Take this for a bold prediction: Jose Calderon thinks the 17-win Knicks will be better this year.
Woah. Hold up. Better, you say? Than 17 wins? Blasphemy!
No, it's true. He thinks they're going to improve. And after adding Robin Lopez, Kevin Seraphin, Arron Afflalo, Derrick Williams, Kristaps Porzingis, Jerian Grant and Kyle O'Quinn while also expecting healthier seasons from Calderon and Carmelo Anthony, I'm betting management and the rest of the team agrees.
Here's some of what Calderon had to say, via Marc Berman of the New York Post:
He went on later:
Calderon played just 42 games last year and the usually efficient point guard hit less than 42 percent of his field-goal attempts. He's right, though. The Knicks will be better with a revamped roster in the upcoming season.
Eight through 13 in the East is pretty close together. It seems like it'll be another season with a 38-win No. 8 seed in that conference. Right now, it's hard to say where the Knicks fall in a group of mediocrity that includes the Celtics, Pacers, Magic, Nets, Hornets and Pistons. But New York can push. And it'll improve.
(h/t NBC Sports for the find)
“A lot of bad things happened last year,’’ Calderon said. “We’ll win more than 17 games and we’ll try to win every game. I’m real excited we can do great things, but talking about the playoffs, it’s too early. You don’t talk playoffs a few weeks before training camp."
“I never could get 100 percent the way the season is,’’ Calderon said. “It was a very tough season for me and I couldn’t play the way I wanted to. I needed time with the Achilles. I was thinking about myself. I want to play here a few more years."
