Should Knicks Regret Clinching No. 2 Seed?

The New York Knicks may have made their playoff route harder on themselves.

Jeremy Brener | Apr 17, 2024

Mar 12, 2024; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) dribbles against / Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

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New York Knicks

The New York Knicks are the No. 2 seed after beating the Chicago Bulls in Sunday's regular-season finale. However, the win comes with a bit of a consequence.

The Knicks will face either the Philadelphia 76ers or the Miami Heat in the first round of the playoffs. The team that wins tonight's Play-In game will become the No. 7 seed and head to Madison Square Garden for Game 1 on Saturday night.

However, Bleacher Report believes the Knicks may come to regret winning the final game of the season that landed them in this position.

"The No. 3 seed and a tussle with the Indiana Pacers looks a whole lot easier than either of those two options, one of which would pit the Knicks against reigning MVP Joel Embiid and the other against a Heat squad that has made a habit of eliminating contenders," Bleacher Report writes.

While the win may have given them a tougher matchup, the Knicks do benefit with the guarantee of homecourt advantage should they get past the Heat or Sixers. Of course, there's no guarantee the Knicks will win that first-round series, but the team has a winning culture. Losing games purposely to get a better matchup may sound smart in theory, but it fosters a losing mentality, which is the opposite of what this team and coach Tom Thibodeau are about.

The only thing they'll regret is if they don't perform up to standards against the Heat or Sixers when the series begins on Saturday.

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Published Apr 17, 2024

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.