Knicks' Miles McBride Seeks to Make Difference on Defense

Miles McBride's chance to make the New York Knicks' roster and rotation faces significant resistance, but he rose to the occasion in the team's preseason opener on Tuesday.

Here comes McBride.

The earliest stage of the NBA preseason went well for the New York Knicks, victors in.a 117-96 final over the Detroit Pistons in their 2022 preseason debut on Tuesday night. Skeptics will still linger: pressure will only intensify on leading scorers like RJ Barrett, Jalen Brunson, and Julius Randle. But the preseason still matters for several of the Knicks' young, fringe talents, who are not only looking to impress the notoriously hard-to-please head coach Tom Thibodeau but establish themselves on a roster full of newcomers and re-upped returnees.

Miles McBride understood the assignment, capitalizing on an extended opportunity with several compatriots in the guard spots either resting (Derrick Rose) or injured (Quentin Grimes, Cam Reddish). The second-year man was responsible for six steals, (leading all participants) while also pulling down three rebounds and scoring seven points while tying with Barrett with 23 minutes played. 

The New York Post reported that McBride's activities weren't lost in the aftermath: Barrett called him "a pest," while fellow reserve Immanuel Quickley saw improvement on both sides of the ball.

"(He) adds a lot,” Quickley said. “Especially defensively. You can see him getting out in passing lanes, (creating) steals. You know he can do that. He’s (also) added a lot to his game offensively.”

"His gift is his defense, physicality," Thibodeau added. "(He also has) competitiveness, anticipation, seeing things early.”

McBride, commonly referred to as "Deuce," faces a bit of an uphill battle to make the roster if and when Grimes, Reddish, and Rose reach full strength. He averaged less than 10 minutes a game last season and made eight separate trips between the big club in Manhattan and the NBA G League squad in Westchester. It'll obviously take a unique, noticeable effort to establish himself: there are high hopes for both the remodeled Rose and the summer star Grimes, both of whom are sticking around after lingering in the ultimately futile negotiations for Donovan Mitchell's services.

The West Virginia alum has a plan to get into the rotation: he's hoping to contribute to the Knicks' defensive efforts. Playing a major role in such a sterling debut likely left its mark: McBride's six steals were part of a 21-turnover night for the Pistons.

"I always want to bring a defensive presence first. I feel like that gets my offense going," McBride said, per Newsday. It's part of his plan to control what he has an individual impact upon as he enters his sophomore season. "Thibs controls the minutes … I’m obviously going to do anything I can to get on the floor and make a great impression.”

McBride's next chance to impress lands on Friday night when the Indiana Pacers visit Madison Square Garden (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG). 

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Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags

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