Why the New York Knicks can make the playoffs and thrive

The New York Knicks currently find themselves 6th in the Eastern Conference, and despite coming off a loss to an inferior Orlando Magic team last night,  it looks as though they’re beginning to cement themselves as a team to be reckoned with.

The team has been right on the cusp of the playoffs all season, bouncing around the 6th-11th seed range. There isn’t much in the standings to differentiate a lot of the teams in the East right now. The 11th seed is just 3 games back from the 4th seed.

There’s a lot of basketball left this year.  It’s fair to say that most teams in the NBA right now could make an argument as to how their team is going to at least squeak into the playoffs with the play-in tournament for the bottom seeds at the end of the season. With the Knicks, their argument has substantial evidence.

This is unfamiliar territory for the franchise. It’s almost March — The Knicks haven’t been top 8 in the standings in March since the 2013-14 season.

The difference with the Knicks this year is, well, everything. The team has gone a complete overhaul of both their front office and coaching staff. Even just saying it was an overhaul of “coaching staff and front office” doesn’t give justice to how drastic these changes are.

What it means is a complete shift in scouting,  player development, asset management, draft priorities, defensive and offensive schemes, player rotations, and every other piece of terminology you can think of that relates to running an NBA team.

So while the roster may be very similar to last season, the forces surrounding it essentially started from scratch. Their transformation has been nothing short of spectacular.

So many of the question marks surrounding the Knicks’ organization now seem to have been answered. The potential with this team feels a lot stronger than many of the other teams with similar records in the East.  Let’s take a look at how the team got here and how they can make some noise in the playoffs.

The Knicks’ defense has been dominant

Tom Thibodeau has a long history of coaching in the NBA and his teams have become synonymous with defense. Once an assistant coach with the hardnosed 90s Knicks, he then became the defensive mastermind behind the 2008 champion Boston Celtics, and then lead the Chicago Bulls to their most successful period since Michael Jordan. He’s always pushed the teams he’s coached to be their absolute best.

The same rings true with the 2020-21 New York Knicks. Thibodeau’s defense is grueling not just for opponents but for his own players. That’s why it’s so hard to beat.

Opposing teams come in to play the Knicks and think that there’s no way their opponent can keep up that defensive intensity all game long. There’s no way the team can continue to dart around the court at a rapid pace and bring relentless pressure all game. They’re wrong.

The Knicks defense has dominated all season. On the year, the team currently ranks 1st in points allowed, 1st in opponent field goal percentage, and 1st in opponent 3-point field goal percentage. There is simply no easy way to get shots off against the Knicks.

While the team’s offense isn’t up to par with its defense, it hasn’t played too much of a factor, especially as of late. The defense that the team plays allows them to be competitive with any team they go up against. Teams aren’t themselves when they play the Knicks, and this bodes well for the playoffs.

Even in their recent losses to some of the best teams in the league like the Clippers and the Jazz, the Knicks were in the game until the end. This team hasn’t had an identity in years. Now, they have a defensive persona that makes them a nightmare for anyone to play against. They’ve become a team that no one wants to play in a 7-game series.

The Knicks’ roster has a variety of roles

This Knicks team has something that is essential for any playoff team: The roles within the rotation. Some fans may not be 100% happy with the rotations every night, but it’s clear that the players themselves know their responsibilities for the team.

The starting unit is an all-out defensive blitz. The healthy starting five of Payton, Bullock, Barrett, Randle, and Robinson is full of physically strong players. They set the tone for the entire game.

Has the starting lineup had woes on offense? Absolutely, but again, they are the ones who establish the flow of the game that the Knicks want to set. They want to come out from the opening tip and let people know that this is the best defense in the league.

Then, the Knicks bench comes in, and it’s an entirely different game. The backcourt tandem of Derrick Rose and Immanuel Quickley is a drastic change from the starters and it’s a nightmare to gameplan against. Opponents have to worry about keeping up with the speed and shooting of the Knicks’ 2nd unit – A dramatic shift from the gameplan for the Knicks’ starters.

You have two completely different players – A veteran in Rose and a prolific rookie in Immanuel Quickley, who have thrived in their roles as bench scorers.

Then there are the franchise players. Julius Randle has completely transformed his game. His awareness on the court has taken a huge leap from just last season, and he’s become both the facilitator and scorer that the team can run the offense through. Immanuel Quickley called Randle “A role model, someone to look up to. ”

The Knicks’ most prized prospect, RJ Barrett, has very much been the Robin to Randle’s Batman. He may not be the leading scorer every night, but he’s taken some big steps in his game and is a significant part of the team’s success. There is zero selfishness on this team, and the commitment to winning as a group is paramount for playoff success.

The Knicks are always ready to compete

Between the lockdown defense and the balance of different player roles on the team, the Knicks have a completely different swagged than years past. It’s more than just the results in the win column, it’s how this team responds to adversity.

The Knicks have been heartbreakingly close in some of their losses, and it hasn’t put down the team’s morale. The Knicks of years past have typically spiraled after tough losses. Not this team.

The world “Culture” probably gets tossed around way too frequently in the sports world, but it carries a lot of meaning. It’s the essence, the vibes, the “je ne sais quoi” of a sports organization. The Knicks’ “Culture” has been mocked and ridiculed for decades, and now it seems like we can finally turn the page on that ugly, 2-decade long chapter.

It doesn’t feel as though this team is barely hanging on like so many of the fringe playoff teams in the East. They have their identity. It very much feels like this team knows who they are, and how they can win any game with the roster they have.

This isn’t the dream franchise that fans had played out video games for years — Where the Knicks are thriving with a big-3 team of superstar Kristaps Porzingis, All-Star scorer Kevin Knox, and their lockdown 2-way point guard Frank Ntilikina. This is actually real.

This team was built through front office management, strong leadership, and terrific player-coach relationships. This is a dominant Knicks team that can make some noise in the playoffs. Look out, the Knicks are back.