The New York Knicks sent a message to the Detroit Pistons with a 123-112 win in Game 1 of the Playoffs. This was Detroit's first Playoff game in six seasons, and their inexperience shone through. They got outscored 21-40 in the fourth quarter, going from almost stealing home-court advantage to falling down 0-1 due to a collapse.
Despite that, Pistons sophomore Ausar Thompson isn't Knicks' No. 1 option Jalen Brunson the respect he deserves. Despite Brunson having a big night, Ausar made it clear he didn't think guarding Brunson was a challenge at all.
"Asked Ausar Thompson what challenges he’s had guarding Jalen Brunson so far: 'None.'"
Ausar illuminated on what aspect of his defensive game plan against Brunson, which deals with minimizing potential contact due to Brunson's ability to sell fouls at a high level.
"Just don’t foul him. He’s good at drawing fouls. Well, he’s good at selling – selling – fouls. So you just got to be smarter."
Thompson might be upset at how Brunson plays, but he's definitely more upset about how Brunson led the Knicks to such a high-stakes comeback win. The Knicks guard had 34 points (12-27 FG) and eight assists, going 8-10 from the free throw line.
He has been a fantastic No. 1 option for the Knicks, and his style of driving to the rim often generates a lot of free throw opportunities.
There are several guards all around the NBA with inflated free-throw numbers because of how they play, so it becomes pointless to deride every single one of them as 'free-throw merchants,' or other negative names.
Brunson has had multiple accusations of selling fouls throughout his time with the Knicks. He was once openly called a foul hunter by major media members
“He doesn’t have the reputation of Harden or Trae Young, but he’s a foul hunter. He uses the dark arts. I'm not taking a side; there have been times this year when Brunson got an unfair whistle."
"But this is what the referees are cracking down on, the fouls that he gets sometimes are not what they’re going to give him. The Knicks, as impressive as they've been, they're in a spot where at the end of the game, they need these calls.”
He's coming off a season where he averaged 26.0 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 7.3 assists. Ausar is a rising star but miles away from Brunson still, averaging 10.1 points, 5.1 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.7 steals per game this season. He might be Detroit's best perimeter defender, so he'll likely continue acquainting himself with Brunson's play style over this series.
