Knicks deny schedule conspiracy

It’s the Grammy Awards, stupid.

According to industry sources, the major factor in the Knicks’ having such a home-heavy early schedule is due to a combination of the Garden hosting two events: the Grammys in January and the Big 10 Tournament for the first time in early March.

On Friday, Pistons president/coach Stan Van Gundy floated a conspiracy theory the NBA gave the Knicks a front-loaded home schedule so the marquee franchise could “build some confidence.’’

When asked about Van Gundy needling the NBA, Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek said Sunday after practice: “No, you play 82. You play 41 at home and 41 on the road.”

The Grammys will be staged at “The World’s Most Famous Arena” on Jan. 28. An industry source said past arenas have needed to block out dates for 10 to 14 days before and after in order to host the world’s most famous music awards show.

The Big 10 Tournament will be staged Feb. 28March 4, and that will be followed by the annual Big East Tournament from March 7-10.

“There were a lot of conflicts in January and March and the All-Star break is now a week in February,” the industry source said. “By simple math, that works out to more home games in November and December.”

The Christmas Day showcase at the Garden on Monday marks the 21st home game for the Knicks, who have played just 12 games on the road. They have taken advantage of the disparity by posting a 15-5 record at the Garden, compared to 2-10 on the road.

However, the Garden party is over after Monday’s Merry Kristaps, with 16 of their next 20 games away from MSG.

Van Gundy, who makes a sport of insinuating the NBA favors the Knicks and Lakers, said Friday before beating the Knicks in Detroit: “A cynical person — which I’m not — would say the league tried to help them and build some confidence at the beginning of the year by giving them a lot of home games and giving them a chance to get going and pick up some confidence.”