Miles “Deuce” McBride, a fan favorite and homegrown second-round pick, is the kind of player NBA fans love to root for.
Championship-caliber teams usually have one role player who can do a bit of everything. Between starting, coming off the bench, shooting threes and playing consistent defense, McBride plays that role of Swiss army knife for the Knicks and has become a key piece of their new core. If the Knicks want to win an NBA championship, Miles McBride must fill a role similar to Payton Pritchard, Cason Wallace, and Bruce Brown from recent title teams.
As new head coach Mike Brown begins to structure his rotations, determining where McBride fits in is crucial for this upcoming season.
More Minutes for McBride
When evaluating McBride’s development and his place in the rotation, looking back at Tom Thibodeau’s decisions is key.
Thibodeau underused McBride all season, never gave him a chance in the starting lineup, and experimented very little with him alongside Jalen Brunson. Last season, one of the best Knicks lineups with McBride featured Brunson, Josh Hart, OG Anunoby, and Karl-Anthony Towns, producing a +34.5 point differential in only 84 minutes.
The unfortunate part is that Thibodeau never used this lineup in the playoffs. Despite McBride playing 693 minutes with Brunson in the regular season, he never logged over 180 minutes alongside New York’s superstar in the postseason. McBride’s minutes also dropped from 24 per game in the regular season to 18 per game in the playoffs. The biggest change for McBride under Mike Brown is pairing him with Brunson more often while featuring Hart less.
The additions of Guerschon Yabusele and Jordan Clarkson should allow the Knicks to give Hart, Anunoby, and Mikal Bridges more rest. The amount of lineup combinations should open the door for McBride to play alongside better spacing, as long as Hart and Mitchell Robinson are not overused.
The Case for McBride to Start
Should the Knicks start Miles McBride instead of bringing him off the bench? McBride started only ten games last year, all when Brunson missed time with an ankle sprain.
Hart and Robinson seem like the leading candidates to start alongside Brunson, Anunoby, Bridges, and Towns, but McBride deserves consideration. He provides better spacing than both Hart and Robinson, and is nearly as strong defensively as Hart. Hart excels as a ball handler, attacking the rim, and creating plays. McBride’s strengths lie in his mid-range shooting, and he is quickly developing as a catch-and-shoot threat when Towns or Brunson find him.
Under Coach Brown, the Knicks should drastically improve as a passing team next season, and McBride’s spacing makes him a perfect fit in the new scheme.
This year marks a pivotal point for McBride to showcase his complete skillset and take a significant step toward reaching his full potential. In no world should he play only 11 minutes in a closeout Game 6 in the Eastern Conference Finals. His lack of usage never made any sense under Thibodeau; maybe it will get better with Brown’s leadership.
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