Knicks increased 3-point focus is finally paying dividends as wins keep coming

One of Tom Thibodeau’s stated points of emphasis for the Knicks this season — to increase their volume of 3-point attempts to take advantage of their proficiency from the outside — is starting to come to fruition.

Monday’s blowout win over the Wizards marked the Knicks’ second consecutive game with 40 tries from beyond the 3-point arc, another byproduct of their increased familiarity with each other following a slow start with a revamped starting lineup.

The Knicks were near the bottom of the league in long-range attempts at just 31.8 per game through their first six games, but they have averaged 38.1 over their past eight games. That includes four wins in their past five to improve to 8-6 entering the opener of a five-game road trip Wednesday night in Phoenix.

“I think what gives us momentum is the way we’re playing. We’re playing good basketball right now,” center Karl-Anthony Towns said. “We have a lot of areas we obviously could be better at, but to come out with wins on four out of five nights, it just speaks to our improvement and that we’re trending in the right direction.”

The 7-foot Towns leads the Knicks with 2.6 made treys per game, and he’s connecting on a whopping 51.5 percent from long distance through his 13 appearances, good for seventh in the NBA entering Tuesday’s league action.

His effectiveness has helped the Knicks to a No. 3 league ranking through Monday’s win over the Wizards at 38.8 percent, behind only the Cavaliers and the Warriors.