Rest vs. rust.
The Knicks find themselves facing the old adage once again.
Just like they did following their second round sweep of the 76ers, New York is faced with another long layoff between the Eastern Conference Finals and the big dance.
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Mike Brown‘s squad has already been off since Monday, and they won’t play again until June 3.
The last time they faced this situation they showed a bit of rust, as the Cavs took them to the wire in ECF Game 1 before they rallied back from 22 points down to win in overtime.
Having been through that, they fell better prepared for the battle this time around.
After taking two days to rest, Brown has his squad back out on the court Thursday afternoon trying to keep them as locked in as possible during the extended break.
“It’s hard,” he said. “I’ve experienced this, it’s hard to manufacture the environment you’re going be in in Game 1 — so to continue to find ways to keep that competitive spirit is something I’ll ask my staff and different players.
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“But the biggest thing that should help us is knowing that as a group the last time we went through this we started a little slow in that game, and we can’t afford to do that again — it can’t happen this time around.”
Among the players Brown will certainly consult is starting small forward Mikal Bridges, who has firsthand experience on the biggest stage from his time with the Suns.
Phoenix was defeated by the Bucks that time around, but Bridges enjoyed himself a strong series.
Unlike Game 1 at the Garden against the Cavs, the 29-year-old feels that starting this series on the road against the Thunder or Spurs will be a benefit for the Knicks this time around.
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“It’s just more mentally understanding with the time we had off, second time going around it, knowing that we just have to pick it up,” he said. “I think being on the road, being in that hostile environment that should just help to get the mindset right right off the jump anyways.”
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