Knicks Twitter Celebrates as NY Clinches 2023 NBA Playoff Berth with Win vs. Wizards

The New York Knicks have clinched a playoff spot after defeating the Washington Wizards 118-109 at home on Sunday behind 27 points apiece from Jalen Brunson and Quentin Grimes, 22 more from Immanuel Quickley and a season-high 21 via Obi Toppin.

This marks just the second time in 10 seasons that the Knicks have made the playoffs. They've already clinched their highest win total since 2012-13 when the team went 54-28 and reached the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Naturally, there's a ton of excitement surrounding a team that's playoff-bound after living on the edge all year. This season has been nothing short of dramatic for the Knicks, who frequently find themselves in nail-biting games that go down to the final seconds no matter what happens beforehand.

They've also run hot and cold, with seven win streaks of at least three victories or more and five losing skids of three games or more.

Thankfully for Knicks fans, New York is on a roll with four straight wins right now with three regular-season games remaining.

There's certainly concern moving forward regarding the status of leading scorer and forward Julius Randle, who suffered a sprained ankle. A report from Thursday revealed that Randle would be reevaluated in two weeks, keeping him out for at least the remainder of the regular season, which ends Sunday, April 9. That makes his playoff status a big question mark, which put a damper on the proceedings.

At the same time, Jalen Brunson has caught absolute fire of late and could be ready to lead this team to greater heights. He averaged 26.9 PPG in March, capped by a 48-point outing against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Knicks' younger reserve players (e.g., Quickley, Toppin, Grimes) have provided reason for excitement and hope that New York can do some damage in the playoffs, and R.J. Barrett has emerged as a good tertiary scoring option who posts around 20 points per game.

Ultimately, a rare playoff berth has Knicks Twitter excited, and rightfully so.

The NBA playoffs start on Saturday, April 15. In the interim, the Knicks have a home-and-away series with the Indiana Pacers, with a road matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans separating those games. Up first is the road tilt with the Pacers on Wednesday evening.