Greetings from the greater Boston area. Your intrepid blogger is deep behind enemy lines because young Rowan competed in a karate tournament here (and took gold for his form demonstration, woot!). I’m wearing my Knicks gear proudly to the dismay of these green-gilled goons. As for the Knicks this week, they should run the table. Favored in all three matchups, they’ll face one fading dynasty and two bottom feeders. As an added bonus, they get to ride the subway for one of the contests. Is that enough
of a clue for you, smarty pants? Read on, Donkey Kong.
Sunday, March 15 — Knicks vs. Golden State Warriors (8:00 p.m. ET, NBC / Peacock)
Sunday night, the Knicks return from their five-game road trip to host the Golden State Warriors at Madison Square Garden.
Golden State still carries some cachet, but this game matters more for New York’s place in the Eastern Conference standings than for the Warriors’ dimming playoff hopes. The Knicks should be favored, as the home team and playing better basketball, while the Warriors have struggled to string wins together.
The last meeting came January 15 in San Francisco, when Golden State beat New York 126-113. Jimmy Butler scored 32, Stephen Curry added 27, while Miles McBride and OG Anunoby each had 25 for the Knicks. Perhaps you recall Draymond Green trash-talking Karl-Anthony Towns throughout the game and afterward receiving a warm hug from former coach Mike Brown? Yeah, let’s not see that again, ever. (And we probably won’t on Sunday, with Green marked OUT on the injury report.)
Tune in to NBC and Peacock.
Tuesday, March 17 — Knicks vs. Indiana Pacers (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG)
Finally, we’ll be done with the Pacers when New York hosts them for the last contest of the four-game regular season series. Even with their terrible record, the Pacers always get up for games against the Knicks. Case in point: the teams just met March 13 in Indianapolis, and it took a career-high of 22 rebounds from Mitchell Robinson, plus 29 points from Jalen Brunson and 25 from OG Anunoby to hang those Hoosiers. For once, it would be so nice if our heroes would throw them on the floor to start the game and kick them for 48 straight minutes.
Watch it on MSG.
Friday, March 20 — Knicks at Brooklyn Nets (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG / YES)
I attended the last game of last season, when the Knicks visited Barclays. The only starter was Mikal Bridges, who subbed out after tip-off to preserve his ironman streak. An ugly affair unfolded from there—a glorified G League game, if you will. I can’t imagine Friday will be much prettier. Brooklyn has struggled all season and ranks near the bottom of the league on both ends. New York should smash them and rest their starters in the second half.
Their last meeting was January 21 at MSG, when the Knicks routed the Nets 120–66. Jalen Brunson scored 20, Landry Shamet added 18, and Michael Porter Jr. led Brooklyn with 12. That 54-point win was the largest margin of victory in Knicks franchise history.
Tune in on MSG or YES.
Go Knicks.
