Knicks fall to 20 games under .500, off to worst start in franchise history

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Carmelo Anthony knew what he was getting himself into when he re-signed with the New York Knicks this past offseason instead of joining a championship contender in the Chicago Bulls, but Anthony couldn’t have imagined things going as poorly as they have this year.

Thanks to a 118-108 loss to the Toronto Raptors on Sunday, the Knicks dropped to 5-25 on the season, their worst start in franchise history. The 25 losses are currently the most in the NBA, and the .167 winning percentage is second-worst to only the Philadelphia 76ers.

Not only is New York terrible straight up, but they have been bad against the spread as well. The Knicks are 12-18 against the spread, which is fourth-worst in the league, according to VegasInsiders.com. That includes a dreadful 4-11 mark against the spread at Madison Square Garden.

The problems, obviously, have been myriad for New York. The Triangle Offense hasn’t led to any type of offensive resurgence, as the Knicks rank in the bottom third of the league in offensive efficiency. The offense runs at a slow, methodical pace, and it hasn’t been creating the types of shots that lead to efficient offense. New York ranks toward the top of the league in mid-range jumpers and the bottom of the league in corner threes, shots at the rim and free throws.

On the other side of the floor, the defense is simply a train wreck. The Knicks are giving up 108.3 points per 100 possessions, which is fourth-worst in the league, per NBA.com. With Tyson Chandler gone to the Dallas Mavericks, there’s no semblance of a quality rim protector. The guards don’t help matters by doing a poor job of stopping dribble penetration, and the three-point line is often left unguarded. New York is one of the worst, if not the worst, teams at defending the three-point line.

Injuries haven’t helped matters, although it’s hard to say the Knicks would be significantly better given relatively good health. Still, it’s tough to gain any continuity in a new system when so many guys are hurt. Jose Calderon missed time to start the year. J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert, Andrea Bargnani and rookie Cleanthony Early are all currently dealing with injuries. Bargnani hasn’t even played a game all season.

Then there’s Anthony, who has dealt with multiple injuries himself. The 30-year-old missed two games earlier this season with a back injury, but more troublesome is his left knee. He has missed two games because of soreness in the knee, and he has received advice telling him to just shut it down for a while.

But that hasn’t occurred the last two games, with exactly the opposite happening. Not only did Anthony play both nights of a back-to-back over the weekend, but he played a combined 78 minutes in two losses. That’s not exactly responsible injury management, and one has to wonder why Anthony and first-year head coach Derek Fisher are pushing it so hard during a lost campaign.

While this year has been a nightmare for the Knicks and president Phil Jackson has his work cut out for him, not all hope is lost. All the losing should lead to a high draft pick, and perhaps that could lead to a much-needed young big man like Jahlil Okafor or Karl-Anthony Towns. New York is also set to have quite a bit of cap space next offseason, and even if they strike out on some of the big fish in free agency, they’ll have money to add multiple quality pieces to a roster that needs a whole lot of help.