5 things to watch for Knicks in second half of season

The Knicks’ 36-18 record puts them in rare territory.

They are the first Knicks team since 1996-97 to reach 36 or more wins through 54 games. Since the start of the Pat Riley era (1991-92), only three other Knicks teams have won 36 games or more at this point in the season.

Two of those teams reached the conference finals. The third (1996-97) probably would have if it weren’t for suspensions stemming from a Game 5 fight in the second-round series against the Heat.

Will this Knicks team make it to the Eastern Conference Finals? We’ll find out in about three months.

In the meantime, New York has to deal with the second hardest schedule in the East. There will be plenty to keep an eye on over the final eight weeks of the regular season – in New York and elsewhere.

Below, we take a look at five things worth monitoring after the All-Star break:

Performance against the beasts of the East

Karl-Anthony Towns is standing a few feet from his locker on Saturday, Feb. 8, about a half hour after the Celtics crushed the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. He’s reflecting on the state of the team after another blowout loss to Boston.  

“We’ve got a lot of work to do, simple as that. There’s no sugar-coating, there’s no moral wins. This is something we’ve gotta work on,” Towns said that night. “If we expect to be the team that y'all have expectations of us to…be and if we also have those same aspirations in this locker room -- which I know we do -- we’ve gotta find a way to beat teams like (Boston).”

The Feb. 8 loss to Boston left the Knicks a combined 0-3 against the Cavaliers and Celtics. After the All-Star break, the Knicks have three games against Cleveland and two games against Boston. They play at Cleveland on the first Friday after the break. They play at Boston two days later.

No matter what happens in those games, the results will be used as a measuring stick for the 2024-25 Knicks.

Recent history shows that they should be.

Only one Eastern Conference champion in the last 10 seasons finished with a sub-.500 record against its two best in-conference opponents.

The 2015-16 Cavs, who finished with the best record in the East that season, went a combined 2-4 against the Raptors and Heat, the No. 2 and No. 3 teams, respectively.

The nine other Eastern Conference champions were, at minimum, 4-4 against their two best in-conference opponents.

Let’s take it one step further: Each of the past 10 Eastern Conference champions finished .500 or better against their three best in-conference opponents.

The Knicks are 2-4 against their top three in-conference opponents (Indiana, Boston and Cleveland).

They do not play the Pacers again in the regular season. If the Pacers finish the season in fourth place, the Knicks will have to go 4-1 in their remaining games against Boston and Cleveland to finish over .500 against their three best in-conference foes.

Something to keep an eye on next weekend when the Knicks play in Cleveland and in Boston.

Is Knicks' clutch play sustainable?

Including the return of OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson on this list is an obvious one.

Will Robinson and Anunoby be medically cleared for contact when the Knicks return to practice on Wednesday? That’s the next known hurdle for both players as they progress back to the court.

I assume Robinson will be brought along slowly in a reserve role and the Knicks will want to take a long look at lineups featuring Robinson and Towns. A less obvious trend that I’ll be watching in the final weeks of the season is New York’s play in clutch situations.

Clutch situations are defined as a game within five points with under five minutes to go. The Knicks have the NBA’s third-best record in clutch games (12-7). They are No. 4 in turnovers forced per 100 possessions and No. 1 in points off of turnovers per 100 possessions. They have the second-best field goal percentage in the clutch (53.4), the No. 1 free-throw percentage (86.5) and the fourth-lowest turnover rate.

As you’d imagine, Jalen Brunson’s numbers in the clutch are strong. He’s shooting 53 percent from the field and has the second-best assist percentage in the NBA among players with at least 18 clutch games.

Hart beat

Josh Hart has been as big a factor as anyone behind the Knicks’ success.

He ranks third in the league in assist ratio among players on the floor for at least 30 minutes per game. Hart is behind Trae Young and Tyrese Haliburton on that list. He is 12th in total rebounds. At 6-4, Hart is at least five inches shorter than the 11 players ahead of him on the list. His rebounds can turn into transition opportunities for the Knicks. New York is averaging 1.21 points per play when Hart has the ball in transition. They are scoring points 60 percent of the time he has the ball in transition.

“I think those breaks are oftentimes the most difficult ones to stop,” Tom Thibodeau said earlier this week when asked about Hart pushing the ball off of a rebound. “It allows you to play fast. But he also initiates offense for us. So we can move Jalen off the ball at times and we think we can get an advantage from that as well.”

Hart has been a great facilitator this season. In addition to his strong assist ratio, Hart ranks 18th in the NBA total assists. LeBron James, Josh Giddey and Domatas Sabonis are the only non-lead guards ahead of Hart on the list. And Hart has the fewest touches per game among those four.

Any way you look at it, Hart has been a driving force for New York. He won’t talk about it but you wonder if Hart is a little banged up going into the break. He’s No. 2 in the NBA in minutes played. He can probably benefit from a few days off. But the Knicks need Hart to be at his best down the stretch and, obviously, in the postseason. So his play is certainly something to watch over the next eight weeks.

15th roster spot

T.J. Warren had a franchise-record 47 points for the Westchester Knicks on Friday in their win over Canton (Cleveland).

"I have a lot of respect for what he’s doing," Thibodeau said of Warren, a nine-year NBA vet. Warren has spent the season in Westchester after being waived by the Knicks at the end of the preseason.

"He’s had a terrific year and he’s been great down there," the head coach said. "For our young guys to watch somebody like that, who loves the game, great teammate and obviously he’s been terrific on the floor; I have a lot of respect for what he’s doing."

The Knicks will be eligible to sign a veteran free agent like Warren on March 1 because the pro-rated veteran's minimum will fit under the second apron. New York's team salary is capped at the second apron ($188.9 million).

Around the league

There are more than a few intriguing storylines outside of New York. The Suns engaged in significant trade talks surrounding Kevin Durant before the trade deadline. Unless Phoenix makes a deep run into June, you can expect those trade talks to pick up again in the offseason, taking calls from suitors ahead of the NBA Draft.

The Mavericks, as SNY reported, were aggressive the day before the deadline, trying to line up a multi-team deal to land Durant. He’ll have many suitors in the offseason.

Will the Sixers eventually shut down Joel Embiid? They are 20-34 and in 11th place in the Eastern Conference. There is little incentive for the Sixers to chase a play-in spot. If their 2025 first-round pick falls outside of the top 6, they’ll have to send it to Oklahoma City. So it’s fair to wonder if Philly eventually decides to sit Embiid in an effort to hold on to its pick.

It’s also worth keeping an eye on how Kyle Kuzma impacts the Bucks down the stretch. Milwaukee fans won’t want to hear this, but the Nets aren’t the only team monitoring the Bucks’ situation as it pertains to Giannis Antetokounmpo. Multiple teams factored a potential offseason run at Antetokounmpo into their decision-making at the deadline. Is it all wishful thinking? Probably. But it certainly bears watching after the All-Star break.