Phoenix Suns: Brandon Knight Finding His Rhythm
If there were one early theme from the Phoenix Suns‘ first eight games, it would have to do with the team’s lack of consistency. Outside of Eric Bledsoe, new players have faced a stiff learning curve and old players have struggled getting good shots to go down.
With a 118-104 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers Thursday night, the Suns showed their best side once again, this time in front of a national audience. True enough, the Clippers were missing Chris Paul and J.J. Redick, and Blake Griffin was ejected just before halftime with his second technical foul, but it was a dominant performance from the up-and-down Suns all the same.
“Guys came in ready to play tonight and that’s what we need every single night,” Brandon Knight said after the game. “It can’t just be tonight or at home, we’ve got to try to make that a consistent effort if we want to be a playoff team. Playoff teams do it every single night.”
Funnily enough, Knight may as well have been talking about himself.
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That’s not to say that Knight hasn’t put forth consistent effort on a nightly basis, just that the results weren’t following the grinding process.
Thursday night against the Clips, Knight had his best game in a Suns uniform, tying a career-high with 37 points on 14-of-22 shooting, including 6-of-10 from three-point range. But that monster game had not been the story of Knight’s season, with the 23-year-old combo guard shooting just 41.7 percent from the floor and 34 percent from deep through his first seven games.
Knight’s big night against a Clippers team that started Pablo Prigioni and Austin Rivers in the backcourt should be taken with a major grain of salt, but for a team that’s lacked a consistent scoring punch outside of Bledsoe, Thursday’s breakthrough revealed some things the Suns need to build on.
On a night where Bledsoe finished one assist shy of a triple-double with 26 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, he deflected all of the credit for the team’s intensity onto his backcourt teammate.
“Brandon kept it up,” Bledsoe said. “He was on fire. I got in foul trouble early, he kept everybody pushing, he was pushing all night. And we didn’t let up.”
Again, there can only be so much back-patting going for demolishing a shorthanded Clippers team at home, especially with the Suns having three days of rest and Lob City coming off a game the night before. But no matter the competition, it was good to see Brandon Knight (mostly) avoiding those dreaded long twos, improving his shot selection and knocking down quality looks.
Knight has put up a few high scoring games during his 19-game tenure in Phoenix, but none were as aesthetically pleasing as Thursday night’s breakthrough.
“Well, you know, we only had Brandon for 10 or 11 games last year before he got hurt,” head coach Jeff Hornacek explained. “He was just starting to figure it out playing out there with Eric. He’s picking things up well, he’s a smart player. He knows the plays, he’s a great shooter.”
Knight may be underrated as a shooter, especially since he drilled 40.9 percent of his three-point attempts with the Milwaukee Bucks last season before being traded to the Suns. But his shot selection hasn’t always been ideal, and it’s something that Hornacek and the coaching staff are trying to improve with him.
“We’re trying to limit some of the off-the-dribble shots, but he can create,” Hornacek said. “He’s quick so he can create some space and get that shot off. That’s something that, late in games, when defenses are buckled up and you need someone to get off a shot somehow, Brandon’s a guy that can do that.”
Notice how Hornacek said “late in games.” That’s because for a shooter who’s been pretty streaky adjusting to playing off the ball, Knight would be better off getting into a groove in spot-up situations before trying his hand at some of those isolation plays that have ended in long, step-back twos far too often.
Against the Clippers Thursday night, Bledsoe set up Knight’s first made triple for the Suns’ first basket of the game. Per NBA.com, only two of Knight’s 12 made field goals on the night were assisted (both by Bledsoe), but his early looks were mostly the product of good ball movement and not one-on-one play — even in the case of his five other three-point makes.
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“He got some where I thought it was really good, where we pushed it and penetrated and then kicked it out to him,” Hornacek said. “Whenever we watch him shoot and he gets a kick-out like that, we think it’s automatic. So the more of those he can get the better.”
On catch-and-shoot looks this season, which have made up 23.4 percent of his attempts according to NBA.com, Knight has made 43.8 percent of his shots. On pull-up shots, which have constituted 51.8 percent of his offense, Knight has only made 39.4 percent of his looks. For reference, those percentages are better than what Bradley Beal — a quality shooter who’s been similarly criticized for his shot selection — posted on such shots the last two full seasons.
However, Beal has been much better when it comes to attacking the rim, which brings us to the next reason Knight was able to shoot with confidence from the perimeter (and actually make them this time): he was aggressive in attacking the basket early on.
As you can see from his shot chart below, Knight was excellent at the rim against the Clippers. He got to the line four times and even the long twos were a little more bearable once he started feeling it and the defense had to respect his drives to the rim.
It was only one game, and as we’ve seen from the Suns all season long, this team is going to have off shooting nights no matter how good the looks are. But there’s plenty of reason to be optimistic that now that Knight is seeing some quality shots fall, he’ll continue taking and making them with a little more confidence.
Before Thursday night’s win, Knight had needed serious work when it came to working inside the three-point arc, with his free throws per game (2.1) paling in comparison to the number of trips he took to the line in his last two seasons with the Bucks (3.7 and 4.5 per game). He had converted 18 of his 31 looks at the basket (58.1 percent), per NBA.com, but such shots only constituted 27.2 percent of his attempts.
The first time the Suns played the Clippers this season, Knight went 4-for-20 from the floor and 1-for-8 from three-point range. As most of his teammates have also been struggling with their shots, it was gratifying for Knight — and relieving for the Suns — to see those looks finally go down.
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“Yeah, I mean they were pretty consistent with what I’ve been getting,” Knight said. “Same shots I got the first time I played the Clippers, they just went down tonight. So like I said, just continue to be consistent in working on my game and continue to be confident and those shots will fall.”
For Knight, his efficiency might come from embracing a more traditional shooting guard role, which would take the ball out of his hands and rely more on Eric Bledsoe to be a creator. Knight is a good playmaker in his own right, but his true value might come in secondary sets that come once Bledsoe has already shifted the defense with a pick-and-roll.
When Knight does attack the pick-and-roll, however, Hornacek said he’s seen progress with his decision-making, especially when it comes to not settling for those ugly long range twos.
“I thought he did a good job of coming off those screens and not just pulling up right away, but taking one extra dribble and getting in that 16-18 foot range and again if he gets there, he’s automatic on those shots too.”
From Knight’s perspective, his summer ankle surgery has played a part in his early lack of aggression on those kinds of plays, especially when it comes to exploding off the screen after turning the corner. Coming back from that injury has been a longer, more ongoing process than people realize, but Knight’s 37-point night is encouraging that he’s on the right track.
”For myself, it’s just about to continuing to play,” he said. “I put the work in every single day. I’ve been doing it for awhile now, so it’ll come in time. For myself, I’m just trying to get back into the flow, trying to get back healthy and used to playing. Like I said, it’ll come in time. As long as our team is winning, I’m happy.”