Knicks' Mike Brown Explains Exploiting James Harden's Defense in Video after Historic Comeback

After struggling to get anything going on offense for 3.5 quarters, the New York Knicks finally figured out the best way to go at the Cleveland Cavaliers was to attack James Harden.

Following their dramatic 22-point comeback win in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, Knicks head coach Mike Brown explained there are times when "you got to do what the game dictates" when asked about going after Harden's defense find a spark.

"Just like we have to figure out different ways to guard Harden and [Donovan] Mitchell, they have to find ways to guard Jalen," Brown said. ""It was no secret: We were attacking Harden."

Per ESPN's Vincent Goodwill, Jalen Brunson shot 7-of-11 with Harden as his primary defender compared to 8-of-18 when anyone else on the Cavs was guarding him.

Cavaliers-Knicks Highlights

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The Knicks trailed 93-71 with 7:40 remaining in the fourth quarter. They proceeded to close regulation on a 30-8 run, then outscored Cleveland 14-3 in overtime to steal the win.

Brunson scored 15 of his game-high 38 points in the fourth quarter on 7-of-9 shooting.

Per the All-NBA Podcast on X, the Knicks got 1.6 points per direct action on 21 on-ball picks with Harden as the screen defender between the fourth quarter and overtime.

It's not a secret that Harden tends to be a liability on defense, but the Cavs had the right formula to hide it for most of the game. Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen are two quality interior defenders, while Dean Wade continues to start despite his offensive limitations because he's their best perimeter defender.

Wade was effective at guarding Brunson during the regular season, albeit in a small sample size of three games.

It looked like the Cavs' formula was going to pay off with a crucial road win in Game 1 at Madison Square Garden.

Instead, the nightmare scenario involving Harden came back to haunt Cleveland. It didn't help that the Cavs offense went ice cold down the stretch. They shot 6-of-24 from the field in the fourth quarter and overtime, with Harden, Mitchell and Mobley going 3-of-19 during that stretch.

Max Strus was the only Cleveland player to score in the overtime period when he made a three with 1:45 remaining.

One reason the Cavs made the midseason trade for Harden was to raise the ceiling for their offense in this type of game. It didn't work at all on Tuesday, leaving the Cavaliers to dig themselves out of a hole going into Game 2 on Thursday night.