When Mike Woodson took over as Knicks head coach last March, one of his first priorities was to protect home court.
“We can’t let teams come in here and think they can beat us,” Woodson said repeatedly about playing at Madison Square Garden.
The thinking is if you win most of your games at home and break even on the road, you should wind up with a pretty good record and seeding going into the playoffs. The mantra took root as the Knicks quickly became one of the most dominant hosts in the league. They won their first 10 home games this season, turning the Garden into a graveyard for visiting teams.
But the home-court advantage is gone now. The Knicks are just 9-8 on their home floor since that hot start, a trend that has to change if they are going to escape their woeful rut and earn a high seed in the playoffs.
They get the chance to do that and end a four-game losing streak tonight against the Sixers before remaining at home to face the Warriors on Wednesday.
“We made a point at the beginning of the season to protect our home floor and get wins,” center Tyson Chandler said. “We’ve given up a couple lately. But the best way to get back on track is to go back home.”
The Knicks should get a lift with the addition of Kenyon Martin, who figures to add some energy to a home crowd otherwise frustrated by a team that is 14-15 in its past 29 games. Martin will give the Knicks experience, size and attitude.
What he can’t provide is confidence, which the Knicks need to regain after being whipped at Indianapolis on Wednesday and losing a tight game in the closing minutes at Toronto on Friday. The two road losses were the latest in a string of head-scratching defeats that puts the Knicks in danger of losing their hold on the Atlantic Division lead after having dropped behind the Heat and Pacers in the Eastern Conference.
“It’s frustrating for anybody when you lose four games or any games,” point guard Raymond Felton said. “But we’ve got to stay together and stay focused. We’ve just got to get a swagger back when we get back in our building.”
Winning at home becomes crucial now because the Knicks have just 14 more regular-season games at the Garden. Say the Knicks win 10 of those and split their 16 remaining road games. It would leave them at 50-32 for the season. They likely need to win at least that many games to earn a top-four seed in the East over the Pacers, Nets or Bulls.
These next two games are especially crucial, leading into a grueling March. The Knicks play 18 games next month with just eight at home and two of those against the Heat (March 3) and the Thunder (March 7).
Yet, the way the Knicks have been performing lately, even playing at home is no guarantee of victory. The Knicks also lost their last two home games before the All-Star break — to the Clippers and the Raptors.
“We’re going to get every team’s best shot,” Felton said. “Everybody wants to beat the New York Knicks. We started off great and put ourselves at the top of the East and every team is gunning for us. We have to understand that we’re going to be in a dogfight no matter where we play, whether it’s at home or somebody else’s gym. We’re going to be in a dogfight and we have to understand that.”
To get where the Knicks want to be it will take a better effort than they gave in Indianapolis, a better finish than they had in Toronto and a better showing than they have given at the Garden lately.