The New York Knicks have five games in 10 days to figure it out.
It starts on Friday, when New York hosts the Chicago Bulls, who seemingly have already packed up for the summer.
Coach Mike Brown and his Knicks need to prove something over the next week and a half.
Are they the team that has twice posted winning streaks of seven games or more since mid-January? Or, are they the squad that has lost five straight matchups against winning teams by eight points or more?
“We’re not going in the right direction,” guard Josh Hart said recently. “We’re not trending upwards. So we got to figure it out.”
New York (49-28) did take care of business on Wednesday, salvaging a 1-3 road trip with a 130-119 victory at Memphis without leading scorer Jalen Brunson (ankle).
OG Anunoby had 25 points and 13 rebounds, and Karl-Anthony Towns posted his fourth career triple-double with 20 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists.
Mikal Bridges added 24 points as New York outrebounded the short-handed Grizzlies, 49-20, and scored 79 points in the first half, their highest amount this season.
Brown applauded his team’s mentality, saying, “It’s good to have that mindset.”
However, Wednesday’s triumph didn’t prove anything. The Knicks have won 10 straight against teams with losing records.
For a squad that reached the Eastern Conference finals last season and had goals of going even further this year, this recent run of poor performances against winning teams — which includes double-digit blowouts at Charlotte, Oklahoma City and Houston over the past week — is not inspiring.
Unfortunately, Friday’s matchup against the Bulls (29-47) won’t allay those concerns, as Chicago has dropped off the map the past 10 weeks.
Under coach Billy Donovan, a team that stood 23-22 on Jan. 24 has gone 6-25 in the 31 games since. Chicago has dropped six straight on the road and seven of eight overall, including a 145-126 decision to the 18-win Indiana Pacers on Wednesday.
Midseason acquisition Guerschon Yabusele led the way with 20 points and six rebounds while Matas Buzelis added 17 points, nine rebounds and six assists.
“We know we are not going to be in the playoffs or play-in, so like I tell them every day, continue to play hard, finish hard the season, and I try to help as much as I can to show a good example,” Yabusele said.
Chicago is playing out the string, not knowing who will be here next year. That includes Donovan, the two-time NCAA championship-winning coach with Florida, whose name has been bandied about for the vacant North Carolina position.
“My main focus is on these guys and this new team,” Donovan said last week. “I understand that there’s stuff out there, and I understand that there is going to be certain speculation. But, I have to concentrate on this group, and really, my focus is on what we’re doing here in Chicago.”
The Bulls are 11-26 on the road, while New York, which has won four straight and six of seven at Madison Square Garden, is 27-9 at home.
