J.R. Smith terms New York Knicks a championship calibre team – NBA News
New York emerged as the most talked about city in basketball circles this off-season, with all the blockbuster moves the Knicks and the Brooklyn Nets have been making.
The Nets have had a successful off-season, which saw them spending money like there is no tomorrow. They handed out huge contracts to Deron Williams, Brook Lopez, Gerald Wallace, Kris Humphries and traded with the Atlanta Hawks
for the huge contract of Joe Johnson.
The Knicks did not want to be left behind in the battle for New York, and signed Marcus Camby, Jason Kidd and Raymond Felton to strengthen their team as the battle picks up next season for the crown of best team in New York City.
The recent additions to the Knicks roster have some Knicks fans excited about the future and rightfully so. However, there are some people who are going beyond themselves when they say that the Knicks are championship contenders
next season.
And J.R. Smith is one of those people.
Smith re-signed with the Knicks this summer and will play for them off the bench when the next season commences.
While talking to ESPNNewYork.com, Smith boasted that he feels the current team in a championship calibre team on paper.
“Right now with the talent we have, what it says on paper is championship all day. But it’s a matter of us going out there and doing it,” said Smith while making an appearance at an event in Harlem at the Nike House of Hoops.
The Knicks have plenty of talent, with two of their stars Carmelo Anthony and Tyson Chandler making it to the Olympic team this year. Apart from them, they have Amare Stoudemire in the front court and have recently added Kidd and
Felton to strengthen their back court.
With Iman Shumpert playing shooting guard and guys like Smith and Camby to come off the bench, one can argue that the Knicks have what it takes to beat any team in the NBA.
However, Anthony is yet to rise as the leader of the Knicks team, and his chemistry with Stoudemire is far from solid. The two players struggled to play alongside each other, and their numbers actually drop when the two share the
floor.
For Smith's team to become a genuine contender rather than one on paper, Melo needs to become a team player and make others alongside him better. Consistency is another thing that Anthony and his team needs to get a grasp of.
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