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Carmelo Anthony, New York Knicks
The New York Knicks will enter the 2025-26 NBA season as one of the favorites to make the NBA Finals. Mike Brown’s team fell just short of that goal this past season, losing to the Indiana Pacers 4-2 in the Eastern Conference Finals.
During a recent interview with DJ Siddiqi of PokerScout, former Knicks fan-favorite Carmelo Anthony shared his thoughts on New York’s chances of lifting a championship in the upcoming season, and how their 2024-25 season ended.
“They were right there,” Anthony said. “The Knicks were right there. I don’t really think that they need much. You talk about a team who was 1-2 (seed) in the Eastern Conference last year, you’re talking about a team as a top three, four team in the NBA overall. It’s about experiencing that and building on that, and doing the little things in the details that it takes to to put yourself in position to win a championship.”
Under Brown, New York will play at a much higher tempo. The ball will likely move more, too. That should allow the Knicks to lean into their wealth of offensive options while easing the scoring load on Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns.
“As far as what they need, I think they have everything,” Anthony continued. “I think they have the guards, they have shooting, they have defense. They have a new energy behind the new coach and a new system. It’s just going to be a matter of how they fit into that system, and how quickly they can pick that system up.”
Jalen Brunson Is Adjusting To Knicks’ New Style
The style of play Brown is looking to implement with New York will undoubtedly require an adjustment period. Brunson is expected to need the most time adjusting, as the system differs significantly from the one he thrived in under Tom Thibodeau.
However, when speaking to the media as part of a recent news conference, Brown admitted that Brunson is already showing signs of progress.
“Jalen, he’s starting to adjust; you can see it,” Brown said. “I think this is gonna be good for him. You can see how much space he has when he brings the ball up. And again, if you want to pressure a guy like Jalen with that much space, it’s a pretty good chance that he can make you pay for it.”
Brown continued.
“And then, him just getting used to ‘run and still be effective,’ whether you’re on the ball or off the ball. It was great to see; you could see he’s starting to get his feet underneath him a little bit and understand how to play at that frantic pace and still be effective and know where his shots are gonna be or come from.”
If Brunson can hit the ground running and still make his usual elite-level impact while playing within the flow of the Knicks‘ new offense, they will be a threat from day one.
The East Is Wide Open
Another reason for the Knicks to be bullish is how open the Eastern Conference projects to be. Both the Pacers and Boston Celtics are expected to take a gap year due to the Achilles tendon injuries suffered by both Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton.
It’s for that reason Anthony believes the Knicks must look to prove themselves every single night.
“There’s no clear king on the throne anymore in the East,” Anthony said. “Everybody’s got a seat at the table, and now let’s go and let’s play. May the best man, may the best team win. It’s going to come down to who’s consistent on the daily, on a night-to-night basis. Team-wise, who’s consistent on a night-to-night basis? Injuries are always a big piece in everybody’s success. There will be no days off, no nights off in the Eastern Conference, and that’s what you want.”
The Knicks have a strong chance of ending their championship drought this season. If they can stay focused, put in the work, and adjust to Brown’s system, they should emerge as a fearsome opponent for any team in the league.
Adam Taylor is a basketball reporter covering the Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State Warriors, New York Knicks and Miami Heat for Heavy. He holds bylines for CelticsBlog, USA Today and Yardbarker. Adam also covers the WWE and AEW. He has a bachelor’s degree in creative writing from Open University. More about Adam Taylor
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