Steve Popper: Knicks' next few games will test expected decision to stand pat at trade deadline
Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns looks on before shooting his fouls shots after receiving a cut above his eye in the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Denver Nuggets at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2026. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
Jalen Brunson may not go for the LeBron James method of shutting down all social media at times, and with the trade deadline approaching the Knicks captain is certainly aware of all that is swirling around the NBA.
But ask him about the trades that are shifting rosters, and possibly fortunes, and Brunson is direct.
“Just focused on us,” he said.
That focus had helped the Knicks to carry a seven-game winning streak into Madison Square Garden Wednesday night. And the streak has been one-sided. ESPN reported that the 173-point margin over victory totaled over that span is the largest for a seven-game span in franchise history.
But that and the Knicks expected silence at the trade deadline are about to be put to the test. Starting with the matchup with the Denver Nuggets Wednesday night the Knicks are straddling the deadline with a three-game stretch which could reveal just how good this group can be without a change. The Knicks travel to Detroit to face the Pistons, who are not just solidly in first place in the Eastern Conference, but dominated the Knicks a month ago. The Knicks then head to Boston for a Sunday afternoon game against the Celtics.
This brief flurry could reveal more than hammering the likes of the Nets or Washington Wizards. The Knicks front office has been patient throughout most of its tenure, but seemed to go all-in with trades for OG Anunoby, Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges, moves that got them to the Eastern Conference finals last season.
And they have opportunities to make moves with teams inquiring about the availability of Towns. However, Leon Rose and his staff have opted not to do what some teams have done, shifting pieces to try to formulate a package that could entice the Milwaukee Bucks to part with Giannis Antetokounmpo.
That patience may not be tested over the three-game stretch, but could be tested by the time the playoffs are over and we see how the team measures up to last season.
It’s not hard to believe in this group as they have ranked first, by a large margin, in defensive rating in the NBA over that seven-game winning streak and second by a fraction in offensive rating.
They have done it in a different way than last season, not relying on the heroics offensively of Brunson. It’s been a shared production on that end and a much-improved effort on defense. It is on that end where Brunson has provided a boost — earning his first defensive player of the game honor from the coaching staff as he took two charges against Washington Tuesday, taking over the NBA lead in that category with 15.
Asked what the reaction of his teammates was when he got the honor, he said, “Very surprised. And so was I.”
Asked if it was overdue, he said, “No comment.” But he did acknowledge that taking charges can be game changers.
“It’s very important for us,” Brunson said. “Obviously we get the turnover. It’s a momentum changer. It has a possibility to kind of make the other team defeated in the moment. So we can use that to our advantage and have a momentum swing and keep it going.”
“It gets us going,” Bridges said. “Him putting his body on the line, helping us out, is great. We need that every time.
“He’s always been like that. I think him knowing the scout, knowing where to be on the floor, I think the IQ part on defense helps him a lot. It’s big for him and big for us.”
The Knicks will need that if they aren't going to answer the rumors and come up with some added star power, remaking their roster in midstream. They will need that little bit of help everywhere on both ends of the court.
Notes & quotes: Josh Hart was held out Wednesday with a left ankle injury suffered in the third quarter Tuesday . . . Mo Diawara, who also turned his ankle Tuesday, was available . . . Deuce McBride missed his fifth straight game with what the team has called left ankle injury management. He originally injured the ankle on Dec. 7 and sat out eight games before returning to action, but has been sidelined again as soreness has persisted.
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
