New York Knicks' Homestand Offers Chance to Set a New Tone
The New York Knicks have a four-game home stand coming up at Madison Square Garden with a chance to move up in the Eastern Conference standings.
New York (8-6) has been on the road often to start a packed schedule (which has already featured four back-to-back sets), having recently capped off a five-game road trip with a 117-100 loss in Minnesota on Monday. The Knicks went 3-2 on the trip, matching their current record at MSG.
After Thanksgiving, the Knicks will play five of their next six games at home, including the final two parts of group play at the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament. The homestand will start with a rematch of last year's Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Miami Heat on Friday night (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG/ESPN).
Josh Hart (3) and the Knicks will face Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat for the first time since last postseason on Friday.
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If the Knicks have any intention of moving on in the in-season competition, they'll more than likely need a win over the Heat, who are not only on pace to win Group B in the East but also currently hold the conference's wild card spot offered to the top runner-up.
After Miami's visit, the Knicks then face Kevin Durant and the Phoenix Suns on Sunday. New York will look to improve its record against superior competition: following the aforementioned loss to the Timberwolves, New York is 1-5 against teams that currently hold winning records.
In-Season Tournament group play closes against the Charlotte Hornets two nights later. The Knicks bookended last week with wins over the latter at both home and on the road.
New York then closes November with a visit from the lowly Detroit Pistons next Thursday. That leads into yet another back-to-back, as the Knicks go to Ontario to face the Toronto Raptors immediately after. The Atlantic Division rivals are currently engaged in a different kind of court, with the Knicks seeking eight figures in damages stemming from a former team employee of allegedly "funnel(ing) proprietary information" to Toronto management.
While the Knicks sit in a relatively decent spot in the early Eastern standings, they'd be wise to take advantage of their Manhattan-based slate: following two games against opponents to be determined between Dec. 2-10 (depending on how In-Season Tournament results shake out) another five-game road trip will lead into Christmas.
