Knicks Open Up The Season 3-0 in Dominating Fashion

Added by Stephen Zimkouski on November 8, 2012.

The Knicks are 3-0 to start the season, the first time since 1999. (Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE/Getty Images)

For the first time since the 1999-00 season, the New York Knicks have won their first three games to start the season. This season, the Knicks opened by making a statement in blowing out the defending champion Miami Heat and then beat the Andrew Bynum-less Philadelphia 76ers in back to back nights.

The Knicks not only have won the games but have played lights out to open up averaging 14 three pointers per contest. The offense looks balanced and everybody is looking to make the extra pass for the open shot. This has helped New York score over 100 points in each of the first three games and have won each game by double digit margins.

Will the Knicks be able to keep up this hot start? Are they for real or this is just a fluke?

Lets be honest with ourselves, the Knicks probably won’t average 105 points per game this season. The roster just wasn’t built that way, it was built on playing efficiently and finding open shots on the offensive end. However, they may be able to keep up the pace of limiting their opponent to only 85 points a game. The Knicks defense has been stifling their opponents as they’ve been contesting nearly every shot. They’re doing this with off the ball rotations as they have been nearly perfect. When one defender gets beat off the dribble there seemed to always be another one to pick up the ballhandler. The Knicks are looking like a team that has played together for years instead of a team of pieces that are just trying to find a way to mesh.

It may be premature but this years team definitely resembles the Knicks teams of the 1990′s with their physical and stellar defense. The Knicks may also be the deepest team in the league as they play a ten man rotation currently with Rasheed Wallace who seems to be getting more minutes each game. The Knicks also are scheduled to get Marcus Camby, Iman Shumpert and Amar’e Stoudemire back later on this season.

It’s certainly a valid thought that with both the depth and defense of this Knicks team they are not a fluke and are here to ultimately compete for the championship.