Knicks Rooting Guide for Final Month of Regular Season
An argument could be made that the New York Knicks should pull the plug on the 2021-22 NBA season and shift their focus to the future.
The odds of jumping up two seeds and into the Play-In Tournament are long enough that the 'Bockers might be better served by prioritizing draft-lottery odds instead.
But back-to-back double-digit victories—away from Madison Square Garden, no less—show the Knicks aren't ready to abandon ship just yet. That's not how coach Tom Thibodeau works, and it apparently is equally unappealing to Julius Randle, who helped deliver that second victory by pumping in a career-high 46 points.
If New York is still aiming at the Play-In, then we'll do the same by spotlighting which teams Knicks fans should be rooting for and against during the stretch run to extend this squad's season beyond the 82-game trek.
Root Against: Charlotte Hornets
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The Hornets and Atlanta Hawks are butting heads for the No. 9 seed, but Buzz City seems the much more vulnerable of the two.
Charlotte started skidding in late January, and Gordon Hayward's ankle injury in early February only exacerbated its issues. The Hornets are just 6-14 over their last 20 games with the Association's 12th-worst net rating over this stretch (minus-2.0), per NBA.com.
The Hawks, meanwhile, are playing their best basketball of the season. Since Jan. 17, they're 14-8 with the league's eighth-best net rating (plus-4.9).
It's possible the trends change over the final month, but the trajectories of each team suggests Charlotte is the one New York should try to catch. As an added bonus, 'Bockers backers can directly root against the Hornets twice, since Charlotte and New York will lock horns on the final two Wednesdays of this month.
Root For: Golden State Warriors
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In an alternate universe, maybe the basketball gods act differently and bounce the ping-pong balls just right to land Stephen Curry in New York at the 2009 draft.
In our reality, though, Knicks fans will have to settle for living vicariously through their Bay Area counterparts and cheering on the Dubs down the stretch.
Why? Because Curry's actual club tussles twice with the Washington Wizards and once with the Atlanta Hawks, the two teams directly above the Knicks in the Eastern Conference standings entering Wednesday.
Golden State hasn't been itself much of late, but a huge reason why is the absence of defensive stopper and top distributor Draymond Green (back). But he has circled March 14 for his return, which just so happens to be the first of those contests, so the Dubs could be at or near full-strength for all three outings.
Root Against: Washington Wizards
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Rooting against Kristaps Porzingis should come naturally to New York fans, after the big man bailed on the franchise during the 2018-19 season.
Even if that trade perhaps proved the best possible outcome for the Knicks, the fans don't actually have to let him off the hook whenever he steps back inside Madison Square Garden.
Besides, his deadline deal to the District put him in direct competition with New York—assuming, of course, the Wizards are still pushing for the Play-In Tournament despite losing Bradley Beal to season-ending wrist surgery.
Either way, Washington still sits above New York in the standings, and the Knicks need to leapfrog multiple teams during the stretch run to extend their season. Pulling in front of the Wizards would give them one less hurdle to clear.
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