New York is 0-1 after a 106-100 home loss to Philadelphia, and the first stop is Boston, which also lost its opener. Then come Orlando and Detroit at home, a back-to-back that ends in Chicago, and a rematch with the 76ers on October 30.
Boston Comes First
Friday, October 23, in Boston, with Prime Video carrying it. Both teams are 0-1, and both come in with two days off, so neither side gets a rest edge. Boston went 56-26 last season with a 120.0 offensive rating and an 8.3 net rating, both better than New York's 118.7 and 6.4. The Celtics also played slow, at a pace of 95.6. Payton Pritchard scored 17.0 a night last season and Derrick White scored 16.5. Jayson Tatum played only 16 games. Devin Carter is out with an illness. The Knicks ended Boston's season in the 2025 conference semifinals, and Joe Mazzulla's team hasn't forgotten it.
Two at Home
October 25 against Orlando, which is also 0-1. October 27 against Detroit on NBC/Peacock. Those are the two home games on this stretch, and a team that just raised a banner has no excuse for losing them. Brunson scored 7 in the opener after averaging 26.0 last season. That line won't repeat, and the guard knows it.
Back-to-Back Bite
The Detroit game runs straight into a road date in Chicago on October 28, so it's two games on consecutive nights. Then it's Philadelphia on October 30, again on Prime Video. That makes three road games out of five. The 76ers came into the champions' building and won by six. ESPN's Vincent Goodwill reported that Mike Brown said he would not have felt good about a win given how the Knicks played. That's an honest coach. The trip to Philly is where he gets to show the fix.
Who's Out
No Knick is on the injury list. Josh Hart went from day-to-day to cleared on October 19. Andre Drummond gave the opener 10 points and 12 boards, and the center rotation behind Towns is thin, with Drummond and James Wiseman the only bigs left. Brown has a full roster to work with, so injuries can't be the excuse this week.
Bottom Line
One loss doesn't sink a season. Two to open it, with the second in Boston, would get loud. Jared Schwartz of the New York Post wrote that the Knicks talk about putting "our egos in check." Good. Five games in eight nights will show whether they meant it.
When do the Knicks play the Celtics, and what channel is it on?
The Knicks play at Boston on Friday, October 23, on Prime Video. Both teams are 0-1.
Do the Knicks have a back-to-back this week?
Yes. They host Detroit on October 27 and play at Chicago on October 28, then visit Philadelphia on October 30.
