Five questions for the Knicks at the All-Star break
Knicks forward OG Anunoby drives to the basket ahead of Sacramento Kings guard Malik Monk in the second half of an NBA game at Madison Square Garden on Jan. 25. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
The Knicks reached the All-Star break — albeit five minutes later than planned after it took a frantic overtime finish against Atlanta on Wednesday night to get there — with a 36-18 record (.667), their best winning percentage at the break since the 1996-97 season, when it took a fight in Miami to derail their title hopes.
So there should be few complaints or questions for the Knicks as Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns head to San Francisco for the All-Star Game and the rest of the team takes a well-earned vacation. As long as the Knicks don’t get in a fight in the final minutes of a playoff game and have much of the team step off the bench, it should be all good.
It’s not that easy, though. As the more recent incarnations of the Knicks can attest, things can go wrong and end your hopes and dreams in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
So here are five questions for which the Knicks need to prove they have the right answers to take this win-now team to the franchise’s first title since 1973.
1. What did OG Anunoby’s injury prove?
While the critics of coach Tom Thibodeau point to the minutes piled on the starting five, the odd contrast to the criticism has been that the Knicks’ starters had been on the floor together nearly every game while most teams had key pieces sidelined for long stretches with injuries.
So when Anunoby went to the floor against the Lakers two weeks ago with what the team called a right foot sprain, it was understandable that the doubters would rise up. Anunoby missed six straight games heading to the break. Maybe he’ll be back in the starting lineup when the season resumes with three weeks of rest and rehab time for him — perhaps a good thing as the Knicks head toward the finish line.
But his absence did point out the tenuous nature of the Knicks’ title hopes — relying on the five starters to be on the court. The Knicks’ starting five has played 806 minutes on the floor together, far outpacing the next five-man unit (Minnesota with 528 minutes). It’s good for developing cohesiveness in their first season together, but it also shows how reliant the Knicks are on that group.
2. How can the bench help?
Now that we’ve talked about how important the starting five is, we get to the reason that’s true. The Knicks’ deep roster shifted when they made the moves for Towns and Mikal Bridges. That has meant making do with a second unit that has few fans doing the familiar cries of “Thibs needs to play [fill in the blank] more.”
Injuries have caused some of the depth issues, but the Knicks also have tried to rely on a group that has proved little. Deuce McBride is a reliable and versatile player, still a defensive demon and growing by leaps and bounds offensively throughout his career. Cam Payne already has contributed more than might have been expected when he signed on this summer. The belief was that he was a break-glass-in-case-of-emergency roster piece to provide a veteran playmaker if something happened to Brunson, but he has become a valuable piece with his boundless energy and shooting that nearly matches his confidence in his shot. But the Knicks have been missing defensive size and a rim protector.
3. What’s realistic for Mitchell Robinson?
It’s hard to imagine that the Knicks can count on Robinson, who has missed the entire season after his second surgery in the last 14 months on his left ankle. The Knicks need a rim-protecting center; when healthy, Robinson is elite at that, a player who can provide defense and rebounding either off the bench or working next to Towns. But can the Knicks rely on his creaky ankle even after giving him such a long runway for a return to action?
4. When will the defense get better?
The Knicks rank 20th in the NBA in defensive rating, according to basketball-reference.com. Although the game is changing, the 115 rating is on pace to be not only the worst of Thibodeau’s tenure in New York but the worst in franchise history. That just doesn’t feel right for a Thibodeau team when he’s preaching defense, rebounding and low turnovers to his team on a nightly basis.
Could health make a difference with Anunoby back, Robinson in the rotation and a healthy McBride? Sure. Since Anunoby went out, the Knicks are ranked 28th in the league in defensive rating, ahead of only Chicago and New Orleans. But for a team that was supposed to be built on defense around the pairing of Bridges and Anunoby, stoppers who supposedly could handle the best wings in the league, it hasn’t happened yet.
5. Can they beat the best?
The Knicks head into the break with the impressive record, but they are 0-5 against the three teams with better records than them — Oklahoma City, Cleveland and Boston. Three of those losses have been disheartening blowouts.
So is that real?
“We haven’t really accomplished anything,” Brunson said after Wednesday’s victory. “We have a long way to go to get to where we want to go. It’s all about just taking one day at a time. Right now it’s just to rest and recharge and come back ready to go.”
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
