Tuesday, October 20th, saw the start of the 2026-2027 NBA season with one game featuring the defending NBA Champion New York Knicks celebrating their NBA Championship from a season ago on Champions Night with a ring ceremony and raising the banner. New York faced the Philadelphia 76ers and fell short, 106-100, due to the Sixers’ 29-18 third-quarter run. Earlier in the day, the Boston Celtics traveled to Detroit to take on the Pistons, where, despite Paul George’s 38 points, Boston lost 121-113. The Knicks and Celtics will face off on Friday night for their second game of the new season, with both teams aiming for their first win. Can New York redeem themselves from opening night and have the Knicks defeat the Celtics in their first matchup of the year?
New York’s first game of the season saw a monstrous performance by backup center and two-time all-star Andre Drummond. Starting center Karl-Anthony Towns dealt with foul trouble in the first half, which allowed Drummond to prove to the Knicks organization that he can fill the void Mitchell Robinson left behind. The two-time all-star recorded a double-double in the first half and finished the game with 12 points, 14 rebounds, four assists, a steal, and two blocks. Towns stepped up big in the fourth quarter against Philly, scoring 10 points in the final 12 minutes and finishing with 19 points overall. The Knicks shot 33 percent from three, going 11 for 33 from deep. OG Anunoby had a rough one for nine shooting from beyond the arc. New York also had four more turnovers than Philadelphia, which could be a key reason why the Knicks fell short on Champions Night.
While George’s 38 points were a great way to start on a new team, the Celtics struggled overall against the Pistons. Boston was up 22 points with seven and a half minutes left in the third, yet the Celtics would be outscored 76-55 during the second half. Jayson Tatum dropped 13 points on six-for-23 shooting, missing all seven of his attempts from three. Boston could not stop the trio of Cade Cunningham, Duncan Robinson, and Jalen Duren, who combined for 65 points. Javonte Green scored 19 off the bench and drained five threes. Even with the addition of Robinson, the Celtics struggled on the glass, grabbing 10 fewer rebounds than the Pistons. A big offensive rebound or two by Mitchell Robinson or Neemias Queta could have produced a different result.
During Friday’s matchup, certainly expect to see Tatum and Jalen Brunson have better performances than on Tuesday. Even though Brunson scored 21 points in the loss against the Sixers, the 2026 NBA Finals MVP surely wanted to get the win, especially with the whole city of New York celebrating what the Knicks accomplished a season ago. Anunoby will look to step up and make up for his performance as well. For New York: George, Tatum, Derrick White, and Payton Pritchard will all be scoring hazards the Knicks will need to stop. While for Boston, they’ll need to focus on stopping Brunson, Anunoby, Towns, and potentially Mikal Bridges, who could have a big night after only scoring four in the Knicks season opener. One particular matchup to look out for is Towns against Mitchell Robinson or Drummond against the Celtics’ center. Seeing the former Knicks backup center against New York’s current one should be a great battle to watch.
Both the Knicks and the Celtics have all the tools to be successful within the Eastern Conference this season. New York should have a chip on their shoulder after losing on Champions Night, while Boston needs to show they are a threat and do not want to have the media speaking about them after a 0-2 start. This matchup should be extremely competitive, and the arena will be loud, as it is a Knicks/Celtics game, one of the biggest rivalries in NBA history. While the Celtics have home-court advantage, I will have to give the edge to the Knicks, as every indication points to a big bounce-back after losing to LeBron James, Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, and the rest of the 76ers. New York should win 105-100. Especially with the Knicks looking to prove they can repeat during the 26-27 season.
