HOOPSAHOLIC

The New York Knicks will be an interesting team to keep an eye on this season because they truly have an unlimited amount of story lines. It makes sense, because any team that has Carmelo Anthony on it is made for that type of stuff. Tie that in with first year head coach Derek Fisher joining the squad, and you have the soap opera that is the New York Knicks. 

Let’s get back to the whole Fisher story before we delve into these players. Phil Jackson took over as the president of basketball operations half way through last season, and that gave everyone in the Big Apple some hope moving forward. Plain and simple, the Knicks had a terrible season. They couldn’t make the playoffs in the weakest Eastern Conference that we’ve probably ever seen. So they fired Mike Woodson, and the rumors started flowing about who would be the next coach of the Knicks. Of course Phil wanted “his” guy so he went mostly after his former players. For awhile, we all though Steve Kerr would take the job, but that was until he got the offer from the Golden State Warriors to come coach, and he ran towards that opportunity like Forrest Gump all jacked up on chocolates. Then there were other rumors that coaches like Tom Thibedeau and Brian Shaw would leave their respected teams to come coach the Knicks, but ultimately Phil ended up with his last option, which was Fisher (LOL). It was somewhat of a strange hire since D-Fish was playing for the Thunder just last season, but it was made possible by the Nets hiring Jason Kidd last offseason, just months after his retirement. It worked out okay for the Nets last year since they made the playoffs, but ultimately Kidd’s lack of coaching experience got the best of him and he made lots of bonehead moves from the sidelines. I think Fisher has a better basketball coaching mind than Kidd, despite Kidd being the better player in his prime, so ultimately I think this move will benefit the Knicks more than it did the Nets. The question is this: Will the Knick’s superstar player, Melo, take orders from a coach who he was playing against just a couple months ago? I’m sure we will hear all about it if he doesn’t… 

Melo is fresh off a summer in which that young man got PAID. He signed a 124 million dollar contract that ties him down in New York for the rest of his career. In a recent interview Melo told reporters that he believed he was “the most under-rated super star in the NBA”… um… no you’re not bro. In my opinion he could be the most over HYPED. Since he’s been in the league after his one year at Syracuse, he’s been a one-dimensional player who hasn’t made a long playoff run. Don’t get me wrong, Melo can play. He’s been one of the biggest scoring threats in the league for the last eight years, but the most underrated? C’mon man!!  For the Knicks to make any type of run this season they will need Melo to completely buy into Fisher’s new system and he will need to find a way to get his teammates involved.... for once. 

Anther big question for Knicks is their most controversial player, JR Smith. To be honest, I love this guy. I even have his signed Hornets jersey hanging in my old room at my parent’s house. The only problem with Smith is that he needs to grow up. Last season he took some heat for untying player's shoes while waiting on free throws to be shot. He also has been accused of pulling player’s pants down and doing childish things of that nature. Is he doing those things with ill intentions? There’s no way. But JR is a professional and people want to see him act like that. He is an above average scorer in this league, and the Knicks could really use his scoring punch off of the bench this season. When “JR Swish” is on, he’s almost unstoppable, but when he’s off…. Well…. You could probably throw me out there and have just as good of a chance of hitting the shot. 

Newly acquired point guard Jose Calderon should be a player that makes a humongous difference for this squad. I believe he’s an upgrade from Raymond Felton, who’s now with the Mavericks. Calderon is a pro’s pro that thrives on getting his teammates involved. Seeing that he now plays for the Knicks, he has no other choice but to distribute. With shot heavy players like Melo and JR Smith, he’s the type of point guard that will mesh well in this system. Supposedly Fisher is thrilled the Knicks got him via trade because Fisher claims he always hated playing against Calderon. The Spanish point guard also is keen to getting triple doubles occasionally which shows his versatility as an all-around player. 

I haven’t mentioned Amare Stoudemire yet because I think that shows how relevant he is at this point in his career. Amare was a baaaaad man early in his career, and at one point was one of the most explosive players in the league. But ever since he made the move to the Knicks from the Suns via free agency, he hasn’t been the same player. He’s been riddled by injuries and inconsistent teammates. Many people believe that Melo plays best at the power forward position, therefore leaving Amare without anywhere to play since that's the position he played his whole career. Amare had to get used to a bench role last season and he had some bright spots, but I’m not expecting too much from him going forward. 

I think Tim Hardaway Jr. and rookie Cleanthony Early should both help this team this season. Hardaway Jr. showed us last season he knows how to light it up, and Early had a great college career at Wichita State. I was actually very surprised that Early dropped into the second round in this year’s draft, because he was certainly a first round talent. Seeing that he was the only draft pick the Knicks had in the draft, he will get his chance to shine. I think the Knicks will compete to make the playoffs this year, but I have them just missing out… They’re the hardest team to judge because they have the talent, but no one knows how it will all come together in 2014-15.