Charlotte (33-41) are 6.5 games behind Milwaukee for the eighth and final playoff spot with eight games remaining as their bid to reach the postseason for the second time in three years is nearing an end.
The Hornets, though, have reeled off three straight victories and coming off a 102-98 victory at Dallas on Saturday night. Kemba Walker followed up his 46-point effort against Memphis with 24 versus the Mavericks while Dwight Howard added 18 and 23 rebounds.
Charlotte shot noticeably better from 3-point range at 48 percent than overall (38 percent) and have made 31 of 65 from beyond the arc in their last two wins.
New York (27-47) won for just the fourth time in 19 games by rallying for a 101-97 victory at Washington on Sunday night. Trey Burke, inserted into the starting lineup after Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek benched Emmanuel Mudiay, had 19 points, three assists and three steals in his first start of the season.
The benching also appeared to spark Mudiay, who had 11 points, seven assists and six rebounds. The bigger positive, though, was that New York were a plus-eight when he was on the court after being outscored by 7.6 points per contest in the 14 games he started before his demotion.
The Knicks snapped a five-game road losing streak and look to post back-to-back wins outside Madison Square Garden for the first time since victories at Boston and Indiana on January 18 and 23, 2017.