5 Reasons New York Knicks Will Make NBA Playoffs Without Jeremy Lin

The playoffs are right around the corner and for now the Knicks are safely sitting in the eighth seed.

Now with injury bug rampant in New York not only is Amar'e Stoudemire out, but now Jeremy Lin is out as well.

Even with Lin out, the Knicks still have the pieces to make it to the playoffs and shouldn't be worried about not making the playoffs.

Here are five reasons that will have Spike Lee and New York faithful breathing a little easier over the next few weeks.

Mike Woodson

Mike Woodson has been the best thing that has happened to the Knicks since Linsanity. Under Woodson, the Knicks have only lost two games w and have been playing like the team we expected them to be in the preseason.

Woodson has this team believing again and has the No. 1 star Carmelo Anthony actually playing at a high rate.

Woodson is not a stranger to making it to the playoffs since he did take the Atlanta Hawks to the playoffs three times in his six-year stay.

If he could take a subpar Atlanta team to the playoffs, then this should be a cake walk for Woodson.

Defense

You can't have a Mike Woodson team without defense and the Knicks have definitely bought into the defensive scheme.

In the last 11 games the defense has been key with a 9-2 record for the Knicks.

With more defense the Knicks are able to get easy baskets and don't have to worry about setting up a half-court offense.

Defense leads to easy buckets, and that translates to momentum inside the Garden. This was prevalent in a blowout win against the Magic last week.

Once the Knicks get on a roll like that, it's going to be hard to stop them. Defense really does win games in the NBA.

The Bench

With players like J.R. Smith, Bill Walker, Jared Jefferies and Steve Novak coming off the bench, the Knicks have a deep rotation.

The Knicks have one of the best benches in the league this year and have earned the name Mobb Deep.

At anytime Mike Woodson can have a 10-man rotation that helps keep his starters fresh. With the injury to Lin, the bench is going to have to step up and be able to give the starters the necessary rest needed.  

With Baron Davis not being the young player he used to be means that the bench is going to have to pick up his slack.

Carmelo Anthony

Carmelo Anthony is in a spot where he is most comfortable with the ball in his hands, making plays for himself.

Without Lin in the rotation, Anthony can create his own shots and doesn't have to wait to receive the ball anymore.

Anthony is used to carrying the team on his shoulders, so this shouldn't be a new role for the prolific scorer.

Under Woodson, Melo has looked rejuvenated and is determined to prove to all naysayers that he still has it.

The groin injury is not going to hold the Knicks' franchise player back either, he knows what this playoff push means to New York and the team as a whole. After Monday's practice, Melo echoed it and let it be known that the Knicks will be in the playoffs.

Iman Shumpert

The rookie from Georgia Tech Iman Shumpert is the X factor to the Knicks making it to the playoffs without Jeremy Lin.

With Baron Davis starting at point and not as explosive as he used to be, Shumpert is going to have to be the main guard.

The slashing Lin brought to the team will be what Shumpert has to bring with him every night. His role is definitely going to increase in the Knicks offensive scheme.

He is a player that doesn't need the ball in his hands to make things happen. If he can score and get the ball to Carmelo, the offense will continue to roll.