Can the Knicks win the east?

New York Knicks basketball is almost back, and it's currently in its most exciting period fans have seen for a long time. The Knicks finally have star talent to contend for a championship, and don't plan on going back to mediocrity any time soon. New head coach Mike Brown will have his work cut out for him, but its fair to say this Knicks team, has higher expectations than any team Carmelo Anthony or Patrick Ewing were on.

The East is WIDE open for once

The Knicks enter the season as the number one team in the Eastern conference in my eyes. With Boston and Indiana both missing their best players for the entire season, the biggest threat the Knicks have is the Cleveland Cavaliers. Orlando and Detroit are certainly sleeper teams to be on the look out for, as they are one or two steps away from taking the crown as best team in the conference. But as of right now it's New York VS Cleveland for the East in many's eyes, an opportunity the Knicks cannot afford to waste.

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Mike Brown stepping in as HC

Mike Brown's name was thrown around almost immediately upon the firing of previous head coach Tom Thibodeau. Many fans speculated Thibs wasn't the source of blame for the Knicks failure to reach the finals, but many also speculated his lineup management was a big factor in the teams losses. Mike Brown comes to a team that is already loaded on offense, which happens to be his specialty. His first year as head coach in Sacramento he took the Kings from 25th in the league to 1st in offensive rating. New York was 5th in OR last season, and surely Brown will find ways to make this offense even more efficient.

Expect a faster pace

This coincides with Brown becoming the new head coach, but the Knicks previously did not run their offense at a fast pace whatsoever. They are the only team in the NBA over the last 7 years to have an average half court possession take over 17 seconds. With Brown at the helm this teams offense should be much more run and gun and should be a massive fast break threat.

Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns have completely shifted the way people view the Knicks over the last few years. The next step? Hang a banner in Madison Square Garden.