Slumping Knicks desperately must shore up this unit

In previous seasons under head coach Tom Thibodeau, the New York Knicks were hailed as one of the NBA's deeper teams. While the starters received an overabundance of minutes, the bench still played a vital role in their success. 

In the offseason, however, the Knicks dealt most of their remaining depth to acquire Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns. Following these trades, New York's bench leans on Miles McBride (9.8 PPG) and Precious Achiuwa (5.6 PPG). Thibodeau will add Mitchell Robinson — who hasn't played this season because of an ankle injury — to that mix, but this injury-plagued unit is less than ideal.

Although the Knicks are 24-13 and third in the Eastern Conference, they have lost three games in a row, mostly due to a lack of production off the bench. 

In each of the games during the losing streak, the Knicks have only been running three players outside of the starting lineup: Achiuwa, McBride, and Cameron Payne. They are solid players, but they haven't been getting the job done, especially on offense. 

During the losing streak, New York's bench has scored a combined 40 points. Meanwhile, the bench of the Knicks opponents has scored 125. Depth is an incredibly important factor in the NBA, one that New York cannot continue to ignore with the trade deadline looming Feb. 6. 

The Knicks have a great record despite their lack of depth. But what if one of their stars gets injured? The team could be in serious trouble if it has to start one of its bench players and give one of its reserves significant minutes. 

Starters Jalen Brunson and Towns have already missed games because of injuries. If they, along with OG Anunoby, Bridges  and Hart, miss significant time, the team could suffer because of its lack of depth. 

Other high-quality teams, such as the Oklahoma City Thunder (30-5), have dealt with injuries to key starters. The Thunder's Chet Holmgren has missed significant time, but OKC's quality bench has kept it at the top of the Western Conference.

New York has been rumored to be targeting Utah's Jordan Clarkson and Washington's Jonas Valančiūnas. Acquiring these players would do wonders for its bench scoring at a reasonable price. 

Adding this depth won't fix the issue of Thibodeau overplaying his starters, as that's just what comes with him coaching a team. However, having a go-to scoring option off the bench could solve many issues heading into the halfway point of the season.