New York Knicks: Life without Kristaps Porzingis is not easy

For the New York Knicks, life without Kristaps Porzingis will not be so easy.

New York Knicks fans far and wide held their breath on Tuesday night into Wednesday. An awkward landing on a slam dunk caused everyone’s heart to stop as Kristaps Porzingis was helped off of the court. It led to an MRI that was set to decide the fate of the Knicks season. Everyone held their breath.

And then the worst was confirmed. Kristaps Porzingis tore the ACL in his left knee, ending his 2017-2018 season. In case anyone wasn’t aware, Porzingis was the team’s leading scorer by a wide margin, averaging 22.7 points per game and shooting nearly 40% for three-point range. He is their best all-around player and it isn’t close.

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Needless to say, life without the big guy is going to be tough. Only putting up 89 points in the loss to the Bucks is only a preview of what is to come. The team’s best scorer after Porzingis is Tim Hardaway Jr. He only puts up 16.6 per game. There are a lot of points left on the table.

Currently, the Knicks sit in 11th place in the Eastern Conference, five games behind the final playoff spot, currently held by Philadelphia. Detroit and Charlotte sit between the Knicks and the last playoff spot as well.

Are the Knicks prepared to jump over these three teams and make the playoffs? With Kristaps a run would have been a possibility. Without him, however, it’s highly unlikely. The team simply doesn’t score enough points to make it happen on a nightly basis.

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This is going to be a time of evaluation for the Knicks. It’s time to see what this roster really has for next season. The injury could work into a blessing in disguise. The front office can see the lack of weapons surrounding Porzingis and figure out how to correctly draft to improve the team. Long-term success could be more in reach after a while, if the Knicks handle it right.

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