Are the Knicks going to Suck Again?
The off season acquisitions of Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, and Brandon Jennings has generated a lot of buzz and excitement about this season's Knicks team. Knicks fans are cautiously optimistic about this team's chances and anything less than a playoff berth should be considered a disappointment. Phil Jackson finally added not one, but two, primary ball handlers to the roster in Rose and Jennings, something the Knicks have not had in years, and the addition of Noah at the 5 means 7-foot Porzingis can play as his more natural stretch 4 position. Melo is still 'the guy' in New York, but on paper it looks like the Knicks finally addressed their glaring positional inadequacies and have a balanced roster for the first time in a long time.
The personnel adjustments appeared to be working last night when the Knicks traveled to Cleveland to kick off their season against LeBron James and the defending World Champion Cavaliers. New York played a spirited first half, particularly the second quarter, and went into halftime trailing by just 3. However, just as Knicks fans began to believe that Melo and Co. would pull off the improbable opening night upset, the Cavs asserted their dominance and blew New York out of the building in the final 24 minutes to secure their 117-88 win. It was like the Cavs were toying with the Knicks in the first half, like a predator playing with it's prey before eating it. The Knicks had no answer for Kyrie Irving, who led all scorers with 29 points. Kevin Love and Richard Jefferson also wreaked havoc on the Knicks' defense, scoring 23 and 13, respectively. Kristops Porzingis was a bright spot last night as his extra year of experience and maturity were on display as he went for 16 points and 7 boards. Derek Rose scored 17, but only had 1 assist and turned the ball over 4 times. The Knicks will need him to distribute the ball more this season as he has other primary scorers in Melo and Porzingis on the court with him. Rose was asked to be the primary scoring threat in Chicago, but will need time to adjust to his new role in New York. Brandon Jennings only hit 1 field goal on the night, but led the team with 5 assists and only had 1 turnover. He is electric with the ball and I am especially excited to see how he progresses this year.
All in all, getting drubbed on opening night is not how Knicks fans wanted to start the season, but the Cavs are the defending Champions. The roster has a lot of new faces and it will take time for everyone to gel and get used to playing with each other. It's also important to keep in mind that the Eastern Conference is so weak that going .500 could land you the 6 seed. So, while its still too early to tell whether or not the Knicks still suck, I believe they will at least be in the thick of the playoff hunt in April - which is a significant improvement from the last few years.
