Knicks Clinching Scenarios: How Does NY Clinch a Top 6 Spot?

The New York Knicks are inches away from an automatic NBA playoff berth, with their earliest opportunity to clinch landing on Saturday.

The New York Knicks get a chance to see how far they've come in only a year this weekend.

Reduced to playing meaningless basketball this time last season, the Knicks are now in a prime position to return to the proper NBA postseason. Wednesday's win over the Miami Heat, while costly considering the two-week loss of Julius Randle, put the Knicks at the cusp of a clinch. It put them four games ahead of the seventh-place Heat with five games left on each side. Fifth-place New York is also 2.5 games ahead of the sixth-place Brooklyn Nets, who are a game-and-a-half ahead of the Heat to avoid the purgatorial Play-In Tournament. 

The prime (and likely most preferred) way for the Knicks to clinch involves a win in a potential playoff preview on Friday night against the Cleveland Cavaliers (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG). Contrary to popular belief, however, the Knicks would not clinch a playoff spot with only a win over the Cavs: they'll also need a Miami loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday night (7:30 p.m. ET, Bally Sports Southwest/NBA TV). 

In a bit of a twist, the issue lies with the Nets: in a two-way with the Heat, the Knicks would've had the tiebreaker thanks to the 3-1 head-to-head victory clinched on Wednesday. But in a three-way tie between the Knicks, Nets, and Heat, Miami would still be alive based on the unique way to solve such deadlocks. While winning an NBA division title has lost most of its luster (previously guaranteeing top four placement until 2016), it comes into play in a multi-team tiebreaker.

To that end, the Heat, the current leaders of the Southeast Division, would have the advantage in a three-way match with the Knicks and Nets. The Knicks also have the current edge on any tiebreaker on the Nets despite splitting their season series. The first tiebreaker is the divisional record, which the Nets can only tie: the Knicks have completed their divisional slate (8-8) while Brooklyn (7-8) has one more such contest (their season finale against Philadelphia on Apr. 9). Conference record would be the next determination and the Knicks have the edge there at 29-19 vs. 27-21. Each side has four conference games left, with Brooklyn facing Atlanta at home on Friday (7:30 p.m. ET, YES).

In either case, the Knicks seemed well-destined to reach this year's postseason after missing last year's showcase. If they don't clinch by Saturday, they'll face a win-and-in situation on Sunday when they face the Washington Wizards. 

Time will tell just how far they'll go. 

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Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags

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