3 surprises from Knicks season ahead of the 2025 NBA playoffs

The 2024-25 regular season is a wrap for the Knicks. After a 113-105 win on Sunday afternoon against  the Nets, the Knicks finished third in the East with a 51-31 record. The Knicks had a relatively predictable season. Jalen Brunson led the team in scoring for a second consecutive season, Mikal Bridges played all 82 games again and the years-long debate of Tom Thibodeau’s rotations and minutes distributions continued.

There were a few surprises from this year's team that stood out from New York’s regular season that weren’t expected at the season’s start.

Free-throw merchant

OG Anunoby has never been a foul magnet. In the first seven seasons of his career, Anunoby averaged 2.1 free-throw attempts per 36 minutes. That trend continued at the start of this season, but a massive shift has occurred over the final month.

Anunoby has averaged 4.7 free-throw attempts per 36 minutes in the last 18 games. His freebie uptick has been mainly due to driving into the paint with a head of steam. Anunoby’s also attacked mismatches in the post and established a gather step move that draws fouls on a regular basis.

OG with the slam! 💥 pic.twitter.com/YCkSXFfKoy

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) March 20, 2025

The free-throw boost from the Knicks’ demon has led to a boost in scoring (22.7 points) during this late stretch. Anunoby was relatively quiet offensively in New York’s two recent losses to the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers. If the Knicks are going to exceed expectations in the postseason, the club will need him to continue being aggressive.

Three-point averse

When the Knicks acquired Karl-Anthony Towns and Bridges this past offseason, the thought was that the Knicks would be able to launch three-pointers on a regular basis. Towns specifically is one of the most efficient three-point shooting big men in NBA history.

However, that wasn’t the case this season. The Knicks don’t take threes often. New York was 26th in three-point attempts per 100 possessions this season.

Despite the limited hoists from beyond the arc, the Knicks finished the season eighth in three-point percentage, converting 36.9 percent of their long distance attempts. One of the reasons for New York’s top-five finish in offensive efficiency was the team’s three-point shooting accuracy. There’s no reason the Knicks can’t get up more threes. The club features eight rotation players that shot over league-average (36 percent) this season.

The team’s shot diet is geared more toward the midrange: 7.8 percent of New York’s points came from the midrange, fifth in the league, per NBA Stats. If the Knicks advance to a second round showdown with the Celtics, outside shooting will be a significant conversation. In Boston’s 4-0 sweep of the Knicks in the regular season, the Celtics attempted 65 more threes.

Bench positives

The Knicks bench is thin. All season, New York’s reserves have been last in the NBA in scoring by a wide margin.

But when the bench is on the floor, New York is winning. Surprisingly, the highest net rating on the team during the regular season belongs to Cameron Payne. During the backup point guard’s minutes, the Knicks have outscored teams by 9.1 points per 100 possessions. In second place is Miles McBride (plus-7.1 points per 100 possessions).

The two reserve guards have played a considerable amount with Towns, which has yielded positive results. In 353 minutes together, the trio has outscored opponents by 12.0 points per 100 possessions according to PBP Stats. There is some noise to those numbers. Payne and McBride have played heavy minutes in the early stages of the second and fourth quarters when other teams have their bench units on the floor too.

But it does show that the Knicks bench isn’t as much of a weakness when looking beyond raw stats like points scored.