Happy Saturday, Knicks Fans. Our heroes have three on the schedule this week, and none of them are child’s play. Unfortunately, a 0h3 week is a real possibility while waiting for the return of our strong reinforcements. All three games will be broadcast on MSG Network. Here is the schedule.
New York Knicks vs. Cleveland Cavaliers, Sunday 7 p.m. EST, March 3, 2024
Donovan Mitchell and the Cleveland Cavaliers (39-20) are widely favored for Sunday’s engagement. This will be the third regular season meeting between the two clubs. They are tied 1-1, with New York winning 109-91 on Halloween and Cleveland winning the next night 95-89.
Cleveland currently sits in second place in the Eastern Conference, thanks to a stingy defense (second-best in the NBA), solid rebounding and another All-Star season from Mitchell. He is averaging 28 points per game and a career-high in assists (6.2) and rebounds (5.4).
Mitchell is dealing with a knee issue and missed the Cavs game Friday. Something tells me he’ll find the stamina to play against New York tomorrow. Unless he drops a huge stink, prepare for endless stomach aches about how he was supposed to be a Knick, and why did we cling to Quentin Grimes only to waste him anyway, and yadda yadda yadda. We should sell P&T brand earplugs to drown out that noise.
Ohio players actually rank behind the Knicks on offense (CLE 16, NYK 11). This difference will be more apparent once New York is at full strength again. Missing three starters, the Knicks have struggled offensively of late, most evident in a 110-99 loss to the Warriors of the Golden State THURSDAY. With little support from the bench (looking at you Burks and Bogey), their scoring is reduced to the three Nova Knicks. Overall, Donte DiVincenzo has shot very well this season and has scored 20 points per game over the last three contests, but has slumped to 35 percent on 13.3 three-point attempts during this stretch. Josh Hart played 47 minutes on Thursday. Jalen Brunson is a walking blue. These guys can be forgiven for feeling any kind of burnout.
To make matters worse, Isaiah Hartenstein still doesn’t look good dealing with a sore Achilles, and Precious Achiuwa looked more pedestrian in the previous two games. You may not know that there are monsters in Cleveland’s frontcourt, with Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley averaging 10 rebounds per game. Don’t bet big on New York.
New York Knicks vs Atlanta Hawks, Tuesday, 7:30 p.m. EST, March 5, 2024
THE Atlanta Falcons (26-33) come to town on Tuesday, and a sad face for them: they will be without Trae Young. He is undergoing surgery for a broken finger and will be re-evaluated in four weeks. Onyeka Okongwu will also be out with a toe injury.
This will be the second meeting between the two teams this season. New York leads the series 2-0, after winning a tie in November 116-114. Julius Randle scored 29 points and Mitchell Robinson grabbed 15 rebounds in this game. Neither will be available on Tuesday. That’s life.
Atlanta still has Dejounte Murray, despite all the trade gossip I’ve been forced to write this season (no hard feelings), and he’s shaping up to be ATL’s leader in Trae’s absence. Murray averaged 21.6 points, 5.6 assists and 5.3 rebounds in 56 games this season. And their frontcourt can still be beastly, with Clint Capela and Jalen Johnson combining for 19.1 rebounds per game. Without their starters, New York could have difficulty overcoming Quin Snyder’s boys. Look for their Bogdanović (Bogdan) to surpass ours (Bojan).
New York Knicks vs Orlando Magic, Friday, 7:30 p.m. EST, March 8, 2024
The Orlando Magic (34-26) again? Come on commish. In their fourth and final regular season game against Disney, New York hopes to avoid the sweep. OG Anunoby is supposed to improve, but I wouldn’t expect him to return in time for this match. In their last game, on a sad Valentine’s Day, Orlando won 118-100. I’m not optimistic about a different outcome this time around.
Have a good week-end. And go Knicks!
