Perhaps no team needed the NBA All-Star break more than the Knicks.
Even as winners in nine of their last 11 games, the Knicks entered the eight-day layoff nursing multiple key injuries and with a starting lineup whose workload remains unrivaled.
The break offered a valuable opportunity for the Knicks (36-18) to rest and reset before they begin a crucial 28-game home stretch with a chance to prove they belong among the NBA’s elite.
“We haven’t really accomplished anything,” point guard Jalen Brunson said going into the break. “We have a long way to go to continue to where we want to go, but it’s all about taking it one day at a time. Right now, it’s just rest and recharge and come back ready to go.”
The break served as a natural time to assess the state of the Knicks, who are now two-thirds of the way through their first season since acquiring Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges in franchise-altering offseason trades.
The Knicks had All-Stars in Brunson and Towns, boast one of the NBA’s best offenses and are the Eastern Conference’s No. 3 seed. But they are a combined 0-5 against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Oklahoma City Thunder and Boston Celtics — the only three teams with better records than theirs.
There’s a disparity between the depth on those three teams and the Knicks, though the Knicks have played short-handed all season.
Mitchell Robinson still hasn’t returned from May’s left ankle surgery, but the 7-foot center is believed to be close to his debut.
A healthy Robinson would add top-tier rim protection to the Knicks’ inconsistent defense and be another trusted option in coach Tom Thibodeau’s rotation.
Robinson would also allow the Knicks to maintain their size when Towns goes to the bench or to play both 7-footers at once. The sharp-shooting Towns found success as a power forward with the Minnesota Timberwolves, with whom he played next to shot-blocking center Rudy Gobert.
“There’s been a lot of fight, a lot of determination,” Towns said. “We had to overcome a lot. We still haven’t had Mitch. Precious [Achiuwa] missed a good chunk, and Landry [Shamet] missed a good chunk.”
The break also gave OG Anunoby extra time to rest his sprained right foot. The forward was listed as questionable for the Knicks’ last two games but did not play in either, bringing his absence to five games.
Thursday’s home game against the Chicago Bulls — the first game after the break — would mark 19 days since Anunoby suffered the scary-looking non-contact injury against the Los Angeles Lakers on Feb. 1.
Miles “Deuce” McBride, meanwhile, played only eight minutes in Wednesday’s 149-148 overtime win against the Atlanta Hawks before leaving with a rib contusion.
A healthy roster would give the Knicks their deepest and most-balanced team of the season.
The Knicks’ starting lineup of Brunson, Towns, Anunoby, Bridges and Josh Hart has played a whopping 806 minutes together — nearly 300 more minutes than any other five-man lineup in the NBA.
Lineups featuring at least four of those players account for the NBA’s top five most-used four-man combinations; while seven of the top nine three-man combos belong to the Knicks.
Bridges leads the NBA in minutes (2061.1), while Hart (2002.7) ranks second and Brunson (1865.1) ranks sixth.
Some of those depth concerns stem from the offseason departures of center Isaiah Hartenstein, who signed with Thunder in free agency; and Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo, who were included in the trade that brought back Towns.
The Knicks added Towns and Bridges — who cost five first-round picks in a trade with the Nets — in an effort to raise their ceiling after back-to-back second-round playoff exits.
With the new-look roster now more accustomed to playing together and finally getting healthier, it’s time for the Knicks to show what they can do.
“I want our players to get away and re-energize and refocus,” Towns said before the break, “and then come back ready to head down the stretch.”
