Miles Off
BOSTON– Knicks sixth man Miles McBride is seeking to turn the page after a cold-shooting first-round series against the Detroit Pistons.
“Just keep shooting with confidence. Keep trusting my work,” he said after morning shootaround at TD Garden ahead of Game 1 versus the Celtics on Monday. “That’s pretty much it.”
McBride shot just 26 percent from the field and from 3 across six games in Round 1. He scored 8 points on 2-of-4 shooting from deep in the Knicks’ Video game 2 loss however didn’t reach more than five points in any other game. He stated his struggles had nothing to do with the groin injury that kept him out late in the routine season.
“Nah,” McBride stated. “Just continue to take the ideal shots and trust my work.” Asked whether he mores than happy with the looks he’s getting, he included: “Yeah. I seem like they’re all shots I’m capable of making. Colleagues are doing a fantastic task of finding me. I simply got ta knock ’em down.”
McBride played a crucial role in the routine season as the very first guard off the bench, providing pressure defense at the point of attack while averaging a career-high 9.5 points and shooting 37 percent from 3.
His scoring leapt to 11 points per game in last year’s playoff run, in part due to extended minutes after injuries reshaped the rotation. This year, McBride has actually balanced simply 3.8 points through 6 games. The Knicks are going to need more– not simply from McBride, however from a bench unit that has lagged behind all postseason.
New york city ranked last in the league in bench scoring during the regular season. Through Round 1, only the Los Angeles Lakers averaged fewer points off the bench– and the Knicks had a seven-point space in between themselves and the next least expensive team, the Orlando Magic.
“Truthfully, whoever coach hires, we’re gon na step in and get the job done,” McBride stated. “So we’re simply all focused on doing it together as a group.”
The Celtics, meanwhile, feature freshly crowned Sixth Man of the Year Payton Pritchard, who averaged 14.3 points on 40.7 percent shooting from deep this season. Pritchard scored 25 points on 6-of-8 shooting from 3 in Boston’s Feb. 8 win over the Knicks and enters Round 2 as a crucial piece of Boston’s rotation. He balanced about 10 points per game against the Knicks throughout the routine season.
The match in between McBride and Pritchard– both very first guards off the bench– could be a swing factor.
“He’s a great player, has done fantastic things this season,” McBride stated. “Defending champs, and it’s a tough match for any person. But we’re gon na do it as a group. No matchup is specific. We’re gon na do everything together.”
McBride averaged 9.3 points and 1.5 steals throughout 4 regular-season games against Boston.
Initially Released: May 5, 2025 at 2:45 PM EDT