The Knicks squeaked by the Heat on Tuesday night thanks to a fourth quarter takeover by Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart, while Miami’s shooters finally cooled off from long distance down the stretch.
The Heat’s cold shooting late in game two has been an anomaly this postseason, as Miami entered the series shooting 45 percent from deep in the playoffs, and continued that trend for the first seven quarters of this series.
Sal says the Knicks need a response, and he’s looking at Quentin Grimes or Immanuel Quickley to step up.
“Grimes and Quickley are supposed to be those guys to help out Brunson and Randle,” Sal said. “If I ask you who are the pure shooters…who are the shooters on this team? Where are the shooters?
“Immanuel Quickley and Quentin Grimes are supposed to be those guys…IQ has to be that guy. In general, you trust one shot on the line, Immanuel Quickley is better than anyone else as far as shooting goes. Pure shooting.”
Grimes and Quickley have each struggled offensively in the postseason, with Quickley’s struggles being particularly staggering given his phenomenal play in the second half of the regular season, earning him a look for the Sixth Man of the Year award. Both offer value defensively, but the Knicks need scoring outside of Julius Randle, Jalen Brunson, and RJ Barrett, and New York not boasting a true, reliable shooter remains a concern.
“You look at this team, there are no shooters,” Sal said. “Brunson is it, he’s the guy. Randle is second…Immanuel Quickley or Quentin Grimes, they badly need one of them to be one of those guys. The Heat are daring them to shoot.”
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
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