Knicks fans get the privilege of seeing their team before 28 other fanbases to kick off this 2025-26 season, as New York prepares to face the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday in the NBA’s Abu Dhabi Games. Though the core of the roster remains intact from last year’s run to the Eastern Conference Finals, a new head coach and roster spot battle make these exhibitions more intriguing than usual.
Here are the five biggest things to watch this preseason for the Knicks…
How the starting five evolves
After the Knicks’ defeat at the hands of the Pacers, a lot of attention turned to their starting lineup of Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby, Josh Hart and Karl-Anthony Towns. Whether by choice (playing more Miles McBride for Hart) or by force (Mitchell Robinson’s injury) then-head coach Tom Thibodeau heavily relied on that five despite declining returns, until he was forced to switch with his back against the wall.
Many expect the Knicks to go with the adjusted five of Robinson in for Hart, or perhaps McBride, under the new leadership of Mike Brown. These games should give us some clarity on what to expect, or serve as a stage for some experimentation.
Ultimately, New York will need to be comfortable with a combination of looks in a matchup-dependent league with a couple of injury-prone options for that fifth spot. Expect a fluid process, perhaps newcomerGeurschon Yabusele gets a chance, but no final decisions anytime soon.
The new-look offense
One of the biggest changes expected from Coach Brown this season is the injection of a quicker, facile offense. He’s preaching an increased tempo, output from three, and means to get paint touches, a large part of the promise in hiring him to replace a Conference Finals-reaching coach.
How this actually conveys on the floor is still a mystery. Brown stated Brunson will get the ball in his hands to close games; how bought in will he be to the new system in the prior 43 minutes?
As part of his wish for 40+ threes a night, Brown wants Brunson taking more on catch-and-shoots. If that happens, who is going to be generating that shot for him, and how? There are real roster limitations to consider — Towns as a playmaker has been a mixed experiment — should we expect much more ball handling out of Bridges?
It should be fun watching this play out in a low-stakes environment. It will obviously take a good bit into the regular season for this team to really click, but the seeds will be planted in the coming days and weeks, and we can get a glimpse of what’s to come.
Different team emphases
Under Thibodeau, no matter the matchup or roster change, the Knicks would inevitably fall neatly back into their Thibs-ball identity: slow the pace, pound the glass, play smashmouth defense. While some of these qualities won't be going anywhere, this will be the first time in years fans see the Knicks emphasize new things on the court and maybe culture a new identity.
It will be interesting to see what that is. Brown has been less revealing on the defensive specifics, but expect the Knicks to still favor offensive rebounding with Robinson healthy and the many bigs around him.
Previously, New York exclusively played drop coverage in pick-and-roll and emphasized protecting the rim above all, sometimes sacrificing too many open threes to the opposition. What will Brown’s fundamentals be, and how will he get Towns to buy into the scheme?
Battle for the final training camp spot
As of right now, the Knicks currently have two veteran options for one open minimum slot this season — Malcolm Brogdon and Landry Shamet. They can also trade one of their young pieces to make room for both vet guards.
Shamet spent most of last year rehabbing a preseason injury with the Knicks before rejoining the team for some solid spot minutes down the stretch and in the playoffs. Brogdon is two years removed from winning Sixth Man of the Year, but has battled injuries throughout his career while bouncing between lottery teams since that award.
Potentially dealing one of Tyler Kolek or Pacome Dadiet, two of few remaining team prospects, just to make room for a 10th or 11th man is an aggressive move, but also the type a championship-contending team sometimes needs to make. Neither played a material amount of NBA minutes their rookie year, so this preseason on may be serving partially as their tryout.
While preseason may be low-stakes for the fans and starters, it could be deciding some players’ livelihoods. Let’s see what the Knicks end up doing for their final roster spot, and if its ultimate recipient can be an impact guy in the playoffs.
How the young core looks
Beyond making the roster, it’s imperative the Knicks see some dividends from their current crop of young talent. Their last batch of knockout draft picks have been largely dealt, along with most of their upcoming picks, and the current roster is as capped out as can be.
While they will have some future flexibility, ensuring their only prospects for the foreseeable future develop positively is key to current and later success. Injuries and randomness happen, and the Knicks will find themselves depleted at some point this postseason, badly needing somebody to step up.
It could be Brogdon or Shamet, or the hero could be a homegrown project. Even if they aren’t ready this year, the young players blossoming into real talent on team-friendly contracts will help the Knicks remain competitive beyond the peak of this core.
Read the full article here