As hard as it may be to believe, we are finally in mid-April. While college basketball has wrapped up for the year, the NBA playoff picture is nearly set in stone, with the conclusion of the NBA Play-In Tournament deciding the remaining playoff berths. A massive headline around the league came out of the Eastern Conference, specifically about the New York Knicks. Despite having an injury-riddled season, which saw nearly the entire starting lineup miss time, the Knicks won 50 games and managed to clinch the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference. The team has been playing solid basketball as of late, beating out teams like the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks in dominant fashion. If New York wishes to make their first NBA Finals appearance since 1999, they must ride this momentum as they face the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round.
Knicks fans’ biggest storyline heading into this year’s postseason is that they will have to do it without their All-Star power forward, Julius Randle. The 29-year-old hasn’t played a game since Jan. 27, when he dislocated his shoulder after landing awkwardly on his right side. There was hope that Randle would suit up again, although the risk of worsening his already compromised shoulder was too great, so the forward opted for season ending surgery. While this is a massive loss for the Knicks, their season is far from done.
Since New York is the No. 2 seed in the East, they will have home court advantage for the first two rounds, a significant leg up on their opponents. If the Knicks make it that far and Boston lose prematurely, this advantage will carry over to the Eastern Conference finals.
If New York wishes to make it past Philadelphia, they will need Jalen Brunson to keep playing at an MVP level. The 6-foot-2 guard is amid his best campaign yet, finishing the year averaging nearly 29 points and 7 assists per night in over 35 minutes of work. What makes Brunson’s feat even more impressive is how efficient he is, owning a 48% field goal percentage and a 40% mark from downtown.
Since OG Anunoby also missed extended time with elbow inflammation, Brunson needed to play a much more prominent role in the offense, and he did so when called upon. In that span, the 27-year-old averaged 36 points a night on nearly 50% shooting from the field. Brunson played a significant role in New York’s run last season, helping them win their first playoff series in 10 years. However, there is one key difference from last year’s team: Brunson finally has help.
Donte DiVincenzo has been a man on a mission for the Knicks. While his 16 points per night average isn’t the most eye-popping stat in the world, the impact he’s made on Tom Thibodeau’s squad has only grown as the season has progressed. Since Randle went down, DiVincenzo has improved from his previous average of 13 points a night to over 20 points per game. The 6-foot-4 guard has not only been a big-time shooter for New York, owning a 40% slash from beyond the arc, but has proven himself valuable on the defensive end
DiVincenzo will likely be forced to switch onto Kelly Oubre Jr., one of Philadelphia’s many offensive weapons New York will need to keep an eye on. The way Brunson guards opposing point guard Tyrese Maxey will play a pivotal role in this first round matchup. The 23-year-old has been the most consistent player all season long for Philadelphia, playing in a team-high 70 games. Maxey has accumulated 26 points and 6 assists in nearly 38 minutes per contest in that span. All said, the deciding factor in this series will be how much of an impact center Joel Embiid makes. The 7-foot big man has had an excellent season up to this point, averaging 35 points, 11 rebounds and 6 assists per night, albeit with a slight caveat: he hasn’t been healthy for most of the season.
Embiid only played 39 games this year after he tore his meniscus on Jan. 30 against the Golden State Warriors. His health, and that of Knicks big man Mitchell Robinson, will be significant questions for both sides. Embiid had an excellent April, averaging 30 points and 9 rebounds a night in 31 minutes. It appears the Philly big man is near full strength. Take his most recent outing in the NBA Play-In; Embiid played 38 minutes, and in that time, he scored 23 points and snagged 15 boards in his team’s 105-104 win over the Miami Heat to secure the No. 7 seed in the East.
While there isn’t necessarily a correlation between the regular season head-to-head record and performance in the postseason, it’s hard to ignore how dominant New York has been against their Eastern Conference rivals. The Knicks finished 3-1 against the 76ers, with their only loss coming when Anunoby and Randle were both out.
New York has stayed competitive despite significant injury losses. Brunson has defied expectations and is playing at an MVP level, with the team getting healthier by the day. Not to mention, the Knicks come into their Saturday matchup off nearly a week’s rest. Add all that up, and fans should expect this team to come out of the gates firing on all cylinders. Suddenly, the idea of the Knicks making a deep playoff run and winning the Larry O’Brien Trophy isn’t as far-fetched as most would have thought.