Game Preview: Knicks at 76ers, January 24, 2026

SB Nation

The Knicks hit ABC this afternoon trying to stop Tyrese Maxey and the 76ers and to avoid an 0–3 hole in the season series. A matinee . . . oh joy.

New York enters at 26*–18, while Philadelphia is 24–19.

The Sixers bring the confidence of a team that has already beaten the Knicks twice at Madison Square Garden and now plan to do it at home. The Knicks, struggling of late, hope to carry over momentum from their record-setting slaughter of the Nets on Wednesday.

The first two meetings followed the same script. The Sixers solved the Knicks’ defense, and the Knicks could not solve Maxey. Having a season worthy of MVP consideration, the peppy point guard scored 30 in their December contest and followed with 36 and eight boards on January 3. Maxey controlled the tempo and nimbly navigated whatever coverage New York threw at him. In the frontcourt, Philly’s star center Joel Embiid had his way and, when he sat, Andre Drummond brought rebounding and floor-spacing. Rookie VJ Edgecombe impressed, too, and coach Nick Nurse’s club had a counter for every Knicks push.

In the first game, New York was neck-and-neck until sinking in a 20-point fourth quarter. In the rematch, a promising first quarter was squandered by a terrible next three.

The Knicks’ stars have produced. Jalen Brunson scored 22 and 31 in the losses, and Karl-Anthony Towns was steadily around 20 and 10. The issue was timing and resistance. December’s fourth quarter bogged down into late-clock jumpers, while January turned into a track meet that had New York panting.

For today’s matinee, both teams are monitoring stars: Karl-Anthony Towns is questionable for New York with back spasms, while Philadelphia has Joel Embiid (ankle) and Paul George (knee) both listed as game-time decisions.

Prediction

Despite everything, ESPN.com likes New York at 58%. Interesting. Their oddsmakers must be trying to skew the betting lines, because Philly has past performance and home court in their favor, not to mention New York’s lousy record since winning the (cursed) NBA Cup. We’ll take it, ESPN, but it’s fishy.

After Wednesday’s 54-point flogging of the Nets assuaged some panic about the Knicks’ recent play, today’s game feels less like a must win. It does smack of a prove-it game, though. Brooklyn is a glorified G-League team. New York’s effort today will show us if they truly are back on track.

The last time the Knicks appeared on national TV, just this past Monday, they were embarrassed by the lowly Mavericks. Today they will redeem themselves. In a tightly-fought contest that comes down to the final minute, we’ll see some overdue Captain Clutch heroics—in a shot-for-shot duel with Maxey—and the Knicks will get their 27th win of the season. New York by two.