Mike Brown on his frustration about the New York Knicks' slow starts this season
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The New York Knicks might be on a five-game winning streak at the moment, but they are showing some worrying signs. In Friday's game against the Brooklyn Nets, they had a slow start. This led to a close finish, as they only won 93-92.
Head coach Mike Brown highlighted this after the game because he dislikes how slow their starts have been. As the man in charge, he wants his players to follow him because he has flagged the slow starts since the beginning of the 2025-26 season.
Mike Brown shows concern for the Knicks' slow starts
The Knicks are a promising team, as most people see them as a contender from the Eastern Conference. With Jalen Brunson leading the charge for the players, they have a superstar who can propel them in the clutch moments.
However, clutch time is not the only important part of the game. The Knicks have had a lot of trouble with their starts, which have been quite slow. Considering the Knicks have superb offensive firepower, starting with some down performances is not a good look for Brown and his players.
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The players themselves acknowledge this, as Mikal Bridges feels they have to come out much better. New York should be blowing out a team like the Nets out of the water, as there is a huge gulf in quality. However, they kept the Nets around for most of the game because they didn't handle business right away.
"I thought we were real lackadaisical with the basketball. We had some turnovers to start the game. We had 13 turnovers at halftime. I don't know where we rank or sit during the whole year, but as of late, for the most part, we've been pretty good in that area. 13 or 14 are the ones we have throughout the game," Brown said after the Knicks' careless offense early on.
"Again, it's not a good ingredient to have when you're trying to get a road win, no matter who you're playing. If your approach is what it is, and the other team feels it, anybody can get beaten at any time at any level."
Moving forward, the Knicks must address how to handle the early pressure. The Nets were physical on Friday, and the Knicks must be prepared to handle that. Other teams will try to have that in their game plans, so Brown is warning the players to be wary of that in future games.
More NBA news:
- Karl-Anthony Towns knows that he is not playing his usual role for the Knicks this season
- Mike Brown admits that Mikal Bridges' struggles are an issue, but he wants to highlight a team-wide problem
- Mike Brown addresses the slow starts and how he might make changes to the rotation
- Jalen Brunson gets accused of foul-baiting, leading to a Mike Brown defense
- Jordan Clarkson wants to be a significant contributor off the bench for the Knicks