Predicting the NBA Eastern Conference standings: New York Knicks
CEILING: Top-4 seed, second round exit
FLOOR: Play-in tournament, first round exit
The Knicks got much better this offseason… on paper. Evan Fournier and Kemba Walker are game-changing additions at relatively affordable price points. Immanuel Quickley should take the standard second year leap. R.J. Barrett is on the rise. Julius Randle is just entering his prime. The Knicks should be a lot better.
And yet, the rest of the East also got better. New York was the four seed last year. The three teams above them in the standings — Philly, Brooklyn, and Milwaukee — aren’t going anywhere. The teams within one game of them — Miami and Atlanta — both feel like significantly better teams, at least on paper. Even Indiana feels like a threat to usurp New York.
My biggest concern is Julius Randle, who posted remarkable shooting numbers across the board and made the rare leap from overpaid starter to second team All-NBA in the span of one single season. The thing is, Randle has never shot that well before, and NBA arenas won’t be empty again next season. Randle went M.I.A. in New York’s first round loss to Atlanta, and it’s fair to wonder whether or not he’s a flash in the pan. He’s good, no doubt, but is he really, truly second team All-NBA good?
Beyond Randle, the Knicks did indeed get better, but with how the East is shaking out, I’m not sure how much that will mean in the standings. New York could improve its win percentage and still fall to the fifth or sixth seed. The East was spectacularly bad last season, which probably won’t be the case this season.
New York has a great regular season coach in Tom Thibodeau, and the recent track record to feign competitive aspirations. That said, don’t be surprised if the Knicks are stuck in no-man’s land, rather than pushing for a top-3 seed.