Battle for the Boroughs: A Short History of Knicks-Nets, and a 14-Game Streak

I'll be honest with you: the Battle for the Boroughs hasn't been much of a battle lately. The Knicks have beaten the Nets 14 straight times, the longest winning streak either team has ever put together in this local rivalry, per the AP. Brooklyn's last win over us came on Jan. 28, 2023, a 122-115 game, and the streak started about two weeks later. Tonight at 6:30 p.m. CT the Nets come to the Garden at 1-5, with the champs sitting at 2-4, per ESPN, and I'd really like to see that number go to 15.

But it wasn't always like this, and that's what makes the streak taste so good.

When Brooklyn had the upper hand

If you were around for the Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving years, you remember how annoying this matchup used to be. The Nets won nine straight meetings while those two were in Brooklyn, per the AP. The superstar experiment came with all the noise, and for a stretch it felt like the city's basketball spotlight had moved across the river. Then Brooklyn traded both stars in early 2023, the AP notes, and the whole thing flipped almost overnight. That Jan. 28 loss was the last time they got us.

The Durant trade is also how this rivalry got its best plot twist. Brooklyn got Mikal Bridges from Phoenix in that deal, and in July 2024 the Knicks went and got him, sending Bojan Bogdanovic, Shake Milton, Mamadi Diakite, four unprotected first-round picks, a protected Bucks first and a 2028 pick swap to Brooklyn, per NBA.com. Bridges had started all 82 games for the Nets the year before and averaged 19.6 points, per the Knicks' announcement. Was it a lot of picks? Absolutely. Do I care, with a banner hanging from June? Not even a little. Mikal and OG on the wings together is exactly how I want this team built, and the Nets helped us get there.

Two straight sweeps

Since Bridges crossed the bridge, the scoreboard has been brutal for Brooklyn. The Knicks went 4-0 against them in 2024-25, starting with a 124-122 squeaker at the Garden and finishing 113-105 at Barclays in April, per ESPN's schedule results. Then they did it again last season, and that one was a statement.

The opener was a 134-98 blowout on Nov. 9, 2025. Cat had 28 points and 12 rebounds, and the Knicks won the paint 58-36 while hitting 17 of 37 threes, per the ESPN box score. That's the balance I'm always yelling about: pound them inside, then make them pay from deep. Two weeks later at Barclays, Towns went off for 37 and 12 on 14-of-20 shooting in a 113-100 win, per the AP, even with Noah Clowney dropping a career-high 31 on us.

Then came Jan. 22, 2026, a night I'll never forget. The Knicks had lost nine of 11 and got booed two nights earlier against Dallas, per the AP. Brooklyn was the cure. New York won 120-66, a 54-point margin that's the most lopsided win in franchise history, beating the old record of 48, per the AP. The lead got as big as 59. Landry Shamet went 6-for-6 from three and the Nets shot 29 percent from the field, 23 of 79, per the ESPN box score. The Knicks also out-rebounded them 56-27. When size shows up, games like that happen.

The finale on March 20 was the only one that felt like a real rivalry game. The Knicks blew a 14-point fourth-quarter lead to a 17-0 Nets run, Towns and Brunson answered with eight straight points between them, and Ben Saraf's 45-footer at the buzzer came up short in a 93-92 win, per the AP. There were technicals, shoving, the whole thing. Cat finished with 26 and 15. That's 14 straight, and it's the one that showed the Nets still have some fight in them.

What tonight looks like

Don't sleep on Brooklyn just because of the record. They got their first win of the season last night, 98-90 at Indiana, with Michael Porter Jr. scoring 23 and Julius Randle adding 20, per the AP. Porter has already hurt us, with 25 in that November blowout per the ESPN box score. They're on the second night of a back-to-back, though, and rookie Mikel Brown Jr. sat out for load management last night, per the AP. On our side, Jose Alvarado is still listed out, per ESPN.

I want what worked all of last season: Cat dominating inside, the wings locking up Porter, and the champs reminding everybody which team runs this city. If you're catching up, read our breakdown of the first six games (https://knicks365.com/blog/knicks-six-games-in-numbers-title-defense), the Morning After from Philly (https://knicks365.com/blog/knicks-76ers-recap-lebron-late-cup-opener-2-4) and our Atlantic Division preview (https://knicks365.com/blog/knicks-atlantic-division-preview-defending-crown-boston-philly).