Knicks have an opportunity to move into third place in Eastern Conference
Isaiah Hartenstein and Josh Hart of the Knicks react during the fourth quarter against the Nets at Madison Square Garden on Saturday. Credit: Jim McIsaac
One bad team down, three to go.
Saturday’s 105-93 win over the Nets at Madison Square Garden was the first of four games against lottery-bound teams for the Knicks. Next up is Detroit at home on Monday, followed by games in Toronto and San Antonio to close out the week.
If ever there were a golden opportunity to move up in the standings, this is it. In fact, if the Knicks can go 4-0 in this stretch and get some help from teams playing Cleveland and Orlando, they could very well finish the week in third place in the Eastern Conference.
Third place? Aren’t we asking a little too much?
No, this is not reaching for the impossible. Not for a Knicks team that was able to put together a workmanlike win over the Nets less than 24 hours after returning from a surprisingly successful 10-day road trip.
Not for a Knicks team that exceeded almost everyone’s expectations by going 3-1 on that trip with wins over Portland, Sacramento and Golden State before losing, 113-110, to defending champion Denver.
For the Knicks to do better than they did last postseason — for them to get to the Eastern Conference finals — third place is the place to be. The Boston Celtics are the one team in the conference that borders on unbeatable, so the goal has to be to avoid playing them in the playoffs for as long as possible. That means finishing in either third or sixth place rather than fourth or fifth.
The remainder of the Knicks’ season is all about positioning, and the Knicks needed to set the right tone Saturday. It doesn’t matter that the Nets (26-45) are just a step above miserable. It doesn’t matter that they have lost six straight and eight of nine. After a long trip, this was the kind of game in which observers once would have expected the Knicks to exhale, expected them not to bring their “A’’ game.
“I knew this game would be a challenge, coming off the road the way we did,” coach Tom Thibodeau said. “Find a way to win, and that’s what we did.”
The Knicks (42-28) found a way to break open a tight game on a night when Jalen Brunson, their leader and star, was struggling. Donte DiVincenzo and Deuce McBride stepped up when they had to and a subpar game from Brunson didn’t matter. DiVincenzo scored 13 of his 31 points in the fourth quarter and McBride scored 26 points while playing all 48 minutes.
It’s the emergence of players such as McBride and the dominance of players such as DiVincenzo that makes you think this team has a good chance to make some noise in the playoffs.
It may be the one upside that comes from the fact that the Knicks have had injuries to major players this season. It has forced Thibodeau to look at McBride, who otherwise would be glued to his bench. Or ask more from Josh Hart and Isaiah Hartenstein, who wouldn’t be seeing these extra minutes if the Knicks hadn’t gone long stretches without three starters.
“We don’t want anyone getting injured, but that’s a part of the game,” Thibodeau said. “Whoever the next guy — whether you get into the rotation or your role has been expanded — it’s more opportunity. I think it gives that player a chance to grow.”
Not just players, but the team. If Julius Randle, Mitchell Robinson and OG Anunoby are able to return for the playoffs — and we realize that may be a big if — the Knicks will be a stronger team than they were when they went down.
Any team that can weather the loss of three starters and be in fourth place in its conference is a team that has the mental toughness to be taken seriously.
The Magic, who fell a half-game behind the Knicks with Saturday night’s 109-107 loss to Sacramento, have a tiebreaker advantage over the Knicks and have won 10 of their last 13. At the same time the Knicks are playing four lottery teams, two of the next three teams on Orlando’s schedule — Golden State and the Clippers — are poised to make the playoffs or play-in tournament.
What’s more, third-place Cleveland is just a game ahead of the Knicks. Playing without four of their top eight players, the Cavaliers look very vulnerable.
“I don’t know the standings. I don’t know what this win does for that, but we needed this one,” Hart said. “We had a good road trip, but a tough loss in Denver with a quick turnaround. We needed this.”
Up next? Detroit.
Barbara Barker is an award-winning columnist and features writer in the sports department at Newsday. She has covered sports in New York for more than 20 years.
