Atlantic Notes: Knicks, Anthony, Sixers, Thomas

The Knicks are facing much higher expectations in 2024/25 than in most recent seasons, Stefan Bondy of the New York Post writes. New York is projected to finish second in the East by most sportsbooks after the team acquired Mikal Bridges via trade this offseason. Their over/under for regular season wins is set at 53.5 by BetMGM and FanDuel despite New York only surpassing 53 wins in a season once since 1997.

On top of adding Bridges, the Knicks are set to be healthier to open next season with Julius Randle back in the fold.

“It’s nice to hear that we’re contenders, but I think we have to go into training camp without having that word be spoken,” star guard Jalen Brunson said. “Obviously, I said I want to get past the second round after getting there two straight years. But we can’t just go into the season and jump right back into the second round. We’ve got to go back and start all over again.”

While the Knicks are in prime position to make it to at least the conference finals, they still have some obstacles to overcome, Bondy writes. For one, they’ll need to be healthier after missing several members of their rotation in the ’23/24 postseason. They’re also not the only Eastern Conference team that improved in the offseason, meaning the playoff competition could be stiffer next spring.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

• Knicks and NBA legend Carmelo Anthony revealed on the 7PM in Brooklyn podcast that he was offered an end-of-bench role by New York in 2022 (YouTube link). “We sat down and had a real conversation. ‘Listen, here’s a spot. You can be on the team tomorrow, but this is the spot,” Anthony said. The 10-time All-Star explained that he always had a goal of returning to New York, but after a handful of successful sixth-man seasons with the Lakers and Trail Blazers, Anthony didn’t want to be relegated to the end of the roster. “The not knowing of when you’re going to play and not play—I’d rather not go through that,” Anthony said. “I’mma bow out gracefully. … Basketball ain’t the issue. I can’t do that. That’s a hell of a decline. When I look at it overall, the overall big picture, that’s a hell of a decline. So I just had to stand on that. No disrespect, but I can’t accept that.“
• A city-sponsored impacts study intended to guide decision-makers regarding the Sixers‘ plan for a new downtown arena was released on Monday, per Jeff Gammage and Sean Collins Walsh of The Philadelphia Inquirer. According to the report, the proposed 18,500-seat arena would generate about $1.8 billion in additional economic activity during its construction and planned 30 years of operation. The study showed the arena could cause indirect housing displacement through gentrification. Additionally, concerns were raised about impact on transit, a lack of outdoor spaces at the arena and a disparity between the actual amount of new concerns the venue would be able to hold.
• Isaiah Thomas established himself as a key figure in Celtics history after a pair of All-Star seasons and a year in which he averaged 28.9 points per game. However, his exit from Boston was a rocky one after he was traded following a postseason in which he battled through a hip injury and the death of his sister to play for the team. Thomas further explained the situation on the Knuckleheads Podcast (YouTube link). “When I got traded to Cleveland, I was upset because at that point, I put my career on the line for something you could have just broken down to me and told me, ‘If you do play, or if we do this, it could possibly be what it happened to be,’” Thomas said (hat tip to HoopsHype). “It took me three years to really get back to who I am and figure out what was going on. But it was a tough situation. It was a learning experience for myself. I got real love for Boston and everybody in that organization, but it was definitely the wrong way to go about things.” Thomas said that nobody was there to explain that if he played, his could have jeopardized his career by worsening the injury.