The Knicks are Not Actually Bad Right Now

RD may not want to hear this, hell a lot of resident New Yorkers might not want to hear this, but the Knicks look like a solid team. They are currently on a six game win streak, they are fifth in the East, Julius Randle is finally living up to the hype and they are playing really solid basketball at the exact right time.

I agree with LeBron when he said the NBA is better when the Knicks are good. It makes sense. I am not a Lakers, Celtics or Knicks fan, but when they are all good teams, playoff teams, the NBA is better. Those are some of the biggest market teams, and if Chicago would get their act together, this could be like the NBA of the 90's, which is the NBA I watched and fell in love with.

Now, not to temper things down for Knicks fans that are excited, they are currently fifth in the East, and they would get destroyed by the 76ers, Bucks or Celtics. Hell, I'd even take the Heat or Raptors, teams far behind them, to win a seven game series over them. The Knicks are a nice story. That is what this whole season will be for them. But they are not ready to compete with the upper echelon of the East. If you all will remember, Tom Thibodeau went to Minnesota a few years back and turned them into a playoff team in year two. Then they totally went down the drain and he was gone well before his contract was done. He was not only the coach in Minnesota, but also the GM. He made all the player personnel decisions. He chose who they drafted, who they traded for and who they signed as free agents. He signed all the guys he likes and only played them, with few exceptions, and the Timberwolves fell back into obscurity.

What the Knicks have going for them is Thibodeau is just the head coach. He excels in the regular season as just the head coach. He won in Minnesota for a few years, and he had some really good teams in Chicago. But he overworks his players and he is sometimes unwilling to play younger players. So far that has not been the case in New York. Julius Randle is a vet, but this is his first real time being "the guy" for an offense, and Thibodeau has made it work. He is being forced to play RJ Barrett, and he is looking more and more like the player some GM's and scouts envisioned when he left Duke after one year. He is hitting shots and getting to the rim. Obi Toppin isn't getting a ton of playing time, but when he gets in, he is a good defender and good rebounder. Immanuel Quickley was kind of forced into the lineup, but he has been a revelation. He has more than earned his spot in the rotation. Derrick Rose is becoming the super sub for them. That is a perfect role for where he is in his career right now, and he is doing great. I think with the roster construct before he got there, he doesn't have a choice but to play the young kids, and it is working.

We will see what happens from here, how they finish out the year. But right now, Thibodeau has no other choice but to roll the best players out there, and a lot of them are younger guys. The Knicks are going to make the playoffs this season. Where we sit right now they are 32-27, firmly in the fifth spot in the East. They only have 13 more games left in the regular season, I think they will hold on to that 5 seed, meaning they will not have to play in the play in tourney, and I wouldn't be surprised if they win a round. As it stands today they would face the Hawks in the first round. I could see them winning that series in six games. But then they would get one of the buzzsaw teams. One of the three teams at the top that will destroy them. But, as if right now, the Knicks should be proud of what they have done this year. I had no faith in them, and I know a ton of other writers were right there with me. They have proved all of us wrong, and I have loved seeing Julius Randle, who I am a big fan of, turn into this force, especially on the offensive end.

This has been a nice season so far for New York, and they could make it more fun by winning in the playoffs.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet.

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