Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns's Future On the Line During Knicks Stretch Run

The Karl-Anthony Towns noise is as loud as it’s been since he arrived in the Big Apple. There’s also growing chatter among a minority of the fanbase about the New York Knicks having a Jalen Brunson ball domination problem – especially using games when Brunson sits out, such as in Memphis a few nights back, where Towns recorded his fourth career triple-double.

The Knicks notched a franchise record-setting 48-point first quarter against the Grizzlies without Brunson. They then got off to a 20-1 lead over the lowly Bulls en route to a 40-point blowout with Brunson in and Towns sitting. Maybe it's just hard to glean anything against opponents that stink.

The duo played 48 minutes together in Houston and Oklahoma City and had a -35.3 net rating, per NBA.com. It was Brunson's worst-rated partner across the two losses. Towns was only worse when sharing the court with Josh Hart. Both teams consistently hunted Brunson and Towns on defense, either separately or in tandem.

The Knicks Are Not Maximizing The Brunson-Towns Pairing

The growing dissatisfaction about the All-Star pairing isn’t that they can’t handle it on the defensive end together; it’s that the offensive synergy after two years together is still not there. Is it ego or coaching?

The priority of any head coach is to put their players, particularly their best players, in a position to succeed. Clearly, in KAT's mind, coach Mike Brown isn't maximizing his skill level. The big man's isolations and post-ups are down in volume. His minutes and field goal attempts are at career lows.

Too often, Towns, who is eligible for a 4-year, $260M extension at the end of the season, appears confused during possessions. He was visibly frustrated at halftime last week against the Rockets and 75-games in is still talking about still learning Brown’s system.

“I’m still working through it,” Towns said before the Thunder loss. “Still trying to figure out where I could impact our team and winning the most. Right now, I’m just utilizing my experience so I can do the best I can.”

Asking Towns to be a high-post playmaker who makes split-second reads is not his strength. His superpower is arguably being the greatest shooting big man in the NBA today. Yet he’s averaging fewer 3’s per night than he did under what many considered a coaching caveman in Tom Thibodeau.

Brown has attempted to turn Towns into Domantas Sabonis, which is a flawed idea. The seven-footer doesn't view himself as a traditional "5." When the Timberwolves figured that out they traded for Rudy Gobert, moved Towns out to "Stretch 4" and became better. Brown has been reluctant to deploy the double-big lineup with Mitchell Robinson often.

Towns Is A Power Forward Masquerading As A Center

We can't pretend that coaching doesn't have anything to do with the topsy-turvy season from Towns. For the record, I'm not absolving the former first overall pick. As an All-Star center, you need to demand the ball when it's not coming your way.

Giving Towns more post-up touches will not unlock the offense as some people believe. His post-up frequency is at 12.4% with 2.3 post-ups per game. He's scoring a paltry 0.88 points on those possessions. He leads the league in total fouls with 247 and has racked up a whopping 63 offensive fouls this season. Additionally, his shooting numbers are down from years past.

Meanwhile, no NBA team has ever been led to the promised land by a player of Brunson's stature who isn’t a pass and defense first point-guard. Some will argue that the generously listed six-foot-2 guard has lost a step and will never win a championship as the first option. We all remember what Becky Hammon said. Some are even questioning his leadership and calling him a stat-padder.

Brunson Could Do A Better Job Sharing

This is all not meant to diminish Brunson’s excellence or imply that Towns hasn't been a mostly great Knick. The team is 101-59 in the regular season since the pairing formed. They have also won two rounds in the playoffs. But the duo might not be together for much longer if they fail to lead New York on a Finals run.

All the scoring in the world from Brunson isn’t going to be enough to push the Knicks over the Eastern Conference hump. He will need to put on his superhero cape every now and again for this group to have a chance to win big. They’ll also need Towns to be Robin to Brunson's Batman.

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