Can the Knicks make the play-in tournament?

The New York Knicks have won two games in a row and while that may not seem like a big deal, it actually is. New York broke a seven-game losing streak on Sunday in Los Angeles and carried that same energy over to Sacramento the following night. As of Mar. 9, the Knicks are 4.5 games back from a play-in tournament spot in the Eastern Conference.

Let’s be realistic because if New York does weasel its way into 10th place, the chances of the team advancing to the first round of the playoffs will still be slim.

To make it to the play-in tournament in general, the Knicks still have a ways to go. As we all know, the regular season is winding down and time unfortunately isn’t on New York’s side.

However, let’s take a look at the Knicks’ remaining 17 games to evaluate the team’s chances of doing the impossible and making the tournament.

Can the New York Knicks make the NBA play-in tournament?

At the very least, New York needs the No. 11 Wizards (29-34) and the No. 10 Hawks (31-33) to go on a complete downward spiral. The No. 13 Pacers (22-45) are a good ways behind New York (27-38) so Indiana creeping up in the standings isn’t a concern.

The following remaining games are going to be the toughest for the Knicks:

• Mar. 11 at Memphis
• Mar. 13 at Brooklyn
• Mar. 25 at Miami
• Mar. 28 vs. Chicago
• Apr. 2 vs. Cleveland
• Apr. 6 vs. Brooklyn
• Apr. 10 vs. Toronto

That doesn’t include the home contests on Mar. 18 against Washington and on Mar. 22 against Atlanta. Although the implications of those two games are shaping up to be huge, they feel like “winnable” games for New York. Or in theory, at least.

After looking at the schedule, the Knicks could lose eight games, if not more. Luckily, RJ Barrett has been on a hot streak and Julius Randle is fresh off a career-high 46-point performance on Monday night against the Kings.

Before exiting the game on Monday with an illness, Mitchell Robinson nearly averaged a double-double in his previous three contests. Cam Reddish has been misused by Tom Thibodeau but he had his best game in a 116-93 win on Mar. 6 against the Clippers with 17 points.

A lot of little pieces will have to fall into place for New York to earn a play-in spot but based on the past few games, the Knicks aren’t in a bad position. All that’s needed is a little bit of magic and that’s something that New York has gone without this year.

Knicks fans, now’s the time to direct all of your negative energy towards the Wizards and Hawks downfall (the same with the 32-34 Hornets and 33-33 Nets).

Barrett, Randle, and Robinson need to continue to play at a high-level and quite frankly, Thibodeau needs to try to do as little as possible. That’s the recipe for New York’s success. It feels a bit out of reach but never say never, right?

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