The New York Knicks are limping into the postseason after losing a heartbreaker last night to the Boston Celtics, and after it seemed all season like the East’s top three seeds would be the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Celtics, and the Knicks — in that order — New York still hasn’t officially clinched its spot. Instead, the fast-charging Indiana Pacers, on a five-game winning streak, are just two games behind the Knicks.
Neither team has an easy schedule for the rest of the season, so the Pacers are still alive, although they do not hold the tiebreaker. New York will go on the road to face the Detroit Pistons, come back home to take on the Cavaliers, and finish out the season with a road game against the Brooklyn Nets. Meanwhile, Indiana will take on Cleveland and the Orlando Magic at home before finishing out the season against the Cavaliers on the road. The Knicks’ magic number is just one, but the fact that the Pacers are still in the running this late in the season is a surprise.
What was already a difficult matchup against New York’s likely first-round opponent got even tougher on Wednesday afternoon, when OG Anunoby (thumb) and Josh Hart (knee) were both ruled out for the contest, as well as backup center Mitchell Robinson (injury recovery). Anunoby had scored 20 or more points in 10 straight games prior to a 13-point dud last night, averaging 26.3 points per game on 55-43-87 shooting splits since March 20. Hart, meanwhile, has slowed down somewhat in recent weeks, but he’s still averaging nearly 10 rebounds per game as a six-foot-four shooting guard and ranks in the league’s top 20 in Value over Replacement Player and win shares. Robinson, too, has provided some valuable backup center play in relief of the foul-prone Karl-Anthony Towns.
In the absence of Anunoby and Hart, Miles McBride and either Precious Achiuwa or Cameron Payne will likely step into the starting lineup. McBride is a fairly consistent sixth man, averaging around 24 minutes per game this season, but both Achiuwa and Payne have been less consistent contributors. Down three rotation pieces, the already thin Knicks might struggle against a Pistons team that has posted the league’s fifth-best net rating since the start of February.
