The New York Knicks beat the Philadelphia 76ers 110-105 on Wednesday night, snapping a brutal two-game losing streak. While a win is a win, and Knicks fans prayed for the day they’d be unhappy with a 38-20 record, it was another concerning night for this team. Philly came to Madison Square Garden sporting a 20-37 mark, having lost by 32 points at home to the tanking Chicago Bulls on Monday. They were also without superstar Joel Embiid, who continues to struggle with injuries. Despite all that, New York couldn’t put away the pesky Sixers, nearly blowing a nine-point fourth-quarter lead. Fortunately, as he seems to always do, Jalen Brunson saved the day in the clutch.
Can Knicks Win Title Without a Top-5 Player?
Brunson put on another masterpiece down the stretch, scoring nine straight points after Philly somehow went up by four with under three minutes left. While it was spectacular, and the captain is arguably the best clutch player in basketball currently, the win sparked more questions than answers.
One of those questions has been simmering all season: can New York win a title without a consensus top-five guy? NBA history tells us that it’s possible, but extremely unlikely. The last 10 champions all had an elite top-five superstar in their prime. The list is as follows: 2015 Stephen Curry, LeBron James, Kevin Durant (2x), Kawhi Leonard, LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Stephen Curry, Nikola Jokic, and 2024 Jayson Tatum. Additionally, most of these guys have been closer to the best player in the league than the fifth-best. Tatum is likely the worst player on this list, and he had one of the greatest supporting casts of all time.
If you go further back in history, most champions had a legend leading them, if not multiple. Two exceptions include the 2014 Spurs and 2004 Pistons. Both teams were known for a distinct, once-in-a-lifetime play style: the Spurs had arguably the best ball movement ever, while Detroit boasted perhaps the most ferocious defense in league history. It’s not controversial to say that this Knicks squad doesn’t have anything close to that.
Brunson Can Lead New York, But There’s Little Room For Error
Although Brunson clearly isn’t a top-five player in today’s league, it’s mostly because of his defensive shortcomings. He’s a top-10 guy and an undisputed superstar who can go toe to toe with anyone on the offensive end. The 6-foot-2 guard is one of the most prolific scorers, an excellent passer, and arguably the second-smoothest half-court operator in the sport. With that said, I believe his offense is good enough to be the first option on a championship team.
However, the team around him needs to fill in more gaps than they would if he were a better two-way player. This means surrounding him with as much defensive talent as possible, which New York has tried to do by bringing in OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges. Leon Rose has also filled out the roster with excellent defenders, including Josh Hart, Deuce McBride, Precious Achiuwa, and Mitchell Robinson.
Unfortunately, New York’s fatal flaw could be Karl-Anthony Towns. Despite his incredible offensive production, modern basketball is all about teams’ weaknesses, and whether opponents can exploit them. Having two weak defenders may be too much to overcome on the way to a title. Boston, Cleveland, and OKC have certainly exposed the Knicks’ shortcomings in their matchups, relentlessly attacking Towns and Brunson.
We’ll see how this season plays out with the return of Robinson fortifying NY’s defense, but one final trade could be much more likely than people think. Brunson’s status as a non-top-five two-way player limits the margin for error, and New York may need to upgrade the roster yet again because of it. All hope is certainly not lost this year, and it’s only this core’s first attempt at a title run.
Photo credit: © Brad Penner-Imagn Images
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