New York Knicks Roster, Strategies and Predictions for 2016-17 NBA Season: Can the League's Most Valuable Franchise Regain Its Former Glory with Derrick Rose-Carmelo Anthony Team-Up?
New York Knicks, the franchise that ruled the NBA court twice but a long time ago, took some few intriguing splashes during the free agency period. With their promising roster for the 2016-17 NBA Season that includes former MVP Derrick Rose and returning star forward Carmelo Anthony, fans are crossing their fingers that the overhauled team will bring back its glorious days.
New Team Roster for 2016-17 NBA Season
According to Forbes' "18th Annual NBA Team Valuations" released early this year, the Knicks are the league's most valuable franchise with their wealth of approximately $3 billion. But despite being the most valuable team, the Knicks have struggled in the past decades to replicate their success during the 1970 and 1973 NBA finals.
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The Knicks underwent major transformations throughout the years in an attempt to build a strong roster. This offseason, they signed Rose (point guard), Joakim Noah (center), Courtney Lee (shooting guard) Brandon Jennings (point guard) and Jeff Hornacek (coach) to team up with their returning key players that include forwards Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis.
Anthony, who has been leading the Knicks for several seasons, expressed his excitement about the new roster, particularly on Rose's acquisition. He told New York Daily News that he felt "reinvigorated" with Rose joining the team.
Will the Rose-Anthony Team-Up Work?
Chris Herring of The Wall Street Journal commented that Rose and Anthony can actually thrive. "It's just a matter of figuring out how to get him (Rose) and Anthony working in tandem, as opposed to having the two All-Stars take turns running the offense," he wrote.
Aside from the team-up of Anthony and Rose, the presence of Noah also makes the team more competitive. According to Kevin Pelton of ABC News, Noah will be a huge upgrade for the Knicks particularly in defending pick-and-rolls.
Predictions
Early predictions of the NBA playoffs did not favor the Knicks roster in the 2016-17 NBA season. Broderick Turner of Los Angeles Times ranked the Knicks seventh among teams that will most likely succeed in the Eastern Conference playoffs, citing Rose and Noah's health woes as a negative factor.
ESPN also made almost the same prediction, placing the Knicks in the ninth spot of the projected team standing in the 2016-17 Eastern Conference forecast. Just like Turner, the panel cited that Rose missed 244 games in the past five seasons while Noah missed 68 games the past two seasons because of their health conditions.
The panel, however, noted that the Knicks' rank could improve if the two key players will stay healthy throughout the next season.
