Opening Night Set
Plus a few more revealed games for the '26-27 schedule, some discouraging Deuce news, and the 60th player on the Knicks 100.
Good morning! Busy news day for mid-August, so let’s get right to it.
News & Notes
🏀 The NBA’s annual schedule unveiling began yesterday, when we learned of three games the Knicks would be featured in:
Tuesday, October 20 against the Sixers as part of the league’s first ever triple header on Opening Night
Friday, October 23 in Boston for the league’s first Amazon Prime night
Christmas Day at 12pm at home for a Finals rematch with the Spurs
More games will be revealed tomorrow before the full slate drops on Thursday at 3pm. I was initially surprised they went with Knicks Spurs on Christmas as opposed to an East team coming to MSG, but December 25 remains the NBA’s marquee day and there will be competing NFL games on from 1pm to midnight. No use saving your bullets I suppose.
🏀 Stephan Bondy had a discouraging tweet last night for those of us hoping to see a Deuce McBride extension happen this summer:
The tea leaves are increasingly negative where McBride’s long term future in New York is concerned, and this seems to be a matter of when, not if he gets moved. Very much hoping to be wrong for our newest friend of the pod.
🏀 Lastly, it’s not a news item, but an official shout out goes to KFS subscriber Nick L. When I announced the Knicks 100 countdown a month ago, I vaguely described four players who came in between 60 and 80 on the list and promised a shout to anyone who correctly guessed the four players based on my breadcrumbs. Nick was the only one to nail it, guessing Vince Boryla, Derrick Rose, Rory Sparrow, and today’s entrant, coming in at No. 60…
Landry Freaking Shamet
Mitchell Robinson. Bernard King. OG Anunoby. Landry Shamet.
What do those four men have in common? I’ll give you a second to think about it.
While you’re pondering, I’d like to remind everyone that for a nearly two-week stretch at the beginning of the playoffs, Landry Shamet lost his spot in New York’s rotation. After playing 17 minutes against the Hawks in Game 1 and making just one of the six shots he attempted, Shamet saw under 10 minutes in Game 2 and then just three minutes in Game 3, none of which came in the second half. Outside of a couple possessions, he played only garbage time in Games 4, 5 and 6 against Atlanta and Game 1 against Philly.
Then, seeing the Knicks down five with under five minutes to go in the first half against a frisky Sixers team missing Joel Embiid, Mike Brown called Shamet’s number. He only played eight minutes in the game and didn’t attempt a shot, but the eight-year vet helped change the energy in the building. His plus-six equaled New York’s eventual margin of victory.
And with that, the floodgates opened.
