The New York Knicks Are The East’s Hidden Contender…

The New York Knicks Are The East’s Hidden Contender…

When Julius Randle was officially ruled out for the remainder of the season, many people wrote off the Knicks as legitimate contenders in the Eastern conference. Some may say that it was fair to do that, as Randle has been an all-star now in three of the last four seasons, and is a pivotal piece to New York’s offense. However, their performance out of late suggests that they’re still one of the top contenders to take out Boston in the East, if not the top. We had a preview of the two teams in their current forms on Thursday night, and the Knicks entered the fourth quarter up 29 points and had already pulled their best player, Jalen Brunson for the remainder of the game. Speaking of Brunson, he is on an absolute tear right now, putting himself in the same tier as Embiid, Giannis and Tatum as the true superstars in the East. Over his last three games, he has put up 43 points against Milwaukee, 45 against Chicago, and 39 against Boston in three quarters. Each of those will be participating in post-regular season basketball, but that didn’t stop Brunson from tearing them to shreds. That’s 42 points per game over those three, to go along with 7 assists and 4 rebounds, while shooting 56% from the field and 52% from three. He’s been unconscious, and is playing his best ball as the Knicks need it most, with a chance to rise all the way to the two seed in the Eastern conference. With as many games missed by starters as New York has had this season, that shouldn’t be possible, but the Knicks are the definition of a next man up mentality. Guys like Isaiah Hartenstein, Donte DiVincenzo, and Josh Hart have done a terrific job at filling in for injured players, and have been at their best when the team needs it most. Yes, Boston had practically nothing to play for in their matchup on Thursday, as they’ve already locked up the number one seed in the East and the best record in the NBA. But all their guys played, and for New York to dismantle them the way they did was still impressive. You could say Brunson’s performance is unsustainable, and that his fall back to Earth could bring the Knicks back down with him, but we’ve seen him dominate in the playoffs before, like his 31 points per game vs the Heat in last years conference semis, or his 28 point per game series against the Jazz the year prior. He’s not afraid of the big moments at all, and neither are his teammates.

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