The championship buzz around the Knicks lessened four days before training camp when owner James Dolan fired GM Glen Grunwald.
Even the unorthodox, eccentric Dolan would not dismiss the GM if he felt this roster was destined to break the 41-year championship drought.
Dolan’s hiring of the charismatic new president/GM Steve Mills, with his array of player and agent contacts, was done to prepare for a future of retooling — with Carmelo Anthony’s free agency this summer and loads of cap space on the 2015 horizon. Grunwald wasn’t deemed presidential enough for the undertaking.
However, there’s still a season to play, still an Atlantic Division title to defend. Despite the naysayers who rate the Knicks no better than fifth-best in the jacked-up East, a lot things can go right that would put the Knicks back in the title picture.
Another second-round knockout won’t be good enough for center Tyson Chandler. He wants this Knicks season to be known for more than the first one with arena bridges.
“I shared that with the guys — I feel we have to take the next step,’’ said Chandler, who has a championship ring from Dallas. ”We want to be the guys celebrating at the end of the year. We took a step, made progress, got out of the first round, but I have bigger expectations.
“I really feel like we have new additions, great voices in the locker room,’’ Chandler said. “We have guys who have won, guys who understand it’s a small window. When you have the right amount of talent to even contend, when you have that opportunity, you got to seize the moment. You never know when it will happen again.’’
Chandler is one of three Knicks with rings — new additions Metta World Peace and Beno Udrih the others.
The Starting Five
1. Will either J.R. Smith or Andrea Bargnani emerge as Anthony’s secondary scorer?
Smith was Melo’s trusty wingman all regular season, winning the Sixth Man Award before throwing an elbow and laying an egg in the playoffs. With Smith struggling so badly in the postseason with his jumper, the whole club was brought down, including Anthony. Smith has yet to prove to be a playoff stud, shooting 38.7 percent in 51 games.
It’s why brass was so eager to roll the dice with Bargnani, hoping he can emerge as a second offensive threat with his impressive skill set that made him the No. 1 pick in the 2006 draft. However, Bargnani has been on five straight lottery teams in Toronto and is slightly overrated as a 3-point shooter, and the preseason showed he may not have the innards to be a clutch scorer on the biggest stage in a winning program. He needs that to make up for defensive shortcomings.
2. Can Anthony shrug off free-agency distraction to duplicate his career year?
Coach Mike Woodson says Anthony can’t take a step back from his best season in 2012-13, when he scored, defended, rebounded and made teammates better. Unfortunately, Anthony’s best two seasons came after the Olympics.
This campaign comes off shoulder rehab. He shot just 37.5 percent amid a preseason in which his upcoming free agency turned into a needless firestorm.
Anthony’s “I want-to-be-a-free-agent’’ riff was off-putting to Woodson. His answer should have been: “I want to get to The Finals and that other stuff will take care of itself.’’ But Anthony has such an easygoing personality, he is uncomfortable dismissing questioners.
3. Will there be enough interior defense/rebounding?
Chandler needs to find the tenacity, strength and quickness that made him 2012 Defensive Player of the Year. Anchoring the defense, Chandler needs to grab more boards this season and be healthy when the playoffs start. Chandler has taken Bargnani under his wing and is attempting to make him less of a defensive/rebounding liability.
Amar’e Stoudemire and Kenyon Martin are rotating games to preserve their legs. But more rebounds —and fewer fouls — are needed from Stoudemire. Defensively gifted World Peace is a small forward, but on this roster, they may need him as a defensive 4.
4. Can Iman Shumpert ever make Woodson happy and go prime-time?
Woodson has something in his craw about Shumpert, who deserves to be the starting shooting guard but could lose it to the coach’s pet, Smith. Shumpert has lost his flat top but found his 3-point shot from the corners. But
Woodson wants more. Shumpert is weak working the pick-and-roll and moving without the ball and doesn’t have a high basketball IQ on offense. But his defense is so lock-down and nasty, he should start over Smith in his first full NBA season.
5. How will Mike Woodson handle the three-headed point-guard monster?
The point-guard depth behind Raymon Felton gives the coach so many options on alignments. Juggling three point guards last season was a breeze since Woodson paired two of them in the backcourt. The two ballhandlers helped the Knicks finish with the league’s fewest turnovers (12.0 per game).
Woodson wants to be more traditional this season by going more with a shooting guard. But he has to figure out if the successful two-PG alignment is better for ball movement — an issue in preseason. Pablo Prigioni is a stathead’s dream because of his efficient play, and Udrih can run an offense. But minutes are at a premium amid a backcourt logjam.