Everyone knows that nobody wins the blame game. But much like Friday night’s loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, the New York Knicks couldn’t seem to care less.
As if an encore to the pair of losses that preceded it, New York broke new ground in the space of disappointing losses, this time blowing a 23-point lead to a Cleveland team without NBA All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell.
April 11: Final
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Darius Garland finished with 26 points on the night sans his All-Star backcourt mate, including 13 points in the fourth quarter on 6-for-6 shooting.
Max Strus added three triples to Garland’s final-frame crusade, as three-point defense remains a glaring weakness for these Knicks. He was wide-open on all three shots.
New York scored just 16 points in the fourth quarter on a day that featured all 30 teams in the NBA on the schedule. Only one team scored less than the Knicks in a fourth quarter: the Memphis Grizzlies, who are spiraling so hard they fired their head coach days before the playoffs.
Not good company to keep.
New York finishes the 2024-2025 campaign with an 0-8 record against the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers, the two top teams in the East. It doesn’t get less inspiring than that. Few 50-win teams have ever felt closer to their ceiling.
With only one game remaining on the season, the Knicks are running out of time to run diagnostics checks. And they know it.
Head coach Tom Thibodeau told reporters after the game that New York has to find a sense of urgency with the playoffs just days away.
“We’ve just gotta be honest with ourselves, look at what we did wrong,” Thibodeau told reporters on April 12. “We’ve got to get it fixed, and we’ve got to get it fixed fast.”
When asked what specifically needs fixing, Thibodeau was candid. “Everything,” Thibodeau responded. “You have got to play for 48 minutes, both sides of the ball.”
Josh Hart shared Thibodeau’s concern, admitted the Knicks are coming up short, and implied the regular-season finale against the Brooklyn Nets is all but a must-win.
“We’re not playing close to our best basketball,” Hart said. “I think this week, we’ll look at situations and how to get us to play our best basketball, offensively, defensively…We have got to go out there and end the season right in Brooklyn.”
Hart finished with 8 points, 11 rebounds, and 5 assists in 34 minutes on Friday. His play since the All-Star break has left little to be desired on both ends:
- Before the All-Star Break (53 GP): 14.7 points, 9.6 rebounds, 5.7 assists, and 1.5 steals per game on 55/33/81 shooting splits, with a total plus-minus of +195.
- Since the All-Star Break (24 GP): 11.3 points, 9.4 rebounds, 6.3 assists, and 1.5 steals on 45/32/67 shooting splits, with a total plus-minus of +8.
The 32% shooting from three since the All-Star Break is a luxury Hart no longer knows. He’s made just 8-of-29 (27%) threes over the last 10 games.
Hart’s value as a starter is centered around his ability to hit threes on at least an average rate. If he can’t provide that come playoffs, Thibodeau may have to consider a change and lean into a true five-out offense.
Whether or not he will make that change is another matter altogether.
Jalen Brunson, who finished with 27 points against the Cavaliers, echoed Thibodeau’s sentiments postgame when asked about his coach’s comments: “Everything that you guys see, and we see, we have got to fix that.”
Brunson and New York are locked into a first-round, best-of-seven playoff series with the Detroit Pistons.
That said, it’s fair to wonder how seriously the Knicks will approach the regular-season finale in Brooklyn.
Most teams use it as an opportunity to get younger, more inexperienced guys some run. New York may not have that luxury.
If it were up to Brunson, competing would be the only option.
“I want to win Sunday,” he told reporters. “That’s plain and simple. Regardless.”
There are worse ways to end a season than snapping a losing streak with a win over your crosstown rivals. If only it was that simple for the Knicks.
Maybe it is.
