Karl-Anthony Towns has worked through some early struggles in the preseason and now looks more comfortable in his New York Knicks jersey, including during his Knicks home debut vs the Washington Wizards last week. The Towns trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves helped the Knicks shore up their shaky frontcourt depth and signaled to everyone, if it wasn't already clear, that they were all-in for competing for a championship in the upcoming 2024-25 season.
Of course, New York faces some stiff competition in the Eastern Conference, primarily in the form of the reigning NBA champion Boston Celtics, who just put together one of the most dominant regular and postseasons in NBA history a season ago and are largely bringing back the same roster.
However, one person who isn't scared of what the Celtics have to offer is famed film director and Knicks fan Spike Lee, who recently gave a confident take during an appearance at the Basketball Hall of Fame in Massachusetts, via Marc Stein on X, formerly Twitter.
“The Boston Celtics are the world champions … but this is our year,” said Lee.
Sitting beside Lee was fellow Hollywood icon Billy Crystal, who is a noted fan of the Los Angeles Clippers.
“I couldn't disagree more,” Crystal joked.
Can the Knicks break through this year?
On paper, the Knicks have complied arguably the second best lineup in the NBA behind only the Celtics. With the trade for Mikal Bridges and the resigning of OG Anunoby, the Knicks gave themselves a wing tandem that can play both sides of the ball at an elite level, and of course, the team still employs all-star point guard Jalen Brunson, who overcame a rough start to the playoffs last season and finished very strong.
With the Towns trade, New York gave themselves a huge insurance policy for Mitchell Robinson's storied injury history and also alleviated themselves of the playoff struggles that Julius Randle has had in each of his two postseason appearances with the franchise.
Losing Donte DiVincenzo's shooting will hurt, but New York now has enough depth, especially with the ascension of Miles McBride, that it shouldn't be too much of an issue.
In any case, it won't take long for Spike Lee's prediction to be put to the test, as the Knicks are slated to open up their season on October 22 vs the Celtics on the road. That game is slated to get underway at 7:30 PM ET.
