The Knicks became the third Eastern Conference team to secure a playoff spot when Philadelphia lost at Miami on Monday, per the NBA (Twitter link).
Detroit, the No. 1 seed, was the first Eastern team to clinch a top-six spot following a March 20 win over Golden State. The Celtics, the No. 2 seed, followed suit by securing their own playoff berth with Sunday’s victory at Charlotte.
Regardless of what happens the rest of the regular season, New York can finish no worse than sixth in the conference. The team is currently 48-27, the third seed in the East.
Boston lost to Atlanta on Monday, so the Knicks are now two games back of the Celtics. New York is 1.5 games ahead of No. 4 Cleveland and will almost certainly finish as a top-four seed.
The Knicks largely ran back the same roster that made the Eastern Conference finals in 2025 for the first time in 25 years. They did fire their head coach though, replacing Tom Thibodeau with Mike Brown.
Owner James Dolan said in early January that the team’s goal for this season was to, at minimum, make the NBA Finals. We’ll see how the Knicks perform the rest of 2025/26, but they’ve secured the first step toward that goal.
After all the ups and downs. The grief …. Knicks probably end up with a better record than last year. Only in New York lols.
Congratulations coach Brown and Knickerbockers 👏
All about the playoffs now…. Lets Do This
Towns and Bridges have regressed significantly this year. Alvarado is better than Payne, and Robinson has been good when healthy, but overall they are probably a worse team. They’ll most likely get bounced in the second round.
Who’s beating them. In a seven game series. The Pistons and Cavs could. Cade not 100%. Pistons aren’t doing it. Even with Cade. Knicks can handle them. Cavs are also hurting. Even 100% Knicks can handle them. Celtics had a great yr. Not beating any of these three teams. The playoffs are for real teams who understand it takes 4 to win. I feel good about Knicks. They have taken care of all three in playoffs before. This Knicks team knows who they are playing and stakes. So bring it.
You don’t think the Celtics are beating any of those teams? LOL
Nope. They’re a good story. In a seven gm series. The truth will come out. Their bench isn’t that good. And Tatum ain’t saving them. Teams can key on Brown.
Their bench is better than you think. Prichard Vu and some outstanding defensive / energy guys. The defense runs deeeeeep.
Celtics are the best team in the east lol
The confidence he has in a team that only advanced because Boston had major health issues last year is crazy.
Boston is a top 4 team in the NBA this year, and that was without an ALL NBA MVP caliber player for 75% of the year.
The Celtics are so deep on offense and defense.
I cannot wait for them to remind all yall how good they are.
Wishing nothing but good health for all these teams so we can have a good time these next few months!!!!!!
“The confidence he has in a team that only advanced because Boston had major health issues last year is crazy”
What “major health issues” did the Cs have last year? When Tatum got hurt, Knicks were already up 3-1 in the series. Porzingas played minutes in every game. They lost because they went cold from 3 and because they choked away two games. It had nothing to do with injury.
That said, imo, the Celtics are the favorite out of the East this year. Detroit is a great team, but with Cade’s injury and Tatum back, you have to pick the Celtics. I would maybe rank the Knicks second, but it depends on Cade.
JT had a calf strain before the Achilles injury. Brown had a meniscus tear that required surgery. Jrue holiday had a hamstring strain. KP had Unicornitus and was struggling
“When Tatum got hurt, Knicks were already up 3-1 in the series.”
That’s 100% false. Tatum was injured in game 4 and the Knicks were up 2-1. Celtics were down 9 with 3 minutes to play, that’s certainly not an impossible deficit to come back from, especially considering Tatum had already scored 42 pts on 57%/44%/100% splits..
They got short memories lol. I hope we get the Celtics. Celtics might be best team in Big East 😂
Celtics in 5 dude.
Celtics might not get out of first round.
I rather see Celtics than Cavs.
lol idk about that! I see them making the conference finals minimum.
Man I enjoy talking trash with you AI! Just saying!
Knicks looking bad in Houston rn, down 37-21 after 1 Q
Yeah these slow starts will age you lol. Rockets shooting won’t ladt all game. Towns is just a lazy guy. Mentally is not always locked in.
Knicks lose their 3rd straight and the Rockets win their 3rd straight. Looks like the Cavs will pass them for the 3 seed by the end of the reg. Which means either the Hawks or Raptors in the 1st rd.
Towns was their best player tonight.
