New York Knicks: Time to Put Up or Shut Up with Tough Schedule Rest of Way

Forget about the results of the first 36 games.

Forget about the emergence of "Linsanity", whose play single-handedly sparked a triumphant run to bring this team to where it is today.

Forget about it all, because today the Knicks record is 0-0. In an already schedule-shortened season, the Knicks true potential will be defined over their next 30 games, where they will face the cream of the crop in the NBA.

Will they step up to face the challenge?

Their first obstacle is just hours away, where they will face the reigning four-time division champion Boston Celtics. For the Knicks, it's more than just a regular season game.

It's a game to make a statement, to show the world on national television that they are out for blood, and to ensure that "the rivalry" resounds throughout the fan bases of not just one club, but both.

Carmelo Anthony, for one, is sick of hearing about the past, especially last year's playoff series where the Celtics swept the Knicks in four games. He spoke defiantly on the meaning of this matchup.

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“We want to win,’’ Anthony said. “We want to beat them. They got away with one last time we played them. We want to redeem ourselves. We want to beat them. That’s our mindset, our goal. In the back of our mind we know what happened in the playoffs last year. That was last year.’’

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Not only against the Celtics, but this is the mindset that the Knicks must have going forward. In the next 30 games, the Knicks will face 19 teams who currently have a winning record.

Of those 19 games, they will face teams who currently place one and two in their respective divisions. With three games against the conference leading Bulls, three games against the uprising Pacers and two matchups against the Magic, the Knicks will certainly have their hands full. Strong performances in these outings will be pivotal for the Knicks if they plan on climbing the Eastern Conference standings.

Not only are their opponents arduous,  but so is the timing of the rest of their schedule. The Knicks have struggled to win games when having to play on back-to-back nights (just 4-8 on the season). They will face this task nine more times before season's end, and will have to improve on their abysmal record thus far.

But again, almost all of the season before the All-Star break should be forgotten. The Knicks got by with a .500 record without having a point guard until February, all the while battling through injuries to their star players.

Now, finally, the Knicks are fully assembled. With a team that is arguably the deepest in the league, it's time for the Knicks to put up or shut up. They want to be considered one of the top teams in the league, and with a schedule against the elite-class of the NBA, they will have their chance to prove it.