Despite Knicks' Big Game 5 Win, Some Players Are Still in the Doghouse

Knicks wing Landry Shamet warms up before a game. | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The Knicks have retaken the momentum—and series lead— in their first round matchup against the Hawks. New York's now won back-to-back games in blowout fashion, giving Mike Brown and company plenty to feel good about after starting this matchup on a poor note.

While Game 5 may be a turning point for this squad in the playoffs, not every player is in a great place with the team, even as they're on the cusp of advancing from a hard-fought series.

Landry Shamet

Landry Shamet's role off the bench has done a complete 180 in the postseason. After being a legitimate sixth man with 23 minutes a night in the regular season, New York was quickly forced to slash his playing time severely following an ugly Game 1 that saw him go 1-of-6 with three fouls.

After the opener, Brown gave Shamet another chance with nine minutes in Game 2. Though that was a reduction, it was a way for the veteran to earn back some trust by making the most of any opportunity. Instead he put up another dud, notching zero points while committing two frustrating turnovers.

Since then, Shamet's been firmly in the doghouse. He's only touched the floor in garbage time the past two games, which highlights how dire of a situation he's in.

This was a player who averaged 9.3 points per game during the campaign and provided valuable shooting with a 39.2% clip from deep (on 5.2 attempts a night as well). The fact that he hasn't been able to fill pivotal minutes in reserve lineups is a massive disappointment. It could also create issues down the line if the Knicks need a spark and teams start to figure out their currently favored bench group.

Mikal Bridges

Speaking of massive disappointments, Mikal Bridges' nightmarish playoffs are stirring plenty of feelings of regret. His uneven regular season has carried over into the playoffs, but at a much more dangerous level.

He's made minimal impact as a scorer, recording single digits in three out of five games and only topping out at 11 in Game 1. His three-point shooting has been especially abysmal with a 4-of-15 effort entering the potential series-clinching matchup. And that's come while committing six turnovers, with his four in Game 3 being especially costly in a one-point loss.

Brown had no other choice but to sit Bridges for extended periods of time during Games 3 and 4, with his minutes falling from 30-plus to 21 and 19. Game 5 provided some hope for Bridges, as he saw an uptick back up to 27. But he was also the lowest-scoring starter (seven points) and made minimal contributions (one rebound, assist and steal with a turnover) along with that.

Meanwhile, off the bench, Jose Alvarado (12 points) outscored him in 15 fewer minutes, and Mitchell Robinson matched his total in only 16 minutes.

An integral part of the starting lineup going mostly MIA could be disastrous, even if the Knicks are able to get by in the first round with Bridges in his current mediocre form. He is supposed to be able to take some of the load off of the top two's shoulders, yet Brown can't really trust him to even be a positive influence on the court despite his defensive impact.

The way Bridges responded after getting thrown a bone isn't going to help him make any inroads or rebuild the staff's confidence in him.

Others in or near trouble

New York's headaches don't stop with those two, however. Guard Miles McBride continues to be mercurial during this postseason as he still deals with the effects of his core muscle surgery.

McBride was a glaring weak point over the first two games of this series with just six points and three turnovers as he struggled to lead second unit lineups. However, he seemed to turn a corner midway through this matchup with Brown tweaking his use of the reserves (and Bridges), responding with 26 combined points in the next two games, including eight makes from deep that injected some much-needed scoring from downtown.

Yet, McBride took a sharp turn for the worse on Tuesday again. He put up zero points in 20 minutes of work, with his shot (0-of-2 from three) eluding him again. That said, he did add three rebounds (including one offensive) and was +19 overall.

Off games happen, and on a night where Jalen Brunson (39 points, 15-of-23 from the field) put his cape back on, McBride wasn't totally needed for his offense. Still, this kind of Houdini act hurts New York, especially if the guard is going to fall off a cliff at random times instead of steadily rounding into form.

At the end of the bench, Brown made a notable change in Game 5, calling Jeremy Sochan's number. He responded to his first taste of playoff action in 2026 like you'd hope from any hungry reserve player, logging 10 points and going perfect (4-of-4) from the field.

This paints a stark contrast to fellow forward Mohamed Diawara, who looked like a fish out of water (0-of-3 from the field with poor shot selection) when he got the garbage time nod in Game 4. Intriguingly, Diawara didn't take the floor on Tuesday, with Sochan serving as a direct replacement while the other deep reserves stayed the same.

That hints Diawara may have put himself in playoff jail with his messy Game 4 performance, and Sochan's night is only further reason for New York to let the rookie stay on the bench.