Knicks Regular Season in Review: Setting the Stage for the Playoffs
With the win against the Nets today, the Knicks 2024-25 regular season has officially come to a close. In a season filled with a drastic amount of trials and tribulations overall, the outlook should remain in a positive light. They finished 51-21 and third in the Eastern Conference, which was the best record they have ended with since the 2012-13 season. Obviously, this season didn’t feel like it reached the potential fans had hoped for, but none of that matters now if they are able to dethrone the juggernaut teams in the postseason.
Injuries played a significant part in the season, as almost everyone on the team besides Mikal Bridges missed some time. Players like OG Anunoby and especially Mitchell Robinson missed a lot of games in the first half of the season, while Jalen Brunson, Precious Achiuwa, and Ariel Hukporti missed games down the stretch. I am not saying this would have dramatically altered the results of this season. However, we have yet to see a fully healthy Knicks team on the court all season. It looks like everyone is finally back to give the Knicks full strength heading into the playoffs.
The Knicks also made some history this year, with Josh Hart breaking the Knicks record for triple-doubles in a season. They also had two all-star starters for the first time since 1975, with Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns getting the nod. Also, this season, OG Anunoby took a major leap offensively and contributed tremendously the whole season, especially when Brunson was out with injury. The offense was the best it had been in some time, but unfortunately, the defense struggled to stop any of the top teams from scoring, and it made the team look like it lacked structure.
It was a great first season for new additions Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns that I believe they can look back on and be proud of. Improvements will need to be made going into the playoffs if they want to stand a fighting chance, but I believe with a fully healthy team, they will be extremely underestimated and could shock the league. All in all, it was a successful regular season, and they are now in a spot to build on their success and finally make a run towards a title. With this much talent and a city like New York in your corner, the potential knows no bounds.
