3 things we learned from Knicks’ 2024 NBA playoff run

Once again, the New York Knicks’ season ended with another second-round exit. Still, it seems like the Knicks have made progress as a franchise. They advanced to the second round in consecutive years for the first time since 1999 and 2000.

The team has built out a hard-nosed identity and has found several key pieces on the roster worth keeping long term. But there’s still more work to do if the Knicks want to reach the upper echelon of NBA contenders. Now that the dust has settled, it’s time to take a look at a few takeaways from New York’s 2024 postseason.

Brunson is someone you can build around

After a strong 2023 playoff run, it was clear that Jalen Brunson was a top scoring option the Knicks could build around. He has continued to answer the bell as a number one option. He had a memorable 2024 playoff run. In 13 postseason games, the guard averaged 32.4 points and 7.5 assists.

Brunson had 40 points on five different occasions and had at least six assists 10 different times. This was in the face of teams throwing every kind of defense at him. The Philadelphia 76ers often brought extra help and had 6-7 Kelly Oubre and 6-8 Nicolas Batum guard him. The Indiana Pacers had smaller defenders but they tried to tire him out with a full-court press.

Brunson dealt with a right foot injury early in the second round. He also fractured his left hand in Game 7. Under the weight of massive responsibility, his overall shooting efficiency plummeted throughout the playoffs. If the Knicks can find a way to lighten the responsibility Brunson carried, those numbers should rebound in the future.

Need for a second star 

As the playoffs wore on, it seemed unsustainable for Brunson to carry such a heavy load on…