Outgoing Players: Arron Afflalo, Lou Amundson, Cleanthony Early, Langston Galloway, Kevin Seraphin, Derrick Williams

Incoming Players: Willy Hernangomez, Justin Holiday, Brandon Jennings, Mindaugas Kuzminskas, Courtney Lee, Maurice Ndour, Joakim Noah, Marshall Plumlee, Derrick Rose

Re-Signed Players: Lance Thomas, Sasha Vujacic

Projected Starting Five: Derrick Rose (PG), Courtney Lee (SG), Carmelo Anthony (SF), Kristaps Porzingis (PF), Joakim Noah (C)

"They're high," Derrick Rose told NBA.com's Lang Whitaker when asked about the New York Knicks' expectations for 2016-17. "I mean, with these teams right now, they're saying us and Golden State are the superteams, and they're trying not to build that many superteams, and Adam Silver came out with the statement and this and that. And the expectations I think of us, we just want to win."

Not to be too harsh... but that's delusional. No one—well, no one outside of brainwashed fans bragging on Twitter—has called the Knicks a superteam. Nor should they. They're still not even a lock to make the playoffs.

Did New York add talent to the roster? Absolutely. Rose, Joakim Noah, Brandon Jennings, Courtney Lee, Justin Holiday and Marshall Plumlee lend some level of legitimacy, even if none currently plays at a star level.

But this is an outfit composed of mismatched pieces and players who have struggled in recent years. Rose hasn't been the same since he started earning the injury-prone label, though he did look better down the stretch of 2015-16. Noah is coming off the worst year of his career. Jennings can't hit 40 percent of his shots from the field.

The Knicks have more star power on the roster, and they're earning some excitement in the Big Apple. The depth chart looks like it's filled with legitimate NBA players.

But they're not contenders. Not even in the Eastern Conference.

Grade: B-

I think the Knicks are starting off behind some of the more established teams but that doesn't mean they aren't going to be contenders in the East. A lot of these write ups are totally dismissing the impact of Jeff Hornacek. The change in style of play is going to enhance the entire team. The way they looked last year is going to be a thing of the past. These analysts aren't ready for the changes this team will present next season.

It's impossible to tell how exactly we will do this season. Everyone has had health and/or decline issues lately.

nixluva wrote:

Allanfan20 wrote:When we start consistently winning, the reviews will become more positive. Until then, it's still open season on us. Whether you like our recent moves (I did) or not, they are still easy to question and there is nothing you can do to argue that.

It's impossible to tell how exactly we will do this season. Everyone has had health and/or decline issues lately.

I wouldn't say "impossible". I think Melo was looking much better in March than he had at any point in the season and the same with Rose. I think they could come back much improved next season. Rose sounds confident and reports are that he's looked pretty good so far this summer. If he can continue this summer conditioning program and come into next season in the best shape of recent years I will be very pleased with that. It's all we can ask at this point. Just come in strong and healthy and take it from there.

you often use words like "could", "possible", etc ... but that has nothing to do with probabilities. These pro predictions are always based on what they believe "will" happen, not what "could" happen.

Rose "could" suck again, players "can" very "possibly" not mesh, Noah can have a similar performance to last year, player "may" not click well with JH, Lance Thomas could regress to the player that he was before this season, Melo ... who knows which Melo will show up .... these are all very "possible".

I remember how Amare used to look like the best offseason player in the world and never shut the fuch up about how great this season would be (and I'm sure that many of us bought that crap). I heard the same crap about how his coming over here with his injury history was not going to be an issue and how its his eye that looks fine now and yada yada yada ... when the season starts its put up or shut up and just like Amare, players who have recently been bad have to prove that they are better and have to prove it on the court, not in the press and on youtube.

A team like this has more question marks than most teams and I am sure the spread of wins and losses predictions are all over the place.

I still am very optimistic as a knick fan and predicted 45 wins but that may be me just being biased.

mreinman wrote:

nixluva wrote:

Allanfan20 wrote:When we start consistently winning, the reviews will become more positive. Until then, it's still open season on us. Whether you like our recent moves (I did) or not, they are still easy to question and there is nothing you can do to argue that.

It's impossible to tell how exactly we will do this season. Everyone has had health and/or decline issues lately.

I wouldn't say "impossible". I think Melo was looking much better in March than he had at any point in the season and the same with Rose. I think they could come back much improved next season. Rose sounds confident and reports are that he's looked pretty good so far this summer. If he can continue this summer conditioning program and come into next season in the best shape of recent years I will be very pleased with that. It's all we can ask at this point. Just come in strong and healthy and take it from there.

you often use words like "could", "possible", etc ... but that has nothing to do with probabilities. These pro predictions are always based on what they believe "will" happen, not what "could" happen.

Rose "could" suck again, players "can" very "possibly" not mesh, Noah can have a similar performance to last year, player "may" not click well with JH, Lance Thomas could regress to the player that he was before this season, Melo ... who knows which Melo will show up .... these are all very "possible".

I remember how Amare used to look like the best offseason player in the world and never shut the fuch up about how great this season would be (and I'm sure that many of us bought that crap). I heard the same crap about how his coming over here with his injury history was not going to be an issue and how its his eye that looks fine now and yada yada yada ... when the season starts its put up or shut up and just like Amare, players who have recently been bad have to prove that they are better and have to prove it on the court, not in the press and on youtube.

A team like this has more question marks than most teams and I am sure the spread of wins and losses predictions are all over the place.

I still am very optimistic as a knick fan and predicted 45 wins but that may be me just being biased.

