The Celtics prevented the Knicks from moving higher up the ladder.
Not the best, nor the worst week for the New York Knicks, depending on the optics and the games you take into consideration.
The Knicks kicked off last week with back-to-back wins over Houston and Toronto but then suffered another embarrassing loss to the champions from Boston on Saturday, capping the stint with a solid win on Monday at the Pacers in Indianapolis.
If we’re true to how these ranks are cooked, then the fairest assessment is to have the Knicks as a 2-1 team during the last seven days, with expected wins against two good-not-great teams and a (very) damaging loss in the eyes of all national scribes.
Here’s a roundup of all the power rankings posted at different outlets through Tuesday’s matchups, capturing the national perception of the Knicks among the basketball elite.
Note: I have included a +/- next to each rank, with a minus sign (-) meaning dropping down and a plus sign (+) meaning climbing up X spots compared to last week’s position on that outlet.
NBA — No. 5 — New York Knicks (+1)
John Schuhmann of NBA.com, flipped the fifth and sixth teams in his rankings this week and moved up New York to the No. 5 slot after letting the Knicks rest in sixth last week.
The official power rankings cooked by the league didn’t consider the back-to-back played this week but they made very sure to mention the Knickerbocker struggles against the cream of the crop across the League. Sheesh.
“The Knicks are 0-5 against the Celtics, Cavs and Thunder, having allowed 126.7 points per 100 possessions over the five games. Their two worst defensive games of the season — the first on opening night, the second on Saturday — have come with Boston shooting 48-for-100 from 3-point range.
“The Knicks rank last in opponent 3-point percentage (38%). The percentage of their opponents’ 3-point attempts that have been wide-open (48%) is actually below average, but their opponents have shot relatively well (41.5%) on those wide-open 3-pointers.
“It certainly didn’t help that the Knicks were without OG Anunoby on Saturday. The last four games (starting with the one in which he was injured) have been the team’s worst four-game stretch of defense this season (125.5 points allowed per 100 possessions), they’re now 6-4 when they’ve been without (at least) one of their five starters, and it was a little surprising that they didn’t add any wing depth at the deadline.” — John Schuhmann
By moving up one spot, the Knicks dropped the Grizzlies in this week’s ranking with Memphis holding onto the No. 6 spot.
The Athletic — No. 5 — New York Knicks (-)
Law Murray of The Athletic decided to keep the Knicks in fifth for the second week in a row following a move up one slot before that.
The Athletic released the updated ranks on Tuesday, meaning none of this week’s game factored into their equation.
For this edition, Murray touched on one player who will need to adapt to his new team following the trade deadline, or in the case of franchises without additions, the player who will have to do something to improve his fit within the system already in place to improve his production and the team’s as a whole.
“(PG Delon Wright) – Not much to see here as far as changes, but the Knicks swapping out center Jericho Sims to bring on another veteran guard in Wright is a vote of confidence for both tradeable power forward Precious Achiuwa and injured center Mitchell Robinson. Achiuwa sticks around as the team’s seventh 20-minute player, while Robinson progresses toward making his season debut.” — Law Murray
No changes at all inside the top five with Denver climbing up to the No. 6 seed and the Luka Lakers rising from ninth to seventh.
ESPN — No. 6 — New York Knicks (-)
The ESPN panel released their rankings on Wednesday morning and decided to keep the Knicks where they placed them last week.
New York retained its place in the higher third of the league power rankings but that’s no bueno when you find the Denver Nuggets jumping all the way up from No. 7 to No. 4 (!?) after going 4-0 last week… by beating the Pelicans and the Blazers to bulk up that record.
No flavor this week, with ESPN simply tasking their writers with taking the temperature of the teams they cover ahead of the All-Star break.
“The past couple weeks were somewhat of a mixed bag for New York, which won seven of its past 10 games entering Tuesday night but were routed Saturday by defending champion Boston in a contest that some had deemed a measuring stick. Jalen Brunson called the 27-point loss “unacceptable,” saying it showed New York isn’t where it wants to be yet.
“New York is still waiting for Mitchell Robinson to make his season debut, with coach Tom Thibodeau saying Monday that he and OG Anunoby (toe) are both “not quite ready.” — Chris Herring
In case you were wondering, it’s the Rockets dropping from the top five making room for Denver, with Houston now placed all the way down on the No. 8 spot and the Lakers also overtaking them in seventh.
What are your thoughts on the ranks above? Where do you have the Knicks ranked after they split their first six games of the season? Drop your hot takes in the comments section below!