INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — New York Knicks coach Mike Brown believes that while there are benefits to winning the NBA Cup, league officials should address postgame arrangements in the future.
The first-year coach addressed the tough times the Knicks now face following Tuesday night’s 124-113 victory over the Spurs in Las Vegas. The eight-day stretch will feature five games in three different cities, culminating with a home game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at noon on Christmas Day.
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“Basically, I’ve been here all week and have been praising the NBA. The Cup was fun and top-notch, as well as all the other staff,” Brown said before Thursday’s game against Indiana. “But somehow they need to look at the back end of the schedule in some way — at least for anyone playing the last game — because it’s almost like you’re being punished for winning games from a schedule perspective.”
Brown detailed what this means for the Knicks – immediately flying to Indiana and then returning home for Friday’s game against Philadelphia and Sunday’s game against Miami. The Knicks will then travel to Minnesota for a game on Tuesday before a game on Thursday.
It’s not just the schedule that’s causing problems for the Knicks, though.
In the first meeting between teams in last season’s Eastern Conference Finals, both teams were shorthanded.
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Four injured Pacers players will remain sidelined — guards Tyrese Haliburton and Ben Shepard, and forwards Aaron Nesmith and Obi Toppin. New York, meanwhile, will be without centers Karl-Anthony Towns and Mitchell Robinson, as well as guards Josh Hart, Duce McBride and Landry Shamet.
All nine are out due to injuries.
In addition, Brown admitted that he did not adhere to the playing time limit as strictly as usual in the recent cup competition because he wanted to win the championship. Now, he plans to return to a more traditional regular-season philosophy.
“Now that we’re back in the regular season, the minutes are going to be reduced to where I think they should be for the rest of the season,” Brown said. “So I’ll go back and watch players’ minutes more carefully and that will give other players a chance.”
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As for the Knicks’ decision not to fly the banner, Brown called it an “organizational” decision. But he certainly sees value in winning a Cup title.
“I tell them exactly what I just said, ‘Hey, this is awesome. Cherish this. We can talk about this for the rest of our lives, we can talk about this to our grandkids,'” Brown said. “But there’s more to this season. This is a taste of what we can do. We can’t be comfortable because we won the championship. We have to get back to work.”
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