Knicks Defense Expected to Improve

The New York Knicks haven't played their best on defense this season.

Nov 13, 2024; New York, New York, USA; Chicago Bulls center Nikola Vucevic (9) looks for an opening as New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) defends during the second half at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images | John Jones-Imagn Images

The New York Knicks' defense was among the best last season, but so far this year, that hasn't been the case.

The Knicks rank in the bottom third of the league in defensive rating, and a big reason behind that has been the change from Isaiah Hartenstein to Karl-Anthony Towns.

While the Knicks' offense has improved considerably with that change, their defense has had the opposite effect. Bleacher Report writer Grant Hughes believes Towns will improve the post defense once there is a better defensive center next to him in the lineup.

"Much has been made of Towns' unfathomably poor rim protection this season. He's allowed opponents to shoot 68.5 percent when designated as the primary defender inside six feet, the worst high-volume rate among bigs in the league. There's no getting around how damaging that's been to New York's bottom line," Hughes writes.

"We know KAT performs better individually and can be part of a good team defense when paired with a center. The Minnesota Timberwolves posted a 110.6 defensive rating (89th percentile) when Towns was on the floor with Rudy Gobert last year. Mitchell Robinson isn't Gobert, but get him (or whomever the Knicks acquire via trade) out there next to Towns, and things will improve."

It remains to be seen what the Knicks will look like when Mitchell Robinson enters the fray, but for now, New York has to do best with what it has on the floor.

The defense can't get much worse than what it has shown so far, so there is reason to believe that Towns and the post presence for the Knicks will improve over the next couple of weeks.

If the Knicks can just get their defense to even league average, they could become one of the best teams in the NBA.

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