Hawks will be trouble for the Knicks
Nobody is beating Knicks in first rd. It’s the next two rounds where you don’t know who shows up. Rockets did what good teams do to Knicks. They weren’t going to let Brunson beat them. You think this coach would be use to this by now. This is not easy to do in a 7 gm series. Bridges with 4 shots. Tells me two things. This coach is not doing his job. And Bridges time in NY could end this year.
We’ll see man! Lots of good ball coming soon!
Really only team that’s been consistent in East are the Pistons. And this is their turn as a top team. So They have to prove it too. Imo they lack big man depth. I just think the East is tight and competitive. All about runs. We’ll see who gets into one for playoffs. Celtics in NY 4/9 Thursday night.
If Cade was healthy it’s a different story but I don’t trust Deptroit without him. Not sure how Harden is going to act when it matters so I don’t trust the Cavs at all either.
Maybe better than StJohns or UConn maybedm. Thats it
Pacers not in postseason so knicks have a chance to advance to finals this yr
NYK, right now, aren’t as good as the team that entered the playoffs last year. But all is not lost.
– They have a a week or so. Last year’s team was a WIP for most of the year as well, with the KAT trade, Mitch out almost the entire season and Brunson missing time down the stretch.
– While the East is deeper, the top of the conference is significantly weaker this year (CLE and BOS were 60+ win teams last season). I’m not really concerned about any particular opponent (including DET or BOS) or home court, only with the NYK. That wasn’t the case last season.
Obviously, the expected benefits of being in their second season together didn’t materialize, even with Mitch relatively available all year. They actually look less in sync on both ends than last year, particularly KAT and Bridges. This has to be, at least in part, attributable to the coaching change. Still, the group has been together for 2 years now. They know they’ve underachieved, and know that the fans know it. Amidst their periodic lack of focus, selective effort and softness, this is still a team of playmakers. In what has become a now or never spot, I can’t believe they won’t show something. Enough? Probably not. The real spoils usually go to the teams that brought it all year. That switch is hard to flick.
Off topic but…
What would you as a cap team such as Lakers feel comfortable offering Diawara in order to possibly pry him away? How much would you be comfortable paying him to stay a Knick ?
Think he’s a great target for the Lakers (also love that Sandro kid from Tor)
Id prefer targeting players with a greater resume with free agency dollars but this free agency is a kick in the nuts so maybe veering into some risky (er) plays is the way to go …. Diawara exemplifies that Imo if Sandro (another limited resume) price gets too high
@Cap – Good question, which, for obvious reasons, I’ve been trying not to think about.
Anyway, without regard to the CBA rules, I would welcome him back at market. But I’m not sure about the ability of the NYK to sign him (directly or by matching an offer sheet). I think it comes down to whether or not they’ll have the Txp MLE available. While I hope I am wrong, without the Txp MLE, my read suggests that the NYK could not directly offer him a salary above next year’s 2nd year minimum, and, likewise, they could not match an offer sheet greater than that 2nd year minimum. The Arenas Rule does not apply.
He’s certainly worth more than that. So if the NYK don’t have the Txp MLE, or decide to refrain from using it (to avoid the hard cap), then he’s effectively a UFA, for whom a market would develop, and the NYK are out. Great work by our creative FO to leave him out there. Great assist by our new VP for Player Promotion (Mike Brown) for making sure nobody misses it.
For the LAL, it’s a no risk proposition, as long as the contract is for no more than 2 years, and descending in amount. With that structure, I’d go to, and, if needed, above, the Txp MLE starting salary. It’s like buying a late FRP when that was doable.
I was thinking 3/24 was acceptable to offer considering all the outside factors /non factors . Tad risky but a bunch of upside still and I think he” d be a great fit
Sandros proliy at least getting 12+ now per year so I’m kinda balancing value between one of them 2 as getting both prolly Isn’t feasible due to limited roster spots
I could see the AAV being that, but I think the team would be smart to prioritize 2 years (with the 3rd year, if any, being a team option). I wouldn’t want a player that young (still) becoming a UFA (vs RFA).
We’ll see how well Mike Brown adjusts his lineups in each series. Knicks bench is guard heavy but those players bring different skills to the floor.
Knicks have paced themselves all year for the playoffs, they do not want to run out of gas again. They’ll be ready to roll.
Brown was a horrible add for this team. Supposed to bring a new revamped offense and all we get are upchuck threes repeatedly. They don’t have the heart, resiliency, or conditioning they did under Thibs.
Dolan screws the franchise yet again with Leon’s help.