The New York Knicks slipped to 6-6 on Friday with a 106-104 loss to the Indiana Pacers, dropping into a tie for fifth in the Eastern Conference alongside the Miami Heat.
While it hasn't been an outright disaster of a start, it has been an uneven performance by the defending champions that has left them frustrated and searching for answers. The championship hangover in New York seems to be real, and the once immaculate vibes at Madison Square Garden have been replaced by frustration as they try to get on track.
After a scoreless performance against the Pacers, Josh Hart was brutally honest about not knowing what's wrong and how he's been struggling mentally to start this season.
"Wish I could tell you," Hart said. "Don't know. Right now I'm not in a good headspace, and I got to figure out how to improve that and improve my play."
New York's wing woes
One of the strengths of the Knicks during their title run last year was their rotation of two-way wings between Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns, but so far this season their three best wings -- OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges and Hart -- have been stuck in the mud offensively.
Those three are all shooting below 40% from the field and below 33% from 3-point range this season, a massive departure from last season when they were all above 48% from the field and 37% from distance. The result of New York's wings struggling on offense -- aside from Landry Shamet, who has been a needed bright spot -- has been an even greater burden on Brunson and Towns.
Towns has been sensational, averaging 21.1 points and 13.7 rebounds per game on 54.2/40.0/77.0 shooting splits as he's moved back to a full-time role at center after the departure of Mitchell Robinson. Brunson has been his typically excellent self, averaging 26.6 points and 5.7 assists per game -- a slim uptick in points and a small decrease in assists from last year -- but his efficiency has dipped, shooting 43.6% from the field.
While his 3-point percentage has held firm at 37.5%, he's shooting just 55.8% from inside three feet. That would be the worst finishing rate of his career at the rim and seems to be a byproduct of teams collapsing in without the threat of spacing from the wings around Brunson.
A less effective Brunson at the rim, the struggles of their wings and Towns playing more at the five have resulted in a Knicks offense that is 29th in the NBA in paint points at 35.5%. Mike Brown's offense is predicated on launching threes, but a year ago the Knicks got 41.4% of their points in the paint. A 6% drop-off there is a significant reduction, especially considering how poorly they're shooting from three as a team.
The post-championship vibe shift
The big question raised by Hart's comments after Indiana's game is: how did the Knicks get here after winning the title?
It's one thing to have a championship hangover, but it's another to have the vibes of a team sour so quickly, considering their success was built in no small part on being a tight-knit group. It's hard not to point to the top of the organization and the way James Dolan seemed adamant about raining on the Knicks' championship celebration almost as soon as it began.
Dolan didn't even let the champagne-soaked locker room dry out before he proclaimed his refusal to go into the second apron to keep the team together. He stayed true to his word, letting Robinson walk to the rival Boston Celtics. However, what was perhaps more impactful on this year's poor start is the way the Knicks handled extension talks with much of their roster.
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Towns made clear his desire to work out a deal to stay in New York and cut the Knicks a hometown discount, but New York was asking him to take an even bigger pay cut than he was willing. Ultimately, talks fell apart and the Knicks made the curious decision to publicly announce they were no longer going to discuss extensions with anyone on the roster a week before the season began.
Hart is among the extension-eligible players, but unlike Towns, who can decline a player option and hit free agency, his option for next year is a $22.3 million team option. If the Knicks wanted, they could simply pick up Hart's option and extend discussions on a new deal into next summer. One can't help but wonder whether the uncertainty about the future is part of what is affecting Hart and putting him in a bad headspace.
Some players thrive under the pressure of a contract year, while others just feel the anxiety of not having a stable future. Hart, whose impact often goes beyond the box score, might feel that more than others.
The Knicks had two paths they could've taken this summer after winning their first title in over 50 years. One was to do everything possible to lock up the core group as quickly as possible and try to keep the good vibes rolling. The other was to play hardball and use the championship as an opportunity to squeeze players for a discount.
Knicks fans weren't surprised to see Dolan choose option two, and now they have to wonder if that's at the root of an uneven start to their title defense.
