![\"New](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2256822501-1-e1773387487664.jpg\")
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\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGetty\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
New York Knicks head coach Mike Brown during a game against the Phoenix Suns in January 2026<\/p>\n
The New York Knicks<\/a> are entering a pivotal stretch of the season, with the Eastern Conference standings tightening and every result carrying added significance.<\/p>\n After an inconsistent campaign, New York has regained momentum, riding a three-game winning streak into Thursday\u2019s crucial matchup against the Boston Celtics<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Knicks sit at 51-28, three games behind Boston in third place with just three regular-season games remaining.<\/p>\n Notably, the Cleveland Cavaliers<\/a> are just one game back in fourth, adding further pressure down the stretch.<\/p>\n New York Knicks Balancing Star Pursuits with Long-Term Planning<\/p>\n While speculation<\/a> around blockbuster moves continues, including a potential pursuit of Giannis Antetokounmpo<\/a>, the Knicks may ultimately prioritize more sustainable<\/a> roster-building strategies.<\/p>\n New York holds its own 2026 first-round pick, along with<\/a> a first-round selection from the Washington Wizards<\/a>.<\/p>\n However, that pick carries top-eight protection. If it falls within that range, which remains a strong possibility, the Knicks would instead receive Washington\u2019s 2026 and 2027 second-round picks.<\/p>\n In his latest mock draft, The Ringer\u2019s J. Kyle Mann<\/a> projects New York selecting Arizona center Motiejus Krivas with the 25th overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.<\/p>\n Through his junior season, the Lithuanian big averaged<\/a> 10.4 points, 8.2 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 1.9 blocks across 39 games, while shooting 56.9% from the field.<\/p>\n \u201cThere were times when I wondered whether Krivas would ever be an NBA-level player,\u201d Mann wrote. \u201cAlthough he\u2019s 7-foot-2 with a wide base and long arms, I thought he looked stiff moving side to side on defense and struggled to assert himself and leverage his size on offense.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhile questions about dropping the hammer as often as he can in traffic as a finisher remain, he showed amazing growth this season and was unquestionably one of the most dominant rim protectors in all of college basketball.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cEvery defensive catchall metric had Krivas at or very close to the top of Division I, and I\u2019ve come to think that he\u2019s on track to be a capable rotation big for a long time at the next level.\u201d<\/p>\n Motiejus Krivas Emerging as Defensive Anchor Prospect<\/p>\n Krivas scored 15 or more points on four occasions this season, highlighted by a 25-point performance in a win over Kansas State in January.<\/p>\n He also played a key role in leading Arizona to the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament, where they fell to eventual champions Michigan.<\/p>\n His size and presence on the glass translated into 14 double-digit rebounding performances, while he also recorded two games with six blocks, underlining his defensive impact.<\/p>\n ESPN\u2019s Jonathan Givony<\/a> previously identified Krivas as a sleeper prospect for the 2025 NBA Draft, before the Lithuanian opted to return to Arizona for his junior season.<\/p>\n \u201cHe has outstanding hands, long arms, a high skill level, and impressive instincts on both ends of the floor,\u201d Givony wrote.<\/p>\n Krivas\u2019 defensive instincts, physical presence, and imposing size would likely appeal to a Knicks team that already ranks among the NBA\u2019s best in protecting the paint.<\/p>\n New York currently allows just 43.6 points per game in the paint, the third-best mark<\/a> in the league behind only the Boston Celtics and Oklahoma City Thunder<\/a>.<\/p>\n At 21-years-old, Krivas projects as a player capable of contributing early, offering both immediate impact and long-term upside as a late first-round option.<\/p>\n For a New York Knicks team balancing playoff ambitions with future planning, a prospect like Krivas could provide valuable frontcourt depth while strengthening an already elite defensive identity.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMatt Evans<\/a> is a sports journalist from the United Kingdom, based in Paris, with over a decade of experience covering the NBA and wider global sport. More about Matt Evans<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMore Heavy on Knicks\n\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty New York Knicks head coach Mike Brown during a game against the Phoenix Suns in January 2026…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":655881,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[3768],"tags":[7,304,6,1136,191,3810,3806],"class_list":{"0":"post-705354","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york-knicks","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-knicks","10":"tag-nba","11":"tag-new-york","12":"tag-new-york-knicks","13":"tag-newyork","14":"tag-newyorkknicks"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116369574912021583","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/705354","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=705354"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/705354\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/655881"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=705354"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=705354"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=705354"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}