Knicks close out 2024 feeling good with Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges fitting in perfectly
Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns dunks during the second half of an NBA game against the Washington Wizards on Monday in Washington. Credit: AP/Terrance Williams
WASHINGTON — In the Knicks' locker room at Capital One Center late Monday night the blare of the music competed with the sounds of laughter, the team happily celebrating their eighth straight win and heading into the New Year with the belief that all of their offseason dreams could come true.
And why not? The eight-game winning streak had pushed the Knicks to 23-10 on the season, just 5 1/2 games behind Cleveland for the top spot in the East and now just one-half game back of Boston for the second seed. The Knicks have been healthy, at least for the vital starting unit, and the answers about fit in the rebuild have been answered — on the court and in the giddy locker room.
You could point to the less than stellar opposition the Knicks have faced during this streak, but note that much of it has come on the road. Through the first 33 games the Knicks have played 19 on the road — only Indiana with 20 had more road games through New Year’s Eve. By comparison, Cleveland and Boston had just 14 entering Tuesday.
More than numbers though, Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau has managed to fit the new pieces — Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges — into the existing structure of the team that reached the Eastern Conference Semifinals last season and not lost a step.
“I think we’re in a good spot,” Towns said. “We’re playing good basketball. We’re not at our best at all. I think what’s really good about this team right now is we’re finding ways to win when we’re not at our best. That’s something you’re going to need, especially in the playoffs and in those high-pressure moments in the regular season when you need to scratch out a win. I’ve talked a lot about Knicks basketball, that grit it takes to be a Knick. I think all of us are showing that, especially so far this year.”
The turning of the calendar may be an arbitrary measure in the season, but it seems worth noting that from the massive trade for Towns on the eve of the preseason to now, the team has found its footing faster than anyone could have expected.
The Knicks will start the New Year the way they ended 2024 — facing one of the lottery-bound teams, Utah, at Madison Square Garden. But they then head to Oklahoma City to face the Thunder, the only team riding a longer winning streak (11) than the Knicks.
“We try not to think about it," Josh Hart said. "I think at the end of the day, winning streaks, they're cool, they keep the vibes great, but we know there's peaks and valleys to the NBA season. We're on an eight-game winning streak right now, but we could drop two or three.”
Health has played a part. After Monday’s games the Knicks had four players in the top six in total minutes played — Bridges first, OG Anunoby third, Hart fourth and Jalen Brunson sixth. Towns was 18th. But cutting down on practices and even bypassing morning shootarounds, Thibodeau has managed to keep the team intact while many teams have seen stars head to the sidelines with an assortment of injuries. There have been almost no absences among the starters and no complaints about minutes or roles.
There could still be moves to be made, seeking to add depth to the roster with no certain timeline for when — if — Mitchell Robinson returns this season.
“You never have it all figured out,” Thibodeau said. “It’s day to day. You have to make that commitment. You have to put work into each and every day. And so there are a lot of variables that go into this. Where are you in your schedule? Is it a heavy road month? Is it a heavy home month? How do the games unfold? You have back-to-backs? You have three in four?
Oftentimes you see when you look at games and you say that team should win that game it doesn’t work that way …
“And I’d say this, you never can feel too good about it because you can get knocked off easily. And so you always have to guard against that. So if you start feeling too good about yourself that’s usually when you get knocked down. And you can’t skip over anything. You have to have urgency. It’s more about the will to prepare than anything else. That’s what gives you confidence. So I think approaching it the right way is huge, a big part of winning.”
The approach for Thibodeau is the same for the start of 2025 as it was from day one — and will continue on to the 82nd game. But questions have been answered already as the new year arrives and the answers are as good as the team could hope.
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.
