BOSTON — Maybe the Knicks need to spot the Celtics 20 points at tipoff. Because for whatever reason, they don’t start playing their best basketball until the lights are about to go out.
They did it in Game 1, clawing back from 20 down to steal the Eastern Conference semifinal opener. Then they ran it back in Game 2 on Wednesday — trailing by 20 in the third quarter at TD Garden before storming back for a 91-90 win and a 2-0 series lead over the reigning champs.
“I would prefer not to [dig a 20-point hole], but we need to start the game a lot better, sustain how we play,” said team captain Jalen Brunson. “We’ve gotta find a way to limit their runs. They’re gonna go on runs. They’re a great team. They can shoot the ball. And they can make plays for each other like no other, but we’ve just gotta find a way to limit their runs, so we don’t get in a hole like that.”
The players don’t have much of an explanation, either — other than to say: this isn’t the plan. But if the Knicks keep playing their sharpest basketball from 20 points down, should they lean into it?
The Daily News jokingly asked four more Knicks the same question. Every one of them echoed the captain’s sentiment.
Karl-Anthony Towns: “No. No. Don’t start that. We’ve gotta obviously play better.”
Mikal Bridges: “Man, I wish we just started off strong. I can’t imagine what you guys and the fans are going through watching that game.”
Cam Payne: “Nah, this ain’t what we want. We’ve gotta stay the course.”
Miles McBride: “No. No. We don’t wanna make it that hard.”
McBride says the team’s resilience was built before the season even started.
“I feel like it started in training camp, honestly. It’s a long year,” the Knicks’ sixth man said. “A lot of people outside of our locker room are gonna say whatever. And we just have to stay locked into the one goal of bringing home a championship.”
Even though it’s worked so far, they know this isn’t sustainable.
“We’ve gotta execute at a higher level,” said Towns. “We did our best. We didn’t do as well as we wanted to, but this team, man. It’s special. The guys in here, we stay connected even through the bad, and we just find a way.
“But playing a really good team, we can’t keep spotting 20-point leads and expect to come out with a win.”
Still, there’s a calm about this group — not just in close games, but when it looks like things are spiraling.
“The way teams shoot threes, I know for the writers who are around us, they always think every lead is safe,” said head coach Tom Thibodeau. “But it’s not. So everything does matter.”
So why are the Knicks so unbothered by double-digit deficits?
“It’s just the mental toughness through everybody, knowing we’ve been here before and just keep fighting, finding a way,” said Bridges. “That’s what we’re doing. It just shows how together we are, how much we care about each other and how much we want to hold the next guy up and make sure they’re alright. And that’s the main thing.”
No, the Knicks don’t want to give anyone a head start. But their season — and this series — keeps proving one thing: they don’t fold. They respond.
“They’re a really good team. They’re the champs. It’s tough. We’ve gotta find a way to win,” said Payne. “We’ve gotta take games. It’s gonna hard to win games, so we gotta make sure we stay the course and find a way to win at the end. It’s not easy. I know we won the game, but this not what we want. it’s not easy. We’ve gotta find a way to play a perfect 48 minutes.”
And yet, the Knicks still have massive room for improvement. They didn’t even show up to the party until they were down 20 in the third quarter.
That shouldn’t be sustainable. Then again — maybe it is. Because the Knicks just beat the reigning champs twice in their own building without playing a full 48.
Maybe they don’t need perfection. Maybe they just need pressure. Because when their backs are against the wall, the real Knicks show up.
And the real Knicks look like a team worthy of a title. Two games into their series against the reigning champ proves even if they spot the Celtics a 20-point lead, the Knicks still have what it takes to wear the crown and seize the throne.