New York Knicks No Longer Have a Defensive Identity: Tracy McGrady

Coming into the 2025-26 NBA season, the New York Knicks were among the sure-fire favorites to make it out of the Eastern Conference. Although that sentiment remains the same for the most part, they aren’t as dominant as many believed they would be. They have been a shell of themselves in their last 10 games, especially on the defensive end. Hall-of-Fame forward Tracy McGrady believes the Knicks have lost that grit that made them so great.

Throughout the recent years that the Knicks have become a competent team, defense has been one of their calling cards. Last season, New York held the 13th-ranked defense. In the 2023-24 campaign, they were the ninth-best defense. Unfortunately, they are no longer that same defensive team.

Currently, the Knicks have dropped down to 19th in defensive rating. That defense continues to falter, which is a big reason for their 2-8 record in their last 10 games. In that span, the Knicks have been the second-worst defense in the entire league.

That is completely unlike this team. It was clear their identity would be a bit different once they fired Tom Thibodeau in favor of Mike Brown. However, Tracy McGrady believes the loss of Thibodeau has subsequently led to the loss of their defensive identity.

“The identity is gone,” McGrady said on NBC’s NBA Showtime. “Last year, they had an identity. Thibs was all about defense.”

Tracy McGrady on the Knicks poor defense

“The identity is gone. Last year they had an identity. Thibs was all about defense. We didn’t see KAT out of position like hes been these last 8-10 games. We didn’t see Brunson getting blown by. The scheme Thibs had for this team fit the… pic.twitter.com/OwYCwx7StS

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Last season, Thibodeau led the Knicks to their most successful season since 2000. Typically, an Eastern Conference Finals berth would be enough to maintain a head coaching job. Despite the team’s success, Thibodeau’s flaws regarding offensive playstyle and workload toward the starters pushed the front office to move in a different direction.

Brown was one of the hottest names in the head coaching market. Unlike Thibodeau, defense is not one of his strong suits. It was evident that the Knicks were prioritizing offense by hiring Brown’s services. The problem is their offense isn’t elite enough to overlook their defensive woes.

“We didn’t see KAT out of position like he’s been these last 8-10 games. We didn’t see Brunson getting blown by,” McGrady said.

It’s hard for a coach to figure everything out in their first season with a team. It would be a great luxury for the Knicks to be patient with Brown, but they might not have that luxury.

This is the perfect opportunity for the Knicks to finally get over the hump. Tyrese Haliburton and Jayson Tatum’s injuries have derailed the Indiana Pacers and Boston Celtics, who would’ve been in contention in the East. The last thing the Knicks need is to be in their worst 10-game stretch since the 2021-22 season.

It might be out of Brown’s ideal coaching philosophy, but there was success in what Thibodeau was doing. Perhaps it won’t hurt to revert to what was working.

“The scheme Thibs had for this team fit the personnel they had. I think they got away from that,” McGrady revealed.

Thankfully, the NBA season is longer than just 10 games. New York has plenty of time to turn things around. However, the time to do that is now, before they continue to fall lower down the standings.