These are the must-see Knicks games for the 2026-2027 NBA season

Want to be at Madison Square Garden to see the Knicks raise their first championship banner since 1973?

Unfortunately, so does everyone else.

The Knicks plan to honor last season’s champions with a banner-raising ceremony before their season opener against LeBron James and the Philadelphia 76ers on Oct. 20. The get-in price for a ticket already has reached $1,600. If you want to sit in the lower bowl, be prepared to fork over more than $3,000.

Of course, there’s always the television, and you will get plenty of opportunities to see the Knicks there. They are one of four teams, along with the 76ers, San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Lakers, who will have the maximum-allowable 34 nationally televised games this season.

Contrast that with the 13 nationally televised games the Knicks had in 2022-23, Jalen Brunson’s first season with the team, and you get yet another measure of the point guard’s worth.

There will be plenty of must-see Knicks games. Here’s my breakdown for the 2026-27 schedule.

TOUGH START

Oct. 20-30

The NBA isn’t cutting the Knicks any breaks as they look to become the first team to repeat as champions since Golden State did it in 2018. The Knicks will open the season by hosting Philadelphia, playing at Boston, hosting Orlando and Detroit and then playing at Chicago and Philadelphia. Not only do the Knicks have to face James twice in 11 days, but they will host a Pistons team that blew them out in all three of their games last season but was eliminated before getting a chance to play them in the postseason.

HELLO, HALIBURTON

Pacers at Knicks, Nov. 22

The Pacers are the last team to win a playoff series against the Knicks, having eliminated them in six games in the 2025 Eastern Conference finals. This will be Tyrese Haliburton’s first return to Madison Square Garden after missing all of last season with an Achilles tear suffered in the 2025 NBA Finals. Haliburton, you may remember, joined the latest list of Knicks villains from Indiana when he threw a choke sign after hitting the shot that sent Game 1 of the 2025 conference finals into overtime.

THE GREEK FREAK

Miami at Knicks, Nov. 27

The days of pining for Giannis Antetokounmpo are over for Knicks fans. New Yorkers have their championship and the 7-footer has escaped Milwaukee for Miami. This will be Antetokounmpo’s first season in a Heat uniform, and everyone is expecting an adjustment period. Erik Spoelstra is one of the best coaches in the league, so it will be interesting to see what he does with Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo.

REMATCH FOR CHRISTMAS

San Antonio Spurs at Knicks, Dec. 25

Unless they meet again in the NBA Cup final, this will be the first game between the teams since the Knicks beat the Spurs in five games in the drama-laden 2026 NBA Finals. No matter what happens in the Cup competition, it will be the Spurs’ first trip to the Garden since OG Anunoby’s tip-in for the ages to give the Knicks their crucial Game 4 win. (You can bet that will be replayed a few times during the game.) Look for Knicks fans to give Victor Wembanyama a warm New York-style welcome as fans relive the most-watched NBA Finals of this century.

PACK UP THE KIDS

Knicks at Nets, Feb. 21,

Knicks at Nets, April 2

Want to actually see a game in person and still be able to pay your college tuition? The Barclays Center has great concessions and tickets priced for the Feb. 21 game at $124 as of Thursday.

MITCH IS BACK

Celtics at Knicks, March 14

Even if he did leave for one the Knicks biggest rivals, Michell Robinson likely will get a warm reception in his first game back at Madison Square Garden. Robinson’s eight years with the Knicks included some pretty tough times, but he was able to cap his career here with a championship run.

By Barbara Barker

barbara.barker@newsday.commeanbarb

Barbara Barker is an award-winning columnist and features writer in the sports department at Newsday. She has covered sports in New York for more than 20 years.