As the Nets enter their first full season without Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, a lot is riding on how Ben Simmons will look. February will mark two years since the infamous Simmons-James Harden swap, and the Brooklyn guard has yet to live up to the hype.
He added he will assume point guard duties in Brooklyn, and if he can get back to the kind of player he was in Philadelphia, the Nets could be a surprise team in the East. It’s still way too early to bank on that, though.
Mikal Bridges averaged 26.1 points in the 27 games he played to end the 2022-23 regular season, and it’s more likely he’ll receive an All-Star nod in 2023-24 than Simmons. He became a star in his own right after being traded from the Suns, and this season could easily be the most impressive of Bridges’ career.
Regardless, the true star power in NYC lies with the Knicks. Brooklyn finished one spot behind New York last year at No. 6, but the Nets will likely be vying for a play-in spot this year. Brooklyn might’ve dominated the rivalry in the past few seasons, but times have changed.
have distinct advantages</a> over each one, starting with the team predicted to finish at the bottom for the second straight year.</p>
<h2>1 advantage the New York Knicks have over every Atlantic Division rival</h2>
<h3>Toronto Raptors: Front office mismanagement</h3>
<p>The Raptors posted the worst record in the division last season at 41-41 and couldn’t advance past the play-in tournament. After not trading Fred VanVleet at the deadline, the 2019 champion walked in free agency to sign a three-year, $130 million contract with the Rockets.</p>
<p>Toronto is in a weird position after Masai Ujiri opted to keep most of the roster intact rather than enter a rebuilding phase. Pascal Siakam’s name has been floating around in trade rumors, and like VanVleet, he could leave the Raptors next summer in free agency. The same can be said for Gary Trent Jr., and guess who has a player option for 2024-25? OG Anunoby.</p>
<p>Toronto was predicted to be a team to be active at last year’s deadline, but that didn’t happen. Depending on the Raptors’ position entering February 2024, Ujiri could trade Siakam, Trent, and Anunoby or take another gamble on making the playoffs. That move could come back to haunt him far more than losing VanVleet has.</p>
<p>There’s no telling what Toronto’s roster will look like a year from now. Ujiri’s stubbornness has gotten in his way in the past and could continue to do so this season.</p>
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right time to pounce on an Embiid trade</a>. Not only would it help the Knicks if the Sixers took a tumble down the Eastern Conference standings, but it’d give Leon Rose and the front office the opportunity they’ve been waiting for.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #007BC1" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://dailyknicks.com/2023/09/16/1-major-advantage-new-york-knicks-division-rival/2/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> The team predicted to finish atop the East </a>
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