The Knicks’ 2021-22 schedule has been revealed. Let’s break it down.

The Knicks’ 2021-22 schedule was released Friday afternoon. Would you like to see it? Of course, you would!

We already knew that the Knicks would be opening the season against the Boston Celtics on October 20. That should be a humdinger, though I dislike the potential takes that will undoubtedly arise like wildfire should the Knicks lose to a Celtics team that was rarely healthy last season. Are the Celtics back? Are the Knicks a mirage? ESPN will have a field day. Please win that first game, Knicks.

However, the rest of the opening slate breaks pretty well for New York: 11 of their first 19 games are at MSG, and 12 of their first 17 are against clubs that missed the playoffs last season. Hopefully the Knicks are healthy and locked in right from the jump—they have very little roster turnover, so there shouldn’t be a big adjustment period. If they’re clicking early, they could stack up a nice win total before the New Year.

They’ll need to stack those early wins, because the middle of the season is going to be a beast. In February and March, the Knicks have a five-game Western Conference road trip and a seven-game road trip in quick succession. They do have the All-Star break in between, thankfully, but that brutal road stretch could very well knock them down a peg or two in the standings.

Fortunately, the Knicks will have a chance to finish strong, as five of their last seven games are at home. They end the season on April 10 at MSG against the Raptors.

The Knicks won’t have it easy this upcoming season. They won’t sneak up on anybody this time. They aren’t the Nets, who can (and probably will) rest guys all throughout the regular season. These Knicks gotta grind it out once again. Are they up to the task? We’ll find out starting in October.