NBA Scout Previews Knicks’ Title Defense: Why New York May Not Be a Clear-Cut Favorite

If each NBA player were to line up by height, like in the grade-school days, Jalen Brunson would be near the start while Victor Wembanyama would be all the way on the other end. Brunson stands more than a foot shorter than Wemby, which inherently brings different play styles between the two stars. However, they have more in common than you might think.

When Brunson’s Knicks met Wemby’s Spurs in the NBA Finals, and later took care of them in five games, that was on full display.

“They call Wemby the Alien. Brunson is, too,” an anonymous NBA scout told Sports Illustrated. “Brunson is a different kind of alien, but the same category where he's doing s--- at his size that you wouldn't expect. And regardless of his physical numbers, you couldn't stop him. It was crazy.”

The Knicks’ first title in 53 years was a masterfully built team clicking at the right time. Everyone pitched in and everyone had their moments, but Brunson was the guy. The Finals MVP, the king of New York.

Now, Brunson and the Knicks need to figure out how to replicate their success from a historic and dominant postseason run. That mission starts on Oct. 20 with a big test against the 76ers following the ring ceremony at Madison Square Garden.

“Can [Brunson] do it again? If he can keep that up for a whole season or even back-to-back playoffs, I'll be surprised just because of how high of a level he was playing at and scoring at,” the scout continued.

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The championship core of Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby, Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges remains intact. Keeping the band together will get more difficult in the future but as long as the group is around, they have a shot to win it all. The issue? It will be incredibly difficult to recreate the magic that was last season.

“[New York] had an awesome run. They really executed the game plan against the Spurs. Brunson was unreal. I feel like it's going to be pretty hard to replicate that next year to the same level,” the scout said. “They'll probably be tough in the playoffs because of the experience they have if they're healthy, but I probably wouldn't put them as a clear-cut favorite right away.”

Over the offseason, the Eastern Conference became suddenly stacked with superstar additions for the Sixers, Heat and Raptors. Plus, Indiana will get Tyrese Haliburton back, Boston is still there and Detroit will try to stay atop the East after a 60-win season. And whoever gets out of the conference has to conquer Wemby and the Spurs or Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder, most likely.

As the defending champs, though, the Knicks are the team with a target on their back. The upcoming season will tell us a lot about how sustainable last year’s playoff dominance was.

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Offseason recap

Who’s in: Andre Drummond, Jose Alvarado (re-signed), Landry Shamet (re-signed), Jordan Clarkson (re-signed), Mohamed Diawara (re-signed)
Who’s out: Mitchell Robinson, Ariel Hukporti, Jeremy Sochan

Although the starting group remains, the Knicks had a big loss over the offseason in backup big man Mitchell Robinson. He was key in the defensive plan against Wembanyama, but he went to the Celtics on a three-year contract over the offseason as the Knicks couldn’t pay him while retaining the rest of their bench and staying under the second apron.

Ariel Hukporti, the Knicks’ third center, left over the offseason and joined the 76ers. To address the need, New York brought in Andre Drummond on a veteran minimum. He had a strong couple of seasons in Philly when available and is one of the better rebounding options off the bench across the league. He even flashed a little bit of a three-point shot last season, something Robinson doesn’t have. Still, Drummond’s health is a concern at 33 years old, not a clean replacement for everything Robinson brought.

“For the Knicks it is about staying healthy. Mike Brown did a great job managing minutes last year and he has to do that again. Obviously, losing Robinson, can Drummond replace those minutes? That will be huge,” the scout said. “...I mean, numbers wise, I would guess it's not that great of a drop-off with Drummond because Robinson only played 20 minutes a game, but I'd be curious to see how Drummond plays.

“Robinson, I feel like, did a pretty good job of doing exactly what he does well and only doing that. And at least historically, Drummond, I feel like at times, tries to do a little too much. Maybe he won't do that with that team and then it'll be more of a push, but I guess we'll see.”

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The rest of the Knicks’ bench was retained, though, which is huge. Landry Shamet’s shotmaking was massive in the playoffs and he’s back along with trade-deadline acquisition Jose Alvarado. Jordan Clarkson stayed, too. Mohamed Diawara may work his way into Brown’s rotation this season after he signed a four-year, $11.3 million contract over the summer. The 6'9" wing showed flashes in a limited role last year over his first NBA season and could be a solid frontcourt piece.

SI’s prediction for the 2026–27 Knicks

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The East will be a gauntlet this year and the Knicks are right at the top. They swept Philly in the second round last year and likely won’t have as easy of a time with LeBron James and Jaylen Brown on the team. Cleveland, who New York swept in the Eastern Conference finals, added Peyton Watson alongside its Donovan Mitchell-led core. Not an easy out, either.

It will be an interesting season for the defending champs, especially as the team has to address Towns’s contract situation next summer. With Brunson and Towns accompanied by Anunoby, Hart and Bridges, though, the Knicks have as good of a shot as any team to make it out of the East. They proved they aren’t just giant slayers, but NBA giants themselves.

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