After a recent home win versus the Toronto Raptors, Jordan Clarkson told reporters, during his postgame interview, “1-15, everyone is ready.”
Normally, I wouldn’t take too much stock in this type of sports cliche quote, but I thought not only was the actual quote interesting, but also who it came from.
Remember, it wasn’t too long ago that Clarkson, a 12-year vet, was out of the rotation stacking DNPs. Clarkson has since cemented himself as part of Mike Brown’s nine-man playoff rotation, above Jose Alvarado, who was brought to the Knicks at the trade deadline. Not only has Clarkson regained his scoring efficiency, but he completely reinvented himself as a defender, making himself a mainstay of that second unit.
To me, this highlight’s one of Mike Brown’s greatest skill as a coach: keeping all 15 players on the team engaged and instilling the belief within them that their number could be called at any moment.
Sticking with Brown, as someone who has watched all of his postgame press conferences, the long-time coach often emphasizes three keys to victory. Brown has often commented on how the Knicks impose and deal with physicality, get into the paint and “spray it”, and start games. Throughout this newsletter, I’ll give the Knicks a grade on each of Brown’s categories for success.
