Blackjack

Behind a 21-0 fourth quarter run, the Knicks turned the tables in Game 1

Good morning! What a pleasure it was to write today’s bonus newsletter recapping a stirring start to the 2025 postseason. I’ll get into all the X’s & O’s of this win with plenty of clips in tomorrow’s newsletter, but for today, we imbibe in the vibes…

Game 1: Knicks 123, Pistons 112

• Several matchup-related questions were answered early, as OG started on Cade, Ausar Thompson guarded Jalen Brunson, Tobias Harris covered KAT and Detroit hit their center on Josh Hart.

• Brunson sought out contact early but shot just 2-of-12 from the field in the first half. New York as a team struggled at the rim for most of the night.

• With Josh Hart in foul trouble, Thibs turned to the Mitch & KAT lineup for most of the second quarter with strong results on defense.

• OG Anunoby, meanwhile, carried their offense for stretches of the first half while limiting Cade Cunningham for most of the night.

• Detroit role players took turns burning the Knicks, with Harris and Beasley going off early and Tim Hardaway Jr lighting it up in the third, helping the Pistons to a nine-point lead just before the fourth.

• New York’s defense and Cam Payne’s audacity defined a final frame that featured an electrifying 21-0 run.

• Brunson shook off his cold spell to score 23 after halftime. Similarly, Josh Hart’s energy and effectiveness went up several notches after a quiet start.

• Karl-Anthony Towns had the most complete game of his Knick career.

Hit me.

If Cam Payne plays cards anything like he plays basketball and you saw him next to you at the blackjack table, it probably wouldn’t be long before you got up and found yourself a new seat.

That’s because Payne is, without question, the most unpredictable player on the Knicks. A riverboat gambler by trade, he won’t think twice before hitting on 17. It is who he is - a necessity of his function as the star-shaped peg on a roster full of circles and squares.

This hasn’t always endeared him to his coach. Tom Thibodeau, after all, is the ultimate control freak. In his book, preparation wins basketball games, and you cannot prepare for the unpredictable. That’s probably why Payne didn’t get off the pine for a few second halves in the middle of this season. By contrast, the man who plays ahead of him is one of the most known quantities in the NBA. It is a delicacy the head coach has overindulged in on more than one occasion.

But there is also a reason Thibs stuck with Payne as his backup point guard through thick and thin. First he held off calls for Tyler Kolek. Then he withstood a charge by Delon Wright. Most recently, he had to wonder whether Landry Shamet’s hot shooting would result in an eight-man rotation and no backup point guard altogether.

Through it all, Payne survived, and more often than not, he thrived. Forming an instant connection with Karl-Anthony Towns, that pair produced one of New York’s best heavy minute net ratings among all Knick duos. As the numbers strongly suggest, something good happens whenever Payne steps foot on the court. His unpredictability always seemed to produce predictably positive results, perhaps because no one else on the roster has the gumption to play with such reckless abandon.