Cue the Robert Randolph. Tonight New York (29*-18) will host the Portland Trail Blazers (23-25) at Madison Square Garden in their second and final meeting of the season. And this time the vibes are good.
Friday night Knicks! Wee wheedle wheedle wheedle wheedle wump!
Just last week the sky was falling in New York. They had suffered two four-game win streaks over the course of eleven games, making your favorite ball club and mine look less like world-beating potential champions and more like uncomfortable bedfellows. But after a 300-point defeat of the Nets, a stand-tall win against Philly, a tougher-than-it-shoulda-been game against the Kings, and a Clark-Kent-became-Superman-at-halftime victory over the Raptors on Wednesday, the vibes have indeed improved.
Portland is trying to snap a three-game losing streak. They score 115.5 points per game (18th in the league), allow 117.4 points per game (22nd in the league), and make 14 triples per game (11th in the league). They also attempt 41.6 three-pointers a night, which puts them at a league-worst 33.7%.
When last they met on January 11, the Knicks showed their resilience in a 123-114 road victory that snapped the Blazers’ five-game win streak. Jalen Brunson led the way with 26 points, OG Anunoby chipped in 24 points, Karl-Anthony Towns posted a 20-11 double-double, and Mikal Bridges added 18 points with six assists and six rebounds. The game was too tight for comfort through three quarters before New York pulled away in the fourth, when Miles McBride drained a crucial three-pointer late to finally start inflating the lead. The hosts got a strong effort from Deni Avdija with 25 points, but he exited the game with a second-half back injury.
During their four-game winning streak, the Knicks have been on a tear, leading the league in net rating at plus-25.6. Surely beating Brooklyn by 500 points helped that number. Even more encouragings is that over that span, they have also held opponents to roughly 87 points per game. It certainly does seem that the team and coach Mike Brown identified devensive improvements as their surest path out of the doldrums.
And the offense has improved over this winning stretch, too. Brunson continues to set the tone, averaging 27.6 points and six assists while ranking eighth in the NBA in scoring. In New York’s 119–92 statement win in Toronto, Mikal Bridges poured in 30 points on 12-of-15 shooting, including 19 in a decisive third quarter. In the postgame interview, he cited a personal commitment to being more coachable and less entitled. Good Lord, how often have you heard an athlete of any sport speak humility so bluntly? He has been a steady catalyst throughout the streak.
Avdija has emerged as Portland’s engine, averaging 25.8 points per game (13th in the NBA) to go with 7.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists. His breakout year earned him Western Conference Player of the Week honors in Week 11, when he posted 26.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 9.8 assists per game. Rookie center Donovan Clingan anchors the glass, leading the Trail Blazers with 11.2 rebounds per night, second-best in the league, behind only KAT. Shaedon Sharpe remains a steady scoring threat and is coming off a 31-point outing, while Toumani Camara provides floor spacing, pacing the team with 2.6 made threes per game.
Portland’s been fighting the injury bug all year. Basketball-Reference lists eight players on their injury report. Avdija (back) and Robert Williams III (knee) are game time decisions. Across the aisle, Josh Hart and Miles McBride are both game time decisions with bad ankles—although, Hart played on that sore ankle on Wednesday and finished with almost two dozen points in thirty-some minutes. NOTE: Mitchell Robinson is not listed on the injury report after sitting out the Raptors game.
Prediction
ESPN.com likes New York, giving them a 75% chance. We like that, too. After a few up and down quarters, the Knicks will pull ahead for good in the fourth and win by 10.
Game Details
Date: Friday, January 30, 2026
Time: 7:30 PM ET
Place: Madison Square Garden, NYC
TV: MSG
Follow: @ptknicksblog and bsky
* Should be one more, but the Cup final doesn’t count.
