{"id":175083,"date":"2026-01-29T15:42:06","date_gmt":"2026-01-29T20:42:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=175083"},"modified":"2026-01-29T15:42:06","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T20:42:06","slug":"miles-mcbride-showcasing-underrated-aspect-of-his-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2026\/01\/29\/miles-mcbride-showcasing-underrated-aspect-of-his-game\/","title":{"rendered":"Miles McBride Showcasing Underrated Aspect of His Game"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/m\/mcbrimi01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Miles McBride<\/a> can light it up from beyond the arc, but his vision and decision-making remain underrated. McBride has <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/teams\/NYK\/2026\/lineups\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">played most of his minutes<\/a> swapped with <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/h\/hartjo01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Josh Hart<\/a> or <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/a\/anunoog01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">OG Anunoby<\/a>. The other third of his minutes are spent filling in for <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/b\/brunsja01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jalen Brunson<\/a>, but it matters who McBride is paired with. Signs point to him benefiting more often from <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/k\/kolekty01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Tyler Kolek<\/a>&#8216;s presence. Still, Deuce is more than just a perimeter sniper. He&#8217;s proven that he can run the offense patiently and let the game come to him.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Miles McBride Showcasing Underrated Aspect of His Game<\/h2>\n<h3>Deuce&#8217;s Lineup Synergy<\/h3>\n<p><span>The four Knicks lineups with the highest point differentials this season have one thing in common: Brunson and McBride. When on the court together, they match up with any other guard tandem offensively, but other teams may have <a  href=\"https:\/\/cleaningtheglass.com\/stats\/league\/fourfactors\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">stronger defenders<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>If Brunson is on the bench, Deuce is best paired with Kolek to split ball-handling duties. <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2026\/01\/28\/examining-the-knicks-new-philosophy-under-mike-brown\/\" target=\"_self\">Mike Brown currently leans toward<\/a> <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/c\/clarkjo01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jordan Clarkson<\/a> first, who can be explosive from distance but has <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/c\/clarkjo01\/gamelog\/2026\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">shot better<\/a> in previous months.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>McBride and Clarkson in the back court: 31 minutes, <strong>-19.3 point differential<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>McBride and Kolek in the back court: 30 minutes, <strong>+7.7 point differential<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>On the other hand, <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/s\/shamela01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Landry Shamet<\/a> is a spark plug when available. The top point differential from a lineup is +54.7, from Shamet, <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/r\/robinmi01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Mitch Robinson<\/a>, <span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/a\/anunoog01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">OG Anunoby<\/a><\/span>, Brunson, and McBride. It&#8217;s no surprise when you consider Robinson&#8217;s league-leading offensive rebounding, paired with the team&#8217;s volume perimeter shooting.<\/p>\n<p>McBride is also in the top four <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2026\/01\/26\/new-york-knicks-stat-leaders-halfway-into-season\/\" target=\"_self\">Knicks lineups<\/a> in assists per game, including the top two without Brunson.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_175143\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-175143\" style=\"width: 640px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/01\/USATSI_28040964_168402037_lowres-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"Jan 19, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks guard Miles McBride (2) looks to drive past Dallas Mavericks guard Max Christie (00) in the first quarter at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" class=\"wp-image-175143 size-large\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/01\/USATSI_28040964_168402037_lowres-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/01\/USATSI_28040964_168402037_lowres-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/01\/USATSI_28040964_168402037_lowres-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/01\/USATSI_28040964_168402037_lowres-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/01\/USATSI_28040964_168402037_lowres-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/01\/USATSI_28040964_168402037_lowres-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/01\/USATSI_28040964_168402037_lowres.jpg 2009w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-175143\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jan 19, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks guard Miles McBride (2) looks to drive past Dallas Mavericks guard Max Christie (00) in the first quarter at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3>Consistent Decision Making and Shooting<\/h3>\n<p><span>In the middle of the third quarter, against the <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=sd0ynsEjb04\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span>Suns on January 17th<\/span><\/a><span>, McBride <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/scoringthebasketball.substack.com\/p\/this-miles-mcbride-play-showcases\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span>showcased his ability<\/span><\/a><span> to run the offense. His teammates <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/t\/townska01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Karl-Anthony Towns<\/a>, Shamet, and Anunoby were running motion, but they weren&#8217;t generating an open look. McBride slipped into an easy dribble-hand-off with <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/y\/yabusgu01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Guerschon Yabusele<\/a> to create a mildly contested three.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Deuce lets the game come to him, and he&#8217;s more pass-first than his stats would indicate. The context of his assists matters more than the quantity, and he frankly doesn&#8217;t touch the ball enough to allow for more passing. If given another seven minutes per game, McBride (28 mpg) would see a huge uptick in assists, but the Knicks have more than enough scorers commanding those minutes off the bench.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Still, McBride is usually hitting his shot, and he has <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/m\/mcbrimi01\/gamelog\/2026\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">more games with at least five threes than he does none<\/a>. His shot mechanics are consistent and pure, and his high-arcing release is difficult to contest. In transition, Deuce seamlessly fills in the open perimeter and can catch-and-shoot with ease. He capitalizes on it by having <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/m\/mcbrimi01\/shooting\/2026\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">83% of his threes from assists.<\/a> He can create on his own as well; he&#8217;ll often take advantage of mismatches to find a mid-range shot or easy layup.<\/p>\n<p>McBride also takes care of the ball and has the second-lowest turnovers per 100 possessions (1.4) on the team. Strong ball security is an easy way to increase your minutes, and it&#8217;s something his teammate Kolek will need to keep in check. Per 100 possessions, Kolek is fourth-highest on the team with 3.8 turnovers.<\/p>\n<p><span>\u00a9 Bill Streicher-Imagn Images<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Miles McBride can light it up from beyond the arc, but his vision and decision-making remain underrated. McBride has played most of his minutes swapped with Josh Hart or OG Anunoby. The other third of his minutes are spent filling in for Jalen Brunson, but it matters who McBride is paired with. Signs point to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5711,"featured_media":175145,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1608,62,12],"tags":[1417,1004,3717,4389,1082,46255],"class_list":["post-175083","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-basketball","category-nba","category-knicks","tag-jalen-brunson","tag-josh-hart","tag-mike-brown","tag-miles-mcbride","tag-og-anunoby","tag-tyler-kolek"],"modified_by":"Jordan Pagkalinawan","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/175083","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5711"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=175083"}],"version-history":[{"count":33,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/175083\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":175146,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/175083\/revisions\/175146"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/175145"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=175083"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=175083"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=175083"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}