The New York Knicks look like a team that is very capable of building upon the success that they had during the 2020-21 NBA season. New York was one of the biggest surprises, going 41-31 and earning home-court advantage as the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference.
New York could very well win more games this season but find themselves further down the standings. The Eastern Conference is much improved with 13 teams looking like they will have a legitimate chance of pushing for the postseason or NBA Play-In Tournament spot.
For the Knicks to remain out of that Play-In Tournament, they may need to look for some help outside the organization. Thus far this season, they have done a total 180-degree turn in terms of their production on the court.
Last season, Tom Thibodeau had the team locked in defensively, but the offense was inconsistent. This season, it is the offense that has been excellent, but the defense is lagging.
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The starting five is especially struggling, as Kemba Walker, Evan Fournier, RJ Barrett, Julius Randle, and Mitchell Robinson have the worst net rating of any five-man grouping in the NBA.
On the contrary, the bench has been excellent with Derrick Rose, Immanuel Quickley, Alec Burks, Obi Toppin, Nerlens Noel, and Taj Gibson leading the way. Could trade help them balance things out?
Over at Bleacher Report, this hypothetical trade was made with the Detroit Pistons.