Zach Lowe

Um, it's not even that the Spurs like suddenly run more of their offense around champagne, picking and popping and flaring.

Like, I think that's a trade off the Knicks would actually live with.

It's that if cats on champagne, um, where is Brunson and, and the Spurs are obviously going to hunt Brunson a lot on defense.

Um,

with Castle, who's a bully, with Fox, try to get him switched on to Fox and then run pick and roll.

Vassell's not a particularly great matchup, although I think you could stash him on Vassell a little bit here and there.

He has guarded Champagny for the most part in this matchup.

And I mentioned Fox, and you mentioned Ananobi on Castle.

I think Castle and Fox are just going to see a combination of all three Knicks wings all the time.

The Knicks, I don't think, are going to be that particular about whether Hart guards Fox or OG guards Fox or...

Bridges, guards, Fox, they've all done it.

Same with Castle.

But that's the challenge is like where is Brunson going to be located?

The Knicks have gotten a lot better defensively at protecting Brunson.

And some of the ways that that will manifest in this series is whenever possible, go under screens for Fox and Castle.

As I've mentioned many times, the Spurs are unbelievably smart about making that way more difficult than it sounds.

They have a million tricks up their sleeve.

Castle in particular is just a bulldozer on the way to the rim, but that's one of them.

And just Brunson hedging and recovering and the rotations behind him, not over committing, but showing enough help that the offense is indecisive, trying to, trying to get the ball to Brunson's guy or work a four on three or whatever.

Knicks have just gotten really good at all that.