I know, I know, it’s only been nine days and the NBA season just started. Regardless, the Knicks are 3-0 and have looked even more improved than when they first started playing under Mike Woodson.
The Knicks don’t look like an entirely different team simply because, since getting Tyson Chandler, they’ve taken more of a defensive approach to the game while still remaining rather potent on offense. Although it’s only been three games, there’s no denying that the Knicks have reason to be optimistic if they’re to sustain their approach.
A lot of skeptics point to the fact the Knicks haven’t won a playoff series since 1999, have one playoff win since 2000 and are still owned by James Dolan. With all those facts taken into account, the Knicks have slowly crept away from the travesty that was the Isiah Thomas era into the Carmelo era that, with all criticisms valid and taken into account, has helped the franchise move forward.
In dealing so four young key cogs to the Nuggets (one of them being the same Raymond Felton who starts for the team now), the Knicks showed they were serious about contending after losing out on LeBron James in 2010. Since getting Melo, the Knicks have one playoff win in two appearances but that doesn’t come without recognition of progression.
The Knicks are now playing under Mike Woodson, the same coach who helped guide the Hawks to an improved record in each of his six seasons at the helm while making the second round twice; his only first round exit there came in his first playoff run against the eventual champion Boston Celtics.
Since Woodson has taken over, the Knicks are 21-6 in the regular season with a 4-1 first round exit at their hands but this team is better than the one from just last season.
[caption id="attachment_369" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Mike Woodson and Carmelo Anthony have developed a pretty solid relationship"]
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The Knicks’ defensive identity is continuing to grow as they rank in the top six of the NBA with opponent points (1st at 85.3), FG% (t-3rd at 40.7%), turnovers (6th at 17.3), FT attempts that show they are playing disciplined (4th at 13.7) and steals (6th at 9.7).
You say “But it’s only the first week, they’re the Knicks and their point guard is shaped like a burger patty!” I reply “If they were playing badly then you’d say how they’re more of what we’re used to, the Knicks have actually improved over the last few years and their point guard is actually shaped like a chocolate éclair”
Sure, it’s the first week of the season but look at the uproar over how badly the Lakers are playing, look at the excitement of the Heat defending their title and how excited everyone is to see James Harden finally play well as the main option on a team. You can take the Knicks’ first week with a grain of salt or you can actually give credit for them not being the same team that thought Jerome James deserved a long-term deal; you’ll be justified either way.
We won’t know just how much of a title contender the Knicks are until the end of the season when their playoff seeding is official, until we see just how committed to sharing the ball Carmelo is and just how much more Amare Stoudemire can add when he comes back. That’s what different about the Knicks, that they’re playing well and haven’t even come to full health yet.
In missing their best perimeter defender, Iman Shumpert, and their $100 million player (no matter how overpaid he’s proven to be) in Amare Stoudemire, the Knicks have won with backups, strategy and chemistry, those things count in the NBA and these are things they weren’t winning with two years ago when Nate Robinson was their best player.
Many, myself included, had criticisms about their letting Jeremy Lin go in the offseason but with Felton and Jason Kidd helping them develop an appreciate for ball distribution, the Knicks rank tenth in assists per game at 23 while looking for open shots for one another. They rank second in the NBA in A:T ratio (1.92) and have shown some of the best ball movement in the league thus far.
Granted, it’s week two, but there’s nothing wrong with acknowledging how much different the Knicks look and how far they’ve come over the years.
As much of a wait-and-see approach as many want to take with the Knicks, the Eastern Conference isn’t so dominant past Miami that the Knicks winning homecourt-advantage through the postseason is something to scoff at. Boston is older, Indiana is both injured and has shown signs of struggle, the Brooklyn Nets are still the Nets and the Bulls may not be able to duplicate another year of less Derrick Rose like they did last year.
The season is still young, the Knicks haven’t won a title since 1973 and Carmelo has only one first round playoff victory to his name, but the Knicks have gotten better. Maybe they aren’t title contender good as of yet, but they’re certainly nothing to scoff at anymore.
I know, I know, it’s only been nine days. But it took only one game for the Lakers to turn into the worst team in the NBA, right?
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