The Madison Square Garden-sized X factor to end the Knicks’ championship drought

The New York Knicks are off to a blistering start to the 2025-26 season, and much of that success has come at home. After Amazing win on Sunday night over the Brooklyn Netsthey are an incredible 6-0 on Madison Square Garden.

Considering the importance of home defense to winning championships, a strong start at home bodes well for New York, especially for a team that went 5-5 at home during the 2025 playoffs.

But exactly how did the Knicks do so well at home, and what are the chances of that carrying over into the postseason?

How are the Knicks doing at home?

For now, New York is an ugly 0-3 on the road. However, three games is an incredibly small sample size. And it’s not at all surprising that the Knicks went on an early three-game losing streak considering they’re in the process figuring out their individual roles under new head coach Mike Brown.

But while they struggled on the road, they looked incredibly sharp at home. All four games of their recent winning streak have been at home. They also won their first two games of the season at home in convincing fashion. So the early results point to a team playing incredibly well at home.

Overall, New York has outscored opponents by 106 points at home through six gamesaccording to Basketball Reference. At home, they score an average of 123.7 points, and give up only 106 points. For context, they score about eight more points per game at home than last season, and give up about five points less. It’s more than a coincidence. It speaks of approach and culture.

Digging a little deeper, the Knicks shoot the ball better at home as well. They connect on 56.3% of their shot attempts at home versus 51.6% of their shots away from home. That extends to 3-point shooting as well. New York is shooting a whopping 41.1% of its 3-point attempts at home, compared to just 33.1% on the road.

Interestingly, the team’s strong performance at home is more a product of its bench than its stars. Karl-Anthony Towns is the only starter who puts up significantly better stats at The Garden (23.5 points per game at home vs. 15 points per game away). However, his bench is answering the call – and then some.

The reserves are averaging nearly 39 points per game at home, compared to just 20 per game on the road. Some of that may be a result of longer playing time due to greater benefits. But getting more from your bench is clearly an important attribute of success. And doing so at home is another way to ensure a concrete home field advantage.

Recent titles have been won at home—which could be good for the Knicks

It is intuitive that good teams play better at home. But home court defense is increasingly important when the playoffs come around, especially for top-seeded teams. Consider for a moment that the team with home field advantage during the playoffs will host as many as four home games in each series. Well, if those teams win all of their home playoff games, they win the championship.

While going undefeated at home in the playoffs is slightly aspirational – though not impossible – dominating on your home floor is a given for recent champions. The defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder were 11-2 at home in the 2025 NBA playoffs. The Boston Celtics went undefeated at home en route to the championship the season before last year. Both the Denver Nuggets and Golden State Warriors lost just one game en route to championships in 2023 and 2022.

While it’s incredibly early to discuss the Knicks’ championship aspirations, the formula for winning their first championship in 52 years is well documented. First, New York must continue executions at home. If they do that and secure the top seed in the Eastern Conference, then winning the championship becomes as simple as continuing their strong play at home. True, a lot can happen between now and the playoffs, but going 6-0 at home is a good start.