A Bold Prediction

I am going to make a bold prediction right now for the upcoming NBA season.  Amar'e Stoudamire will lead the league in scoring.  I really believe this is possible and there are several factors leading me to make this statement.  He is the healthiest he has been in years and is playing to prove he is worthy of the contract he just received.  In the preseason he averaged around 26 points while playing only 27 minutes per game.  That was the highest scoring total for anyone in the league.  I know it is only the preseason, but that is still very impressive.    

In the regular season he wilIl be playing close to 40 minutes a game and he is the main offensive threat on the Knicks.  He shoots over 80% from the foul line and over 50% from the field.   He is also playing in the Mike D'Antoni offensive system which will give him more opportunities to score than any other system in basketball.  While playing under D'Antoni in Phoenix he flourished and since then his offensive game has evolved greatly.  He has added a jump shot to his game and can even hit a three once in a while.  Furthermore, the Knicks play no defense and will be forced into a lot of high scoring games, resulting in more points scored for Amar'e  

Many of the big scorers in the league might have their point totals come down a bit this season. 

1. LeBron is now playing with Wade and Bosh and will be more of a point-forward type of player.  He will score his points, but the offensive production will not solely be on him like it was in Cleveland. 

2. Wade will have his scoring totals come down for the same reasons as LeBron.   He is also always hurt.

3. Kobe is getting older and will share more of the offensive load with Pau Gasol.  As he has gotten older, he has become more of a team player. 

4. Carmelo is unhappy in Denver and might not be at his best.  He also could be traded and his scoring totals could be affected depending on the team he goes to. 

The main threat to Stoudamire winning the scoring title will be defending scoring champ Kevin Durant.  Durant is an offensive beast and is only getting better.  He carried the U.S team over the summer in the World Championship games, leading the team in scoring.  My hope is that he becomes more of an all around player and some of the young players on the Thunder help him out with the offensive load.  It might be a long shot to hope for this, but that is why they call it a bold statement. 

Regardless if he wins the scoring title, he will be the best player the Knicks have had since Patrick Ewing, and makes them a playoff contender.  For Knick fans, that is much more than anything they have received from the team in many years.