While the rest of the NBA world is trying to figure out what's wrong with the Knicks, Boston Celtics fans are enjoying the show. New York dropped its fourth-straight game on Monday, falling 114-97 at MSG to a very shorthanded Dallas squad. After losing nine of their last 11 games, they certainly don't look like a team built to win a title.
The Knicks let the Mavericks hang 75 on them in the first half. It was almost like Dallas still had a player named Luka Dončić on the roster, but nope. Max Christie, one of the players they received in the Luka trade, scored a game-high 26 points on 8-of-10 shooting from three. Anthony Davis, who is out for a few weeks with a hand injury, didn't play, nor did Kyrie Irving, who hasn't played all season.
After Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton suffered Achilles injuries in the playoffs, everyone thought that New York and Cleveland would sit atop the conference. Or, we should say everyone except for those in Boston. The Celtics (26-16) have a better record than the Knicks (25-18), sitting a game and a half ahead of them in the East.
New York is just a game and a half from falling out of the top six entirely, and based on how the team is playing, they could soon enter play-in tournament territory.
Knicks are in disarray after losing nine of last 11 games
New York fired Tom Thibodeau after he led the team to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in 25 years. After hitting dead ends in their coaching search, the Knicks settled on Mike Brown, hoping he'd end their title drought, but instead, it seems they're headed in the opposite direction.
Steve Popper of Newsday reported after New York's latest loss that there is speculation around the league that the Knicks could trade Karl-Anthony Towns before the deadline (subscription required). He's declined on the offensive end this season, shooting 46.7% from the field and 35.8% from three, and as everyone knows, especially the Timberwolves, he isn't a strong defender. We don't want to assume, but KAT no longer looks happy in NYC.
It's normal for teams to go through rough stretches during an 82-game regular season, but what the Knicks are currently going through certainly isn't normal for a team hoping to be the last one standing in June. They can't score, they can't defend, and they don't have the same fight they did last season.
The closest New York will come to winning a championship might have already happened when it eliminated Boston in the second round of the playoffs. At least, the Knicks celebrated that like they won it all. Look at where they are now. Yes, there's still half a season left for them to get things together, but this is starting to look like a problem they can't fix.