I've stated clearly why I like this team's prospects. It's not all predicated on Rose having another MVP level season. I think this team can win a lot even with Rose and Noah not reaching the levels they once played at. Now if they do play at a high level relative to what they once were then it's even better, but Rose and Noah don't have to carry the team in order for this team to win. It's all about how well they all play as a team.

mreinman wrote:

nixluva wrote:

mreinman wrote:

nixluva wrote:

Allanfan20 wrote:When we start consistently winning, the reviews will become more positive. Until then, it's still open season on us. Whether you like our recent moves (I did) or not, they are still easy to question and there is nothing you can do to argue that.

It's impossible to tell how exactly we will do this season. Everyone has had health and/or decline issues lately.

I wouldn't say "impossible". I think Melo was looking much better in March than he had at any point in the season and the same with Rose. I think they could come back much improved next season. Rose sounds confident and reports are that he's looked pretty good so far this summer. If he can continue this summer conditioning program and come into next season in the best shape of recent years I will be very pleased with that. It's all we can ask at this point. Just come in strong and healthy and take it from there.

you often use words like "could", "possible", etc ... but that has nothing to do with probabilities. These pro predictions are always based on what they believe "will" happen, not what "could" happen.

Rose "could" suck again, players "can" very "possibly" not mesh, Noah can have a similar performance to last year, player "may" not click well with JH, Lance Thomas could regress to the player that he was before this season, Melo ... who knows which Melo will show up .... these are all very "possible".

I remember how Amare used to look like the best offseason player in the world and never shut the fuch up about how great this season would be (and I'm sure that many of us bought that crap). I heard the same crap about how his coming over here with his injury history was not going to be an issue and how its his eye that looks fine now and yada yada yada ... when the season starts its put up or shut up and just like Amare, players who have recently been bad have to prove that they are better and have to prove it on the court, not in the press and on youtube.

A team like this has more question marks than most teams and I am sure the spread of wins and losses predictions are all over the place.

I still am very optimistic as a knick fan and predicted 45 wins but that may be me just being biased.

I'm speaking with conservative words because I can't say "WILL" as if it's 100% assured. In truth neither can the so called experts. They often do talk like that but that doesn't mean you won't get a 54 win Knicks team.

I've stated clearly why I like this team's prospects. It's not all predicated on Rose having another MVP level season. I think this team can win a lot even with Rose and Noah not reaching the levels they once played at. Now if they do play at a high level relative to what they once were then it's even better, but Rose and Noah don't have to carry the team in order for this team to win. It's all about how well they all play as a team.

you missed the point. They predict what the believe "will" happen. They don't say that something is "possible" because of course anything is possible, and they don't say what "could" happen because anything can happen. They actually make a prediction based what they BELIEVE will happen.

I think that this is what Bonn keeps responding to you but it seems that you are completely missing this point. They are basing of a statistical model mixed with random things that they observe such as the coach, injury chances, chemistry, etc ...

You can say that this and that could happen but anyone can say the same for the flip side.

The onus is on the team to go out and prove/answer all these question marks.

You seem to think that i'm basing my prediction solely off of good feelings and wishes. That's not what i've been saying at at all. I've given my reasoning for why I think this team should be more successful than 38 wins. I wasn't impressed with the Analysis from many of the early predictions i've read. They lack depth IMO.

CrushAlot wrote:Another bleacher report article predicted the Knicks to win 42 games. It was from exactly a week earlier.

Projected 2016-17 Record: 42-40

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2651951-predicting-which-nba-teams-will-have-biggest-win-increases-in-2016-17/page/3

"The Knicks seemingly came into this offseason hellbent on trying to put together a team that could be a title contender in 2011, as opposed to 2017," Tim Bontemps of the Washington Post wrote.

The criticism, while dramatic, is fair.

The Knicks paid a heavy premium to trade for Derrick Rose—the former MVP who hasn't been the same since tearing his ACL in 2012. New York gave $72 million to Joakim Noah—a 31-year-old who's missed at least 15 games during three of the past four seasons. The team then rounded out its starting lineup with 30-year-old Courtney Lee and bet $5 million on Brandon Jennings' ability to fully recover from a torn Achilles.

That's a narrow-minded vision for a franchise in possession of a 20-year-old unicorn like Kristaps Porzingis. But the Knicks heard 32-year-old All-Star Carmelo Anthony's ticking biological clock and decided they needed to respond with urgency.

This does little, if anything, to move the long-term needle favorably. But there should be some relief on the immediate horizon. The overall talent level has raised considerably since the completion of New York's dismal 32-50 season.

If the Knicks stay close to healthy, they could have both 45 wins and a playoff berth in sight. Lee's low-maintenance, floor-spacing offense should mesh well alongside Porzingis and Anthony, while Rose's penetration game and Noah's passing could enhance New York's most potent weapons. New head coach Jeff Hornacek has much more to work with than his predecessors did.

Many may still have preferred patience and player development, but at least the Knicks carry some obvious leap potential into the upcoming campaign.

TheGardenFaithful wrote:For what it's worth the people out there estimated us around the same amount of wins as this year and there was outrage among knicks fans but who was right?

How about we just wait and see what this team plays like together before we grade the team or make bold Win predictions, to me it's all about just making the playoffs and gelling as a team. Let's wait and see.

SupremeCommander wrote:I could see this team winning 50ish games. I could see them winning 38 too. Really boils down to injuries.

dk7th wrote:

Bonn1997 wrote:

SupremeCommander wrote:I could see this team winning 50ish games. I could see them winning 38 too. Really boils down to injuries.

Really? 38 is the low end of what you could see?

the upgrade on defense of lee over afflalo *will* gain them a couple of games. kp6 in his second year *will* add them a couple of games. lopez's minutes were around 25 minutes a game, which is what i expect noah's minutes to be, and noah's backups (hernangomez), though unproven, are *likely* an upgrade over seraphin, and that'll add 1 game. hornacek's coaching will add another game. that's 38 games.