I'm predicting a 46 win season for the Knicks in the coming season.
Atlantic
1 Knicks
2 Toronto
3 Philadelphia
4 Boston
5 Nets
Central
1 Bulls
2 Bucks
3 Indiana
4 Cleveland
5 Detroit
Southeast
1 Miami
2 Orlando
3 Washington
4 Charlotte
5 Atlanta
Southwest
1 Grizzlies
2 Mavs
3 NO
4 Spurs
5 Houston
Northwest
1 Jazz
2 OKC
3 Minn
4 Den
5 Portland
Pacific
1 Lakers
2 Suns
3 Sacto
4 GS
5 Clips
I expect Boston's aging trio to break down this year. The schedule will be tougher on lots of teams whose veterans have clocked long minutes. Denver, Mavs, Boston, and Spurs all may falter sooner than later and inspire a trading frenzy of veterans moving to teams more likely to contend.
Miami may be a paper tiger. Wade is brittle, Bosh is timid, and LeBron has no stomach for true competition. Teams that play hard against Miami will not only win but psychologically wreak havoc with the egos in Miami.
And as Miami is exposed as a house of cards, playoff teams will bulk up come February in the full expectation that a ring is not an entitlement in Miami.
The Knicks are a dark horse team this year. Stoudamire and Felton are a major upgrade over the Duhon and Lee combo from last year. While I remain a David Lee fan, the Knicks were wise to change the chemistry. For all his statistical prowess, Lee's energy did not turn into wins.
Stoudamire on the other hand is a closer. And Felton, even if he fails miserably, will still be a far better PG than Duhon was last year.
Taking Lee's place at center is Timofey Mozgov, a 7'1" brick shit-house of a player that Walsh miraculously signed out of the European ranks. Unquestionably, Mozgov has played his way into the status of 'untouchable' by demonstrating that his skills are as rare as hen's teeth. He's a big man with speed, intuitive basketball IQ, and a work ethic. Good lord. And backing him up is Turiaf, a hard-nosed but profound upgrade over last year's clown prince, Darko.
That makes three NBA quality starters. Let's add a fourth to that. Danilo Gallo will have a breakout season. He's played hard and injured in the pre-season and is expected to ratchet up his game a notch this year. If he doesn't, wild-card Anthony Randolph will be competing for minutes.
Finally, Toney Douglas may lock down the two guard position thanks to his tenacious defense and hard-work. Bill Walker and Landry Fields will be pushing and getting plenty of playing time.
Lastly, Wilson Chandler, the Knicks most versatile player can compete for sixth man award. He's a rock-solid player who, now that he's healthy will re-establish his trajectory to become an impact player.
The one weakness this team has is at the back-up PG position. Expect an early trade for Rudy Fernandez or similar talent.
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