The New York Knicks showed on Wednesday that their defense may be a force to be reckoned with this season.
The Knicks beat the Washington Wizards, 117-94, in a choppy, uneven preseason game.
Yet for stretches, the Knicks snarled on defense, with the trio of Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby, and Josh Hart showing how disruptive they can be to opposing guards and wings.
It was only one preseason game — against the lowly Wizards — but in a way, that made it all the more impressive: the Knicks' top three perimeter defenders got after it in a meaningless preseason game, almost as if to see just how much they could pester Washington.
The Knicks finished the game with 16 steals and 5 blocks, as the Wizards turned the ball over 30 times. According to NBA.com, the Knicks also had 17 deflections in the game.
Amid all of the talk of the Knicks' "juggernaut" potential on offense, the potential for a stifling defense has been lost. Anunoby and Bridges may be the best defensive wing tandem in the league. Bridges, with his long arms and quick feet, can hound opposing ball-handlers. Anunoby, with his strength and steel-trap hands, causes turnovers and can swallow up opposing wings. Hart is like a roving safety who has a knack for timely double-teams and hustle plays.
One X/Twitter user compiled a number of highlights showing Bridges, Anunoby, and Hart hounding the Wizards.
Wingstop
— Teg🚨 (@IQfor3) October 10, 2024
pic.twitter.com/gz9p5PX9uA
Again, it was just one preseason game. The Wizards didn't play any of their top rotation players more than 25 minutes. Players are more lax and loose with the ball in preseason than they would be in a regular season game.
Fans and analysts alike noted the defensive effort of this revamped squad.
So many steals and deflections. Bridges and Anunoby just have crazy defensive ability.
— Steve Popper (@StevePopper) October 10, 2024
This edit - by the great, unknowable, anonymous, wonderkind Teg - this is the vision.
— Rit Holtzman (@BenRitholtzNBA) October 10, 2024
2-4 entirely switchable and unrelentingly disruptive. https://t.co/8GaGZMvb0L
One thing that I really enjoyed about this game: the Knicks starters absolutely humiliated the Wizards starters defensively in the 2nd and 3rd quarters. Like, they went out of their way to embarrass them. In a preseason game. I like that. https://t.co/mO6PS3HscU
— Joseph Flynn (@chinajoeflynn.bsky.social) (@ChinaJoeFlynn) October 10, 2024
16 steals
— Alan Hahn (@alanhahn) October 10, 2024
Just 14 fouls
This defense is going to make a lot of teams miserable https://t.co/yfPhhRtjkC
The Knicks' wings gave a glimpse of the vision for this Knicks team: suffocating, disruptive perimeter defense that will force turnovers or force teams to have to operate deep into the shot clock.
If Karl-Anthony Towns is the Knicks' starting center, the Knicks will lose some of the elite rim protection that they've had the past two years in Isaiah Hartenstein and Mitchell Robinson. The Knicks might mitigate that drop-off if they hardly allow players to get into the paint.
More Knicks news:
NBA analyst urges Karl-Anthony Towns to study Hall of Fame big man to help Knicks
Knicks' Josh Hart outlines his new role in revamped offense
27-year-old NBA sharpshooter projected to make Knicks roster, rotation
