Knicks Earn High Praise From ESPN Analyst

The New York Knicks have had one of the busier offseasons out of anyone in the NBA, trading for Mikal Bridges and picking up the pieces after losing Isaiah Hartenstein.

They have also signed OG Anunoby and Jalen Brunson to five-year extensions, giving them a core for the future.

ESPN writer Kevin Pelton is among the fans of the Knicks’ moves, giving them an “A-” in his offseason grades for all 30 teams.

“Having gotten a game short of the Eastern Conference finals despite multiple key injuries, the time was right for the Knicks to deal nearly all their available first-round picks for Bridges. Despite a pricey new deal for OG Anunoby (five years, $212.5 million), Bridges’ below-market contract and the money Jalen Brunson left on the table by agreeing to a sub-max extension give New York a window of at least two years before pushing into second-apron territory,” Pelton writes. “The Knicks need to find a replacement for Isaiah Hartenstein, who signed with the Thunder for a far higher annual salary than New York could offer. But the Knicks have enviable depth at the other four positions.”

The Knicks were a 50-win team last year one game away from their first Conference Finals visit in 24 years, but they have found a way to improve from that. Now, they are arguably the biggest challenger to the defending champion Boston Celtics out of any team in the East.

It remains to be seen if the Knicks can get over the hump in the East, but their moves this offseason certainly haven’t hurt their chances. They will have to adjust their chemistry in order to fit this slightly new group together, but their ceiling is higher and it’s arguably the best Knicks team New York has seen in decades.

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