Changing Fortunes

Knicks Up, Pistons Down


With Larry Brown at the helm, I'm predicting a playoff spot for the Knicks next season. It won't be easy though. Four teams: Miami, Detroit, Indiana and New Jersey ... are set atop the East, and just about everyone else in the conference will battle for those four remaining playoff spots.

Cleveland, Chicago, Washington, Orlando, Philadelphia, Milwaukee, Boston and now the Knicks are all potential postseason qualifiers. I'm giving the Knicks 43 wins and one of the final two spots.

Now, the question is: what of the Pistons? I'm convinced that Detroit doesn't win the title in 2004 without Brown, and I'm expecting it to fall off a bit under Flip Saunders. Flip is a good coach, but not a great coach, certainly not in Brown's class.

KG and you get out of the first-round just once? You've got to show me something.

Detroit was a mediocre 9-8 in those 17 games Brown missed last season. He returned from bladder surgery in April and they immediately went 10-1.

Under the offensive-minded Saunders, the Pistons' defense will loosen a bit, and while they'll still be good defenders, they won't be the tenacious, smothering crew they were under Larry Brown. They won that title because of their oppressive D, and the slightest slippage will be enough to keep them away from the trophy.

Plus, how will Chauncey handle his newfound freedom under Flip. Was it Brown's tight leash that kept Chauncey from hoisting too much or the PG's maturity? We'll see. The Pistons are clearly better when everyone's involved in the O, so it'll be interesting to see if Chauncey tries to be the man and ends up hurting the team.

Heating Up


Detroit could return to the Finals but only if Miami, Indiana and perhaps NJ suffer big-time injuries. With all superstars and stars being healthy, Miami is the easy favorite in the East, especially if they land Antoine Walker.

Walker is talking with Pat Riley about joining the Heat, and oh, what an addition he would be.

Despite his sorry reputation, I believe Walker is a winner. He has been nothing but great for the Celtics franchise, and his career numbers (basically, 19 and 9) are beyond solid.

With Walker in the fold, Miami could start a five of Shaq, Udonis Haslem, Walker, Eddie Jones and Dwyane Wade. That's ridiculous.

Walker's passing and ability to run the offense will allow D Wade to play off the ball at times, so his ppg doesn't fall off even as he plays point guard. Walker's outside shooting will work well off of Shaq, and his rebounding will enable the Heat to own the glass.

Pat Riley has to get this done.

...and Pat Riley got it done, too.