Knicks’ efficient offense tests Philadelphia’s thin margin

The central pressure point

The New York Knicks bring one of last season’s most efficient attacks into Tuesday, October 20, against the Philadelphia 76ers at 7:00 PM ET. The game turns on whether Philadelphia can slow a Knicks offense that finished third in the league while overcoming its own uneven shooting profile from last season.

New York went 53-29 last season, compared with Philadelphia’s 45-37, and its 6.4 net rating ranked fifth. Net rating is the difference between offensive and defensive rating, while ratings measure points scored or allowed per 100 possessions; the Knicks posted a 117.5 offensive rating, third among 30 teams, and a 111.1 defensive rating, seventh.

Where New York can press

Philadelphia’s 113.0 defensive rating ranked 16th last season, a middle-of-the-league mark facing a top-three attack. The Knicks paired a 55.7 effective field-goal percentage, ninth, with a 59.0 true-shooting percentage, eighth, and they took 42.8 percent of their shots from three, 12th.

The glass is another important lane for New York. The Knicks collected 29.3 percent of available offensive rebounds, fifth in the league, and owned a 76.7 defensive-rebound percentage, second; Philadelphia’s 72.5 defensive-rebound percentage ranked 26th. Karl-Anthony Towns led New York with 11.9 rebounds in 75 games last season, including 3.1 offensive boards.

Jalen Brunson remains the centerpiece of that attack after averaging 26.0 points and 6.8 assists across 74 games last season. Philadelphia did limit opponents to a 54.1 effective field-goal percentage, 12th, and forced turnovers on 12.8 percent of opponent possessions, ninth, so its clearest defensive route is to make New York work through more possessions than its shooting numbers usually require.

Philadelphia’s counters

The 76ers were careful with the ball last season, turning it over on 11.4 percent of possessions, sixth in the league, against a Knicks defense that forced turnovers on 12.7 percent, 10th. That discipline matters because Philadelphia’s 112.9 offensive rating ranked 17th, while its 53.0 effective field-goal percentage ranked 26th.

Jaylen Brown supplies Philadelphia’s largest scoring burden after producing 28.7 points per game in 71 appearances last season, shooting 47.7 percent from the field. Joel Embiid adds 7.7 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in 38 games, while LeBron James averaged 7.2 assists in 60 games; their production offers Philadelphia ways to attack a Knicks defense that allowed a 54.1 opponent effective field-goal percentage, 11th.

Philadelphia lists Adem Bona as questionable and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope as probable. New York lists Mohamed Diawara as questionable, Drew Eubanks as probable and N'Faly Dante as out; those absences and uncertainties sit behind Towns’ work on the boards for a Knicks frontcourt that was among the league’s best at ending possessions. The game is at New York at 7:00 PM ET, and the market gives the Knicks a 63.4 percent win chance to Philadelphia’s 36.6 percent.