Winning the franchise’s first title in 53 years created a lasting bond among the members of the 2025-26 New York Knicks.
But those bonds will take a back seat Friday night when the Knicks face former teammate Mitchell Robinson and the Boston Celtics in a clash of Eastern Conference powers.
Both teams have been off since losing their season openers Tuesday. The Knicks began their championship defense with a 106-100 loss to LeBron James, Jaylen Brown and the visiting Philadelphia 76ers. The Celtics squandered a 22-point third-quarter lead in a 121-113 loss to the host Detroit Pistons.
For the Knicks, the loss was a disappointing coda to a memorable night. Returning players and coaches received their championship rings before the banner commemorating the long-awaited title was raised to the rafters at Madison Square Garden.
The Knicks led by 10 points three times in the second quarter but fell behind for good when the 76ers ended the third quarter on an 11-0 run. Jalen Brunson, whose finishing skills last spring turned him into an all-time Big Apple sporting icon, was 1 of 5 from the field in the fourth quarter, including a missed turnaround jumper with 3:46 left that would have given New York the lead.
“I think it’s good for us to, you know, kind of get knocked down off the mountain, humble ourselves, put our egos in check and see what’s going to happen,” Brunson said.
The Knicks weren’t haunted Tuesday by their decision to bring back everyone from last year’s rotation except Robinson, who signed a three-year deal with the Celtics on July 6 after New York owner James Dolan made it clear he wouldn’t go into the second apron to keep the entire title team together.
Andre Drummond, Robinson’s replacement as the backup to center Karl-Anthony Towns, posted a double-double (12 points, 14 rebounds) in 24 minutes while Towns battled foul trouble.
Robinson, meanwhile, finished with four points, three rebounds and two blocked shots in 18 minutes in his Celtics debut. On Thursday, he said he was more focused on having a better game than facing his ex-teammates.
“It doesn’t really matter that I’m playing my former team,” Robinson said. “It’s more so just trying to bounce back from what happened two nights ago.”
But Knicks head coach Mike Brown expects to see an energized Robinson on Friday.
“At the end of the day, we want to kick his (butt) like he probably wants to kick ours,” Brown said.
Robinson was part of an offseason overhaul by the Celtics, who traded Brown, their top scorer last season, to the 76ers in exchange for Paul George on July 6.
George, the NBA’s ninth-leading active scorer, collected a game-high 38 points Tuesday, including 11 of the Celtics’ first 14 points in the second half as they extended their lead to 72-50 with 8:32 left in the third quarter.
But George hoisted just eight more shots after that. The Celtics went 15-for-40 from the field while being outscored 71-41 the rest of the way. The Pistons’ game-ending surge included a 23-0 run in the fourth quarter.
“We’ve got to try to find a play — big stop, big shot whatever it is — to kind of end those (runs) as quick as possible,” Celtics guard Derrick White said. “And we just weren’t able to find it (Tuesday).”
