The New York Knicks moved to 2-2 with their 121-111 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night, and head coach Mike Brown was more than happy to explain why Landry Shamet was in the team’s starting lineup for the contest.
According to Brown, the decision was motivated by how the 28-year-old has played this season as well as his ability to make three-pointers at a high clip.
“Landry's been really good defensively, plays with pace, sticks his nose in, will try to rebound, and when he gets a rhythm…,” Brown told Kristian Winfield of the New York Daily News, “if you leave him open, he's gonna knock down shots.”
Shamet, who signed a one-year deal to return to the Knicks in September, provided 16 points while shooting 5-for-11 from the field and 4-for-9 from distance.
The Knicks struggled to contain Bucks All-Star Giannis Antetokounmpo, who collected a game-high 37 points on a 16-for-22 night from the field.
“Yeah, oh man, he’s a monster,” Brown told Stefan Bondy of the New York Post.
New York center Karl-Anthony Towns was not particularly effective. He shot 2-for-12 from the field and only posted eight points. The 29-year-old is still adjusting to Brown’s system and attempting to gain a better understanding of how he can impact the offense.
“I got a new role. I’ve got to embrace that and I didn’t do that for 48 minutes tonight. And it hurts,” Towns said. “It’s going to be a tough car ride [to Chicago for the next game Friday]. It’s going to be a tough two days to live with that.”
Knicks captain Jalen Brunson dropped 36 points in the losing effort and made it clear that he is not concerned about Towns.
“I talk to [Towns], we talk and it’s a process for all of us,” Brunson said. “There are gonna be times when things aren’t going one of our ways and it’s on us as teammates to have his back.
“But at some point, all of us go through a lull in the season. I don’t even want to call it a lull. It’s just we’re still learning and everything is brand new for us. We’re not gonna use that excuse for a long time. But these first couple weeks, it’s still fresh for us.”
Shamet, Towns, Brunson, and the rest of the Knicks will attempt to turn the page when they face the Chicago Bulls on Friday night.
