Game Preview: Knicks at Thunder, January 3, 2025

The Knicks are in an interesting place right now. They are in the midst of a nine-game winning streak, which is tied for the longest of Tom Thibodeau’s Knicks tenure, and are coming off of a solid win against the Jazz without star point guard Jalen Brunson, where their defense shined. And over the last few weeks, the confidence around the team from both the fans, as well as those covering the league, has consistently gone up.

Brunson has continued to be the rock that this team often falls back on more often than not. Karl-Anthony Towns is putting together a dominant season that may go down as one of, if not, the best season of his career. OG Anunoby, despite his offensive inconsistencies, remains one of the most entertaining defenders to watch in the league. Josh Hart has gone from feeling lost in the preseason to being a nightly triple-double threat. And Mikal Bridges has won over Knicks fans’ hearts by becoming the truly reliable third option they thought they trading for.

But amidst this impressive stretch, there’s been one thing lacking. A win against a true contender. Now, New York does have quality wins against the Magic (twice), as well as a pair of wins against both the Timberwolves, and Spurs, who are both over .500. And in a league where any team can be beaten by anyone on any given night, the Knicks, regardless of how impressive, or not impressive, their wins have been, still deserve some credit for taking care of business and beating the teams they are supposed to beat. But tonight, they’ll have maybe their hardest challenge of the entire season as they head into Oklahoma City to take on a Thunder team that is first in the west and comes into tonight’s contest with a league-best 13-game winning streak.

While the game, for whatever reason, has been sidelined to NBA TV, all eyes will be on this contest for multiple reasons. It’s the fourth time in NBA history where two teams with at least a nine-game winning streak are meeting up. The game also has some marquee names that are likely All-Stars like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, as well as the aforementioned Brunson, and Towns. It’ll also include a matchup between the players with the two highest plus/minuses in the league since the end of October in Gilgeous-Alexander, and Bridges. And these two teams are top two in the league in both defensive rating and net rating since December 15th.

Projected Starters

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has gone from a nice bench piece on the Clippers to a potential All-Star, to perennial MVP candidate leading what many believe to be a top two team in the league. While he did start off the season relatively slow, at least for his standards, he’s been unstoppable as of late, and his stats on the season are right back up to where many expected them to be. On the season, he is averaging 31.2PPG, 6.1APG, 5.5RPG, and 2.0SPG while shooting 52.8% from the field, and 35.1% from three. If the Knicks are to have a shot at winning this game, they’ll have to try and at least slow down the 26 year-old guard.

Starting alongside Gilgeous-Alexander in the backcourt is the second-year guard, Cason Wallace. The 6’3” 21 year-old started in just 13 games all of last season, but has already eclipsed that number this season, starting in 19 games. The offensive numbers are far from impressive, and there are some concerns with him going from a 41.9% three-point shooter last year, to a 29.9% three-point shooter this year, but his instincts on defense are special, especially for his age. Wallace routinely gets his hands on the ball, and is a natural disruptor on that end of the floor. Chances are he’ll likely be a thorn in the Knicks’ side tonight.

By this point, I’m sure Knicks fans don’t need to be introduced to Jalen Williams since he exploded for 33 points, eight assists, and four rebounds last April. But if you haven’t been paying attention, or somehow forgot, this is a reminder that Williams is really good. And he’s only gotten better since the last time these two teams met up. The third year forward is averaging 20.9PPG, 5.8RPG, 5.2APG, 1.8SPG, and 0.7BPG, which are all career-highs. Gilgeous-Alexander is obviously the one that makes this team go, but Williams isn’t too far behind and is almost always there to step up when Gilgeous-Alexander needs a running mate.

At the other forward position will be Lu Dort. The physical defender has seemingly been around forever, but he is just 25 years old. While his offensive numbers, like Wallace’s, aren’t that impressive, Dort’s much improved floor spacing, physicality, and defense remain an important piece of the Thunder and their success.

And last, but certainly not least, is former Knick, Isaiah Hartenstein. It was no secret that whatever team got Hartenstein, would improve and benefit greatly from his help side defense, rim protection, screening, and passing. So it’s no surprise that the Thunder, who pried him away from the Knicks with a three-year $87 million contract, have looked incredibly impressive with the big man back in the lineup. In the 18 games he’s played thus far, Hartenstein is averaging 12.6PPG, 12.2RPG, and 3.9APG, all of which are career-highs.

Prediction

For those of you that may not have kept up with the Thunder this season, or aren’t too intimidated by their 27-5 record, beware. This team is incredibly good, and this game will be no easy task for the Knicks. Oklahoma City has the best defensive rating in the league by a wide margin, has length at almost every position, is athletic, and they work relentlessly on that side of the ball. Offensively, the are also very adept. They have the seventh highest offensive rating in the league and have a top three offensive player in the league in Gilgeous-Alexander, as well as an All-Star caliber sidekick in Williams, who is capable of taking over any given game.

That doesn’t mean the Knicks can’t win though. We’ve seen time and time again that this Knicks team has the players, and talent, to score against anyone, and do so in bunches. And while their defensive rating as of late has been assisted by a relatively mediocre schedule, there is no denying that it has taken some big leaps over the last four weeks. That being said, I don’t know if the Knicks have enough to beat the Thunder right now, especially on the road. The Thunder not only have an amazing starting lineup, they have a deep bench that should help keep their starters much more fresh than the Knicks’ starters. That, along with the question marks surrounding Burnson, and backup point guard Deuce McBride, is a bit worrying. I think Towns, Bridges, Hart, Anunoby, and Brunson, if he can go, will all have solid games, but I think the Thunder edge them out 115-110.

Game Details

Date: Friday, January 3, 2025

Time: 8:00 PM ET

Place: Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK

TV: MSG, NBATV

Follow: @ptknicksblog and bsky