Alexander Wilson
The New York Knicks do not need Landry Shamet to be a star.
They just need him to be playable when the game gets tight, and Tuesday gave them a pretty loud answer. Shamet went from rotation piece to Game 1 swing factor in one fourth-quarter burst, helping the Knicks erase a 93-71 deficit with 7:52 left and steal a 115-104 overtime win over Cleveland.
Jalen Brunson did the heavy lifting, because of course he did. But Shamet’s fingerprints were all over the comeback, and that matters in a playoff series where every trusted minute can change the rotation.
Shamet gave the Knicks exactly what they needed
Shamet scored nine points during the comeback, hit all three of his three-point attempts, and tied the game at 99 with 44.3 seconds left in regulation. Empty bench production does not look like that. Pressure-shot production does.
The bigger piece may have been the defense. Donovan Mitchell went scoreless over the final 12:45, shooting 0-for-5, and Shamet spent important late possessions attached to him. Nobody is calling Shamet a stopper, but he competed, fought through actions, and did enough to keep Mike Brown from having to yank him off the floor.
Role players earn closing trust by surviving those minutes.
Mike Brown has another late-game option
The Knicks already knew their bench could swing games in stretches, and they have seen that group hit another level before. The difference now is the stage.
Eastern Conference Finals minutes are not regular-season minutes. The margins are tighter, the mistakes are louder, and the ball finds the weak link like water finding a crack in the floor.
Shamet did not look like the weak link Tuesday.
That does not mean he closes every game now. Brown still has to ride matchups, foul trouble, and shooting rhythm. But Shamet earned another look in the pressure spots, and Cleveland has to account for him if he is going to defend hard enough while still spacing the floor.
The Knicks won Game 1 because Brunson bent the game back toward them. Shamet helped make sure the door stayed open long enough for that to happen. If he keeps doing that, he is no longer just rotation insurance. He is a real playoff lever.
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