Tom Thibodeau of the Knicks Defines the Quickley-Barrett Switch in the Fourth Quarter.
Immanuel Quickley’s floater kept the New York Knicks within striking distance of a much-improved team on the road midway through the fourth quarter of the team’s 129-120 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on December 27.
Quickely scored his 22nd point of the contest on a floater. The Sixth Man for the Knicks was hot.
However, just one minute later, Jalen Williams of Oklahoma City ignited the Thunder’s fourth-quarter comeback with a pull-up jumper over Quickley, putting them ahead 113-106.
Tom Thibodeau, the coach of the Knicks, took out a scorching Quickley and replaced him with a chilly RJ Barrett.
“You’re going to end up with other guys. About the crucial choice, Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau told reporters, “It’s what the game needs.” It’s matchups sometimes. Everyone has a knack for it sometimes. There are instances when size is necessary; consider the switching you’re doing.
“They have wings, right? They have length? As a result, you will be switching around. Thus, you’re attempting to align in that manner.
The five-foot-five With 17 points in the fourth quarter, Williams punished the Knicks. To no avail, Thibodeau tried everything on him, from Josh Hart and Barrett to Quickley.
With the Knicks’ deep roster, Thibodeau stated, “that’s the challenge.” “We have talented athletes. Saying something like, “Well, this guy should have played more,” is simple, and you can definitely argue for someone when they’re performing well. Who are you taking out, though? Because adding cannot be done indefinitely without subtracting.
“I understand it’s difficult, but doing this is best for the team as a whole. That means you’re requesting sacrifice and prioritizing the team. Therefore, I believe our guys handled that well for the most part.
The Knicks’ Rapid Demise
The Knicks then let go of the rope as soon as Quickley left the game.
After Barrett returned to the game, he turned the ball over after two seconds. Then, on the following Knicks offensive play, he missed a 3-point shot. With 2:38 remaining, Williams made back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Thunder an 11-point lead, effectively sealing their fate.
Before the final two minutes, Barrett finally made a 3-pointer to end his 0-of-6 shooting from beyond the arc. However, it arrived a bit too late.
You can only put five guys out there, so you’re asking guys to make sacrifices. That is how you handle it, then. Everyone is necessary to us. Everyone must perform well for us. That’s what we actually did,” Thibodeau stated.
Two days after the Knicks’ thrilling victory over the Milwaukee Bucks at Madison Square Garden on Christmas Day, not everyone performed well.
Barrett maintained his patchy play against the Thunder in December, even though he ended a dry spell against the Bucks with 21 points on 8 of 14 shooting.
Only 14 points on 5-of-14 shooting, including a 1-0f-7 performance from beyond the arc in Oklahoma City, was the 23-year-old Barrett’s final point total. On the night the Knicks played catch-up since the first minutes, the smaller but more reliable Quickley shot 7 of 10 and a plus-2, while the former number three pick was a minus-9.
Thunder’s Rapid Ascent vs. the Knicks’ Patient Buildup
After trading away franchise cornerstone Russell Westbrook in 2019, the Thunder’s 129-120 victory over the Knicks propelled them to second place in the competitive Western Conference with a 20-9 record. This was a swift ascent for Sam Presti’s rebuilding effort.
Equipped with numerous draft selections, Presti progressed through the draft and struck gold with players like Williams, who finished with a career-high 36 points, and Chet Holmgren, who finished with 22 against the Knicks.
The youthful team is a wonderful fit for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Thunder’s MVP front-runner who Presti acquired in the 2019 Paul George trade.
Under rookie front office executive Leon Rose, the 17–13 Knicks—who are currently seventh in the East—also made steady progress during that same four-year period.
However, Rose methodically constructed a playoff contender in New York around holdovers Julius Randle, Barrett, and frequently injured center Mitchell Robinson, unlike Presti, who tanked his way to finding gems like Holmgren and Williams. Last season, they advanced to the second round thanks to their major free agent acquisition, Jalen Brunson.
Rose’s draft resume is more misses than hits, with the exception of Quickley.
It would be ideal for both teams to trade for a star. However, the Thunder have a younger core with a higher ceiling and a deeper draft capital.
