Projecting the New York Knicks' Most Likely Playoff Seed

The New York Knicks have hit a roadblock in their miraculous season; however, this won't stop them from claiming the Atlantic Division and a No. 2 seed in the playoffs. 

As of November 25, New York sits atop the Atlantic with a 9-3 record and a .750 winning percentage—only the Miami Heat have a better winning percentage in the East.

The Knicks are on pace to surpass the 50-win mark; in fact, they might be able to pull off 60 wins if the defense comes into focus.

With those kind of numbers, it's hard to imagine the Knicks being anything but a No. 1 or No. 2 seed.

A lot has changed since last year, and this is all beneficial to what could be the franchise's highest playoff seeding since 1992-93.

The Chicago Bulls do not have Derrick Rose, and it appears the point guard won't be able to wreak havoc on the Eastern foes until at least All-Star break.

The Orlando Magic lost Dwight Howard to the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Atlanta Hawks traded away Joe Johnson to the Brooklyn Nets.

These were all teams that finished ahead of New York last season, but you can bet your bottom dollar that won't be the case in 2012, especially looking at the numbers.

The Boston Celtics are under .500 for the time being, and a laboring season will affect the team in the long run. 

The Brooklyn Nets are still gluing their core pieces together, so it's hard to say that the team will be able to withstand the test of time.

Basketball is a numbers game: how many points you score and how many points you allow your opponents to score. 

Nobody's done a better job crunching the team's numbers in the last decade than Mike Woodson. 

Coach Woody has this team playing basketball for 48 minutes—in other words, they're not taking any time off. 

To further back my statement, New York is averaging 103 points per game—second most in the Eastern Conference. However, they also only allowing 95.4 points to opponents—the number spiked after that game against James Harden and the Houston Rockets. The difference is about eight points, and that's the best difference in all of the NBA.

New York has what it takes. 

If the playoffs began today, the Knicks would have the No. 2 seed behind Miami, and New York would be pitted against the Philadelphia 76ers.

As many of you remember, New York swept Philly in the home-and-home games back in the first week of November—take it as a sign of good things to come!

There are very few teams in the East that can keep up with New York, especially in a grueling playoff series. 

With that being said, I believe New York will claim the No. 2 seed, advance all the way to the Finals where they will meet the Miami Heat and reignite a rivalry. 

Can New York beat out Miami in an intense seven game series? 

We'll save that for another article.