New York Knicks Season Preview

New York Knicks

2014 Record: 17-65

2015 O/U: 31.5

Who are their stars?

Carmelo Anthony is the clear-cut top star of this team. Melo is now somehow 31 years old, and he is coming off a knee surgery that ended his season after 40 games, but it is still hard to go down the list of top 10-15 players you would want on your team without naming Anthony. What made things interesting is what the Knicks did with their top three pick to accommodate Anthony. In my opinion, the Knicks selected one of the more developmental players in the draft, as well as a guy who may be seeing minutes in similar roles as Anthony. As Anthony has peaked in his career, moving to small four has been a better option for him. He is tall, athletic, and heavy enough to hold his own even against bigger lineups, and at times it may save his legs. Kristaps Porzingas is 7’3 and has ridiculous range and has all the makings of a stretch four. Anthony however, has at least thirty pounds on Porzingas, and if Porzingas plays with Anthony, Anthony will be at the three. Putting Anthony and Porzingas next to each other on the court is a defensive liability, as Porzingas may not have the weight to match up with anyone at age 19, and Anthony is better suited to guard slower forwards than wing players. Either way this team will rise and will fall with the 31 year old playing next to the 19 year old. It honestly should be great to watch.

Who are they glue guys?

While the draft said future, the free agency said lets win this with Melo. The two big additions turn into their two biggest core pieces, and we will see how far Anthony can take these helpers. Aaron Afflalo is really one of the better two-way guards in the league. He isn’t a freak athlete or anything but there aren’t major flaws in his game, and at the two guard teams could do a lot worse. Robin Lopez was added to play next to Anthony and Porzingas because unlike the other two, Lopez is a strong defender. He will be the main rim protector this year, and with the scorers already in place, I saw Lopez as one of the more underrated moves of this off-season. He fits in perfectly and should help the Knicks get back into the thick of things.

Who are the rotational players?

At the point guard position, there will be a competition for minutes between Jose Calderon, and Jerian Grant. Grant is the rookie and due to the unknown upside, I am rooting for him to get the majority of the minutes on a growing team. Calderon is now 34, and while I have always appreciated his game, he is what he is, and it best suited as a rotational guard. Neither add defense, which is this teams biggest problem, but if Grant can create I would role with him. Langston Galloway got some time last year at the point and he also showed some signs, so I wouldn’t count out this 23-year-old getting time either. Grant is really a combo guard, and as mentioned creation is his best strength. He may see times spelling Afflalo, as well as Galloway and Calderon to round out at least an NBA quality back court. With Derrick Williams, Kyle O’Quinn, and Louis Amundson rounding out the teams’ frontcourt, there really isn’t all that much to love. That said this roster is clearly better than last year. At least there is depth at positions, and there is even some structure from what seems to be a promising draft. The team goes as far as Anthony, but they should definitely be better than the 40 games of 2014 before he got hurt.

Where do they rank? Over Under? How far can they go?

The O/U reflects it, but this team is clearly due for some positive regression. A healthy Anthony would be huge, but I am not going to beat around the bush, I would be surprised to see the Knicks in the playoffs. Anthony can and may keep them in this race, but at the best I see them slipping in the 8 seed but I highly doubt it. In the end, I expect Grant, Porzingas, and another rookie Guillermo Hernangomez will get a lot of minutes, and some more sorting out will be done. 2016 should be the plan for every roster decision and I would suspect that eventually becomes apparent in the locker room. I don’t know if they get to 30, but I wouldn’t bet against Anthony in doing so.

Under 31.5, 12th in the Eastern Conference, 25th in the NBA