Knicks Need More Balance Going Forward

The New York Knicks are in need of more balance on offense and defense.

Jan 21, 2025; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Brooklyn Nets guard D'Angelo Russell (1) drives past New York Knicks forward Mikal Bridges (25) in the fourth quarter at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images | Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Things have looked very different for the New York Knicks this season compared to last year.

Instead of making their mark on the defensive end of the floor, the Knicks have been winning games with their offensive prowess. A lot of this can be pointed to trading for Karl-Anthony Towns, who replaced the defensive-minded Isaiah Hartenstein in the post.

However, if the Knicks want to make more noise in the postseason, they will need to be better on defense.

"By sacrificing depth in their trades for Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns, the Knicks had the potential to take a step back during the regular season in the name of higher playoff upside. It's encouraging, then, that the Knicks could still surpass last season's 50 wins and plus-4.6 point differential thanks largely to Towns' All-Star play," ESPN analyst Kevin Pelton writes.

"The Knicks' 14th-ranked defense is their worst relative to league average of the Tom Thibodeau era. New York's No. 2 offense alone is good enough to win in the regular season, but reaching the conference finals will require more balance."

The Knicks' defense has been league average, and that's been good enough to be No. 3 in the Eastern Conference standings. However, being third behind the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers isn't the goal.

The Knicks will likely have to beat one or both of those contenders in order to reach their first NBA Finals since 1999. This means that the Knicks will have to play with more of an effort on the defensive end, and the coaching staff may need to make some slight alterations in order for New York to be a more balanced team.

The Knicks are back in action tomorrow as they host the Sacramento Kings. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.

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