The Knicks view January as an opportunity to improve their overall record with 12 of their 14 games scheduled to be played at home, but this month's Garden has been a party so far for coach Tom Thibodeau's team. do not have.
The Knicks suddenly had a slightly better record on the road (14-8) than their home court record (13-8) this season after Friday night's defensive loss to the Timberwolves.
Karl-Anthony Towns, of course, has missed the past two games with a thumb injury, but the Knicks suddenly missed four of their last six games at MSG to open this critical leg of the schedule and are looking for a win. The only games he played were against the Raptors and Bucks. .
The Knicks went 14-2 in January, but fell to 4-6 overall in January due to the arrival of OG Anunoby in a trade from Toronto on December 30th. There is.
They have two losses to the West Division-leading Thunder in January, plus one loss to the Bulls, Pistons, Magic and Timberwolves, and arch-rival Trae Young and the Hawks are scheduled for Monday's MLK Day matinee. are coming to the garden.
Young infamously imitated rolling a dice on the Knicks' midcourt logo after a win during his last visit to Atlanta in December.
“We're going to stay on schedule and end up playing 41 games at home and 41 games on the road,” Thibodeau said Friday. “We've had a long period of no breaks right now and there's going to be a lot of breaks, but just locking in every day, that's what we're trying to do.
“Practice is important this time of year, but there are periods in the schedule that involve intense practice and travel. We need to make the most of the limited time we have. Whether it's a ballroom walk-through or a movie Whether it's a session or a team meeting, we go into the season knowing that. There will be ups and downs in the season and schedule, and it's important to know how to manage them.”
Of course, the Knicks finished the 2022-23 season with one more road win (24-17) than their home record (23-18), defeated the Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs, and posted their first post since 2012. He advanced to the season. 13.
They also won more games on the road the year before, and this could be Thibodeau's third win in his first five seasons as Knicks coach.
They have tied the issue in the past to the idea that opposing teams always draw extra motivation when playing in the world's most famous arena, with several star players calling the arena the “mecca” of basketball. I'm here.
The Timberwolves, led by Anthony Edwards and featuring former All-Star Julius Randle back with the Knicks, showed no signs of intimidation Friday night, shooting a whopping 55.0 percent from 3-point range (22-of-40).
It's been a recurring theme all season for the Knicks (27-16), who entered Saturday's game ranked 27th in the league in defensive 3-point percentage (37.8 percent).
“We've got to be better at what we do,” Jalen Brunson said Friday night. “There's always room for improvement in every aspect of our game, and I'm not going to single it out. It may have seemed that way. [against Minnesota]But as a team, we just need to be locked in. And for me, I have to be locked up as well. It starts with me.
“We need to establish our physicality and presence early on and that’s on us.”
