The loudest takeaway from the Knicks' 113-102 Game 1 win will be whatever happened with the box score. The more interesting one is that the game seems to have turned on a coaching correction.
Atlanta's offense had real rhythm early. The Hawks hit 8 of 16 from three in the first half, and the small-small pick-and-roll gave them a way to keep New York moving and reacting. Then the game changed. The Hawks scored only 47 points after halftime, including 19 in the third quarter, and their shooting from deep dropped to 6-for-21.
That matters because Mike Brown did not describe some mystical playoff transformation. He pointed to one thing: the Knicks defended Atlanta's guard-to-guard action better in the second half. Pair that with Miles McBride's description of making catches difficult and getting to loose balls, and the answer looks less like a total schematic rewrite than a cleaner, tougher version of the same defense. New York made the action start later, farther out, and with less comfort.
That is why this feels more important than a one-night shooting swing. If the Knicks merely made shots, this series is still volatile. If they found a repeatable way to flatten Atlanta's small-small rhythm, that is a real series development. Game 1 suggested Brown's best contribution may have been making the Hawks work just to begin the possession they wanted.