The New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets were involved in a blockbuster trade during the offseason, as New York acquired Mikal Bridges, and Brooklyn received draft capital for its rebuild. Now, the two teams face off against each other for the first time since then for NBA Cup action.  The Knicks started their cup journey with a win against the Sixers while the Nets had a Tuesday off.

The Knicks enter the game with momentum after defeating the Sixers in their NBA Cup opener. Meanwhile, the Nets had a mixed start to the week, narrowly beating the Pelicans 107-105 on Monday but falling hard to the Celtics 139-114. Brooklyn’s season has been inconsistent, with only five wins in 12 games. The Knicks have fallen short of the high expectations set for them ahead of the 2024-25 season.

New York has won only two of their last six games and is 5-6 for the season. They lost by just a point to the Bulls 124-123, as Karl-Anthony Towns was on fire scoring 46 points but couldn’t steer his side to a win on the night. Additionally, the star wasn’t too impressed with the performance. “I don’t care about that if there’s no W attached to it then that’s it’s a bad night,” he said after the game, implying that if the team doesn’t win then it’s not a good night.

The Knicks vs Nets game promises to be a great watch, but both teams are pretty bruised up ahead of the game. It will be interesting to see how the teams will line up, let’s take a look at the injury reports and depth charts to get a better grasp of the two rosters.

Knicks vs Nets Injury Reports

Brooklyn Nets Injury Report

Let’s start with the Nets as they could miss two of their key players Nic Claxton and Dorian Finney-Smith. As per reports, Claxton is questionable for the Knicks game due to lower back tightness whereas, Smith is on day-to-day for an ankle injury.

Additionally, Brooklyn will not have Trendon Watford who is suffering from a hamstring injury. Veteran Bojan Bogdanovic will also remain out for this game due to a foot injury. At last, Day’Ron Shrape will not play as he recovers from a left hamstring strain and will remain out for at least six weeks.

New York Knicks Injury Report

The Knicks have a long injury list with several players questionable for the matchup including their star duo of Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson. KAT is listed as questionable due to a left knee contusion and Burnson could miss the game because of an ankle problem.

Furthermore, Miles McBride and Cameron Payne are also listed as day-to-day as Payne is suffering from a left hamstring strain and McBride is questionable due to a left knee inflammation. Center Mitchell Robinson has been already ruled out for the beginning of the season. Then we have Kevin McCullar Jr. who is out with a knee injury and rounding up the list is Precious Achiuwa, out for tonight’s game due to a hamstring problem.

Depth Charts

Brooklyn Nets Depth Chart

New York Knicks Depth Chart

The Knicks are favorites playing in front of their home crowd, and additionally, they swept the Nets 4-0 last season. Also, if Karl-Anthony Towns is fit alongside Jalen Brunson that would be too much to handle for the Nets on any night. In the meantime, Dennis Schroder and Cam Thomas will have to be at the top of their game to pull off a result in this crosstown showdown.