Atlantic Division

New York Knicks Power Rankings - 2012-13

Power Ranking
WEEKRECORDRANKCOMMENT
Week 2453-275For all of the justified props Melo's getting en route to the scoring title, alongside the new (and reliable?) J.R. Smith, can't we all agree that getting past Boston and Indy just to get to the East finals -- to see if they can really hang with the Heat -- rides mostly on Tyson Chandler's health?
Week 2350-263When we see this Melo, they look like those Knicks again, especially now that Tyson Chandler's back. Mike Woodson, meanwhile, sports a record of 68-32 in his first 100 games as Knicks coach. In that time, only San Antonio (80-23), Miami (75-26) and OKC (71-30) have better records.
Week 2246-268I became quite a Pablo Prigioni fan during the Olympics -- and got irrationally excited when I heard he was coming to the NBA -- but I obviously would be lying in a big way if I dared to suggest I ever pictured him emerging as a co-catalyst with J.R. Smith to help resurrect the Knicks' season.
Week 2142-269The fact that pretty much no one in the East outside of Miami is playing with any sort of sustained quality has enabled the Knicks -- even with all those injuries -- to stay right there in the race for the No. 2 seed. They capitalized on last week's cushy schedule to rediscover the 3-ball, too.
Week 2038-2614No space here to list all of the injuries. Not when we have to list how the Knicks' 3-point percentage has declined for five months straight: .416 in November; .371 in December; .360 in January; .335 in February and .328 in March. It got so bad recently that my man Steve Novak missed 12 in a row.
Week 1938-2211Daunting as it sounds for the Knicks to see their 3-point percentage decline in December, January and February -- and to know they'll be on the road for 13 of their final 22 games -- they surely take heart hearing that Mike Woodson posted a record of 55-27 in his first 82 games in charge.
Week 1835-2110Some good news after two-plus months of 18-17 mediocrity: No one below the Knicks in the East standings is playing consistently well enough to make you think they can bump 'em out of the top three. Especially if New York weathers this forthcoming stretch with nine of 13 on the road.
Week 1733-2012Amar'e is starting to make his presence felt, but Melo's PER has dipped into the 23s, which isn't much higher than his career-best PER of 22.2 after he spent much of the season well above 25. Call it yet another example of how far removed the Knicks seem from those glorious first six weeks.
Week 1632-189Knicks, meet Earth. The Red Holzman-era ball movement and torrid shooting that fueled an 18-5 start is gone. (Or in hibernation.) Given its win-now makeup, recapturing that offensive chemistry will be paramount to New York's postseason prospects. (Jim Cavan, Knickerblogger)
Week 1532-1710Charles Barkley keeps saying, over and over, that he's not a "Knicks believer." History, unfortunately, makes it hard to disagree with him, with New York averaging an NBA-high 29 3s per game and only two teams ever winning it all (Houston in '93-94 and '94-95) after leading in that category.
Week 1430-1510Let's not completely discount a four-game win streak, all at home, that includes W's over two of the most poundable foes you can find these days: Orlando and Sacramento. The Knicks deserve a little better when they sport one of the East's two winning records against .500-or-better teams.
Week 1327-159Good timing by Carmelo Anthony to get Melo-against-Nigeria hot Sunday night. On top of all the Knicks' recent woes with injuries, leaky defense and errant 3-point shooting, Melo's own shot had gone uncharacteristically cold starting with that 6-for-26 brickage when KG got into his head.
Week 1225-138Remember that 10-0 start at MSG? The injury-hit Knicks are a mere 4-5 in their past nine home dates entering their Martin Luther King Day showdown with the Nets, missing Raymond Felton terribly and openly grateful that the trip to London meant last week was just a one-game week.
Week 1124-139Maybe this week's trip to London -- where legend has it that the Olympics got Melo going -- can get the Knicks and their (fasting?) star turned around. Because we're suddenly talking more and more about the stuff (age, injuries, composure, Amaré) that can derail the East's early Cinderellas.
Week 1023-107Two 40-point games for Carmelo Anthony, one frustrating home loss to Portland, one thumping of the weary Spurs, more of J.R. Smith's hot hand and a lot of rust for Amar'e Stoudemire. That's the quickie summary of Stoudemire's first week back with the injury-laden Knicks.
Week 921-97Who knew that the Knicks would be so banged up by the time Amar'e Stoudemire was finally ready to return that there's almost a clamor now to get him back in there and see how it all snaps together. P.S. -- Something tells me Raymond Felton's absence will a bigger issue than we think.
Week 820-76They were never going to go 41-0 at home, so you can pardon last week's MSG losses to Houston and Chicago. Bigger concern: New York's 3-point conversion rate has dipped dramatically over the past five games. And poise tends to abandon them -- starting with Woody and Melo -- in a hurry.
Week 718-53The Knicks are on a 64-win pace, rain 3s, protect the ball better than any team going, and -- in case you want even more evidence that this (relatively speaking) might be their year -- have somehow won their last six one-point games after Saturday's Melo-less escape against Cleveland.
Week 615-53For all the justifiable awe their 3-point barrages generate -- how Mike D'Antoni must wish he could have brought just one of those shooters with him to L.A. -- perhaps we should be even more impressed with the fact mighty Miami has averaged a mere 88 points in two L's to the Knicks.
Week 512-47A win in Milwaukee is a good win these days, but the Knicks wouldn't dare suggest that they're all the way back to their early-November best in terms of swarming D and draining 3s. Not with 39-year-old Glue of the Operation Jason Kidd ailing and Raymond Felton dealing a bruised hand.
Week 49-36Is there such a thing as a Weekend Dime jinx? Can't help feeling there has to be some sort of connection between the most gushing Melo praise ever from the committee and the Knicks' no-show in Houston that made their previously celebrated defense look like a mirage.
Week 37-12Fun trivia morsel for your Monday lunch: These Knicks are the first team ever to get outrebounded in every game of a 6-0 start. The skeptics, of course, will point to that as evidence of the fatal flaw that comes with starting Melo at the 4, but 7-1 is not the time for that sort of negativity.
Week 24-02Melo looks like a new man, their D has been stout and the Knicks continue to shoot the ball amazingly well. The lone disclaimer: They've had to play only four games in two weeks and three of those were at home. A legit stress test awaits this week with three road games in four nights.
Week 12-03The Knicks are getting others involved even with Melo scoring rampantly and defending doggedly, too. Who knows how long it'll last ... but it's been a beautiful start. Too pretty for anyone at MSG to spend too much time fretting about how Amar'e, once healed, fits into all this.
Preseason0-015The question is asked on a near-daily basis: Who's the best basketball team in New York? The Knicks' problem, even if they ultimately win that debate, is that trumping the Nets might well be the highest honor that the league's oldest team can achieve this season.
Training Camp36-3013Let's see. Let's see if J-Kidd, at 39, can combine with Ray Felton (and Hakeem Olajuwon's tutorials) to help Melo and Amare snap together like Legos at last and make people forget that James Dolan let J-Lin go out of what largely appears to be spite. Maximum points for ambition.

New York Knicks