![\"Atlanta](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/atlanta-hawks-v-new-york-knicks-game-one-new-york-new-e1787241506342.jpg\")
\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGetty\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – APRIL 18: Jalen Brunson #11 and Josh Hart #3 of the New York Knicks talk during the third quarter of Game One of the Eastern Conference First Round NBA Playoffs against the Atlanta Hawks at Madison Square Garden on April 18, 2026 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Elsa\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
The Knicks are coming off their first championship in 53 years, and the roster mostly stayed intact. But three main issues could shape how smooth the title defense actually goes.<\/p>\n
None of them are roster moves. They\u2019re health and depth questions that won\u2019t fully resolve until games start counting again in October.<\/p>\n
Why Jalen Brunson\u2019s Wrist Is Still a Storyline<\/p>\n
![\"San](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/san-antonio-spurs-v-new-york-knicks-new-york-new-york.jpg\")
Getty3 Major Problems Could Threaten the Knicks\u2019 Title Defense<\/p>\n
Brunson played through a wrist injury for most of the 2026 playoffs before having surgery on July 7. He first felt it acting up in Game 2 of the East finals, and it never stopped him from delivering one of the great postseason runs in franchise history.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was obviously able to play through it,\u201d Brunson said<\/a>. \u201cI\u2019ll be in this for about another six weeks, and then from that point on, it\u2019s just my rehab after that, but I should be good. I should be good.\u201d<\/p>\n That six to eight week window closes right around now, so he should already be moving into basketball activity with camp still three to four weeks away. Still, that wrist controls his shooting motion and ball handling, the two things that make him nearly impossible to guard. There\u2019s no real buffer left if the recovery hits any bump, and the Knicks need him at full strength from night one.<\/p>\n The Josh Hart Injury Knicks Fans Should Watch<\/p>\n Brunson at least chose to get his procedure over with. Hart is taking the opposite approach with a nerve injury of his own. His issue is damage in his right ring finger, an injury from the 2025 playoffs that flared up again before last season even started. He played through it anyway, wearing a splint the entire year.<\/p>\n Doctors recommended surgery that would have cost him two to three months. Hart said no.<\/p>\n \u201cNo, I\u2019ll let it go,\u201d Hart said<\/a>, as per Posting and Toasting. \u201cAt the end of my career, when I\u2019m done hooping, I\u2019ll probably have to get a joint replacement in it, but for now it\u2019s fine.\u201d<\/p>\n That\u2019s a lot of risk for a guy who does the physical dirty work every single night. Feeling still hasn\u2019t fully returned to his hand, and he\u2019s choosing to keep playing through it anyway.<\/p>\n Breaking Down the Knicks Center Depth Problem<\/p>\n Brunson and Hart are health questions the Knicks can\u2019t control. The center spot is different, since that one comes down to a roster decision the front office already made. Mitchell Robinson<\/a> left for Boston this summer, and the Knicks replaced him with Andre Drummond<\/a> on a one-year deal.<\/p>\n Karl-Anthony Towns<\/a> is still the main player here, coming off a season where he averaged 20.1 points and 11.9 rebounds. Behind him is where things get thin. Drummond is a proven rebounder, but he\u2019s a clear downgrade from Robinson as a rim protector and finisher. He\u2019s also 33 and has his own durability questions.<\/p>\n If Towns needs a night off, or worse, misses real time, the drop-off behind him is steep. Right now the Knicks don\u2019t have a reliable third center on the roster. New York tried to fix that by signing Moussa Cisse<\/a> away from Dallas, but the Mavericks<\/a> matched the offer.<\/p>\n None of these three issues are guaranteed to become real problems once the season tips off. But Brunson\u2019s wrist, Hart\u2019s hand and a shallow center rotation are all things Knicks fans should keep an eye on as training camp approaches.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tJayesh Pagar<\/a> Jayesh Pagar is a writer at Heavy Sports, covering the New York Knicks and other NBA teams. He brings four years of experience across digital sports media, including NBA, WNBA, college basketball, and college football. He covered as the Knicks beat writer for ONSI and has written for Sporting News, and ClutchPoints. More about Jayesh Pagar<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty NEW YORK, NEW YORK – APRIL 18: Jalen Brunson #11 and Josh Hart #3 of the New…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":875937,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[557],"tags":[64,63,590,85],"class_list":["post-875936","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nba","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-nba","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/875936","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=875936"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/875936\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/875937"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=875936"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=875936"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=875936"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Knicks\u2019](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/GettyImages-2281473741-e1784568082736.jpg\")
GettyKnicks\u2019 Championship Defense Faces 3 Huge Questions Before October<\/p>\n![\"Cleveland](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/cleveland-cavaliers-v-new-york-knicks-game-two-new-york-new-1.jpg\")
Getty3 Hidden Problems Could Make the Knicks\u2019 Title Defense Much Harder<\/p>\n