The Knicks will be better than they were last season – that’s virtually a given because it might be hard not to be – but don’t expect them to challenge for the NBA title, according to no less an authority than Carmelo Anthony.
Anthony made his realistic comments about the Knicks’ lack of championship caliber to the Primera Hora newspaper while on a visit to Puerto Rico last week.
“I do not expect to win a championship this year,” Anthony told the paper. “That’s something that takes time, and everything has to be in sync, from management to players. We have much work to do, but [it’s] something that drives me. I know we can start creating the foundation of what we do. It’s the start of a good process.”
And that process should lead to improvement this season – and could lead to a playoff bid. The Knicks, after a hugely disappointing 37-45 mess that led to the ouster of coach Mike Woodson, began to rebuild in earnest. They reworked their roster in the offseason under president Phil Jackson with an obvious eye on the summer of 2015 for the real drastic improvement. But some think they’ve made enough changes to contend for a 2014-15 Eastern playoff spot.
“The Cavs, obviously, with LeBron [James] have to be considered a playoff team, but I would not discount the Knicks,” said an opposing GM when asked for an early reassessment of the East. “If you watched them [at the summer league] in Las Vegas, they showed structure and organization. That’s just one thing Phil brings.”
So Anthony — who looked noticeably slimmed-down, a la LeBron James, in an Instagram portrait posted Monday — also sees the groundwork for future improvement. After re-signing for five years and $124 million, he sounded enthused by the trades and moves the Knicks have made. They drafted forward Cleanthony Early, dealt Tyson Chandler and Raymond Felton to Dallas for center Samuel Dalembert and guards Jose Calderon, Shane Larkin and Wayne Ellington and also acquired forwards Quincy Acy and Travis Outlaw from the Kings for Ellington and forward Jeremy Tyler. But the moves next year will be critical.
“Next year we will have enough money to spend within the salary cap,” Anthony said. “But this year it is important to take the necessary steps towards those [moves made] next year.”