Why Mike Brown allows Knicks to operate without a playbook, in stark contrast to Tom Thibodeau

It’s preseason for freestyling under Mike Brown.

The Knicks coach revealed after Thursday’s win that he has installed zero plays into his offense, preferring the team to learn the principles of its pace and movement by just reading the defense and reacting.

It’s another departure from Tom Thibodeau, who handed players a large playbook during training camp — which Miles McBride once estimated was two inches thick.

Brown said his Knicks won’t be using plays for the vast majority of the game, so why not learn that part first?

“We prefer to play like this,” the coach said. “We’re going to have play calls because right now we want the ball in this guy’s hands and we want this guy here and that guy there. So we’ll do that. But right now, especially in the preseason, I just want them to get used to playing this basketball and taking what the defense gives them.”

Perhaps predictably, the offense has had some rough patches in the preseason, especially in Thursday’s overtime win over the Timberwolves.

Their 38 points at halftime were certainly not the powerful and efficient system of the new coach.

But the Knicks were happy with the looks generated — they missed a plethora of open three-pointers — and the players remain optimistic about the process.

“He just wants to implement quick plays because, honestly, especially the first three quarters, until the middle of the fourth, you don’t really need plays,” Mikal Bridges said. “You just have concepts and you read and react and that makes it harder for the defense, honestly, because they don’t know what’s happening, because offensively you don’t even know what’s happening, because you’re really just reading how you’re going to defend it.

“I think that’s fine. I think when the game starts to slow down in the fourth, the last five minutes, where every possession becomes a little more valuable [you need plays]. But the first three quarters it was just up and down, playing fast, trying to get the right read. I don’t think you really need drama.’

As a player who thrives after cuts and in transition, Bridges benefits from less structure, and it sometimes shows in the preseason.

The same goes for McBride, who is probably the most athletic on the roster and the most impressive through three exhibitions.

“I feel like a coach can make a play at any time and you know exactly what to do,” McBride said, “but to be able to read and react to what’s out there, because at the end of the day he’s on the sideline, so we have to play the way we’ve always been taught. And that’s moving the ball, playing the right way and getting guys involved.”

Will this work? Can you enter plays this close to the regular season and expect the team to execute?

“He’s the coach. If that’s his philosophy, that’s his philosophy,” McBride said. “We are going to monitor it as best we can.”

Thibodeau, meanwhile, was famously meticulous in his playbooks — including those for training camp and each playoff round — and preparation.

The vibe around Brown is less structure and more versatility through instinctive basketball.

The new Knicks coach has also instituted a system with a larger rotation, fewer minutes for the starters and Jalen Brunson playing off the ball.

Brunson is facing the biggest adjustment after dominating the rock world in recent seasons.

“What we’re working on is just the basics of our offense and everything,” Brunson said. “It will take time. It won’t always be perfect, but it’s about how we can continue to trust it, how we can continue to learn. And if things don’t go well, will we go back to who we were in the past or will we continue to improve what is new for us? So we have to continue to trust it.”

Brown highlighted a play from their two games against the Sixers in Abu Dhabi, where Mitchell Robinson took off for an alley-oop from OG Anunoby.

According to Brown, the space for that highlight jam was created by Brunson sprinting to a corner on the fast break.

It was an unofficial assist for Brunson generated through the ball.

More than any other principle, Brown emphasizes running to corners on offense to space the floor and keep the paint as open as possible. It is a top principle of Mike Brown.

“Because Jalen filled the corner, it flattened the defense. Everyone guarding him was afraid he was going to get a three-pointer, so they stayed out,” Brown said, “which created the space for OG to go downhill. We look at little things like that and emphasize that because those are the great plays that are really small and don’t show up in the stats and that will ultimately make you a great offensive team.”