The New York Knicks are amid their worst stretch of the season, as they've lost four straight games, the most recent of which was a bludgeoning against a Pistons squad on the second night of a back-to-back, and have now slipped to the third seed in the Eastern Conference standings with a record of 23-13.
Though fans may have their own theories for why the team has seen its once dominant level of production fall off a cliff as of late (absence of Josh Hart, too much late-game hero ball, etc.), The Ringer's Bill Simmons believes a developing issue with New York may be one that's more of an internal, personal matter.
Bill Simmons suggests Knicks may be getting on each other's nerves
During a recent edition of The Bill Simmons Show, the polarizing pundit discussed how the Knicks appear as if they're "already tired of each other."
Now, while this was merely presented as a tongue-in-cheek theory by Simmons, there is certainly enough evidence to support this particular claim.
The most recent examples of this belief came after Monday's blowout loss to Detroit, when star center Karl-Anthony Towns, who scored just six points on four shot attempts, brought up an early-season trope about him not understanding his role in New York's scheme.
Meanwhile, head coach Mike Brown subtly took a jab at Jalen Brunson for having "plenty of possessions where the ball stayed on one side of the floor" -- though he may not have named him directly, considering the All-Star is the de facto number one option, primary ball handler, and paced all players with 21 shots on the night, it's easy to assume who, in particular, he's referencing.
Despite all this turmoil and overall hardships, however, this Knicks team isn't ready to let the chaos simply take control, as Brunson recently made it clear that "the sky isn't falling" and reminded fans and his teammates that even though they may not be in an enviable position at the moment, they've already overcome adversities earlier in the year.
"We didn't start the season great and then we played well after that. It's just a stint that we need to sneak out of," Brunson said.
Even with their rough stretch as of late, the Knicks still have the best odds of representing the Eastern Conference in the 2026 NBA Finals and the third-best odds to win it all at +1200.
Of course, in order to turn these betting lines into a reality, they'll need to find a way to snap out of this rut.
Whether it's by way of getting back to full health or, if Simmons' theory is correct, a moral boost of some sort, New York has some work to do if they wish to get back to their NBA Cup Championship form.