Tonight, the Knicks (47*-25) will host the Pelicans (25-47) at Madison Square Garden. New York has won six in a row, including Sunday’s loss to the Wizards, while New Orleans goes 6-4 in its last 10.
The teams last met on December 29, 2025, with the Knicks winning 130–125 at Smoothie King Arena. Brunson led New York with 28 points and 10 assists, while Zion Williamson paced New Orleans with 32 points.
James Borrego’s team has the league’s 20th offensive and 24th defensive rating. They score 115.6 points per game but allow 119. Trey Murphy III averages 21.8 points on efficient shooting and stretches the floor. Zion dominates inside and produces 21.3 points when healthy and alert. Herb Jones shut down the wings with excellent defense and hustle, posting a 97 percent rating for deflections. And Dejounte Murray is averaging 18.7 points, 6.2 assists and 5.1 rebounds in 10 games this season.
The expected starters tonight are Murphy, Saddiq Bey, Williamson, Jones and Murray.
On the injury report, New York lists Miles McBride and Landry Shamet (knee, bone bruise) out, and Kevin McCullers, Jr. (knee/quad) out. As a suspect. The Pelicans have downed Bryce McGowens as questionable (toe).
ESPN’s probability of victory for the Knicks is about 77%. Ok doki. These Pelicans are a tough team now that Murray has recovered from his right side injury, and they have broken down the games he has played this year. Hopefully New York will have some trouble with these birds, but they will go away in the second half. The Pels are a 35% shooting team from the perimeter and do most of their scoring inside the arc. Keys to victory: Dominating the boards, applying pressure in transition for easy points and allowing Town to take advantage of mismatches inside. The Knicks won their second seven-game winning streak of the season at eight.
Who: New York Knicks (47*-25) vs. New Orleans Pelicans (25-47)
Date: Tuesday, March 24, 2026
Time: 7:30 pm ET
Location: Madison Square Garden, NYC
TV: NBC/Peacock
to follow: @ptknicksblog and bsky
* There should be one more, but winning the NBA Cup smells like fish.
<a href=