The Knicks have retooled much of their starting lineup this offseason to better position themselves against the Boston Celtics. And that created a lot of excitement and hype leading into the start of the 2024-2025 campaign.

However, much of that madness was put to rest almost immediately as the defending champions showed why they started the season as clear favorites to win it all again. But it’s not all negative points.

The loss, despite being an embarrassing 23 points, still only counts as one loss. And while it’s hard not to think of all the ways the Knicks have been disappointed, it’s important not to overreact… at least not yet.

Here are six reasons why.

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We all knew, or at least should have known, that this would take time

When there is even a single change to the starting lineup, there is a chance it will result in a butterfly effect that completely changes a team’s schemes, styles and fit. That is not always the case. We all saw OG Anunoby hit the ground running earlier this year and fit in seamlessly as a Knick.

But New York now has to deal with a fledgling lineup trying to record not just one, but two pretty important pieces. And in the process, as previously mentioned, they’ve changed their identities and plans, and it’s painfully clear that the team still isn’t completely comfortable. Last night, players passed up shots multiple times, doubted themselves and played with an overall level of caution that only comes from teams that lack continuity. And honestly, the level of basketball we’ve become accustomed to probably won’t come anytime soon. That’s probably not what fans wanted to hear. It will lead to more frustrating losses and worries. But this team’s long-term ceiling remains high.

Remember that teams need time to gel. Time to find their brand of basketball and learn where guys want the ball and where they will be. Last night was a tough loss for fans to witness. And the score wasn’t what anyone expected. But we all knew that this team would be far from a finished product on opening night and that perspective would make dealing with that loss a little easier to digest.

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Deuce McBride is the real deal

Just like Boston won’t always make 29 threes in a game, Deuce McBride won’t always score 22 points on efficient shooting. But just like that doesn’t mean Boston isn’t a great three-point shooting team, it also doesn’t mean McBride can’t and won’t continue to be great. In fact, it’s quite the opposite.

On a night where almost every other Knick was a disappointment, McBride was the most impressive player to emerge in blue and orange. He came out of the gate confident and red-hot, was the only reason the Knicks didn’t go down 40 in the first half, and showed that his improvements in outside shooting last season were far from an anomaly. He was really one of the few things fans could point to as a positive and moral victory from game number one.

Questions about whether or not McBride should start will linger, but it was clear last night that regardless of what role he is given in the future, McBride will be a force to be reckoned with.

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Mikal Bridges worked his way back

The first half of Mikal Bridges’ regular season debut as a Knick was awful and was about as bad as it could be. On offense, he passed up several open shots and when he did shoot, he missed poorly and often. Defensively, he was tasked with guarding Jayson Tatum, who targeted not only him, but the entire team.

But Bridges found a way to gain some confidence, play more aggressively and end the night on a slightly more positive note in the second half. He got a few more threes to go and then started attacking the basket more. His overall performance was still sub-par, and of course it would have been nice to have him play an entire match like he did in the second half. But if we’re to take a few things away from the defeat, Bridges’ ability to shake off an ugly preseason game and an equally bad first half last night should be one of them.

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The Knicks offense did quite well

Much of the talk will center on Bridges’ problems in the first half, with Josh Hart failing to score a goal from three, Karl-Anthony Towns’ lack of aggressiveness and Anunoby being completely invisible last night. But New York, even with three sub-par starters in downright terrible games, still managed to score 109 points on 55.1% shooting against a team that finished last season with the second-best defensive rating.

Part of that was due to the game having about 8 full minutes of garbage time. That I can’t cover it up. But considering the aforementioned point of how this team still needs to fully gel, the “glass half full” view would be that we would be somewhat satisfied with the current state of the offense and what it could look like in January or February.

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The Knicks won’t play Boston every night and even if they do, they won’t shoot like this

A significant portion of the Knicks’ opening night loss can be attributed to their poor schemes, poor defensive efforts, poor three-point shooting, and poor focus. It was a very poor performance overall for the Knicks. But some of it can and should be attributed to the fact that Boston is Boston, and the most elite, focused, motivated, and vibrant version of it at that. The Celtics quickly brushed aside concerns of a championship hangover by scoring 43 points against the Knicks’ defense and never looked back.

They were and remain the championship favorites and they showed why. Luckily, New York gets to play other teams starting Friday, and even if these two play each other again, it’s highly unlikely they make 29 threes again.

The Knicks are sure to have holes/mistakes and mistakes that they need to identify and fix. And their defense was a big reason why Boston hit 29 threes in the first place. But some of those shots were just examples of high-level shotmaking. Again, New York didn’t help itself by letting Boston catch fire in the first place, but that kind of historically hot and consistent outside shooting is an anomaly.

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The Knicks are still led by Tom Thibodeau and Jalen Brunson

Thibodeau has many detractors and he is far from the perfect coach. His rotations will always be questioned, he’s slow to make in-game adjustments, and he’s stubborn about a handful of things that sometimes leave you scratching your head. But you can’t deny that he’s found a way to be competitive for the vast majority of his career. Regardless of the talent level on the roster, he has almost always been able to bring a high level of intensity and defense and lead teams to high floors. Combine that with the franchise’s star in Brunson, and the Knicks should still be fine. Again, it may take some time for the team to reach its potential, but with two men who regularly preach hard work and doing things the right way, it shouldn’t take long for the team to get back on track and, on his best, at least plays competitively and as a team.