New York Knicks: Why Jeremy Lin and Knicks Will Extend Winning Streak to 10

When looking at the New York Knicks schedule, there is a good possibility that New York, led by Jeremy Lin, can extend their current five-game winning streak to a 10-game streak over the next week or so.

They have some favorable matchups coming up that should give them a great opportunity to continue to turn around their season. Along with some key players returning in the next week, the Knicks seem to have all the pieces falling into place. 

So let's break down why the Knicks can extend this five-game streak to 10.

Home-Court Advantage

This might be the simplest explanation of this entire piece, but it's still as important as any of the other factors for New York's success.

Of their next five games, the Knicks will play four of them at Madison Square Garden. After watching the Knicks win over the Los Angeles Lakers last Friday night, clearly Lin and his squad have re-inserted energy and excitement into a fanbase that desperately needed it.

The Garden will be rockin' for those four games and throughout the rest of the season, and the Knicks should be able to feed off of that to propel themselves to victory. The Knicks' resurgence has revived the MSG crowd and that will make it that much more difficult to win games if you're the opposing team.

Return of Amar'e Stoudemire

Amar'e Stoudemire will be the first missing regular to return to the Knicks' starting five as will practice Monday and will play his first game on Tuesday since his brother's tragic death.

Stoudemire will be motivated to return after missing a week or so, adding to the fact that the one element thought to be missing out of his game, a point guard, will now be at Stoudemire's disposal.

His re-entrance into the lineup will be more seamless than that of Carmelo Anthony's because of Lin's addition to this team and putting Stoudemire in his comfort zone. Stoudemire will give this team a huge boost offensively, taking some of the pressure off Lin's shoulders.

More Bench Depth

With the return of Stoudemire and Anthony, the Knicks will naturally have much more depth on their bench than they do without their two best scorers.

Stoudemire's return will send Jared Jeffries back to the bench, giving New York some much-needed size and defense off the pine. Anthony's return will send Bill Walker back to the bench as well, adding more offensive depth to the Knicks' bench as well.

Along with Steve Novak's hot shooting and Iman Shumpert's energy on both sides of the ball, all of a sudden the Knicks look deep up and down their roster. If these guys can continue playing at the level they have been the past five games, New York could be scary good.

If and when Josh Harrelson and Toney Douglas return to the lineup, the Knicks should get more help from some of their biggest early-season contributors. Also, the added depth allows the Knicks to hide Mike Bibby and his horrid shooting.

Less Pressure on Jeremy Lin and Knicks' Role Players

Missing two of their best starters, it was necessary for the Knicks to get a total team effort from the rest of their players. That being said, coach Mike D'Antoni got just that from his bench players who stepped up in a big way.

During the second half of their win against the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Knicks began looking tired, especially Lin, who looked as though he didn't have the strength to even walk, let alone run up and down the floor.

However, at full strength, the Knicks' bench players, and Lin specifically, won't have to do as much anymore and can breathe easier knowing a ton of pressure has been lifted off their shoulders.

Lin doesn't need to score 38 points anymore (although it would be welcomed) and can concentrate on the most important job he will have moving forward: running this offense and distributing the basketball effectively.

Weak Schedule

It's no secret the Knicks haven't faced a tough schedule during their current five-game winning streak, and it isn't getting any harder for them over the next five.

New York will be on the road against the Toronto Raptors whom it lost to 90-85 earlier in the season. The Raptors will be without their leading scorer, Andrea Bargnani. That will be a huge blow to them and a huge lift for the Knicks' defense.

The next four games are all at home against the Sacramento Kings, New Orleans Hornets, Dallas Mavericks and New Jersey Nets.

The Knicks already beat the Kings and Nets this season, both by seven or more. Also, the Knicks weren't at full strength against either team, minus either Anthony, Stoudemire or both. The Nets were the first to let Lin tear them up en route to a historic five-game run.

One of the league's worst teams, the New Orleans Hornets are clearly suffering without Chris Paul on the team anymore. They are 4-23 and while they've played solid defense this year, they haven't been able to score a lick.

Last and certainly not least are the Mavericks. New York will have its work cut out against the defending champs, who are currently 17-11 and rebounding after a slow start to the season. Dallas will be the toughest test in the entire 10-game streak and could easily be as far as New York even gets on its current run.

Still, the Knicks were missing their two best players and not only beat some bad teams along the way, they also beat the Lakers who were at full strength. That being the case, it's a good bet that the Knicks can run with the Mavs and pull out a win if they can play their new game.

Return of Carmelo Anthony

Anthony might not be back until the end of the Knicks' next five-game stretch, but his original timetable for returning to the court was one to two weeks from the date of the injury, February 6th, so he could be back any day now.

Melo might find his return a bit tougher than that of Stoudemire's now that his time handling the ball will go down with Lin in the lineup. Still, Anthony has been on the bench for the Knicks' latest run and if that doesn't make him change his ways and buy into the system that's working for New York, then he clearly never will.

If Lin and Melo can co-exist, Lin will have even less pressure on him to score and I'd expect his assist numbers to go way up. The possibilities are endless and the Knicks will be damn-near unbeatable if this pairing works out.