How many wins can the Knicks achieve in the 2024-25 season?

It may seem premature, but the New York Knicks are just seven weeks away from the start of the 2024-25 NBA season. With an impressive roster on paper, the Knicks look like a team that can build on their excellent regular season in 2023-24 and translate it into a deeper playoff run in 2025. To do that, the Knicks will need to play well in the upcoming regular season, which raises the question of how many wins they will have this year.

New York won 50 games last season, their first 50-win season since 2012-13. They did so without All-Star Julius Randle in the lineup for the final 36 games of the campaign. They also dealt with injuries to OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson in the second half of their lineup. This time, their troops will be healthy and will be joined by NBA Iron Man Mikal Bridges, as well as a strengthened second unit.

The Knicks’ performance next season will largely depend on the strength of their schedule.

The Knicks’ schedule for next season has been released. The Knickerbockers will have a lot of work to do to get the campaign underway. In their first 10 games alone, they’ll face the defending champion Boston Celtics, the Indiana Pacers in two rematches of their 2024 Eastern Conference Semifinals series, the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Miami Heat, the Milwaukee Bucks, and the Philadelphia 76ers. Four of those seven tough games will be on the road.

This will be a great litmus test to see how the changed Knicks will fare against the most talented teams in the East, including the Celtics, Bucks, Sixers and Heat, as well as the Pacers and Cavs, who have tested the Knicks in previous postseasons.

Luckily for them, the Knicks won’t see a single road trip that lasts longer than five games. The downside is that the first of their two five-game schedules away from Madison Square Garden will come just four games after the franchise’s aforementioned first 10 games. They’ll face three NBA Finals contenders: the Phoenix Suns, Denver Nuggets and the defending Western Conference champion Dallas Mavericks. They’ll also face a Utah Jazz team that’s impossible to sleep on.

Knicks face tough tests in two of their longest home streaks

Looking at their home schedule, the Knicks will have a break from Jan. 6-13, when they host the Toronto Raptors and Detroit Pistons, two struggling franchises. Although that period will also include games with the up-and-coming Oklahoma City Thunder and Orlando Magic, as well as the Bucks.

The remaining five games at Madison Square Garden are against other Western Conference teams, including the Sacramento Kings, the Ja Morant-led Memphis Grizzlies, the Nuggets again, and then the LeBron James- and Anthony Davis-led Los Angeles Lakers and another surprise team, the Houston Rockets.

This final game could be the Knicks’ toughest of the season before they face the Atlanta Hawks, Pistons and Brooklyn Nets in three of their final six games of the campaign.

How the Knicks’ results will change beyond their schedule

The schedule itself presents New York with some challenges. That said, how their group of guys will gel will, too. The Knicks have another hungry mouth to feed in Bridges. How that will affect Randle’s touches and enjoyment of his role on offense remains to be seen.

Then there’s the backup point guard spot. Will Miles McBride be pushed out of the rotation or will Cam Payne take the second spot behind a rising two-way star? The Knicks will also have to prove they have enough scoring power and depth at the backup power forward spot behind Randle to weather another injury that’s not promised or likely to cover the team in 2024-25.

If the Knicks can maintain their league-leading 52.7% rebounding percentage from last season and collectively reduce the tempo of the game to zero (95.96%) while staying true to their defensive threat and, most importantly, maintaining harmonious team chemistry, then coach Tom Thibodeau will be able to get his players into title contention and Jalen Brunson will have the skills to lead the charge, leading to another likely All-Star appearance and MVP bid.

It’s conceivable that the Knicks could flirt with 55 wins in 2024-25. Bridges’ health and reliability will be the most influential new variables that will keep their upcoming experiment headed in that direction.