The Atlantic Division has always been interesting and in 2022, things haven’t changed. This season, the New York Knicks will compete against the defending Eastern Conference Champions in the Boston Celtics, two superstars in Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving on the Brooklyn Nets, a soon-to-be MVP and a past MVP in Joel Embiid and James Harden on the Philadelphia 76ers, and a Toronto Raptors team that has the Rookie of the Year in Scottie Barnes.
There have been so many headlines for all teams in the Atlantic Division this offseason. Players around the league have been praising the Raptors for their cohesiveness at the summer runs this offseason, will they surprise the East? Will Embiid go after MVP again? Will Harden return to form? KD wanted a trade from the Nets and now he is supposedly fine with staying put, and the same goes for Kyrie. Will the Celtics make a run back to the Finals?
And, of course, how will the Jalen Brunson signing work out? Or, when will Julius Randle be traded? There’s been plenty of news to keep up with and the season is finally right around the corner.
The good thing is that I believe that the Knicks will compete this year in their division. Let’s take a look at the advantages that they have over their Atlantic Division opponents.
1 advantage the Knicks have over every team in the Atlantic Division
Brooklyn Nets: Games played
We all know that the Brooklyn Nets were a circus in 2021-22 and in the offseason as well, but they have seemed to figure things out (for now). Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving are staying. Along with the remaining players on the roster, the Nets may be facing one major issue: chemistry! All guys on a team need to gel together to meet a specific goal, which is to win a championship. It starts with chemistry, but you can’t have chemistry if guys cannot consistently stay on the court together.
Durant, the face of the franchise, only played 55 games last season. Not to mention, throughout his career he has had a knack for sustaining injuries. Even worse, Irving only played 29 games last season due to his vaccination status, as well as other Kyrie things. Their third superstar, who was acquired in a trade for James Harden, hasn’t even put on a Nets jersey yet! Ben Simmons hasn’t played basketball in over a year, so who knows what they are going to get from him.
There’s been so many question marks regarding the team across town, but one thing you can’t question about the Knicks is their dedication, effort, and togetherness. New York’s starting five played in at least 70 games as opposed to Brooklyn, who had only two players play in at least 70 games in 2021-22.