[What to watch in the new season] The Knicks will usher in an era of "no rivals in the Eastern Conference" as they fight against each other and strengthen their forces?

The new regular season will officially start in 6 days. At this countdown point, we will focus on last season’s Eastern Conference powerhouse, the New York Knicks.

This wealthy team, which ranked third in the Eastern Conference with 51 wins and 31 losses last season and returned to the Eastern Conference finals after 25 years, has a luxurious lineup and a new coaching system to challenge for the championship in the new season, striving to start an era of "no rivals in the Eastern Conference."

The trip to the Eastern Conference Finals from extravagant hope to reality

Last season was undoubtedly an extremely successful season for the Knicks. They ushered in the team's first trip to the conference finals in the 21st century and achieved a major leap in this century.

Especially in the second round of the playoffs, they unexpectedly eliminated the defending champion Celtics. The strength of their multi-core lineup was fully reflected in this series.

Towns and Bridges, who joined in the offseason last season, quickly integrated into the team and played a huge role during the season. Bridges averaged 17.6 points per game and made outstanding defensive contributions. Towns was even selected as an All-Star starter and the All-NBA Third Team, having the best season of his career.

Last season, Jaylen Brunson completed an epic transformation from an "ordinary star" to a "league superstar." He averaged 26 points per game with a 48.8% shooting rate in the regular season. In the 18 games of the playoffs, he averaged 30.4 points and 7.7 assists per game. His explosive performance in the playoffs for two consecutive years made him one of the top ten players in the league.

But at the same time, the "stubborn problem" of the Knicks' over-reliance on the main force and short rotations still exists. The series of difficult elimination of the Celtics also exhausted their strength. In the end, the stubborn problem was fully exposed in the Eastern Conference finals, and they lacked stamina and were blocked from the Finals by the Pacers.

"Five-man Basketball" to "Everyone is a Soldier"

In addition to continuing the core lineup of last season, the Knicks also made drastic changes to the "stubborn problems" that they had suffered for many years during this offseason, completely demonstrating their ambition to compete for the championship.

After losing in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Knicks decisively fired Thibodeau, who insisted on a "seven-man short rotation" that caused the main players to become overtired, and hired Mike Brown, the former best coach who is good at building a fast-paced system, as their new coach.

This adjustment directly points to the tactical shortcomings of last season - the Knicks' average pace per game (PACE) last season was only 95.89, ranking in the middle and lower reaches of the league. While Brown was coaching the Warriors and Kings, he was very accomplished in adjusting the team's offensive rhythm.

At the same time, the Knicks signed multiple strong players in the free market, significantly strengthening the weakest bench last season:

- Signed Jordan Clarkson for 3.6 million in one year (averaged 16.2 points per game last season, and won the Best Sixth Man in the 20-21 season)

- Introduced Gerchon Yabusele for 12 million in two years (averaged 11 points and 5.6 rebounds per game last season) , had the best season of his NBA career)

-Re-signed Shamet on a one-year contract

The Knicks in the new season will no longer be a team with only five players. Their rotation lineup has many strong players such as Miro, McBride, Clarkson, Yabusele, Shamet, etc. We also have reason to expect that their core five-person group will show higher efficiency on the court under the condition of fully reducing the load.

A season with no rivals in the Eastern Conference?

The flames of last season's playoffs will completely restructure the competitive landscape in the Eastern Conference in the coming year:

-Celtics core Tatum will miss at least half the season, and his status after his return is unknown

-Pacers core Haliburton will miss the entire season, and interior defensive core Myles Turner has also moved elsewhere

-The Bucks cut off the season-ending outside line Core Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo may once again be left alone

-The health and competitive status of the 76ers' two core players, Embiid and Paul George, are unknown.

The competitiveness of many strong teams in the Eastern Conference has been weakened to varying degrees. In addition, compared to the weak Cavaliers and the Magic and Hawks whose running-in situation is still unknown in the playoffs, the Knicks have a more outstanding appearance in the Eastern Conference.

Last year, the Knicks reached the second-round tiebreaker for the first time this century. This year, they reached the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time this century. Can they go one step further in the new season and let New York, the "global capital", regain the atmosphere of the finals?