Kristian Winfield: Everyone’s better than the Knicks until it’s time to be better than the Knicks

Barring a drastic meltdown of never-before-seen circumstances — no NBA team has ever come back from down 3-0 — the Knicks will be going to the Eastern Conference Finals for a second season in a row. Except this time, with a new head coach, new offensive and defensive schemes, new selflessness and trust in each other, the Knicks look better.

They look like they belong in the NBA Finals.

Last season, the Knicks overachieved. Nobody had them beating the Boston Celtics in the second round, let alone coming back from down 20 twice in a row to steal home court from TD Garden. In fact, few had them beating the Detroit Pistons in the first round given the Pistons, much like this season, had the Knicks on the ropes last year, too.

This season, the Knicks are right on pace. On pace to live up to owner James Dolan’s early-January NBA Finals-or-else mandate. On pace to realize the internal expectations within the locker room players say far exceed any hopes fans or pundits had coming into the season.

On pace to reach the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999 and, with a little bit of luck and a potentially favorable matchup, secure the franchise’s first title since 1973.

The Knicks look like bona fide title contenders. After early adversity, they buzz-sawed their way through the Atlanta Hawks then dusted off the boxing gloves for a second-round slugfest against the 76ers. They are now one win away from their toughest challenge of the year: with a trip to the NBA Finals on the line, they’ll likely have to face a Pistons team that swept them, 3-0, in the regular season series, has won all three games by a combined 83 points, and beat them in their season-series finale by 15 without either of their centers Jalen Duren or Isaiah Stewart.

On paper, the Pistons are a nightmare matchup for the Knicks. Many said the same about the Hawks. After falling down, 1-2, the Knicks went on to outscore them by 96 over their last three games. Some said the same about the 76ers — that Maxey would be too fast, too dynamic for the Knicks to defend. That Embiid — as he did in the first-round upset against the Celtics — would dominate the paint on both ends against the Knicks. That the combination of rookie V.J. Edgecombe, Paul George and Kelly Oubre would muster enough combined length and athleticism to stifle Brunson’s individual scoring greatness.

Teams are always better than the Knicks until it’s time to be better than the Knicks. And for the Sixers, who are now down 0-3, time is up. Though it is bright, sunny, and particularly crowded in Cancun around this time of year.

The Knicks aren’t without flaws. Anunoby’s health will be critical to any title run, and the Knicks bought him more time to recover from a hamstring injury on Friday. Karl-Anthony Towns’ foul trouble continues to be a lingering issue. Towns, once again, picked up three early fouls and spent much of the middle of the game on the bench. The Sixers made their run by intentionally fouling Mitchell Robinson away from the ball — the classic Hack-a-Shaq technique. Robinson shot four-of-eight from the foul line. Josh Hart entered Friday’s game with a new thumb sprain then tweaked his ankle in the second half before playing through pain.

And Mike Brown, when asked pregame, had no answer to the simple question of whether or not Anunoby, hampered by a hamstring injury, can run. He deferred to Knicks PR, which responded plainly, “next question.”

The Knicks are leaving fewer questions by the game. The question on Thursday: Can a team so heavily reliant on Anunoby on both ends of the floor find a way to win without him?

The answer? Well, look at the scoreboard. Might want to take a peek at the weather in Cancun, too, though trip prices this time of year might be expensive given the Sixers just bought the latest outgoing flight.