Preseason Record: 4-0
Everyone is ready with their strong opinions about the New York Knicks. Plenty of analysts recognize the outlier aspects of last season’s leap to the 4-seed (regression for opponent shooting, a fallback season for Julius Randle), while fans of the Knicks are heady with the sheer amount of wins from last year and expecting the rise to continue. The honest conclusion is likely somewhere in the middle, but which end is it closer to?
To his credit, Randle has been playing well in the preseason, averaging 23.3 points and 10 rebounds per game. Around him, the Knicks re-signed a number of contributors, but also added Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier. Both have played limited minutes in the preseason but should raise the ceiling of the offense.
The other factor to consider is Tom Thibodeau. He drives his teams hard, which is likely why they went 4-0 in the preseason and multiple players averaged over 30 minutes per game. Does that drive continue to push this team to wins in the regular season? Or will it start to wear thin as early as this year?
Bold Prediction: Kemba Walker is an All-Star again. Just two postseasons ago the Toronto Raptors were running a box-and-one offense specifically to limit Kemba Walker as a scorer. His chronic knee injuries will always linger, but if he can stay healthy at least through the All-Star Break he could absolutely make his fifth All-Star team.