managed to put up four points on a mere 2-for-11 shooting performance.
“Indeed, honestly, there was undeniable rust,” Towns remarked subsequent to Game 1. “It was apparent we were a squad that hadn’t competed in a postseason match for some time.”
“We commenced the contest shooting a mere 2-for-19 from beyond the arc,” Brown stated. “And it wasn’t solely Josh; we generated several quality scoring opportunities from capable players, and as you understand, if those had fallen, the team’s momentum would have been altered.”
Considering the particular difficulties encountered, however, it certainly appeared that the persistent challenges with the Knicks’ initial five players — and the offensive struggles stemming from Hart’s inconsistent shooting — were resurfacing. These issues persisted throughout the entirety of Game 1.
Even with Hart exerting maximum effort to contribute in various facets of the game—securing seven rebounds, dishing out four assists, making a steal, playing tenacious on-ball defense, and executing effective plays in transition—the ripple effects of Cleveland’s exploitation of his presence fundamentally crippled New York’s entire offensive structure. The Cavaliers controlled the middle periods, establishing a 22-point advantage largely due to a defensive display that limited the Knicks’ starting unit to just 80 points per 100 possessions during its 18 minutes, and the Knicks as a whole to a dismal 68.8 points per 100 with Hart on the court in Game 1.
Subsequently, in the final quarter, Brown deployed a tactical option he had kept in reserve: Hart was substituted, and Landry Shamet entered the game.
The change proved effective.
Landry Shamet, The Catalyst
The significance wasn’t solely Shamet’s conversion of three three-pointers during the notably historic 44-11 run that secured the Knicks’ Game 1 triumph (though those contributions were valuable). Rather, it was the presence of Shamet — a career 38.6% three-point specialist who posted 39.2% accuracy in the regular season and had connected on 10 of 23 attempts from long range (43.5%) across the initial two playoff rounds — on the court alongside Towns, Anunoby, and Mikal Bridges. This configuration allowed the Knicks to deploy a quintet featuring five reliable and potent shooters. Consequently, there was no exploitable vulnerability for Allen to concentrate his defensive efforts on, nor any secure spot to conceal a less capable defender. And critically, this arrangement established the circumstances allowing Brunson to resume his aggressive offensive attacks.
During Game 1, the ensemble comprising Brunson, Towns, Bridges, Anunoby, and Shamet amassed 44 points in just 12 minutes, shooting 15-for-20 from the field. This translated to an offensive rating of an astonishing 176, an efficiency level so potent it could metaphorically set your keyboard alight as you record it.
“Basketball revolves around adaptations,” Brown commented after the first game. “We implemented a change late in the contest, and we were lucky enough to rally and secure the victory.”
Atkinson, notably, reiterated his statements made after Game 1, affirming his confidence in Harden’s defensive capability and confirming that he and his coaching team had indeed modified their defensive strategies against Brunson’s pick-and-rolls. During Cleveland’s Wednesday practice session, he informed journalists that the Cavaliers’ exclusive internal data indicated New York’s shot quality in the fourth quarter was “in the lowest percentile,” and he regarded the dilemma of allowing Brunson to attack individually versus deploying a second defender against him as a classic “no-win” situation.
“We didn’t, like, adhere to the purely analytical approach, where you’d simply say, ‘Tolerate it, tolerate it, tolerate it.’ We began sending double-teams, and as you know, that strategy backfired. So, regardless of which viewpoint you adopt, you’re correct,” Atkinson remarked with a chuckle. “And, you realize, the coach, particularly after a defeat, is always perceived as incorrect, irrespective of the stance taken.”
The Cavaliers posed a challenge for Brown, who then implemented a modification, which proved successful. Two significant inquiries emerged leading up to Thursday’s second game (8 p.m. ET, ESPN): If Brown maintains Hart in the initial lineup, will Cleveland persist with its established strategy, even with the knowledge that Brown possesses an immediate counter-adjustment in a five-out formation featuring Shamet or Deuce McBride from the reserves? And, if they do, how swiftly will Brown resort to this option if New York’s offensive production falters early once more?
Hart, for his contribution, anticipates a continuation of the same approach.
“I believe, likely the identical strategic outline,” Hart conveyed to journalists during New York’s Wednesday training session. “From their perspective, this was the tactical blueprint that established their 20-point lead, or whatever it was.”
He also, notwithstanding, expects to manage the situation more effectively.
“I took shots, favorable shots, and I simply didn’t convert them — I’m addressing that. Clearly, I would have preferred to sink them,” he stated, chuckling. “However, I intend to keep shooting. I am diligently refining my shot, so I will persist in taking them with conviction. And then, if they don’t fall, I must devise a method to counteract that, whether through involving teammates in dribble handoffs and swift plays while the opposing big man is in a defensive drop, thereby generating open looks for them.”
Should he fail to do so, however, Brown could find himself in circumstances akin to those faced by his forerunner in this very round last season. He would need to balance Hart’s undeniable contributions across all other aspects of play and his role as an emotional barometer for this Knicks squad against the imperative of avoiding sluggish offensive starts during a period of the year where the distinctions between triumph and defeat, progressing and experiencing the crushing conclusion of your season, are exceedingly narrow.
In May of last year, Thibodeau had to fall into a two-game deficit, with the third and fourth contests being away games, before instituting a change and relegating Hart to the reserves. Brown, conversely, implemented such a move three quarters into the inaugural game. Throughout his initial season overseeing the Knicks, he has typically demonstrated a more prompt willingness to introduce alterations and adaptations. Should he determine that Hart must again join him on the sidelines (or if Hart, once more, requests it himself), the seasoned forward maintains he will prioritize the team’s welfare.
“Clearly, that’s consistently challenging, observing from the bench — naturally, I desire to be on the court, to assist my teammates in achieving victory,” Hart commented on Wednesday. “Nonetheless, ultimately, for my part, I possess no vanity regarding it. I engage with this sport with profound modesty, and that’s simply my methodology, truly. I carry no self-importance.
“I’ve stated it last season, and for many seasons prior: My purpose is to assist these individuals. That is the talent bestowed upon me: to aid these teammates and ensure they are optimally positioned for triumph, and I consistently place the collective achievement of the squad above my personal accomplishments.”
