The New York Knicks take on the Denver Nuggets tonight in a pivotal matchup against the defending champions. They’re down OG Anunoby yet again, but it’s not all bad news for the Knicks. In fact, they should feel very confident about their chances.
Knicks have an upper hand over the Denver Nuggets ahead of tonight’s matchup
New York has won three consecutive games against Denver. On top of that, they’ve won their last four regular-season games to date. They’re carrying much momentum to Ball Arena in Denver, CO, as Stefan Bondy of the New York Post pointed out.
This will be a major test for the Knicks’ bigs, though. Nikola Jokic, the frontrunner for this year’s MVP award, has the Nuggets on an 8-2 tear over the course of their last 10 games.
Knicks bigs will have to contain a red-hot Nikola Jokic on defense
Individually, Jokic has five 30-plus point outings in that stretch, two of which coming in triple-double efforts. The Nuggets also have their core healthy and rolling. Jamal Murray remains a late-game threat while Michael Porter Jr. offers an inside-out attack and Aaron Gordon is a playmaking threat.
The Knicks’ frontcourt has played admirably in Mitchell Robinson’s stead. Isaiah Hartenstein will get the main assignment on Jokic while Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau can throw different looks in Precious Achiuwa and Jericho Sims at the 2024 All-Star.
The Knicks are only allowing 46.7 points in the paint per game which ranks No. 6 league-wide. They’ll look to stifle Jokic and the Nuggets both inside and on the perimeter while overcoming Denver’s high altitude.