NBA legend Kevin Garnett recently ranked the best teams in the Eastern Conference and had the The New York Knicks as the second-best franchise heading into the 2024-25 campaign.
Garnett played in the East for eight seasons between 2007 and 2015 for the Boston Celtics and Brooklyn Nets. Despite playing in an era when the East was top-heavy, but clearly the little brother of the formidable Western Conference, the former 2004 NBA MVP knows better than most what goes into a team that is brimming with championship DNA.
The former 2008 NBA champion touted his defending champions, the Celtics, as the best team in the conference, followed by the Knicks in a recent meeting.
Knicks: Kevin Garnett sees Knicks as a real threat in the East
During the Julius Randle era in New York, the Knicks were considered an underdog team in the East. However, once Jalen Brunson became their franchise player, they became a real threat.
Now that the Knicks have made another major upgrade to their roster this summer, “The Big Ticket” believes the only team standing in their way is the Celtics, who have the hardware and experience behind their talented roster. Trevor Hass of Boston.com summarized Garnett’s ranking of the best teams in the East on a recent episode of his “Ticket and the Truth” podcast with fellow Celtics legend Paul Pierce, as he shared on his X profile:
“It’s a big old buzz saw right above them, it’s a green buzz saw that cuts everything in half,” Garnett said of the Celtics hovering above the Knicks as the Eastern Conference champions.
“Garnett said for him it comes down to Celtics, Knicks, 76ers. Pierce asked Garnett if the 76ers were a match for the Celtics with Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid and Paul George,” Hass summarized.
“I think the effort from Philly and those three guys, because Maxey can give you 50, Embiid can do it — he’s an MVP — and then you’ve got Paul George, who’s a premier,” Garnett said. “That’s going to give you something.”
Can the Knicks overtake the Celtics in 2024-25?
Boston has earned the right to be considered the favorite heading into next year. However, New York can legitimately say they can match Boston blow for blow on both ends of the floor. Jalen Brunson and his 28.7 points per game in 2023-24 have proven he can be as effective as Celtics star Jayson Tatum.
Julius Randle still has some hiccups to overcome in the playoffs, but even if he doesn’t reach his usual 24-25 PPG level year after year, he can still match up with reigning Finals MVP Jaylen Brown.
The Knicks There’s also Mikal Bridges, who is a proven tertiary scorer who put up 19.6 points per game for the Nets last time out, and OG Anunoby, who is responsible for 20 points per game. Additionally, both are among the best perimeter defenders in basketball and could theoretically be deployed in a potential playoff series to focus heavily on stopping the aforementioned Celtics two-headed monster, with the Knicks still having two fresh 25+ point-per-game players to focus solely on scoring. That’s not even taking into account that the Knicks have Donte DiVincenzo and his 15.5 points per game on the bench to offset Derrick White’s superb play off the Celtics bench.
The Knicks have the size and mobility with Mitchell Robinson, Jericho Sims and Precious Achiuwa to contain Celtics bigs Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford, and the bench depth, including Josh Hart and Cam Payne, that can compete with Boston’s solid second unit. By the way, the Sixers, who Garnett ranked as the third-best team, have a scary big three with former 2023 NBA MVP Joel Embiid and 2024 All-Stars Tyrese Maxey and Paul George that could take over the East for themselves. Still, the Knicks have all the tools and no excuses not to represent the conference in the 2025 Finals.
