When Amar’e Stoudemire signed with the Knicks four years ago, it represented more than just the acquisition of a top-tier talent. He was a symbol of hope for a franchise that had failed to win a playoff game in a decade. In a summer when no other premier free agent had it in them to come to New York, Stoudemire was brave enough to take this leap of faith. He knew what he was coming into- a situation far less pretty than the one he had enjoyed in Phoenix for eight seasons. Instead of playing alongside future Hall-Of-Famer Steve Nash, Amar’e’s best sidekicks would be Wilson Chandler and Danilo Gallinari– hardly household names outside of the Knicks faithful fan fanbase.
Despite all of these obstacles, “STAT” managed to put up one of the greatest half-a-seasons in Knicks history, including a stretch of nine consecutive games in which he scored thirty or more points. An MVP award was not out of the question, at least until Carmelo Anthony jumped on board in February. Ever since then, Amar’e’s role in New York has seemingly gotten smaller and smaller. In the following three seasons, Stoudemire’s minute and point averages declined annually, while knee injuries dampened his future in the league. Now, the former number nine overall pick is in his final year of his contract, and while this is almost definitely his last season in the blue and orange, he has much to prove.
Injuries have been one of the main reasons preventing Stoudemire from reaching maximum potential during his career, but entering this season, he is fully healthy. Unlike last season, when he was coming off a knee debridement injury, Stoudemire will not be subject to a restricted amount of minutes on a nightly basis. Coach Derek Fisher has stated that this minutes restriction will be a thing of the past, something which Mike Woodson made sure to impose last year as a measure of caution. However, since Amare will now be able to contribute for many minutes each game, look to see his stats increase by a significant margin. He averaged 11.9 points in 22.6 minutes of action last season, but it’s not out of the question to see STAT post at least 20 points per game this upcoming season.
Another aspect that will enable Amar’e to rejuvenate his game is that he is not facing stiff competition from other front court players on the roster. Now that Tyson Chandler is gone, both Jason Smith and Quincy Acy appear to be Amar’e’s only real threats at the power forward position, but even they have a severe lack of experience compared to him. At center, where Amar’e thrived in his inaugural season as a Knick, Samuel Dalembert currently is the starter. He doesn’t fit the mold of a player that will play for long chunks of time, so this again opens up the core for Amar’e to receive additional playing time. If Amar’e can be as dominant at center now as he was under Mike D’Antoni in 2010, then the Knicks front court will be one of the bigger surprises of the season. Regardless of the position that he plays at though, there is no doubt that he will have his biggest impact on both the offensive and defensive end since the 2010 season.
Even though there have been doubts of Amar’e playing well together with Carmelo Anthony, pairing two star players has worked together in the triangle offense before. In Chicago, there was Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen. In Los Angeles, you had Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal. Now, there is the potential to add STAT and Melo to that list, although perhaps not to the same extent, because Amar’e is not the player he used to be. No one is asking Amar’e to make the All-NBA First-Team, though. Nor is he even expected to make an All-Star roster. He just needs to find a happy-medium that will enable him to regain part of the star power that he once possessed as a Sun, even if this doesn’t result in him becoming a full-fledged star player once again.
The career of Amar’e Stoudemire in New York has featured its fair share of highs and lows. Although his past few years in the Garden have not been what he or the Knicks would have hoped, he still has one more year to end his Knicks career on a positive note. Displaying anything close to the stardom that he regularly had in his prime will be enough for Knicks fans to truly realize the enormous impact Amar’e Stoudemire has had on the New York Knicks organization for the past five seasons.