So much for finally breaking through last year. So much for basically putting the Celtics on the brink even before Jayson Tatum tore his Achilles in Game 4 of the second round, for beating Boston in their first playoff matchup since 2013, for — despite their inability to beat the Celtics consistently during the regular season — signaling the potential for a changing of the guard atop the Eastern Conference. Maybe Boston was still Boston, but the Knicks could do more than just hang.

But so much can change in a year. Tatum is already back from an injury that typically sidelines athletes for a year. He returned in just 298 days. The Celtics have leapfrogged the Knicks in the conference standings and will likely end up as the No. 2 seed, too. And the Knicks have been plagued by rocky stretches and an inability to defeat teams above .500. The decision to fire Tom Thibodeau and hire Mike Brown has paid off at times, but key pieces such as Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges have still been inconsistent — and sometimes invisible.

The Knicks convincingly winning their Eastern Conference semifinals series last year was supposed to vault them to a new tier. But instead, they almost need to beat the Celtics again to establish themselves as a true contender and silence any critics suggesting otherwise. Because until then, the optics suggest that the Knicks are still chasing the Celtics.

Entering the season, this had been pegged as a rebuilding year for Boston. Sure, they still had Jaylen Brown. Sure, they still had Derrick White. But, with an increasingly onerous payroll, they sent Kristaps Porziņģis to the Hawks and shipped Jrue Holiday to the Trail Blazers. The Celtics, like the Pacers without Tyrese Haliburton, were supposed to be outside the tier of contenders. That was supposed to open the door for the Knicks. If there was any year where they’d have a clear path to at least reach the NBA Finals, this was going to be that year.

Free agency could reshape the WNBA this month, with more than 100 players seeking new deals.

The Liberty will have somewhat of a new look and feel from a year ago, especially after replacing head coach Sandy Brondello with former Warriors assistant Chris DeMarco. But the pillars remain the same.

Sabrina Ionescu and Breanna Stewart reiterated their plans last week to re-sign with the Liberty once free agency opens. As previously reported, Jonquel Jones also intends to return to New York for her fourth season.

Leonie Fiebich remains under contract, and Betnijah Laney-Hamilton is expected to return after missing last season to rehab left knee surgery.

WASHINGTON — This wasn’t supposed to be part of the equation anymore. Cynicism has crept into all of the corners of college basketball. They’re pros now. It’s all a transactional game. Players don’t stick around long enough to learn the words to the alma mater, let alone battle a lump in the throat when it’s played at the end of a game, or a season. 

There aren’t supposed to be tears anymore. 

There were tears Friday night. Zuby Ejiofor and Dillon Mitchell sat behind a couple of microphones deep in the bowels of Capital One Arena, maybe half an hour after a valiant attempt to topple a basketball citadel known as the Duke Blue Devils. St. John’s led by one at halftime. They led by 10 five minutes into the second half, and were still within three with under 10 seconds to go. 

It ended 80-75, Duke. It ended one of the great runs in St. John’s history, a 21-1 stretch that against almost any other team in the tournament might have stretched to 22-1. It didn’t. To the red-clad fans who’d tried to make Capital One sound like the infield of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, there were a lot of sore throats and a lot of long faces. These are the people who are supposed to wear the emotions now. 

SAN DIEGO — This is how you play the game when you want to carry New York on your shoulders as far and as long as you can. 

The St. John’s Red Storm delivered an emphatic March message to one and all with their 78-53 demolition of Northern Iowa. 

They resembled a Dream Team totally entitled to harbor the most grandiose of dreams. 

“We played like a champion tonight,” assistant coach Steve Masiello told The Post. 

TAMPA, Fla. — Now comes the hard part for Hofstra.

No, not recovering from the heartbreak of this special season coming to a premature end. Friday’s 90-70 first-round loss to Alabama served as an unceremonious end after the Pride reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 25 years.

No, the hard part for Hofstra coach Speedy Claxton is keeping his brilliant backcourt intact.

Keeping shooting guard and leading scorer Cruz Davis for his final year of eligibility.

NORTH PORT, Fla. — Tim Naehring has lived through the highs of Gerrit Cole and the lows of Kei Igawa. CC Sabathia fronting a championship and the hype, hope and quick fizzle that was Deivi Garcia. 

In 19 seasons with the Yankees, 11 as vice president of baseball operations, Naehring has helped form many permutations of the rotation. And so it resonates when he says this is the best he has felt about a group as a season approaches because of “The top-end talent, depth and prospects coming. … This could be a very dynamic pitching staff that has impact and depth.” 

Of course, Naehring adds the proviso about both the need for general health of those pitching right now and that the positive rehab progressions of Cole, Carlos Rodón and Clarke Schmidt continue. Because depth can evaporate quickly when it comes to pitching. 

The Braves have lost three starters since the outset of spring training — Joey Wentz (knee) for the season and Spencer Schwellenbach (elbow) and Hurston Waldrep (elbow) for at least half a season. This from a rotation that already had lots of injury-history concerns with ace Chris Sale, Grant Holmes, Reynaldo López and Spencer Strider. 

PORT ST. LUCIE — Luke Weaver is less than thrilled by the perception that his 2025 performance was a regression from his 2024 breakout, when he received accolades for his work in the Yankees bullpen.

On the surface, his surge in ERA from 2.89 to 3.62 tells that story. But Weaver, who arrived to the Mets on a two-year contract worth $22 million, would argue he was just as dominant, if not better, last year.

Two September appearances, in a span of five days, brought havoc to his ERA. He allowed eight earned runs combined against the Tigers and Twins over two-thirds of an inning and suddenly a 2.81 ERA increased by more than a full run.

Such is the life of a reliever, on whom perceptions can change based on a bad outing or two. 

WWE locked in one of its WrestleMania 42 main events and left the other in complete chaos after Elimination Chamber.

CM Punk retained his World Heavyweight championship at the United Center in Chicago on Saturday night and is set to face Roman Reigns in Las Vegas in April. We know Randy Orton will also be in Sin City, but who will be across from him as Undisputed WWE champion is up in the air after Drew McIntyre’s continued interference made SmackDown general manager put him in a title match against Cody Rhodes on SmackDown.

CLEVELAND — At this point, you have to pick a side. Or assign blame. The system or KAT? KAT or Mike Brown? They’ve left us no choice.

Earlier this season, their messaging, if not the results, reflected congruity. The Knicks’ new offensive system, predicated on pace and conceptual basketball over playcalling, was the problem. As Brown often said, Karl-Anthony Towns’ adjustment was the most difficult given the vast responsibilities of the center.

There was a learning curve.

But Brown’s messaging has shifted lately, emphasizing repeatedly since the All-Star break that Towns is “right where he should be” in the offense.