Knicks
You gotta like the veteran additions of Kidd and Camby to the second unit.
I think theirs 3 big questions marks. 1, will Shumpert be back to his old self, and will he stay healthy? Number 2, is how production will the pg position be this year will Lin gone? Kidd is a year older, and Felton had a bad year last year. Between the two, they hopefully will do a good job manning the point. And 3rd can Melo and Amare figure out how to coexist together?
I think the Knicks and Nets will be fighting for the 2nd and 3rd spot in the East.
Well the East seems weak right now. The Heat are obviously reloaded and in first. The Bulls are dismantling their team. It might be subtle to the average fan but they are in trouble. Everyone knows that Rose is out. But remember they won last year without Rose. But Omar Asik and Brewer were a big part of that. These guys are going in the wrong direction with their bench play.
The Celtics will be another year older. That is probably a good thing for Rondo, but it is a bad thing for Pierce and Garnett. They have invested a lot of money in Jeff Green and he can't play basketball at the NBA level. He can shoot a lot per game. But he can't make shots and he can't rebound, block shoots, get steals and, obviously, he doesn't set up his teammates with assists (I don't ask that of my powerforwards, but if he could do that at least he would have something). But with all the money invested in him they have to play him. At least they can marvel at his impressive build and his athleticism.
I don't like what Philly has done. Atlanta is rebuilding.
Brooklyn will get my support but I don't expect them to gell in one season. I'm just expecting playoffs from them, not a top seed.
Orlando is going to trade Howard and the team will implode. The last three or four years of moves by their management makes it pretty clear they don't know what they are doing.
So, yeah, second seed might happen. But it won't be because of any of the reasons you mentioned above except number five. The bench is stacked if you put JR, Brewer, Camby and Kidd on it (I think Brewer or JR has to start at 2G though). In limited minutes those guys could give most NBA starters a run for their money.
Well the East seems weak right now. The Heat are obviously reloaded and in first. The Bulls are dismantling their team. It might be subtle to the average fan but they are in trouble. Everyone knows that Rose is out. But remember they won last year without Rose. But Omar Asik and Brewer were a big part of that. These guys are going in the wrong direction with their bench play.
The Celtics will be another year older. That is probably a good thing for Rondo, but it is a bad thing for Pierce and Garnett. They have invested a lot of money in Jeff Green and he can't play basketball at the NBA level. He can shoot a lot per game. But he can't make shots and he can't rebound, block shoots, get steals and, obviously, he doesn't set up his teammates with assists (I don't ask that of my powerforwards, but if he could do that at least he would have something). But with all the money invested in him they have to play him. At least they can marvel at his impressive build and his athleticism.
I don't like what Philly has done. Atlanta is rebuilding.
Brooklyn will get my support but I don't expect them to gell in one season. I'm just expecting playoffs from them, not a top seed.
Orlando is going to trade Howard and the team will implode. The last three or four years of moves by their management makes it pretty clear they don't know what they are doing.
So, yeah, second seed might happen. But it won't be because of any of the reasons you mentioned above except number five. The bench is stacked if you put JR, Brewer, Camby and Kidd on it (I think Brewer or JR has to start at 2G though). In limited minutes those guys could give most NBA starters a run for their money. And you forgot Novak coming off the bench with league leading 3P shooting. That is a huge skill to have for a guy playing off the ball.
i love melo but id say hes more a top 10 talent not top 5! Also the whole stars win games thing has been disproved by the knicks losing and denver winning......... That said the East is going to be weak this season so the knicks will definently have a chance to be one of the top seeds.
when I saw Knicks and two seed together in the same sentence. Miami, Pacers, and Nets should all be better than the Knicks, with Atlanta, Philly, Magic (assuming they get anything at all for Howard), and Bulls right there with them. The Knicks have Fat and Old at PG, and the worlds biggest chucker at SG. They will (probably) make the playoffs, but any higher than fourth seed, and they will have overachieved bigtime.
i think the one that would make amare and Carmelo coexist is the veteran presence of Camby and Jason Kidd, last year they were the veterans, except for Mike bibby?, and he is not leader type player,
kidd and camby will be the big brother/Father figure for the knicks, though they are young like 19 to 20 though there chemistry is still raw
I'm a Knicks fan, and I know that they will not get the 2nd seed in the east. You can't consistently win when your entire offensive is run through Carmelo Anthony. It won't happen. He's not a point forward, not even close. The hero ball that LBJ plays cannot be pulled off by any superstar, its takes a rare skillset.... Melo doesn't have it. Melo is able to find the open shooter when double teamed, but he doesn't have the court vision to keep other players involved consistently.
The only way the win, is if the team follows the principles of ball movement, getting everyone involved. They have a chance of finding a good offensive system, but I doubt that will come in time for them to nab a 2 seed IMO.
im a die hard as well. always have been, always will be. however i too, dont believe they will get the #2,3 seed. i can see a 4-6 seed. which ill obviously take, but we're OLD, and if carmelo isnt on his game, we cant win. plain and simple.
I think people are sleeping on the Knicks. I feel theyll be the two seed in the east next season come playoffs, for a number of reasons.
1.Carmelo's a top five talent in the NBA. stars win games, etc etc. Melo's in his prime, and while these olympic games aren't going to make him that much better, they're not gonna hurt either. For the knicks to be one of the better teams, Melo has to do what he does best, score points. If he averages 27,28+, i think the knicks will be at their best.
2. Though he's looked awful, I think Amare redeems himself this year. Assuming his back isnt ruined, he's a better PF than most teams have, and is by far one of the top midrange shooting forwards in the game. Hopefully he can stay healthy and focused, and doesnt turn out to be one of the worst contracts in the L.
3. If shumpert recovers fully, he's a stud. top 5 perimeter defender in the game already. probably higher.
4. Felton won't be a fat bum like he was in Portland. I expect him to be as he was his last stint in NY, a quality floor general who controls the pace and offense.
5. The Bench is stacked. JR is sixth man contender every year, Ronnie brewer isn't a slouch, and obviously Camby and Kidd are going to be huge, on and off the court. Novak.