The Knicks‘ defensive inconsistencies were on full display in a 112-107 loss to the Phoenix Suns on Friday night. 

New York’s defense came alive in the fourth, holding Phoenix to 18 points, but the club gave up a combined 66 points over the previous two quarters.

The performance was a microcosm of the Knicks’ defense all season, which has been inconsistent. Currently tied for second in the East with a 24-14 record, it’s been the year of experimentation for New York — we’ve seen more zone defense, switches, as well as the occasional trap. 

Despite these new wrinkles, the defense has produced underwhelming results. The Knicks defense is ranked 19th in the NBA after 38 games, and is 27th in the month of January. 

As we near the halfway mark of the season, let’s look at three major concerns with the Knicks’ defense.

Point-of-attack

New York’s most glaring weakness on the defensive end is guarding the point-of-attack. Mikal Bridges has often been New York’s prime defender, and has struggled for the most part in a season and a half of chasing ballhandlers.

Bridges, OG Anunoby, and Josh Hart are all quality wing defenders, but they have all looked better in help roles where they can disrupt passing lanes and cut off drives rather than defend speedy guards capable of getting into the paint.

Miles McBride has been effective at times in the role. He has a near 6-foot-9 wingspan. But he’s also a 6-foot-2 guard, so there’s some matchups where that won’t be ideal. Landry Shamet is another capable point-of-attack defender. Shamet should return soon from a shoulder injury.

The Knicks could make a move externally. Names like Jose Alvarado,Ochai Agbaji, and Keon Ellis have been floated as potential trade targets to improve the defense. But realistically, those players wouldn’t be focal points of New York’s rotation. 

Brown has employed a zone at times to combat New York’s defensive issues and it’s been hit or miss. Most likely, the Knicks will have to improve from within to elevate the defense. 

Defending behind the arc

New York’s lack of an elite point-of-attack option has bled into another part of the defense, the three-point line. The Knicks are overhelping in the paint to contain drives and shots on the interior. 

That strategy is working to a degree. New York is keeping teams subdued on the inside. The Knicks allow 46.2 points in the paint per 100 possessions per NBA Stats, the sixth best mark in the league. But the focus on the paint has exposed the perimeter. The Knicks are giving up the third most three-point attempts in the NBA. Opponents are also shooting 37.3 percent from three, a figure that is tied for 27th in the NBA. 

New York struggled to contain the three on Friday, giving up 15 three-pointers in the first three quarters, before holding the Suns to just one trifecta in the final quarter. One reason for the improved defense was a switching strategy on the pick-and-roll. Switching could be something the Knicks defense goes to more as the season wears on. 

Star liabilities

New York’s Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns are the two weakest defenders among the team’s top seven rotation players. But as the two top scorers on the team, they’re also crucial to New York’s offense. It’s a delicate balance that the Knicks have to constantly manage.

The opposition will try to bring Brunson and Towns into offensive actions to attack the two stars and create chaos. In the Eastern Conference Finals last year, that combination was exposed repeatedly by the Indiana Pacers. This year’s playoffs will be a major test on defense for Brunson and Towns.

The Knicks have not defended well with Brunson on the floor, giving up 119.4 points per 100 possessions in his 1,235 minutes. When the star point guard sits, New York is allowing 106.3 points per 100 possessions, a number that would rank second in the NBA. It’s not to say that Brunson is the sole reason for New York’s defensive issues, but it’s a number to monitor for the rest of the season.

The numbers back up Jaylen Brown’s vent about officiating in C’s-Spurs originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Jaylen Brown made at least a $25,000 donation Saturday night by delivering a vociferous postgame rant about the officiating after his Boston Celtics endured a narrow loss to the San Antonio Spurs. 

Having already sounded off multiple times this season — including after a loss to the Denver Nuggets earlier in the week — Brown made his firmest and most direct declaration while accepting that his wallet would be lighter in the aftermath.

“I feel like, honestly, (the Spurs) just got away with a lot. And I’m tired of the inconsistency,” said Brown. I’ll accept the fine at this point. I thought it was some bulls— tonight. I think [the Spurs are] a good defensive team, but they ain’t that damn good.”

“I hope somebody can just pull up the clips, because it’s the same s— every time we play a good team. It’s like they refuse to make a call then call touch fouls on the other end.”

Brown did not shoot a single free throw over 43 minutes, 22 seconds of floor time against the Spurs. The Celtics generated just four free throw attempts overall, tied for the second-fewest in franchise history.

Boston’s free-throw rate in Saturday’s game was the worst in the NBA this season.

Did Brown deserve more calls? The numbers certainly suggest a harsh whistle in recent games against top competition.

In losses this week to the Nuggets and Spurs — two of the top teams in the Western Conference — Brown was credited with 54 total drives. He drew just one shooting foul, or 1.9 percent of his total drives.

For the season, Brown ranks third in the NBA in total drives. He gets fouled on 8.9 percent of those treks, which would suggest an expected output of 4.8 shooting fouls off those drives against San Antonio and Denver.

Brown’s free-throw attempts, which climbed to a season-high 8.7 per game in December, are down to 5.8 per game in January. The Celtics as a team rank 30th in the NBA in both free throw attempt rate and free throw attempts per game (18.9). They rank 27th in the NBA while drawing fouls on 6.3 percent of all their drives this season.

Given Boston’s shot profile, which leans heavily 3-pointers and long mid-range jumpers, it’s not surprising that the Celtics don’t draw as many fouls as some teams. But Brown has been demonstrative toward officials on multiple occasions when he believes opponents have dislodged him on drives to the basket. 

The Nuggets and Spurs have physical, handsy defenses that might get a bit more leeway from officials given their consistency aggressive playstyle. But the 20-4 free-throw disparity in favor of the Spurs on Saturday night was impossible to ignore.

“Every time we play a good team, the inconsistency is crazy,” said Brown. “I’ll take the f—ing fine. [Official] Curtis [Blair and] all them dudes was terrible tonight. I don’t care. They can fine me whatever they want. But it’s crazy. Every time we play a good team, it’s the same bulls—.”

Brown admitted free throws weren’t the entire story of the game and fretted his own uneven play in the fourth quarter. He went 1 for 9 in the frame and missed a wide-open 3-pointer in a 2-point game with 1:19 to play. He turned the ball over soon after, and the Spurs cashed in with a bucket that essentially sealed the game. Two of Brown’s five turnovers came in the final quarter.

Brown also acknowledged that the Celtics have to be better at defending without fouling on the other end. But the overall disparity and what Brown perceived as a more firm whistle against the Celtics left him fuming.

“Zero free throws tonight,” said Brown. “The inconsistency is f—ing crazy. Give me the fine.”

After a smaller rant after Boston’s loss to Denver on Wednesday, Brown got a favorable whistle during the Celtics’ win over Toronto on Friday. That whistle evaporated the next night.

The question now is whether officials will be more likely to give Brown calls after he went so far as to name-check an official as part of his frustration on Saturday night.