Zach Lowe

It's just, it's the most interesting puzzle in the NBA to me is the Knicks against that defense.

What you're describing is the first play of the game and the Knicks ran it because they knew Houston is not starting Reed Shepard in this game.

They're starting Tari Eason over him specifically for this reason.

To switch the Brunson cat pick and roll because we're not, not only is Eason an animal and a huge wing defender, we could put wings on everyone.

So we're not switching ourselves into a disadvantage on Brunson either.

And so what cat did is I know you're going to switch.

I'm going to slip out a bit hard ahead of the switch with you on my back and I'm going to the rim.

Jalen's not going to be able to get this pass to me directly, but heart's going to be over here.

He's going to hit heart.

Heart's going to hit me.

I'm going to lay the ball up and in.

That's the kind of lever they have to pull, but it just, it didn't sustain.

Well, part of it is part of it is heart is going to be the solution to a lot of this, a big part of the solution, or he's not going to be able to play as much.

And I don't know the answer.

I like when they, when they hum, they leverage this scheme against the other team by using Josh Hart, like dream on green.

Like you're not going to guard me.

I'm going to swing it to you on the second side.

You're going to run handoffs.

The Spurs game, which they wanted home was a landmark game in that regard.

I just think it's interesting because if I'm the Pistons and the Celtics, I'm looking at these other two teams and thinking, we got some kind of edge on them, maybe psychologically, the way that they're sort of just trying to figure themselves out.