Clarkson delivers off the bench as Knicks tame Timberwolves in OT

NEW YORK, United States – Filipino-American guard Jordan Clarkson shook off a rough preseason start, and the New York Knicks followed his lead.

Clarkson came off the bench to spark a fourth-quarter rally as the Knicks outlasted the Minnesota Timberwolves, 100-95, in overtime Thursday night (Friday Philippine time) to stay perfect through three preseason games.

The former NBA Sixth Man of the Year delivered exactly what coach Mike Brown had been waiting for — poise, pace and shot creation from the second unit. With the Knicks’ starters sluggish and out of rhythm, Brown challenged his reserves to swing the momentum, and they answered.

“I challenged the second group because I thought their first time around, they held onto the ball too much and our spacing wasn’t good,” Brown said. “Their second time around, they were really good.”

Down 71-63 entering the fourth, the Knicks’ bench opened with a 15-3 run capped by a Clarkson layup to grab the lead. The 33-year-old guard then hustled for a loose ball that turned into an extra possession, setting up an Ariel Hukporti dunk that gave New York an 82-80 edge with just under six minutes left.

Minnesota refused to go quietly, tying the game in the final seconds when Vietnamese-American Johnny Juzang floated in a jumper to force overtime. But New York’s third unit slammed the door, starting the extra frame with an 8-0 burst to finish off the Timberwolves and secure Brown’s first unofficial win at the Madison Square Garden.

Clarkson finished with 10 points, three rebounds and three assists in 18 minutes. He didn’t commit a turnover and turned a minus-3 rating entering the fourth quarter into a plus-7 by the end. Miles McBride added 10 points off the bench as well.

The Knicks’ top group continued to sputter. Mikal Bridges scored 15 points on 50 percent shooting, but the All-NBA pairing of Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns combined to hit just six of 25 shots for 21 points. Brown brushed off the rough offensive night.

“I thought we had some great looks,” he said. “We just didn’t knock them down tonight.”

Former Knicks forward Julius Randle scored 16 for Minnesota, nine coming in the first quarter. Anthony Edwards carried the Timberwolves early with 17 points, 14 of them in the first half, helping the visitors control the pace until the Knicks’ depth wore them down late.

Brown said he hasn’t installed much of the Knicks’ new system yet, preferring to let players rely on reads and instincts while the offense takes shape. The defense, he added, has been ahead of schedule.

“Usually when you have a new coach or a new system, the defense is a little ahead of the offense,” Brown said. “We’re long, athletic and intelligent, and we’ve been doing a pretty good job with what we call shifting. We loosened up a couple of times, but overall, against a talented scoring team like that, our guys weren’t bad. Their second time around, they were really good.”

At 3-0, the Knicks will look to keep their preseason momentum. They will have two more games — against the Washington Wizards on October 13 and the Charlotte Hornets on October 17 — before their season tips off against the Eastern Conference favorites Cleveland Cavaliers on October 22.

—

Alder Almo is a former senior sportswriter for Philstar.com and NBA.com Philippines. He is now based in Jersey City, New Jersey, and writes for US-based publication Heavy.com.