NBA Swing: Who is the Biggest Threat to the Knicks?

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Tuesday, October 20th, 2026, starts the NBA’s 81st season. October 20th also sees the beginning of the reigning and defending New York Knicks’ season when they host the Philadelphia 76ers and raise the 2026 NBA Championship banner. With any championship defense, there will always be threats. Some are pretenders, a few are legitimate threats, and this season, there are threats to the Knicks that are closer than expected.

San Antonio Spurs

When the San Antonio Spurs defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder to become the Western Conference Champions in 2026, many thought they would run through the New York Knicks. San Antonio would lead the Knicks for 133 minutes across the five 2026 Finals games and would only come away with one win in Game 3. The young Spurs team led by the trio of Victor Wembanyama, Stephon Castle, and Dylan Harper would have good moments against the Knicks, but would have plenty of bad moments against the team as well. Victor Wembanyama would run out of gas late in games; Stephon Castle would have several defensive lapses and would be in constant foul trouble. Harper would have a strong Finals appearance but would not have enough to get the Spurs over the hump.

The Spurs would have a quiet but solid offseason, signing Victor Wembanyama to a rookie-scale max contract, and re-signing Julian Champagnie and Harrison Barnes. They would make a great offseason move in signing veteran forward Tobias Harris, who would’ve filled the dependable veteran role the team was missing in the playoffs. With the Spurs looking to be on a revenge tour after the Finals loss, San Antonio expects to be playing in June for the second year in a row. If the Spurs can work on their flaws as a young team, San Antonio has a legitimate chance of winning the 2027 NBA Championship.

Philadelphia 76ers

From an injury-plagued seventh seed that was swept by the Knicks in the second round to building a superteam in the span of a few weeks, Philadelphia quickly became a legitimate interconference threat to the Knicks. The Sixers arguably have one of, if not the best, starting fives in the league, with the starting lineup including Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, Jaylen Brown, LeBron James, and Joel Embiid. Outside of their starting five, the Sixers have one of the deeper benches in the league. The stacked bench includes Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Anfernee Simons, Dean Wade, and rookie Labaron Philon Jr.

For Philadelphia, the Sixers would have to have the perfect season to make the NBA Finals over the Knicks. Joel Embiid would have to have a healthy season and remain healthy through the playoffs. Near 42-year-old LeBron James would need to remain healthy and avoid any injuries, as he’s said he’s dealing with arthritis in one of his legs and sciatica in his lower back. Tyrese Maxey, who has been amongst the league leaders in minutes played over the last few years, needs to avoid any potential late-season injuries. Most importantly for the Sixers, they have to have the chemistry of a championship team. While they’ve looked good in preseason practices and in the preseason itself, the playoffs are completely different. If there’s one team in the East that could be the Knicks in a seven-game series and win the 2027 championship after, it would be the Philadelphia 76ers, if everything goes right.

Oklahoma City Thunder

In the West, everyone sees two teams likely to come out of the conference to play in the Finals: the San Antonio Spurs and the Oklahoma City Thunder. In their first 25 games, the 2025-26 Thunder would go 25-1 and were on pace to surpass the Golden State Warriors’ record of 73 wins. Injuries to Jalen Williams would see him miss most of the season, and Chet Holmgren would have his worst playoff performance in the Western Conference Finals. The Thunder would ultimately lose in seven games, losing the opportunity to become the first team to repeat since the 2017-18 Warriors. The Thunder would have to move on from several important role players,s including Lu Dort, Aaron Wiggins, and Isaiah Joe, as the second apron is creeping behind the Thunder.

For OKC, they have everything they need to be playing in June once again. After back-to-back MVP seasons, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is expected to have another MVP-caliber season; Jalen Williams would look good in his preseason return, finishing with 16 points, six assists, and two steals in just 19 minutes against the Milwaukee Bucks; and the Thunder expect leaps from several players, including Ajay Mitchell, Jared McCain, and Cason Wallace. The biggest question will be Chet Holmgren, and if he’ll have a great playoff performance like 2025, or struggle again like the 2026 Western Conference Finals. The regular season will not be a problem for the Thunder, but if they can look like the playoff team they did in 2025, the Thunder will without a doubt be playing in June and will be a legitimate threat to the Knicks if they’re playing in June once again.

basketball is back 🙌 https://t.co/i8IfQfVtVq

— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) October 6, 2026

Themselves

Of any threat to the Knicks’ opportunity to repeat as champions, there may be no bigger threat than the Knicks themselves. The offseason would see the Knicks re-sign several players, including Landry Shamet, Jose Alvarado, Jordan Clarkson, and Mohamed Diawara, but they would lose big man Mitchell Robinson to the Boston Celtics. Robinson had been the longest-tenured Knicks player at the time and would leave the team for Boston after eight seasons with the team. The Knicks would sign veteran big man Andre Drummond to play backup center.

The offseason would hit a sour note when, during a radio interview in June, not too long after the Finals, Knicks owner James Dolan would make it clear he would not go into the second apron for the Knicks:

“I don’t know if we’ll be able to [bring the entire Finals team back]. We’re willing to stretch, but there are certain things in the NBA that you’d have to be suicidal to do. One of them is the second apron.” Dolan would continue. “I’ll write as big of a check as possible, but I can’t write a check into the second apron.”

More eyes would land on the Knicks as the team headed into the preseason with the contract talks for Karl-Anthony Towns getting louder. KAT and the Knicks have reportedly been far apart on contract talks. KAT has said he’d be willing to take a pay cut, but not as big of a pay cut as the Knicks have offered the big man. According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, the Knicks would offer KAT a four-year deal worth $200 million. Towns is currently eligible for a four-year extension worth $276 million. KAT has proven he’s worth the money, but there are still questions about his play on the defensive end, despite the strong playoff performance. KAT is signed through this upcoming season and has a $61 million player option for the 2027-28 season. He could play through the season and talk about a new deal next summer, but there is no question of how that could affect his play and team chemistry.

In addition to KAT, there are also concerning contract talks with Josh Hart and Deuce McBride. Hart is in the final guaranteed year of his contract, with the Knicks having a team option for the 2027-28 season. Hart and the Knicks are reportedly far apart on contract talks. McBride is in the final year of a three-year deal, and like with Hart, the two sides are nowhere near close on a new deal. McBride has expressed his disappointment in the contract talks:

“I’m a little disappointed.” McBride would say. “I want to be in New York. So yeah, it’s a little hard at times. I’ve played through injury. I’ve been through a lot with this team. So you know, I’d love to get something done.”

For the Knicks, they had an up-and-down season at times, but they would have one of the best playoff runs of all time. The team would go 16-3, sweeping the Sixers and Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2026 Eastern Conference Semifinals and Conference Finals, respectively. The team would also be healthy for most of the regular season and playoffs. If they can remain the team they were in the playoffs, the Knicks should be playing in June with a shot to be the first team to repeat as champions for the first time in nearly a decade. If chemistry, contracts, or James Dolan himself interfere with the team, they may lose their chance to repeat.