New York Knicks at Washington Wizards Preview: How, Who to Watch as In-Season Tournament Resumes

The New York Knicks will look to earn their first In-Season Tournament victory against the reeling Washington Wizards.

The New York Knicks have a prime opportunity to earn some championship hardware for the first time in decades.

New York has a prime opportunity to earn its first-ever victory in the NBA In-Season Tournament on Friday night as a five-game road trip resumes against the reeling Washington Wizards. Since losing their inaugural IST showing to Milwaukee on Nov. 3, the Knicks have won four of their last five, including a narrow 116-114 triumph over the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday night. Julius Randle had his most efficient scoring night of the season, earning 29 points on 12-of-24 from the field.  

The rebuilding Wizards come in as losers of each of their last four, all but one coming by less than 10. Wednesday saw them drop a 130-117 decision to the Dallas Mavericks in the opener of a three-game homestand, which wraps up against Milwaukee on Monday.

Friday's game will be the first of three meetings between the Knicks and Wizards this season, with the next scheduled for Jan. 6 in Manhattan. New York took three of a four-game battle last year, the last coming by nine points back in April.

What: New York Knicks (6-5, 0-1 In-Season Tournament) @ Washington Wizards (2-9, 0-2 In-Season Tournament)

Where: Capital One Arena, Washington DC

When/Watch: Friday, 7 p.m. ET, MSG

Who's Favored: NYK -6.5

Keep An Eye On: Donte DiVincenzo

DiVincenzo was the Knicks' only major acquisition over the offseason and he has proven to be well worth the money in the early going. A good number of the defensive attention and applause has rightfully centered (pun intended) upon Mitchell Robinson's interior efforts, DiVincenzo has clogged the top of the key very well, as he and fellow former Villanova rep Josh Hart boast the best backcourt defensive rating among the Knicks' regulars at 109. Appearing in just under 20 minutes a game, DiVincenzo might be called upon for a bigger role with RJ Barrett and Quentin Grimes potentially down as the Knicks face a back-to-back between Washington and Charlotte this weekend.

Gafford (far left) guarded by Julius Randle and Mitchell Robinson during a preseason tilt / USA TODAY SPORTS

Wizard to Watch: Daniel Gafford

As the Wizards get off to a predictably tepid start, one no doubt exacerbated by Kristaps Porzingis' departure for Boston, the rebounding deficiencies has been particularly glaring. As it stands, Washington sits at or near the bottom of nearly every major rebounding category on both sides of the ball ... and that's before they faced the dominant interior prowess of Robinson and Isaiah Hartenstein. If the Wizards stand a chance to pull off an upset win and start to get their season back on track, it'll be up to their primary big man Gafford to rise to the occasion.

They Said It

“It’s very tough and that’s unfortunate, but we have a next-man-up mentality Guys step up but as a team, we had to step up together. We have a lot of great players on this team that can do a lot of great things. Obviously, we want Quentin to come back when he’s healthy, when he’s ready, whatever goes on, but I think for us we all know what we have to do.”-Point guard Jalen Brunson on the Quentin Grimes injury (h/t Stefan Bondy, New York Post)

Knicks vs. Wizards: 5 Questions With a DC Expert

Prediction

Even if the Knicks are missing both Barrett and Grimes, one has to assume that they're well-equipped to handle business against the reeling Wizards. It's going to be hard to make up ground against mighty Milwaukee and Miami in group play. But even if there's simply a chance to carry on momentum in a jam-packed road slate, that's quite valuable for a Knicks team trying to recover from a sluggish start.

Knicks 113, Wizards 102