Why Knicks Are Still the Best Team in NBA Eastern Conference

The New York Knicks are coming off a historic 2025-2026 season, winning their first championship in 53 years. For much of the season, the Knicks were not seen as a top contender in the East, but they got hot at the right time in the postseason. 

Now the Eastern Conference has been bolstered with the addition of LeBron James to the Philadelphia 76ers and Giannis Antetokounmpo pairing up with Bam Adebayo in Miami, and it is bringing some doubt that the Knicks have been surpassed. 

While the Knicks will have a tough schedule because of how strong the competition in the Eastern Conference is, they are still the team to beat moving forward. 

New York went through hard competition last season, too. This was a team that played the Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round, who had just knocked off the 1st seed Detroit Pistons in seven games.  

Not only did the Knicks beat the Cavaliers, but they dominated the series, winning 4-0. In that series, the Knicks were on fire offensively, and guard Landry Shamet shot over 90 percent from long range through all 4 games. 

The Knicks also played the 76ers in the second round of the playoffs, and they too dominated the series, winning 4-0. 

New York went on a 13-game winning streak in the postseason, and much of that had to do with how they were clicking on offense. They played at a fast tempo, and no team seemed to be able to slow them down. 

The Knicks proved they were no pushover in the NBA Finals. Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs were looked at as a team that could slow down the Knicks thanks to how talented they were on defense. 

While the Knicks went down double digits in each game of the series, they managed to come back every time and eventually won the series 4-1. 

The rest of the Eastern Conference will have to deal with the Knicks' resiliency moving forward, and that’s a tall task. New York never backed down from a big deficit last season, and they’re talented enough to score points in a hurry. 

If Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns keep up their level of play, New York could find itself in the Finals again, topping another tough Eastern Conference. 

The Knicks are still the team to beat in this conference, and it will be interesting to see how the new-look teams will gameplan for them this season.