Would you be shocked if I told you that the Knicks are only 1-4 since acquiring Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks from the Pistons? The cause of the Knicks’ struggles started before the trade deadline when they lost both Julius Randle and OG Anunoby to injury, which has been far more impactful than the change in chemistry from adding a couple of bench players.
The Pistons have not won a game since the trade deadline, but they have looked better, as long as Monty Williams can get out of his own way and focus on playing the 9 or 10 best players each night and nothing more.
This is still a game the Knicks should win, but it definitely won’t be as easy with their recent struggles.
Game Vitals
Where: Madison Square Garden in New York City, NY
When: Monday, February 26 at 7:30 PM EST
Watch: Bally Sports Detroit
Odds: Knicks (-10.5)
Analysis
The Knicks are legitimate contenders in the East with a fully healthy roster, so don’t let their recent struggles fool you. The Knicks were one of the better teams in the league after acquiring OG Anunoby at the end of December, but have come back down to Earth a bit since he went down with an elbow injury at the beginning of this month. That also coincided with Julius Randle going down with a shoulder injury.
The Knicks are 3-6 in the month of February, and as mentioned above, only 1-4 since acquiring Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks from the Pistons. Both players have bolstered the Knicks bench, but with the drop off in their starting lineup, their impact on the Knicks’ bench has not been as noticeable.
Right now, the Knicks live and die by the Villanova backcourt. Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, and Donte DiVincenzo are their best players and although Brunson has shown he can carry an offensive load as the number 1 option, they simply do not have enough around them to win games on a nightly basis.
There isn’t a better cure to a team’s struggles than the Detroit Pistons. They have been playing better recently, so they won’t roll over like they would a couple months ago, but they still have to play pretty much perfect basketball on a night-to-night basis to have a chance at winning.
That almost happened against the Orlando Magic on Saturday, before a Paolo Banchero miracle shot put an end to all hopes of the Pistons pulling off the upset. The current version of the Knicks may not be as good as that fully healthy Magic team, but the Knicks have veterans that have experienced high-level basketball, so they should have an easier time putting the Pistons away if the game is close at the end.
The Pistons will likely be without Marcus Sasser again as he nurses a knee injury, and they will also be without Isaiah Stewart who serves the final game of his 3-game suspension from his altercation with Drew Eubanks before the All Star Break.
Those are tough losses and it likely means more James Wiseman and Malachi Flynn, which makes the losses even tougher.
The Pistons actually don’t matchup too poorly with the current version of the Knicks. Jalen Brunson alone is the best player on the court, but the Knicks’ backcourt doesn’t bring a ton of size, so Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey should be able to do some damage.
The Knicks likely win this game because they are still the more talented team, but there might be some extra motivation from the Knicks’ castoffs in the deadline deal, Quentin Grimes and Evan Fournier, who both appear to firmly be in Monty Williams’ rotation.
Lineups
New York Knicks (34-23): Jalen Brunson, Donte DiVincenzo, Josh Hart, Precious Achiuwa, Isaiah Hartenstein
Detroit Pistons (8-48): Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Ausar Thompson, Simone Fontecchio, Jalen Duren
Question of the Day
Who will get more points out of the players acquired in the Knicks-Pistons deadline deal?