Are the Knicks Actually a Threat to the Heat in the Eastern Conference Playoffs?

With last night's win over the Miami Heat the New York Knicks took the season series from Miami 3-1. There were two blowout Knicks wins early in the year followed by a LeBron show at the Garden and then another Knicks win last night against what was basically the Heat JV squad. So that brings us to our question, are the Knicks actually a threat to the Heat come playoff time?

Before I fully answer that question let me just say that we have our realistic Knicks fans and our delusional Knicks fans. The delusional Knicks fan will look at this information and say the Knicks are better than the Heat. But the realistic Knicks fan will look below the surface and see that the Heat are just a better basketball team. And that leaves our answer with no, the Knicks are not a real threat to the Heat in the postseason.

"But Melo dropped 50 last night bro." Yeah against the fucking B squad. No LeBron, no Wade and no Chalmers. Here's a newsflash, if those three guys play the Heat not only win the game but Melo doesn't score 50. Why? Because LeBron would most likely be guarding him and LeBron doesn't allow guys to score 50. Look at how LeBron shut down Melo in the 4th quarter in the Heat win at MSG. It was like Melo wasn't even on the floor.

Finally, let's get real. The Knicks are old and slow. Sure, let's call Melo a superstar but he's not a superstar who makes his teammates better. LeBron and Wade are superstars who make everyone around them better. There is one way and one way only that the Knicks have a chance against Miami if they meet in the Eastern Conference Finals. If Melo leaves some points on the floor and gets the ball inside to Chandler and Kenyon Martin. If that can happen, the Knicks have a chance. You're not beating Miami by running and gunning with them. You're beating them by winning the battle inside, and being efficient because they can't run a fast break off a made basket. But if Melo, JR Smith and Felton want to settle for jumpers and long rebounds all day then LeBron and Wade will turn it into a track meet. And as we saw in last years finals, even the youngest and fastest teams in the NBA can't beat the Heat in a track meet.