Day 1 of Camp: Mike Brown Is Already Reimagining the Knicks' Frontcourt

Day one of training camp is in the books, and Mike Brown didn't waste any time telling us what this offense is going to look like.

Asked what might look different this season, Brown pointed to three things: more Karl-Anthony Towns operating at the elbow as a facilitator, more pick and roll for OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges, and more Anunoby minutes at backup center. That last one is the headline.

Read that again. The Knicks' best perimeter defender, a first-team All-Defense wing, is about to moonlight as the backup five.

This isn't coming out of nowhere. Kevin O'Connor reported over the weekend that Brown could continue experimenting with OG as a small-ball five, and the word "continue" does a lot of work in that sentence. They tested this last season. Now Brown is saying the quiet part out loud on day one of camp.

Think about what it unlocks. An OG-at-center lineup lets Brown play five-out basketball without sacrificing defense, because OG defending the five means everyone else gets to guard up a position. It's the kind of wrinkle that turns a great defense into a scheme opponents have to game-plan around in April. And pairing it with KAT as an elbow facilitator tells you everything about where Brown's head is: he wants the ball moving through his bigs instead of just into them.

Don't get me wrong, it's cool to try out. But I don't see it as a long-term solution. OG showed a couple years ago he can guard one through five. He did a real job on Embiid in that Sixers series. But I'm not trying to watch him bang with the biggest bigs in the East every night and end up uncomfortable down there. I get why the Knicks are doing it. They're thin at center and they're working with what they have. But there's a difference between a wrinkle and a plan.

Then there's the James Wiseman of it all. SNY cameras caught Brown pulling Wiseman aside for a one-on-one conversation after practice ended.

We already knew Brown was a believer. Marc Stein reported earlier this month that Brown "is indeed a Wiseman fan," and Jake Fischer called Wiseman "definitely a favorite" of the coach with a real chance to win the final roster spot.

Here's where it gets interesting. If OG is your situational backup five, the math on that last roster spot changes completely. Wiseman versus Drew Eubanks stops being about who soaks up twelve backup center minutes a night and starts being about upside versus safety. Eubanks is the known commodity, the steady third big. Wiseman is the lottery ticket, the former No. 2 pick who has never had a coach invest in him like this. And Brown is out here investing in him on day one, in front of everybody.

And hanging over all of it is the KAT situation, which got more complicated today, not less. Malika Andrews reported on NBA Today that Towns is willing to take a pay cut, in the spirit of what Jalen Brunson did for this franchise, but that he views the Knicks' number as unreasonable.

The gap is real. The Knicks have discussed deals starting around $45 to $50 million a year. KAT's max is in the $69 million a year neighborhood. That is not a haircut. That is a different head of hair.

At media day, KAT didn't hide from any of it. "There's no comfortability to be had," he said. He wants to stay. He also wants to get paid. Both things are true at the same time, and nobody wants this hanging over a title defense.

And here's the human element in all of this. KAT already said he's willing to take less. But it feels like the Knicks are trying to get him on a bargain, and there's a line where that stops being a negotiation and starts feeling like disrespect. You don't want your starting center, the guy who just helped you win a championship, walking around feeling taken for granted.

I know this isn't what Knicks fans want to hear, but here's the truth as I see it: the core is Brunson, OG, and KAT. That's the core. You make those three happy and you build around them. Everybody else is up for grabs. But those three are untouchable. So stop playing games with the number and pay the man.

So that's day one. Brown redesigning the offense around a more versatile frontcourt. A reclamation project getting the head coach's personal attention after practice. And the franchise's most important contract negotiation no closer to being resolved.

Preseason starts Sunday in Philadelphia. The banner goes up October 20. The clock is already ticking.