Amar'e Stoudemire: New York Knicks Star Talks to B/R About His Team
Amar'e Stoudemire accomplished a lot in his first season with the New York Knicks, helping to power the franchise to their first playoff berth since 2004 and their first winning record since 2001.
And although the injury-riddled team was ultimately eliminated in the first round, both Amar'e and the Knicks certainly appear to have a promising future.
What's more, Stoudemire was nice enough to spend some of his time talking to Bleacher Report this week, discussing a wide range of topics—including his thoughts on the past, present and future of the New York Knicks.
2010-11 New York Knicks
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The 2010-11 season marked a huge turnaround for the New York Knicks,
First, the team signed Amar'e Stoudemire, making the perennial All-Star the new face of the franchise.
Then, after a solid showing through the early part of the season, they acquired Carmelo Anthony from the Denver Nuggets.
And finally, as mentioned in the previous slide, the Knicks finally returned to the playoffs.
However, while all of that was certainly an accomplishment for the team, it left them far from satisfied.
In fact, Stoudemire said, "Yeah, we definitely got to the playoffs, which was a goal, but once we got there we want to do much more. And despite that we didn’t quite make it...further than the first round, we can use that to get better for next season."
Moreover, he asserted that "there's no question" that things would have been different if he and Chauncey Billups had not been dealing with injuries in the playoffs.
So in all, it seems as though the 2010-11 NBA season was, at the very least, a step in the right direction for the New York Knicks.
The NBA Draft and Free Agency
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With the 2010-11 NBA season now concluded, the 2011 NBA draft is right around the corner with free agency looming in the distance.
However, when questioned about any players or team needs which he would like to see the Knicks pursue, Amar'e Stoudemire stressed that these matters were best left to his team's management.
Nevertheless, he asserted, "We're going to try to improve the roster and see if we can win a championship."
What's more, Stoudemire maintained "it's definitely possible" that the Knicks would eventually try to acquire a player like Chris Paul, Dwight Howard or Deron Williams.
He went on to describe those players as "superstars" while declaring that it would be "tough to say" which player he would prefer.
What Next?
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It is a time filled with uncertainty for the NBA players.
First of all, due to the draft, free agency and trades, they have very little knowledge as to what their teams will ultimately look like at the start of next season.
And on top of that, the threat of a potential lockout is still looming over the NBA's head.
Nevertheless, one certainty is that Amar'e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony will continue to be the faces of New York Knicks basketball.
In fact, Stoudemire declared, "It's great playing with Carmelo...we're looking to do great things here."
But how exactly will they accomplish that?
Well, throughout Stoudemire's discussion with Bleacher Report, he continued to stress one thing: that he, Melo and the rest of the Knicks would continue to focus on improving so that they would be ready to make a run at the NBA championship.
More from Amar'e Stoudemire
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You can read more about what Amar'e Stoudemire had to say to Bleacher Report by following these links:
