The NBA has a problem with tanking, evidenced by recent fines to the Utah Jazz and Indiana Pacers and the plethora of questions regarding the potential competitive imbalance fielded by Adam Silver at All-Star Weekend. The widespread discussion brings to the forefront that Leon Rose and the New York Knicks' front office have never engaged in any sort of tanking behavior. Without ever losing on purpose, the Knicks went from dreaming of lottery wins to Eastern Conference Finalists in four years. That's something only one of the best front offices in the league could get done.
Knicks' front office deserves flowers for successful, tank-less rebuild
In their recent biannual review and ranking of NBA front offices, CBS Sports deemed the Knicks as having the league's seventh-best front office. That was a downgrade from their June 2025 ranking of sixth. The Oklahoma City Thunder and Boston Celtics are expectedly at the top, but teams like the Indiana Pacers just overtook the Knicks for how they've handled their season without Tyrese Haliburton.
The Cleveland Cavaliers' front office remains in fifth place after dealing Darius Garland for James Harden and spending money as a second apron squad. This is despite this Cavaliers team never having gone as far in the playoffs as the Knicks have, and did just last season. They don't win as many games or playoff series as the Knicks, but their efficiency in cleaning up their own mistakes earned them top-five billing.
The Cavaliers drafted Garland right after the Knicks drafted RJ Barrett, showing that the two teams were entering the 2019-20 campaign in similar standing and with similar goals. Since then, the Knicks have defeated the Cavs head-to-head in a playoff series and generally achieved more as a playoff competitor. So why is Cleveland ranked higher, again?
Knicks' uncertain trades distract from their domination of the margins
It's easy to understand why many have lost the plot with regard to the Knicks' front office and the job they've done constructing the teams' roster. Each of the three large-scale changes the team has made – trading for Mikal Bridges, Karl-Anthony Towns, and firing Tom Thibodeau in favor of Mike Brown – are still incomplete. It's still unknown at this point whether those risks have paid off, failed, or landed somewhere in the middle.
But that can't overshadow the progress the team has made to date. This front office started with a 17-win foundation that free agent stars were clearly not interested in joining. The Knicks built a contender in four seasons without an inherited haul of draft capital or young talent. That won't directly win them a championship, but it should earn them some real credit in discussions surrounding team building.