"A year ago, only five Eastern Conference teams finished above .500.
Three playoff teams from the East — Milwaukee, Boston and the Nets — qualified for the playoffs with records at or
below .500.
With the season set to begin Tuesday night, Knicks coach Derek Fisher says he believes the Eastern Conference will be tougher, with 10 or 11 teams in the mix for the postseason.
“There are a handful of teams that are better than they were a year ago,” Fisher said Tuesday. “You take the eight playoff teams from a year ago and then you add Miami who’s healthier and a really good basketball team, Indiana with Paul George back and that team getting healthier….Detroit comes to mind as a really solid team.”
So where do the revamped Knicks fit in in a conference where LeBron James and the Cavaliers are just about everybody’s favorite to emerge from the playoffs and make the NBA Finals?
Charles Barkley said Monday
he was “guaranteeing” the Knicks would make the playoffs, but Fisher of course won’t go that far.
“I’m not worried about where we’re going to end up,” he said. “For me it’s just about the process. I think our team’s focusing on the process and the results and the playoffs and that kind of stuff will take care of itself.”
Derek Fisher expects Eastern Conference to be tougher than a year ago