The New York Knicks are in an interesting situation as they may have already created some tension within the roster. The Knicks had the opportunity to give Josh Hart and Karl-Anthony Towns contract extensions but decided to put both situations on hold for now.
The decision reportedly hasn't made Towns and his representatives happy, as they were hoping to get a deal done. ESPN's Shams Charania reported that the center and the Knicks are divided at this point.
“This is the Knicks attempting to eliminate the distraction. Eliminate the growing cloud around the team… Both of these sides are fully divided," Charania said.
However, New York has also brought plenty of intensity to the court this preseason as the team evaluates its roster. Knicks head coach Mike Brown has been clear about the level of intensity he expects from his players during games and practices. He has already made it clear that everyone outside of the starting lineup is still competing for minutes.
“The starters, they gon' play. Everybody else in the gym, you're fighting to make the team or for minutes. This has nothing to do with last year's team. Every day is a competition," Brown said.
New York is currently 0-3 in the preseason, which shouldn't be too alarming. Brown has already revealed what he is most looking forward to during the regular season: adversity.
“I want to see how we react when we lose 3 in a row or 4 in a row and you guys are on us and the fans are on us. Let's see if we can keep trying to [have an upward trajectory] in tough times,” Brown told the media.
Brown wants to see how his team responds when things get difficult because those moments can reveal a lot about a team's character and resilience. He knows adversity will eventually arrive during an 82-game regular season.
When it does, Brown will be watching to see whether the Knicks become tense under pressure or respond to the challenge. His emphasis on competition and resilience has been evident throughout the preseason.
