Why securing the third seed is so imperative for a potential playoff run

After a crucial road victory against the Warriors to push their current winning streak to four, the 41-27 Knicks find themselves as the fourth seed in the eastern conference. With just 14 games left in the regular season, fans have started to look ahead to where they may finish in the standings and what that could mean for the Knicks and their postseason success.

Let’s start with where they currently stand. If they were to stay the fourth seed, they’d likely be looking at a first-round matchup against the Magic. At first glance, Orlando may seem like the preferred matchup given their youth and less-than-stellar offense and shooting. But truth be told, the Magic, especially if they can continue playing the way they have been, could prove to be a formidable opponent, one that is sure to be annoying to play against. Now, Philadelphia, if they can get Embiid back, Miami, if they can get back on track, and Indiana, if Halliburton can get healthier and return to form, all have the potential to be scarier opponents, but if things stay the way they are now, the Magic will likely be a more difficult opponent. I do think that the Knicks, especially if they get Julius Randle, OG Anunoby, and Mitchell Robinson, will be favored, but it’ll be a physical series that will test them. And if they move on, they will likely have the unfortunate task of facing off against the Celtics, who have been the clear-cut best team in the league pretty much wire-to-wire.

That makes getting the third seed imperative. It won’t be an easy task seeing as the Knicks still have games against the Nuggets, Thunder, and Celtics left on the schedule and have no timetable for any of the aforementioned injured trio. But with Donovan Mitchell going through injuries of his own, it’s not like the Cleveland Cavaliers have an easy path to securing the third seed either.

If New York can somehow leapfrog Cleveland and finish the regular season as the third seed, they’d play the winner of the 7th and 8th seed matchup, which would be between the Pacers and the Heat if the playoffs started today. Those aren’t easy matchups by any means as New York has struggled against both at times in the past. The Pacers are 2-1 against the Knicks this season and, when Halliburton is healthy and rolling, have proven to be a tricky matchup for them. And while the Knicks have had the Heat’s number during the regular season, going 2-0 against them so far, we all saw just what they were capable of last postseason.

That being said, neither team looks to be as intimidating as they once were. The Pacers have been pretty up and down since the Play-In tournament largely due to Halliburton’s injury. The All-Star point guard has not been the same since injuring his hamstring in January as he’s been more reluctant to drive and is in the middle of a dreadful shooting slump. That, coupled with the departure of Buddy Hield, has left this roster with a lot less shooting than they started the season off with, hamstringing (pun intended) what was once the most explosive offense in the league.

Miami, who is also dealing with an injury to Tyler Herro, has had another Heat-esque regular season where they flip-flop between looking like a team that went to the conference finals last season and a team that is going to fizzle out in the first round. But as of late, we’ve seen a lot more of the latter.

Again, both teams pose different kinds of problems for the Knicks and are by no means easy to eliminate. But if New York has hopes of making a deep playoff run, securing the third seed, even if it means facing off against two teams that might scare some people, has to be the way. Both teams are vulnerable right now and are playing worse than the Magic are and the second-round matchup against the Bucks will be a little easier than one against a Celtics team that the Knicks do not match up well with. Milwaukee should still have the upper hand and will be favorites but the Knicks, lead by Jalen Brunson, who has played well against the Bucks this season, have a shot, evidenced by their Christmas Day performance. Now, obviously, with some teams tanking, and others resting stars as the season nears its end, the standings can still change drastically, making some of this meaningless, but regardless, it would be very beneficial for New York if they can secure the third seed and avoid Boston.