The New York Knicks are set to embark on their first long road trip of the season, with matchups against the Jazz, Nuggets, Warriors, Suns, and Thunder on the horizon. The 6-7 Knicks currently sit in ninth place in the East, which was expected.
However, what wasn’t necessarily expected was the way in which the team has looked in its losses. New York is coming off a brutal loss to an Oklahoma City team that’s in the midst of a rebuild, and last week, the Knicks were blown out by a struggling Nets team. Their upcoming schedule doesn’t look much better, with three of their five road trip opponents currently sitting in the top four in the West.
According to SNY’s Ian Begley, based on how New York fares on the road, the organization could move forward with a “significant change.” With Tom Thibodeau’s job on the line, the Knicks have their work cut out for them.
Predicting how Knicks will perform against top Western Conference opponents
5: Knicks at Jazz
New York’s trip will start with a stop at Vivint Arena to take on the Utah Jazz. When the 2022-23 schedule was released, this game was originally set to be televised by TNT, but with Donovan Mitchell being traded to the Cavaliers, the Nets-Kings game took its place.
Although the Jazz traded away their two stars in the offseason, Utah’s been off to an unexpectedly hot start. Sitting at 10-5, the Jazz have had a series of impressive wins, including knocking off Ja Morant and the Grizzlies twice already. This might’ve originally looked like a winnable game for the Knicks, but now, the odds have shifted in the Jazz’s favor.
Lauri Markkanen, who was sent to Utah as part of the Mitchell trade, is averaging a team-high 21.8 points and 8.6 rebounds.
Utah is on a two-game losing streak with losses against Washington and Philadelphia, but the team has yet to lose at home. The Jazz’s surge may not be sustainable for the entire 82-game season, but it should be enough for Utah to knock off New York on Tuesday.
Utah 128, New York 117
4: Knicks at Nuggets
In the second game of a back-to-back, the Knicks will travel to Denver to take on Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets. It’s been a little over 16 years since New York beat Denver in Colorado, with the Knicks’ last win taking place against a Carmelo Anthony-led Nuggets team on Nov. 8, 2006. For context, the starting lineup back then was Marbury-Crawford-Richardson-Curry-Frye.
As expected, Denver’s one of the best teams in the league and is currently second in the West. Jokic is the Nuggets’ leading scorer at 20.8 points and Michael Porter Jr. (18) and Jamal Murray (16.2) are behind him. Denver was without Murray for the entirety of the 2021-22 season and Porter played in only nine games last season. Now that they’re both back, the Nuggets could find themselves back in the conference finals.
New York’s defense has been abysmal, so unless a miracle happens, the Knicks aren’t going to have an answer for Jokic, Porter, or Murray. Mitchell Robinson still hasn’t been cleared for contact, so he’ll likely be out for this game, meaning that Jokic should be able to do whatever he wants down low.
Based on how the Knicks have looked as of late, this game could get out of hand quickly.
Denver 130, New York 114
3: Knicks at Warriors
Ironically enough, New York could steal a win at Chase Center with Golden State sitting towards the bottom of the pile in the West. But with the Knicks being unable to find a way to guard the perimeter, this could be a game where Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, and Jordan Poole put on a show.
Golden State’s defensive rating of 115.1 is the fourth-worst in the league and the Warriors have gotten crushed in the midrange, which is an area where Jalen Brunson is shooting 53% from. He could end up having a big night against the defending champions, but that might not be enough to combat Golden State’s offensive firepower.
Still, this is a game to watch as the Warriors have dropped games against the Pistons and the Magic, two teams that the Knicks have beaten. If Golden State gets hot from deep though, there’s no chance that New York will be able to pull this one off. With that being said, this could be a close game, but ultimately, the Warriors should escape with the win.
Golden State 123, New York 118
2: Knicks at Suns
After a game against a Warriors team that’s supposed to be at the top of the Western Conference rankings, the Knicks will take on a Suns team that’s performed as expected thus far as one of the best teams in the conference.
New York’s lowly defense will be tasked with containing Devin Booker, who’s averaging 26.7 points per game and is shooting 38.4% from the three-point line. The last thing that the Knicks need is for Booker to get hot, but that could be exactly what ends up happening.
Phoenix has one of the highest offensive ratings in the league in contrast to New York’s defensive rating that’s one of the worst in the league. Orlando was able to get a 114-97 win over Phoenix on Sunday, but that was because the Magic had a size advantage over the Suns. Without Robinson, who could be back for this game, the Knicks will struggle down low against Deandre Ayton.
Like the previous three games, this matchup is looking like it’ll fall in Phoenix’s favor.
Phoenix 125, New York 113
1: Knicks at Thunder
The Knicks’ last stop will be an opportunity for them to get revenge for an absolutely embarrassing loss at MSG. New York might’ve scored 135 against Oklahoma City, but the defense allowed Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder to drop 145 points (the most in the Tom Thibodeau era).
Even with that being said, it feels as if this is the only “winnable” game for New York over the five-game stretch. The Knicks could steal a win in the four games before this one, but I predict that they will finish their road trip with a 1-4 record.
Hopefully by this point, Quentin Grimes’ minutes will no longer be situational and he’ll be in the starting lineup so that he can guard SGA. And hopefully, Cam Reddish won’t be the Knicks’ leading scorer this go-round, and I mean that in the best way possible.
New York 127, Oklahoma City 121
4 Megastars New York Knicks would be happy to trade trove of picks for
Shams Charania recently said that NBA executives believe the Knicks have a plan to land a megastar with their treasure chest of first-round picks.