Knicks Bold Predictions Ahead of 2022-23 NBA Season
The New York Knicks are always worth watching—for better or worse—and that's as true as ever with the 2022-23 NBA season approaching.
Collectively, they're out to erase the memories of a rough 2021-22 campaign. Individually, there are players like Jalen Brunson, RJ Barrett and Mitchell Robinson trying to prove they're worth the mega-money deals they inked this summer, plus there are a host of prospects looking to gain traction early in their careers.
The Knicks just might be a mess, but they could also prove to be a pesky competitor in the Eastern Conference playoff race.
To get a sense of what this squad could accomplish, let's lay out three bold predictions for the season ahead.
Knicks Send 2 to All-Star Game
The Knicks haven't had multiple All-Stars since Carmelo Anthony and Tyson Chandler scored spots in the 2013 game. This group has a chance to snap that drought.
Now, New York needs to achieve a significant amount of success for this to happen, since bottom-feeders are never well-represented at the world's greatest pickup game. If the team meshes early and often, though, that could open the door for two players to earn an invite.
Julius Randle is the most likely candidate for a spot, if only because he's just a single season removed from getting the nod. Even last season, when his numbers dipped across the board, he still had star-caliber counting categories with 20.1 points, 9.9 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game.
As for the second invitation, that's likely to land with either RJ Barrett or Jalen Brunson. The former paired a 20-point scoring average with the best defense of his career last season, while the latter engineered a breakout of his own. Both should also have ample attention on them after signing huge contracts this offseason.
Mitchell Robinson Makes All-Defensive Team
Mitchell Robinson is physically gifted even by the NBA's larger-than-life standards.
For a 7-footer who tips the scales at 240 pounds, he boasts impressive mobility and a whole lot of bounce. When he's healthy and dialed in, those natural gifts have allowed him to serve as an intimidating paint presence.
Injuries have held the 24-year-old back in the past, though. Inconsistent play has done the same. Last season, his shortcomings cut into his playing time (25.7 minutes per outing, down from 27.5 the year prior), and he wound up posting the worst defensive box plus/minus of his career (1.2, per Basketball-Reference).
He did, however, play a career-high 72 games, so maybe he has put his health concerns behind him. He also got paid this summer, so perhaps he'll be more comfortable and secure in his spot than ever.
Tack on the awareness that comes from having spent four seasons in the league and all of the defensive tips passed down by Knicks skipper Tom Thibodeau, and the stars could be aligning for Robinson to snag his first All-Defensive honor.
New York Skips Play-In Tournament, Snags Postseason Spot
As frustrating as the 2021-22 campaign must have been for Knicks fans, the team wasn't disastrously bad. It wound up 19th in both winning percentage and net rating, per NBA.com, which isn't ideal but isn't cellar-dwelling stuff, either.
New York needed to fortify its point guard position and seemingly did so with Brunson. The frontcourt grew more dynamic with the addition of Isaiah Hartenstein. The entire prospect collection should be improved after another offseason of development.
In other words, the Knicks weren't near the bottom of the pack and have a lot of different avenues for upward mobility.
If they catch enough breaks, they could not only return to the playoffs but also do so with a top-six seed that skirts them past the play-in tournament.