New York, New York
By John Jastremski
We have reached the All Star break of this 2025-2026 NBA season.
As a whole, I’d say the Knicks are basically right around where I thought they would be at this point.
They are 35-20 and have the third best record in the Eastern Conference. 1/2 game back of Boston for 2nd place & 6 games back of upstart Detroit for 1st.
The narrative around the team is actually quite similar to where we were a season ago.
Last year, it was the struggles with the Boston Celtics that appeared incredibly problematic.
This year, it happens to be the Knicks’ struggles with the Detroit Pistons. In both matchups this year, the Knicks have been absolutely dominated and it sounds the alarm of concern for Playoff Time.
For me, I’m not there with that narrative. Last year was the perfect lesson for why I am not.
The Celtics won all 4 matchups with the Knicks in the regular season. The Knicks flipped that vibe on its head winning the 2nd round playoff series in 6 games.
Yes, the Knicks play the Pistons this coming Thursday. I’d prefer to see the Knicks win that game and silence this building narrative.
That said, the bigger concerns for the team moving forward are these:
- How do you mask the defensive deficiencies of Jalen Brunson and Karl Anthony Towns on the floor together?
- How do you get Karl Anthony Towns back offensively to where he was a season ago?
If the Knicks can solve those two riddles, they will be playing in the NBA Finals. If they don’t, they will be soul searching in a big way this summer.
The Knicks midseason report card grade is a solid B, but it will be a monstrous swing between now and the spring.
For a group that’s been knocking at the door the past few seasons, the only grade that matters is the final.
Stay tuned for the result!
You can listen to my podcast New York, New York on The Ringer Podcast Network every Sunday/Thursday on Spotify/Apple Podcasts. You can watch me nightly on Honda Sportsnite at 11 PM on SNY.
