Power Ranking Each NY Knicks Player for NBA's Stretch Run
Nobody looks "powerful" during a 2-13 skid. The New York Knicks only have a couple of men who are playing up to expectations lately. It's caused significant shake-ups to the squad's power rankings since we first did them Nov. 27. While some players earned promotions thanks to improved performances, others crept up the ranks simply by being less mediocre than their teammates.
Robin Lopez is up; Jerian Grant is down. Starting point guard Jose Calderon might slip out of the top five, and NBA Development League call-up Jimmer Fredette could place above others before he's even logged two minutes on the hardwood.
So, who's head of the class today? Based upon usage and performance—particularly over the past six weeks—as well as their projected future with the team and a teensy drop of fan sentiment, here's a ranking of the Knicks roster from bottom to top.
Reserves: 15-11
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15. Cleanthony Early, ↓1
Cleanthony Early has had a rough year. The Knicks' second-year small forward remains inactive after being shot in the knee outside a club in late December; no timetable for his return has been released. Early barely saw any action in November and December, and his contract runs out this season. Not only is his stock low in New York, but he's had little opportunity to seduce other teams with his skills or show how his knee will behave after the injury.
14. Lou Amundson, ↓4
Considering the appalling state of the Knicks' defense recently, Lou Amundson should be getting more time. However, in the past 15 games, he's only hit the court six times.
Amundson hustles, makes life difficult for opponents in the paint and rips down rebounds—which New York needs more of on the defensive end to spark transition offense. The drawbacks to Sweet Lou are that he no longer has those long, flowing locks to admire and rarely boosts the scoring. For a team that's already 23rd in points per game, that lack of offense may keep Amundson on the bench.
13. Jimmer Fredette
Jimmer Fredette has played all of 1.8 minutes in just one game for New York, so where do I get off ranking him above Early and Amundson?
It's a little brazen, I'll grant you, but Fredette is special because he's the recently minted MVP of the 2016 NBA D-League All-Star Game, representing his Westchester Knicks team well. He's played in the NBA before, so he may have a chip on his shoulder and a need to prove he deserves to stay there. Plus, he's a high-scoring guard who has joined the lowest-scoring backcourt in the league.
All that said, fans in the Madison Square Garden who were chanting "We want Jimmer" during the Knicks' listless second-quarter effort versus the Toronto Raptors Monday should save their breath. According to interim head coach Kurt Rambis, Jimmer was outmuscled on defense ("pushed around a little bit") by his new teammates during practice, per the New York Daily News' Marc Berman. That could keep him rooted to the bench.
12. Kevin Seraphin ↓5
At the time of the last power ranking, Kevin Seraphin was on a tear, but now that the coaches have shortened the rotation, are playing Kristaps Porzingis at the 5 spot more often and have brought Kyle O'Quinn back into the fold, Seraphin is beginning to slip.
The big man is still a great boost to the offense when his teammates cannot find the bottom of the net, because he has a soft touch and can sink some pretty swishes off his fingertips. However, his defense is inconsistent, and he cannot move with the ball; asking Seraphin to dribble is like asking for a turnover.
11. Jerian Grant ↓2
Although the rookie's blitzing 16-point, eight-assist game against the Boston Celtics Jan. 12 was only six weeks ago, Jerian Grant's stock has dropped. No longer is he entering the game alongside Langston Galloway in the late first or early second quarter or helping close out tight contests in the fourth.
Grant's problem? He's a rookie. He's talented and focused but faces the ups and downs that most first-year players do when they lose confidence and come up against tougher competition than they've ever seen. Because of Grant's inconsistency and the team's desperate need to log wins, the Knicks have forced Grant to ride the bench more often.
However, to make sure Grant's pine time is not wasted, assistant coach Jim Cleamons (a Knicks guard from 1977 to 1979) sits beside him on the bench to give him a constant stream of game-time education, even if he's not on the floor. It's a sign the Knicks are invested in his development, even if they're not willing to trust him on the hardwood right now.
Bench: 10-6
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10. Sasha Vujacic ↑3
As Grant struggles, Sasha Vujacic has stolen some of the rookie's time. Vujacic has even been the first guard off the bench a few times, ahead of Galloway.
