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Power Ranking Knicks' Roster Entering 2023-24 NBA Season – Bleacher Report
Given their rich collection of trade assets, the New York Knicks could have authored a splash-filled NBA offseason.
Instead, they banked on continuity, chemistry and subtle improvements.
It could be that they’re simply waiting on the trade market to offer up the right star, or maybe they want to see how competitive this core can be with a full summer together.
Either way, the 2023-24 Knicks look a lot like their 2022-23 version, and based on their success this past season (47 wins and a playoff series victory), that’s probably a good thing. To dig deeper into the talent on hand, we’re breaking down the roster power-ranking style by evaluating each player on an NBA contract based on talent, projected production and value to this club.
14. Daquan Jeffries
Jeffries has played 47 games across three NBA seasons, but the only big-league action he received in 2022-23 were a pair of playoff cameos in lopsided games.
13. Isaiah Roby
Roby is, on paper at least, a potential candidate to fill the reserve role created by the summer subtraction of Obi Toppin. In reality, that’s a job the Knicks will almost certainly give to someone else, whether that’s a small-ball 4 (like Josh Hart) or a player who isn’t currently on the roster.
12. Miles McBride
McBride’s defense is borderline elite, but his offense is nonexistent. Through two NBA seasons, he’s toting around an unsightly 33.7/28.2/66.7 career shooting slash.
11. Evan Fournier
The Knicks decided they were better off without Fournier last season, though he remains on the roster for the fact his sizable salary could be useful in a substantial trade. He is limited defensively, but he can contribute on offense with a potent perimeter shot and a pinch of playmaking.
10. Jericho Sims
Put Sims on a different roster, and he might fill a regular rotation role due to his athleticism, shot-blocking and point-blank finishing. In New York, though, he is trapped at third on the center depth chart and will continue finding minutes hard to come by for as long as that’s the case.
9. Isaiah Hartenstein
Hartenstein would hold a higher ranking on a lot of different rosters, but New York’s depth works against him. It also doesn’t help that the Knicks have dialed down his playmaking duties. He still contributes with hustle, intelligence and interior activity, but New York would be wise to let him impact the game with his passing more.
8. Donte DiVincenzo
DiVincenzo should be a fast favorite of both Knicks’ fans and head coach Tom Thibodeau. DiVincenzo plays with great energy and molds his game in ways that help his team at both ends. If he sustains his three-point shooting—39.7 percent this past season, 34.7 the four seasons prior—then this ranking probably sells him short.
7. Quentin Grimes
Three-and-D wings are increasingly valuable in the modern game, and Grimes has been a standout in that role. He offers both flexibility with defensive assignments and a three-ball that has found its mark better than 38 percent of the time in each of his two NBA seasons.
6. Josh Hart
A deadline addition, Hart wound up averaging New York’s fourth-most minutes this past season, so maybe he’s a spot or two too low. But at 28 years old, he’s probably closer to his ceiling than some of the players ranked ahead of him, so the lack of growth potential hurts. He would also help himself (and his team) by showing more assertiveness on the offensive end.
5. Immanuel Quickley
This might feel a little aggressive to some, but Quickley made a big jump this past season and hasn’t exhausted his growth potential yet. He is an energetic, disruptive defender who has greatly improved his offensive efficiency.
4. Mitchell Robinson
Injury issues and limited offensive range have plagued Robinson in the past, but he makes such an impact on the interior that you don’t want to hold those shortcomings against him too much. He has absurd bounce for a 7-footer, and he knows how to use it as a lob-finisher and shot-blocker.
3. RJ Barrett
Barrett had hinted at a breakout in his sophomore season, but he kind of plateaued in the two campaigns since. He could help himself by improving his outside shot, but the Knicks could also help him by improving their overall spacing. Give him wider attack lanes, and he might increase his scoring efficiency and see passing lanes that are a tad too crowded for him to notice at the moment.
2. Julius Randle
Randle isn’t the top-ranked player here, but he might be the one with the biggest say in New York’s success this season. He was great in 2020-21 and really good in 2022-23, but his 2021-22 effort was rough. He is prone to bouts of tunnel vision and isn’t the stingiest stopper you find, but good luck finding many players capable of matching his combination of scoring, rebounding and playmaking.
1. Jalen Brunson
The Knicks viewed Brunson as a rising star when they signed him last summer, and he immediately took sizable steps toward backing up their belief. His stat sheet spawned one career-high after the next, making him one of only two players—two-time MVP Stephen Curry being the other—to average 24 points and six assists while shooting 40-plus percent from three, per StatHead.