The Knicks host the Nets at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday at 7:30 PM ET.
The Knicks are 25-18 and holding the No. 3 seed in the East, while the Nets are 12-29 and sitting 13th.
The Knicks are coming off a rough one, a 114-97 loss to the Mavericks on Monday. The Nets also lost Monday, falling 126-117 to the Suns.
This season series has been all Knicks so far. They’re up 2-0, including a 134-98 blowout and a 113-100 win.
Jalen Brunson is at 28.1 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 6.1 assists, and Karl-Anthony Towns is at 21.0 points, 11.6 rebounds, and 3.0 assists.
For the Nets, Michael Porter Jr. is having a monster year at 25.7 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 3.2 assists, and Nic Claxton brings 12.8 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 4.1 assists with rim protection.
The hook is simple: the Knicks need to stop the bleeding, and the Nets need a clean, punch-first game to avoid another long night.
Injury Report
Knicks
No injuries listed.
Nets
Haywood Highsmith: Out (right knee surgery)
Ben Saraf: Out (G League assignment)
Day’Ron Sharpe: Questionable (illness)
Why The Knicks Have The Advantage
Start with the obvious: this is a top-tier offense compared to what the Nets usually see. The Knicks are scoring 117.9 points per game on 46.7% from the field and 37.5% from three. That’s real shot quality, not just hot nights.
They also take care of business at home. The Knicks are 16-6 in their building, and the Nets are 6-13 on the road. That’s a gap you feel the second the crowd gets loud and the whistles get tight.
And even when the Knicks aren’t defending like a contender, they can still overwhelm teams with size and skill. They rebound at 46.0 per game and move it at 26.6 assists per game, so if the Nets over-help on Brunson, the Knicks usually find the next pass.
The clean path tonight looks like this: Brunson bends the defense, Towns drags bigs away from the rim, and the Knicks win the math battle with threes plus free throws before the fourth quarter turns into chaos.
Why The Nets Have The Advantage
The Nets’ advantage is basically “supernova potential.” Porter is the best scorer in this matchup on a per-game basis, and he’s efficient enough to torch good defenses when he catches a rhythm. If he’s hitting early threes, the Knicks can’t just sit in their comfort coverages.
The Nets can also lean into pace and randomness. They don’t score a lot overall at 109.0 points per game, but they get up threes (40.8 attempts per game), and that’s the one equalizer that can flip a game fast if it’s falling.
There’s also a mental edge in the sense that the Knicks are trying to snap a skid, so if the Nets can make this ugly early, you can feel the tension. The longer it stays close, the more pressure lands on the home team.
If the Nets win, it probably looks like Porter cooking, Claxton owning the paint, and the Knicks settling for tough pull-ups when the game gets tight.
X-Factors
Josh Hart is the Knicks tone-setter. He’s at 12.0 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 5.2 assists, and his rebounding from the wing can wreck a Nets team that already plays small stretches. If Hart turns misses into extra possessions, the Nets will run out of oxygen.
OG Anunoby matters because he decides how hard this is for Porter. OG is putting up 15.8 points with 5.5 boards, and he’s still the Knicks’ best “you don’t get comfy” defender. If OG makes Porter work for every touch, the Nets’ offense can get stuck in the mud.
Mikal Bridges is the quiet swing piece. He’s at 15.9 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 4.2 assists, and he’s been super efficient at 50.3% from the field and 40.0% from three. If he hits those momentum threes off Brunson passes, the Nets won’t be able to load up.
For the Nets, Noah Clowney is the guy who can flip the spacing. He’s at 13.1 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 2.0 assists, and he’s willing to fire from deep even when the percentages aren’t pretty. If he hits a couple early, it drags the Knicks’ bigs into uncomfortable spots.
Day’Ron Sharpe is huge if he plays. He’s at 7.9 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.4 assists in only 17.9 minutes, and that physicality is exactly what you need when Towns is trying to bully you inside. If he’s out or limited, the Nets’ margin for error gets way smaller.
And keep an eye on Egor Demin as the change-of-pace creator. He’s averaging 10.4 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 3.4 assists, and his confidence from three can swing second units. If he wins the non-Porter minutes, the Nets actually have a shot.
Prediction
I’m taking the Knicks. The Nets can absolutely make this annoying, and Porter can win any random game by himself, but the Knicks have too much offense, too much home-court muscle, and they already know they can keep the Nets under 100 if they lock in for even 30 good minutes.
Prediction: Knicks 118, Nets 108