Vujacic doesn't have the same athleticism as the rookie, but he is energetic and occasionally will put forth a shooting performance that electrifies his teammates right when they need it. Plus, he has something that Grant doesn't have: a solid three-point shot. On the year, he's only averaging 28.6 percent from behind the arc, but in the past 15 games, Vujacic is nailing 42.9 percent.
9. Kyle O'Quinn ↑2
Kyle O'Quinn's vertical jump is roughly equal to my grandmother's. That sometimes presents a challenge when defending the rim. He's faster than my grandmother but not quick enough to keep up with a fast-paced opponent and can sometimes be a liability on transition defense.
However, he is an excellent rebounder with an eye for dropping dimes. He's a hustler (inasmuch as his physical limitations allow) and will sometimes produce serious buckets when they're needed most. For those reasons, O'Quinn has been working his way back into a shortened rotation after falling out of favor midseason.
8. Derrick Williams ↑4
Has Derrick Williams fulfilled the outrageous hopes we dared to feel during his thrilling preseason? No. He has, however, managed to maintain his spot in the regular rotation, because of his periodic astounding offensive feats and his continuing efforts to improve his defense, rebounding and three-point shooting.
However, don't be fooled by D-Will's improved ranking. He was down so low before because of ruined expectations, and part of his improvement now is simply a function of the team's overall decreasing performance.
7. Jose Calderon ↓2
Jose Calderon is not the root of all the Knicks' problems or the source of all basketball misery...but he still shouldn't continue to be the starting point guard. And I'm sorry, Calderon defenders, but his 20-point splash-out Wednesday versus the Indiana Pacers doesn't change that.
He doesn't make the team any better. Over the past 15 games, when Calderon is on the court, the team is a ghastly minus-15.3. When he leaves the court, it improves to a much less miserable mnus-3.1. (In fairness, as comparison, nobody on the team has a positive plus/minus right now.)
He isn't a dreadful defender, but he's not a strong one, particularly not against speedy, superior guards such as Russell Westbrook, John Wall and Damian Lillard. Rambis admitted as much after the Knicks' 111-108 loss to the Washington Wizards Feb. 9, per Marc Berman of the New York Post.
"We know that real quick, explosive point guards are going to cause Jose problems," Rambis said. "We have to continue to find ways to support him and help him on pick-and-rolls for guards."
6. Arron Afflalo ↓2
The Knicks' starting backcourt ranks 28th in scoring (20.6 points per game) and middle of the road in opponents' scoring. The duo's overall plus/minus is among the worst (-0.7).
Afflalo is the Knicks' second-best post player after Carmelo Anthony (if not the best). He's one of their leading producers of points in the paint. And he can create shots for himself without needing to be fed the ball all the time.
Yet, lately, it's not good enough, and that's why he's dropped out of the top five of these power rankings. Even when he's scoring efficiently, he's not being aggressive enough at looking for his shot. Oddly, the better he's shooting, the less he shoots. He went 6-of-21 and 2-of-12 versus the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Golden State Warriors, respectively; he then went 6-of-8, 5-of-7 and 6-of-9, respectively, in losses to the Washington Wizards, Brooklyn Nets and Minnesota Timberwolves.
Plus, he's getting torched on defense. One example: He and Calderon were outscored by the Raptors' starting backcourt 44-7 Monday.
5. Lance Thomas (Up 2)
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Lance Thomas has a genuine chance at winning the Most Improved Player award, even though his individual stat sheet doesn't sparkle.
Sometimes, he drops more than 20 points; other times, he only scores a few. Sometimes, he commits a foul on a three-point attempt at the worst possible moment; other times, he squashes the best scorers all night.
What Thomas always brings is intangibles, such as the unique combination of energy and stability that a wobbly group can rally around. Simply put, the team is better when Thomas is on the floor. New York is minus-1.7 when he's on the court. (I'm sorry to say that's the second-best on the team.) It tumbles to minus-11.6 when he's on the bench.
Thomas gives a boost to nearly every lineup he's in, and the Knicks' record is 1-4 in the five games without him.
