Knicks Punished in Power Rankings After Lakers Loss?
The New York Knicks were winners of nine straight games before falling at home to LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers by a 113-105 final on Saturday night.
Though the nine-game tally was tied for the longest in the NBA this season, the most recent NBA power rankings from CBS Sports perhaps let recency bias get in the way: after standing in the top spot in last week's posting, the Knicks (32-18) fell six spots to seventh.
Brad Penner, USA TODAY SPORTS
"Well, it had to end sometime," CBS Sports' Colin Ward-Henninger writes. "After beating the (Utah) Jazz and (Indiana) Pacers to extend their winning streak to nine games, the Knicks couldn't muster enough fourth-quarter offense in Saturday's loss to the Lakers."
"The Knicks are still playing extremely well, with Donte DiVincenzo and Josh Hart admirably making up for the absences of Julius Randle and OG Anunoby."
The injuries on the roster have a lot to do with their drop as well, but if the Knicks can still conjure up wins, it doesn't matter who is playing on the floor for them. Anunoby is set to miss another game on Tuesday night against the Memphis Grizzlies (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG) along with Quentin Grimes while Randle is out indefinitely as he recovers from a dislocated shoulder.
New York continues their homestand this week by hosting the Grizzlies on Tuesday, their final game before Thursday's trade deadline. It'll face the Dallas Mavericks that night before a lengthy homestand ends with another visit from the Pacers. A brief road trip closes out the pre-All-Star slate, as the Knicks go to Houston and Orlando on Monday and Wednesday respectively.
