Six Knicks Among Top 125 NBA Players List
The New York Knicks are 41-30 as the fifth seed in the NBA's Eastern Conference. Julius Randle has put together an All-Star season alongside newcomer Jalen Brunson to push the team into prime postseason positioning.
Brunson and Randle's efforts were recently recognized by The Ringer, which included six New Yorkers among its latest ranking of the top 125 players in the NBA.
Among the accoladed:
"No. 31 [Randle]: A hard charger who is capable of punishing defenders with his relentless physical play and secondary playmaking.
No. 34 [Brunson]: Hard-charging little engine who can act as a pulse for otherwise lifeless offenses.
No. 95 [Immanuel Quickley]: A do-everything guard: skilled and intuitive on offense, dogged and resourceful on defense.
No. 96 [RJ Barrett]: Committed driver still waiting on the rest of his game to catch up—and on the Knicks to give him real room to operate.
No. 111 [Quentin Grimes]: Rangy off-ball weapon who excels in a limited role.
No. 112 [Mitchell Robinson]: High-flying lob threat who swoops in like a trapeze artist on one end and a heat-seeking missile on the other."
Only the Boston Celtics (8) had more players named on the top 125 than the Knicks.
New York has enjoyed several standout individual seasons. Randle is enjoying a career-high 25.2 points and 10.3 rebounds per game, and his 40 double-doubles rank fourth in the Association. Brunson was arguably the biggest All-Star snub and has also posted career-high averages of 23.8 points and 6.1 assists. His basketball IQ and ability to control the tempo of the game have been instrumental in New York's success.
Surprisingly, standout Sixth Man of the Year candidate Quickley ranked one spot higher than the starting five staple Barrett. Quickley has been more efficient this season, shooting 36.2 percent from three and connecting on 82.5 percent of his free throws compared to Barrett's respective marks of 31.7 and 74.5.
The Knicks' lead scoring trio of Brunson (No. 30), Barrett (No. 31), and Randle (No. 40) are among the top-ranked players in points in the paint. Brunson and Barrett each score just over 10 points inside per night, while Randle tallies north of nine points down low. Together, they account for 29.6 of the Knicks' 51.5 nightly points in the paint.
Rounding out the selections were Grimes and Robinson, the big three's fellow mainstays in the starting five. While Robinson has been an enforcer inside (9.1 rebounds, 1.6 blocks), he and Grimes are questionable selections, especially when players such as Jusuf Nurkic (Portland), Patrick Williams (Chicago), and Kyle Anderson (Minnesota) have had great seasons in supporting roles.
The Knicks and their strong six return to action on Saturday afternoon at Madison Square Garden against the Western Conference-leading Denver Nuggets (1 p.m. ET, MSG).
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