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2026-27 · Regular season
Mike Brown sits Mikal Bridges for the second half as Landry Shamet, Jordan Clarkson and Tyler Kolek close out the Knicks’ win over the Nets
Mike Brown benched Mikal Bridges, 1-of-7 on Monday, for nearly the whole second half and rode Landry Shamet, Jordan Clarkson and Tyler Kolek to a 103-90 win over the Nets. What Brown said about Bridges, Clarkson and the Alvarado-Kolek guard rotation.
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Mike Brown is willing to play whoever gives the New York Knicks the best chance on a given night, and Monday’s 103-90 victory over the Brooklyn Nets was the clearest example yet. Brown took Mikal Bridges, a starter who is shooting 30.8 percent, off the floor for almost the entire second half and let a bench group of Landry Shamet, Jordan Clarkson and Tyler Kolek close the game. The Knicks outscored Brooklyn 28-11 in the fourth quarter after trailing 79-75 entering it, and moved to 3-4.
Bridges sits, the bench finishes
Bridges played 16 minutes and finished with six points on 1-of-7 shooting, 0-of-2 from three, with two rebounds and no assists. It was the second time in three games that his minutes dropped sharply: in the comeback win in Chicago last week he played 13 minutes and scored three. For the season he is averaging 6.1 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists in about 25.8 minutes, shooting 30.8 percent from the field and 26.9 percent from three. Last season he averaged 14.4 points in 32.8 minutes.
Brown did not hide from the decision, and he did not sound worried either. “Everybody goes through those ups and downs through the course of the season,” he said. “Obviously it’s the beginning of the season right now so he’s gotta find his way.”
“When you’re in a funk, you’ve got to find one or two things to hold your hat on,” Brown said. “Mikal is one of the best runners in the NBA. He has to hang his hat on that, as well as his cutting.” Brown also said it was partly a matter of who was playing well. “Landry played very well tonight and so we tried to keep him on the floor as long as we could and Jordan Clarkson too. But it’s a matter of time in my opinion before Mikal gets it going.”
Shamet leads the second unit
Shamet was the player Brown rode. He scored a game-high 22 points on 6-of-8 shooting, 4-of-6 from three and 6-of-6 at the line in about 30 minutes, and had 14 of them by halftime. Jalen Brunson added 19 points and six assists on 6-of-16 shooting, OG Anunoby had 18, and Karl-Anthony Towns went 0-for-4 in the first half but finished with 16 rebounds. Julius Randle scored 21 for Brooklyn and received cheers when he was introduced at Madison Square Garden.
Clarkson scored only seven points in 11 minutes, but his role in the rotation is the more telling part. He has been out of it in three of New York’s seven games and had 18 points in that comeback win in Chicago. Brown spoke warmly about him after the game. “I’ve been around some good teammates when it comes to players. He’s gotta be the best. He’s the definition of ultimate pro,” Brown said.
Alvarado returns, Kolek gets the fourth
Before the game Brown said he had sat down Jose Alvarado and Kolek to discuss their roles with Alvarado back from a left ankle sprain. His message to both: “Both of you guys helped us win last year. I feel like both of you guys can play and contribute at a high level so both you guys gotta be ready.”
Both played, and Kolek was one of the players Brown turned to at the start of the fourth quarter, along with Clarkson, Josh Hart, Anunoby and Towns. Kolek said afterward that it showed Brown’s confidence in him, and Hart said the night showed the team’s depth: “It could be anybody’s night on any given night.”
What it means
It is one night, and Brown said himself it is only a matter of time before Bridges gets going. But with the Knicks 3-4 and Bridges’ minutes cut sharply twice in three games, Brown has shown he is willing to change the rotation in the middle of a game instead of waiting for it to work itself out. The Knicks have now beaten the Nets 15 times in a row. Next up is a visit from the Chicago Bulls at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. ET (2:30 a.m. Thursday, Cairo time).
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