The New York Knicks got by with a little help from their friends on Monday night.
Though the Knicks were idle, they officially clinched their fourth consecutive playoff berth, becoming the third team to secure a spot on the Eastern Conference bracket.
The driving force was the Miami Heat’s 119-109 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, the last current Play-In Tournament participant with a shot at catching Manhattan. The Knicks (48-27) had two opportunities to earn their playoff clinch after a seven-game winning streak, but dropped consecutive games in Charlotte and Oklahoma City, the latter coming on Sunday night.
New York is thus playoff-bound for the fourth consecutive season, setting a streak for the first time since a 14-year run from 1988 to 2001. The Knicks join Detroit and Boston in the Eastern tournament, while Oklahoma City and San Antonio have secured their spots in the West.
The Knicks, of course, have their sights set on larger aspirations with playoff appearances becoming the new bare minimum since Jalen Brunson’s rise to glory. Along with Boston and Denver, the Knicks are one of three teams to win at least one playoff series in each of the last three years. The Knicks are fresh off a long-sought appearance in the Eastern Conference Finals, where they fell to the Indiana Pacers in six games.
This year’s playoff clinch is secured with seven games left on the Knicks’ docket. Entering this week, the Knicks are in the third seed, which currently pits them against No. 6 Atlanta. New York is two games behind Boston for the second seed after the Celtics dropped a 112-102 decision to, ironically enough, Atlanta on Monday.
The Knicks return to action on Tuesday when part three of a four-legged road trip is staged in Houston (8 p.m. ET, MSG/NBC).