4. Langston Galloway (Up 3)
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Langston Galloway makes the team play better. The end.
When he started at point guard versus the Golden State Warriors, the baby-faced assassin Steph Curry had a measly (for him) 13-point, four-assist night on 5-of-17 shooting.
Over the last 15 games, Galloway boasts the highest on-court net rating (-0.2) and the lowest off-court net rating (-19.0), which means that the whole team plays much better when he's with them and much worse when he's not.
Galloway is strong no matter which lineup you put around him—beside Afflalo, or Grant, or Calderon, at the 1 or the 2, with the starters or the reserves.
And yet...a No. 4 rank seems better than he deserves right now. With the exception of the Curry matchup, his defensive effort has been inferior than it's been in the past. He has delivered fewer clutch buckets than the team came to expect from him. Plus, he's had a few judgment errors that are rather un-Gallo, like a turnover in the final seconds that closed the Knicks' slim chance of beating the Wizards Feb. 9.
His individual performance may not be up to his abilities, but what he consistently does to enable his teammates is why he surpasses so many others in the rankings.
3. Kristaps Porzingis (Down 1)
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No. 2 or No. 3? It was exceptionally hard to decide where to place rookie phenom Kristaps Porzingis, but ultimately he flipped from No. 2 to No. 3 because lately he's lost a little of his edge, Wednesday night's stellar show versus the Indiana Pacers notwithstanding. His tough defense has gotten softer, and his aggressive offense has become more timid.
Why? Some of it can perhaps be attributed to outside factors—his teammates not looking for him quite as often and opponents having more complete scouting reports.
Nevertheless, if KP wants to be the Knicks' heir apparent, he can't be shy. Plus, he needs to learn to create more shots for himself, instead of requiring setups from teammates. A whopping 67.1 percent of his made field goals are assisted, which is a far greater number than any of the other starters.
That said, the kid is still dangerous—15.1 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.9 blocks in February might earn him yet another Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month title.
2. Robin Lopez (Up 1)
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Yes, Robin Lopez got scorched by his brother Brook on Feb. 19. His big brother rained buckets down from all over the court, and his 33-point storm powered the Brooklyn Nets to a 109-98 victory over the Knicks.
Aside from that, Robin Lopez has been a bright spot in dark days. In the 2-13 stretch, he's had four double-doubles and three games with more than 20 points—not bad for a guy who averages 9.7 per game on the season.
When the Knicks shooters struggle, he's been the cleanup crew—not just nabbing offensive rebounds but batting in putback bank shots. He leads the team in second-chance points.
That said, the reason the execs brought him to New York in the first place was for his scrappy interior defense, and like everyone, his D has been a bit scatterbrained recently.
He's uncomfortable defending on the perimeter, and the team has had a tendency to freeze up when the players debate whether to switch or not to—one result is that the team becomes flabbergasted by big men who shoot threes (like Brook Lopez). Overall, though, Lopez is a key, reliable asset to New York and has been all season.
1. Carmelo Anthony -- Unchanged
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Carmelo Anthony isn't perfect, but he's far and away number one.
Melo leads his team in points, rebounds and assists. Nobody else in the league does that.
He's found his voice as a leader. He firmly, but without embarrassing anyone, challenged his teammates to take responsibility for their own individual failures. After the 122-95 loss to the Toronto Raptors Feb. 22, Anthony told reporters, via the New York Daily News' Stefan Bondy:
""We got to take it upon ourselves individually to take a challenge. We can’t beat nobody allowing (58) points in the paint. Impossible.”
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The cameras also caught him giving Porzingis some on-court instruction after the youngblood flubbed a defensive set. That said, Carmelo needs to win his own man-to-man match-ups more often. He'd been one of the league's best at man defense early in the season, but has loosened up.
Nobody in New York has given more this season than Anthony, the team has never won without him and regardless of your legitimate criticisms of the man over the years (and there have been plenty), not a single New York Knicks observer should argue that point .
Well, that's your roster, Knicks fans. Try not to collapse under the force of its inspiring power.
All stats are from NBA.com/stats and up-to-date as of pre-gametime Feb. 25.
