The Knicks hardly have been playing with their food throughout the holiday season, and they certainly do not need to apologize for fattening up against a softer portion of their schedule versus some of the NBA’s lesser weights.
If Memorial Day is the first true mile marker of legitimacy within the baseball season, Christmas Day or thereabouts generally is that indicator in the NBA.
And following a disjointed 5-6 start while integrating two new starters, Tom Thibodeau’s Knicks have taken off over the past six weeks.
They have posted 15 wins in 19 games since mid-November to establish themselves as a viable contender in the Eastern Conference with a top-5 record in the entire NBA.
Friday’s game in Orlando will come against another of the East’s better squads — and the one right behind them in the standings — even if the Magic continue to play without injured All-Star forward Paolo Banchero.
The clicking Knicks have been stacking wins lately — five in a row after their Christmas matinee victory over the Spurs — to improve to 20-10 overall for the No. 3 spot in the East.
They were 1 ¹/₂ games ahead of the Magic, who are 19-13 after falling to the Heat on Thursday night, and just two behind the No. 2 Celtics.
The league-best Cavaliers, the West-leading Thunder and the improved Rockets were the only other NBA teams to begin play Thursday with a better record than the Knicks.
A vast improvement on the defensive end has spearheaded the recent surge, and that was even before versatile stopper OG Anunoby shut down 7-foot-3 center Victory Wembanyama — despite an 8-inch difference in listed height — down the stretch of Wednesday’s contest.
The revamped team ranked near the bottom of the league early in the season in defensive rating, but it is now 14th overall after posting the fifth-best figure in that category in December.
The Knicks, who hope to get defensively active big man Mitchell Robinson back in January from offseason ankle surgery, have allowed 106.8 points per 100 possessions over 11 games this month, per the NBA website.
They also sit second overall in offensive rating and fifth in net rating — the difference between those offensive and defensive metrics — for the year.
At the offensive end, Thibodeau’s powerhouse team also has been winning with different leading scorers during the current streak.
Karl-Anthony Towns recorded 32 points against the Timberwolves in his return to Minnesota.
Jalen Brunson scored 39 against the Pelicans. Towns and Anunoby netted 31 apiece against the Raptors.
And sizzling Mikal Bridges — averaging 22.7 points and shooting 46.9 percent from 3-point range in 11 December games — carried the load against San Antonio with a season-high 41, with Brunson (20 points) and Towns (21) mostly taking a back seat in the fourth quarter.
“It shows the depth of the team,” said Josh Hart, who grabbed two key offensive rebounds in the final minute against the Spurs. “Obviously ’Kal had an amazing game and that’s why we went and got him. OG had huge plays offensively and, more importantly, defensively for us.
“Now we’re in the position where we don’t need JB to go out there and score 30 for us to win, for us to be in the game. And I think that’s the benefit. When he goes out there, more times than not, he’ll give us 25 very efficiently, at least. When that happens, all good. But when we’re able to scratch out wins when he’s not shooting the ball well, it shows the depth of this team.”
The winning streak also has featured three wins on the road, beginning with a nine-point decision in Orlando less than two weeks ago.
Their 10-6 mark away from the Garden represents the third-most road wins in the league, behind only the Thunder (11-3) and the Celtics (11-3).
“I think we just look at each other and see if we’re getting better or not. I think that’s the biggest thing,” said Bridges, who leads the league with 38.8 minutes per game. “I think we took a jump this month.
“Every day we just keep trying to get better. We want to win, that’s the main goal, but sometimes just getting better is what we’re looking for.”