With Jalen Brunson out for some time with a sprained ankle, one has to wonder if the New York Knicks will be able to maintain their current pace in the Eastern Conference standings. While their schedule does get lighter over the coming weeks, the possibility of slipping out of the third seed is very possible.
The Knicks can avoid the Celtics in the second round with a lower seed
Currently, they are four games up on the Milwaukee Bucks for the third seed with 19 games remaining. It is not super likely that they will fall out of that position, but if they were to, it may be a good thing for the Knicks.
If the playoffs began today, New York would play the sixth-seeded Detroit Pistons in the first round. Assuming they were to advance to the next round, they would play the winner of the matchup between the second seed and the seventh seed, and the Boston Celtics currently hold the second seed.
Assuming that the defending champions handily knock off their first-round opponent, that would leave the Knicks having to play Boston in the second round. The Celtics have owned the Knicks this season with three blowouts, and it is clear that New York is simply not on their level right now.
That would put the odds in the Knicks’ favor to fall in the second round for a third consecutive year, which would not bode well with fans and the media considering the high expectations placed on them this season. Therefore, if they were able to avoid the Celtics until at best the Eastern Conference Finals and make it that far, it would look better on them from an optics standpoint.
The Knicks might fare better with a second-round matchup against the Cavaliers
If they slipped to the fourth seed, they would play the fifth seed in the first round – which is currently the Indiana Pacers, and the winner of the No. 1 seed vs. No. 8 seed matchup. The Cleveland Cavaliers are currently the first seed and are running away with it, making it likely that they will finish the year in that spot.
While Cleveland has also handed the Knicks two losses this season, New York might match up better with them now that Mitchell Robinson is back. Robinson and Karl-Anthony Towns could both start in the frontcourt to slow down Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, which could be a huge boost for them.
Additionally, the Knicks have handled the Cavaliers in the playoffs before, as they knocked them out in five games in the 2023 playoffs, though that was a completely different Knicks team.
Nevertheless, the next few weeks are going to be tough for New York without their star player, but slipping in the standings may not be the worst thing in the world for them when it comes down to playoff matchups.