Why? Because there will never be a more pivotal stretch in the nouveau Knicks season. Similar to the first west coast swing where the new Knicks rebounded and bonded in November. They were coming off five consecutive losses and headed west to Denver. The doubt was setting in and Clyde uttered his prophetic, "this road trip will either make them or break them."

Game one in Denver was a tough loss 120-118 but the Knicks showed positive signs with five guys in double figures including Fields 21 and 17 and Felton with 19 and 12 assists. Then the fun started. They defeat Sacramento 113-106, Golden State 125-119, Clippers 124-115 and Charlotte 110-107. Our yoots found confidence on the road and "the Knicks are back!" felt authentic.

In the same vein, the Milwaukee win was huge to set the tone. Despite the built-in excuse of rapid transitions, it was a must-win. You never want to follow fanfare with a home loss. The road calls again. Does Clyde think this trip will either "make of break them"?

Cleveland is playing with more confidence and has nothing to lose. Losing 26 in a row only made them cherish every bright moment as golden. Think Cleveland fans see some of Lebron in Carmelo? You damn skippy. The home crowd will be loud and rowdy. This game sets the tone for the trip. Another must win. If Cleveland wins, brace yourself for the juicy headlines.

Miami is primed for some payback for the 93-88 loss on Jan 27. For some reason the Knicks always play the Heat tough in Miami. It must be the 17 New Yorkers who proudly wear the blue and orange to drown out the passive Heat fans. Shawne Williams and Wilson Chandler did an excellent job of defending Lebron.

Orlando is laying in the weeds with Dwight Howard. Bad news for the active, but brittle, Ronny Turiaf. This could be the rubber game of the series. Win in Orlando next Tuesday and the Knicks could return to The Garden at 2-1. The bad news is this game is the front end of a back-to-back with the New Orleans Hornets the next night at The Garden.

Someone in the NBA schedule office has a weird sense of humor.

Not for hate purpose, but I have written off the season. ITs a starphuch for the future. Im ok with that. This team has too many holes.

billups has an injury or has to limit his minutes we are screwed. Grumpy Amare gonna have at least one Technical suspension and it takes time to come together as a team. We moved a lot of players! this is not like just bringing in one or two players. A lot went out the door.

Im not hating on the trade as I think this is about next year and Chris Paul. If anyone thinks this takes us to the next level I would agree it has the potential but not this year. Miami is susceptible as would we be in the playoffs.

We have done well against the Bulls but we don't have that team on the floor now. I also believe they are coming together.

Lowered expectations for this season.

I got a feeling the Drama of Phil Jax and the Lakes vs. The Bulls in the finals just has an interesting spin to it.

The Zen Masters Last Stand in the place he found his greatness. Karma!

"Knicks fan can safely begin making their first round plans."

Knickoftime - Better not count those playoff victories before Ticketmaster prints the discount coupons. The Bulls just beat the Heat.

The Cleveland game tonight is no cakewalk. This road trip is not simply about the playoffs, but sets a tone for the franchise moving forward.

I have this team going 19-8 the rest of the way to finish with 48 wins.

I don't expect them to win in Miami or in Orlando in their 3rd and 4th games together - I expect them to compete and play hard and come together a little more as a group. Expecting them to win brutal road games in their first week together is a little much.

Earl, I feel like you are just making this thread so you can come in and lament the loss of Wilson and Gallo after tough losses to Miami and Orlando. Prove me wrong and give this new group of guys a chance to learn everybody's name first. And learning the playbook might help, too.

The loss of Chandler, Gallo, Felton and Mozgov will be lamented, win or lose. The trade of The Denver Six is the loss of something greater. With that trade the Knicks lost more than young talent. We lost the optimistic anxiety of watching players mature and develop. The Boston Celtics were in tears over the loss of Perkins. By contrast, the Knicks players felt nothing. No one had been on the roster long enough to feel anything.

It is the personalities who create the team identity more than the colors. Gallo was learning the joy of the pump fake, Mozgov was learning how to catch the ball, Chandler was blocking shots and Felton was leaving every ounce of effort on the court.

There is also something that no one wants to talk about. Like few other cities, New York represents many cultures jammed together trying to not step on one another. One of the coolest things about the former roster was its international spice. Our Knicks lost their diversity and became virtually an all-black team again, which for me, does NOT represent the cosmopolitan nature of New York City. Gallinari was the first talented white player the Knicks have had since Keith Van Horn. Timofey Mozgov had a community of Russian followers in Brighton Beach.

Of course, none of that matters as the championship parade is rolling down Broadway and the ticker tape is floating in the breeze.

Moving forward, as the accounts and descriptions of this new band of brothers are formed, it is never so simple as describing a uniform jersey. Low expectations are not proposed to lament the loss of any former Knicks. Tough losses are inevitable. The question remains how this group recovers from adversity.

Low expectations are proposed to protect the innocent.

As the Mayor's former Campaign Manager threads were recycled to stuff the ballot box.

Mozgov was The Most Interesting Knicks player in the world. Mozgov threads are Pulitzer Prize winning novels.

The Knicks are better on paper. The games are not played on paper. Is going 1-2 on this road trip accepetable?

Beat Cleveland.

Also, this deal was done begrudgingly. Walsh didn't want to send all of our young players away. However, this is no time to get sentimental. We needed to improve the talent at all costs and that's what they did. No time to cry over the loss of young prospects when you bring in proven talent that puts you in position to win for the next 5 or more years.

misterearl wrote:crzymdups - Carmelo is an elite talent. We are in perfect agreement. The unknown is less about his proven individual talent and more about how long it takes Billups to orchestrate his "talents" to mesh with Amare's "talents."

There is a sense that D'Antoni will experiment with various strategies to assert his imprint on this group more than impressionable yoots. Or he can defer to Captain Chauncey.

In the same manner the level of expectation to win games in Orlando or Miami improves DRAMATICALLY with Melo and Billups, so do the number of post game interview questions increase if they lose.

It should make for great television.

It's the Knicks - best soap opera in town, win or lose.

Seeing Gallo and Wil help Denver win last night, particularly against hated Boston, hurt. I was proud of them and a little sick that they wouldn't do it for the Knicks anymore.

Mourn the lost - respect their time here. I'm cool with that.

Just don't hold it against the new guys. Give them a chance to build up their own memories and good will. That's all I'm saying.

i do think we can take the 5th seed and matchup with orlando which means winning every game is imperative...

JrZyHuStLa wrote:No way in Hell Lebron wants to face the Knicks in the first round.

Can you imagine Lebron being ousted early as Hell by playing with Wade and Bosh?

Boy, he would hear it. And he would hear it a lot.

There would be nothing I would like better than to send Miami home.