Why Stephen A. Smith is not happy with the Knicks this season

The New York Knicks they go through it and Stephen A Smith knows all about it. The franchise has been dealing with some potentially troubling news. for example, Knicks guard Jalen Brunson had a shoulder injury scare against the Milwaukee Bucks. While that was a sigh of relief, it didn’t eliminate New York’s problems.

Smith explained on ESPN’s First Take about bringing light into the organization in the midst of their struggles.

“I want to draw attention to what the Knicks are doing this year and say I’m not happy, I’m not happy,” Smith said. “The New York Knicks are 15-3, that’s right, against losing teams. They are .500, 11-11 against teams .500 or better.

“And they’re 0-5 against the top two teams in every conference. Cavaliers, Celtics, Thunder and Rockets. I don’t roll like that, I want you to beat the elite teams. I want you to show that you belong on those elite teams.”

Even though the top three teams Smith listed are in a league of their own, that doesn’t excuse poor play. Usually, the greater the competition, the greater the productivity. However, that is not the case for the Knicks. They had plenty of obvious struggles, but also some stunning successes.

Stephen A Smith wants more from the Knicks

During this difficult stretch for New York, they had a lot of problems. Most came from shooting them. Despite their elite perimeter shooting, they didn’t shoot the ball well at all, especially from three. Although they shoot 37.5% from three as a team this season, some games were not good for them.

For example, in the Knicks’ loss to the Thunder, they made just four of their 30 threes. While Oklahoma City is a superior defensive team, New York’s offensive might could have produced a more respectable performance. Smith’s point is that the Knicks play well against bad teams.

However, bad teams won’t be in the NBA playoffs in April. Teams like the Celtics and Cavaliers will likely be included in that picture. Fighting them hard is not a good sign. Still, it’s important to give the franchise the benefit of the doubt right now.

The The Knicks traded for Karl-Anthony Towns just before training camp. There is still some chemistry to be discovered between Towns and his teammates. Not to mention, this is Mychal Bridges’ first season with New York. That’s no excuse, but there may be a learning curve for the two.

Regardless, Smith, like many others, expects the Knicks to knock off established teams in the league. They will have to start doing that sooner rather than later if they want to win an NBA title.