Knicks See Steady Rise in Power Rankings

The New York Knicks have had a mixed bag of results through the first two weeks of the season.

After six games, the Knicks have settled down at 3-3 with wins against the Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat and Detroit Pistons while also losing to the Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, and most recently to the Houston Rockets.

Despite the loss to the Rockets, the Knicks slotted into No. 7 in ESPN’s latest power rankings, one spot higher than the previous edition.

“Things were downright ugly in New York’s season opener against the Celtics. But in the five games since, the defensive duo of OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges has been stout, surrendering 101.8 points per 100 possessions in 106 minutes. (That number would rank third in the league behind Oklahoma City and Golden State.) In particular, the pair was relentless in Detroit this past week, helping lead the Knicks to a 16-steal performance in a blowout victory,” ESPN insider Chris Herring writes.

The only teams that ranked ahead of the Knicks were the Dallas Mavericks, Golden State Warriors, Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers, Oklahoma City Thunder and Boston Celtics.

The Knicks know that the growing pains they will undergo are going to be difficult, and it won’t take an overnight fix. While the team can show flashes of brilliance like it did against the Heat with Karl-Anthony Towns’ 44-point performance or the 36 points from Jalen Brunson against the Pistons, those kinds of showings won’t happen every night.

The Knicks just need to focus on getting better game in and game out while learning from their mistakes and errors that they make in their losses.

The Knicks are back in action tomorrow night when their road trip continues against No. 1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher and the Atlanta Hawks.

Make sure you bookmark New York Knicks On SI for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!