Do Knicks’ struggles vs. Boston and Cleveland mean anything?

CLEVELAND — For the Knicks, any game against the best teams in the NBA will be accompanied not only by a national TV audience, but by the constant reminder that they have yet to win one of these this season.

So, as they tipped off against the Cavaliers Wednesday night, the Knicks brought a combined 0-7 record against the Cavs, Boston Celtics and Oklahoma City Thunder. But, as they wind down to the final games of the regular season and head to the postseason, does a game like this — or any of those losses — give a true indication of what to expect in the playoffs?

While Jalen Brunson accompanied the Knicks on the trip to Cleveland and Atlanta, he remained sidelined for this game, along with backup point guards Deuce McBride and Cam Payne. And Mitchell Robinson was held out on the second half of a back-to-back set of games, meaning that he hasn’t been in any of the eight games against the NBA’s elite teams.

So what does this mean?

“I don’t know,” Josh Hart said after Tuesday’s win over Philadelphia. “We just have to go out there and compete. We’re down…no one knows what [Karl-Anthony Towns] is doing, but I’m not sure if Mitch is going to play. Obviously JB and Cam and Deuce, I don’t think are going to be ready. You know, it’s the second game of a back-to-back, so we just got to go out there and compete. I think that’s the biggest thing.

“You know, some games it’s tough to put a lot of stock in. But this one, obviously they’re a heck of a team. They’re the number one team in the East for a reason and they’re going to come out — I think they haven’t played in a couple days so they’re going to have energy and attention to detail. So, we’re just going to have to come out and try to match that energy and compete.”

Shorthanded, schedule-adverse, what does it all mean? Would a loss Wednesday mean something? Do they have to prove something in the regular season to make someone a believer in the postseason?

What the Knicks didn’t want was to find themselves on the losing side of a one-sided game, like the 37-point loss they suffered in the last meeting with the Cavs, or the opening night loss to Boston when they trailed by that much.

“Every game is revealing to you, telling you things that you need to work on,” coach Tom Thibodeau said. “It also tells you things that you’re doing well. There’s always a lot of challenges. Sometimes when you look at the regular season, the variables that you sometimes don’t look at: Who’s out for them? Who’s out for you? Where are you in terms of rest advantage, disadvantage? Where are they? So those things do figure into it. But you strive to get better each and every day.

“You’re seeing it now. And we’ve dealt with it all year. Mitch missed the first 60 games of the season. That’s a lot. It was an opportunity for other guys to get in there and grow. We’re seeing it now with Jalen being out. We have more than enough. Next guy get in there and get the job done. Understand what the job is, get in there and execute.”

The Cavs still remember what the Knicks did against them in the postseason two years ago when Robinson was a dominant factor against their front line of seven-footers, Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley. And they know, no matter who is out there, that they have to approach it the same way.

“Same mentality,” Darius Garland said after the morning shootaround. “Bring a lot of physicality. No Brunson so a lot of guys are going to be playing really hard. A lot of things they don’t do as much they will probably come out and try to do against us. So just try to keep us on all our toes, got to be locked in defensively. Defensive rebounding is a big thing with them. A lot of people are crashing. So got to stay on the boards as well.

“[They’re] the same team. Have to go in with the same mentality. Got to play our brand of basketball. We’re worried about ourselves at this point. We’re working on the things we have to work on, trying to get ready for this playoff push.”

Notes & Quotes: Thibodeau said that Brunson could practice if the Knicks practice in Atlanta, having been cleared for basketball activities. McBride and Payne sound even closer to playing. “Those guys, they’re close,” Thibodeau said. “They’re not quite there. Cam’s in the same boat and Jalen’s getting pretty close as well. Deuce and Cam should be any day.”