Same Ole, Same Ole
It's time for the Knicks to put the regular season behind them.
Game 81: Cavs 108, Knicks 102
Show me, don’t tell me.
Actions over words.
Seeing is believing.
Whatever your preferred turn of phrase, the concept is undeniable.
If you have a significant sample size of evidence over a lengthy portion of time, the smart money says that it’s probably worth paying attention to.
For the 2024-25 New York Knicks, that body of evidence is nearly complete. Even if we presume they’ll play the maximum number of remaining games possible (28; maybe don’t bet the farm on that one), they will have still played 75 percent of their season. It’s also possible they’re 95 percent of their way through this battle of attrition, although even the most pessimistic fan probably doesn’t believe they’re about to get swept.1
Either way, it’s been more than enough games to get a feel for what this team is, and more importantly, what it isn’t.
In that sense, Friday night was a microcosm of their entire season, with a blazing offensive start out of the gate that eventually fizzled and was ultimately overshadowed by seemingly unsolvable defensive issues. The only difference was that this time, Karl-Anthony Towns wasn’t there to shoulder the blame.
By now, we all know the issues, chapter and verse.
Opposing offenses that see targets on the backs of the two stars. The inability of the supporting defensive infrastructure to make up the difference. The lack of a second traditional shot creator. And of course, a perimeter player whose offensive deficiencies haven’t prevented his head coach from playing him more minutes than anyone in the league.
Speaking of Josh Hart, it’s telling that after the game, he sounded not like the locker room leader of a 50-win three seed, but like a player whose team was already trailing 2-0 in a best of seven series.
We gotta find what makes this team successful.
When you’re still asking this question after 81 games, it’s probably not a great sign.
Hart may be the only one vocalizing it, but everyone has to be thinking it. That includes the head coach, who sounded like a man at the end of his rope after the loss. He no doubt knows that the next several weeks will determine whether or not he’s the one hanging from that rope when the dust settles, which engenders even more curiosity about what buttons he has left to push.
The most obvious one - drastically reducing Hart’s minutes and playing more five-out lineups - has been a long time coming, but there’s a wrinkle there too. New York’s first round opponent is one of the biggest, most physical teams in the league, and Hart represents an obvious counter to that strength. Sure enough, the on/off numbers say Josh has been the most valuable Knick against the Pistons this season. Far more distressing is that Jalen Brunson has been by far the worst despite some incredible individual stats.
But like I wrote last week following the Boston game, this isn’t about the opponent. It’s about the face looking back at you in the mirror, and how these Knicks can find something within themselves to turn the tide.
Is that possible? We’ve seen signs of it here and there - I promise you, not every one of those 50 wins is a complete mirage - but at no point have the vibes approached the immaculate levels of last season, as Andrew Claudio reminded me this morning.
We shall see. There’s one regular season game to go, but I don’t see a world where that changes much of anything.
The hope is that the Knicks discover something over the next seven days, otherwise it’s going to a summer of upheaval in one way or another.
Maybe that’s for the best. Sometimes, things just need to change.
The overwhelming evidence says it needs to.
If seeing is believing, we’ve seen more than enough.
Stars of the Game for Cleveland coming on Monday.
🏀
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”
I am praying to the good Lord that this footnote serves as a reverse jinx, but we’re seven years removed from the third seeded Portland Trail Blazers getting swept by the sixth seeded New Orleans Pelicans, who were led by a former No. 1 overall pick finally coming into his own as a superstar. The Blazers, meanwhile, were led by two offensive tentpoles who were each defensive liabilities, including an All-NBA caliber guard. Despite much speculation and six years on the job, Terry Stotts wasn’t fired after the sweep, and came back to lead Portland to the West Finals the following year.
There’s been a lot of talk about how “this has to be one of the worst 50 win seasons ever”. I think that being consistently good is just new to us and we should all take a deep breath (me included).
There are countless 50 win teams that aren’t real contenders or feel disappointing. The Lakers are a 50 win team that nobody thinks will win the championship. Rockets too. Last year the Suns won 48 and nobody was shocked they got swept out of the playoffs.
I think most of our collective anxiety is tied to our future flexibility, which we still have, albeit to a different extent. Whereas we used to be flush with movable picks, now we’re flush with movable talent.
Trying to talk myself into being rational over the next few weeks.
I'd be pleased to get past the pistons. However we need one of Dadiet or McCullers in the rotation next year for 3 and D with some size. We have no draft picks so it is these two or some free agent to be named.