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Christmas 2011 may go down as the day the Celtics symbolically pass the division torch to the Knicks for the next few years.
Before the Knicks can dream of winning a championship and hunting down the Heat, they must start with securing the Atlantic Division crown and dethroning the Celtics.
Since assembling its Big 3, Boston has won the last four division titles by more than 10 games, posting victory totals of 66, 62, 50 and 56. The Celtics visit the Garden tomorrow for the season opener.
Paul Pierce is doubtful for tomorrow’s game because of a bruised heel, and Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen are all past the age of 34. The Big 3 may be the verge of turning into the Burnt-Out 3.
In fact, one prominent oddsmaker, Bovada, has the Knicks favored to win their first Atlantic crown since 1993-94. They are slim favorites at 6-5 odds, with the Celtics the second choice at 5-4.
Coach Mike D’Antoni said he doesn’t know what to expect from these Celtics, who swept the Knicks in the first round of the postseason last spring when the club did not have Tyson Chandler as their center or a healthy Amar’e Stoudemire and Chauncey Billups.
“I have no idea where they are right now other than in New England,’’ D’Antoni said. “I don’t know how they feel physically. They’re a very good basketball team. We got better. It should be a great game.’’
Carmelo Anthony was cautious not to dismiss the Celtics, not with Garnett, Allen and point guard Rajon Rondo expected to play tomorrow.
“They’re still the Celtics, a very experienced team,” Anthony said. “I think every year, there’s talks of them aging and getting older, people getting hurt, injuries. They always find a way to bounce back. Doc Rivers does a great job with that squad. They’re veterans. They know what to do.’’
If the Knicks’ trio of “Broadway Bigs’’ does what the Garnett-Allen-Pierce trio accomplished when they merged before the 2007-08 season, Manhattan will be very proud. The modern-era Celtics Big 3 won the title in 2008 and went to seven games with the Lakers in The Finals in 2010.
“We got to get out of the first round before making that comparison,’’ Anthony said. “We’re on our way. We have a chance to do big things. But Boston did a great job of coming together at right time of their careers. They won a championship and got there again. At the end of the season, they’re always there.’’
Perhaps soon, with arguably the NBA’s best frontcourt, the same can be said about the Knicks.
“Boston’s [Big 3] did great job [of sacrificing],’’ D’Antoni said. “Our three are doing the same things. They’re focused on winning. Whether they score 20 or 28, it doesn’t matter. It matters at the end of the day how many wins you got. Three guys are at the stage of their careers, the only thing is to win. Nothing else matters.’’
Clearly, the bond is growing. Stoudemire took the entire team out to a late dinner after their preseason finale against the Nets Wednesday night, giving everyone a gift.
“It was a nice welcome,’’ said newcomer Steve Novak, who joined the club Wednesday.
The Knicks have solid excuses for getting swept out of the playoffs by the Celtics, not the least of which was the club had not found chemistry or camaraderie after February’s blockbuster trade for Anthony gutted the club.
Compound that with Chauncey Billups injuring his knee at the end of Game 1 — what became his last moment as a Knick — and Stoudemire pulling his back muscle during warmups of Game 2 and the club was cooked. It was surprising the Knicks nearly stole the first two games in Boston.
“I think we’re more experienced, we got guys who understand what happened last year,’’ Anthony said. “It was a lot off the court and on the court last year, a lot of distractions. This year we have no distractions.’’
D’Antoni said he is tired of being reminded of the Boston sweep.
“Now it’s, ‘New year, new team and we’ll see what becomes of it,’ ’’ D’Antoni said. “But Boston is a great team that’s going to compete for a championship and we’ll see how we are [tomorrow].’’
The transformed Garden has a lot of nifty new trappings, but nothing would look niftier than a fresh Atlantic Division banner in the rafters.