NBA on NBC analysts Reggie Miller, Carmelo Anthony and Jamal Crawford agree: This is the Knicks' year to reach the NBA Finals

STAMFORD, Conn. — Reggie Miller and Carmelo Anthony are on opposite poles of Planet Knicks, one an all-time villain and the other a popular alumnus.

But they agree on one thing about the Knicks entering the 2025-26 season: It’s time.

“If the Knicks don’t come out of the East this year, something is wrong,” Miller told Newsday on Monday at an event at NBC Sports headquarters to promote the network’s return to carrying the NBA.

“I think New York will represent the East [in the NBA Finals], but if it doesn’t happen this year, it’s never going to happen .  .  . It is primed for them to come out of the East.”

Anthony told Newsday, “I agree with him on that.”

But might that put so much pressure on the team that it is counterproductive?

“I think it’s a great thing,” Anthony said. “They need to feel that energy. They need to feel that pressure, the urgency. If you look back to when Leon [Rose] put this together, he said this is a four- or five-year plan.

“So I think where we are at right now is the peak of that plan .  .  . I think right now we’ve positioned ourselves to do something special this year.”

Miller will be a game analyst for NBC and Anthony a studio analyst, working with Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady.

When the studio trio appeared together for a panel discussion, Carter and McGrady picked the Cavaliers in the East and poked fun at Anthony for his Knicks pick.

“They have this notion that New York thinks they’re better than everyone else,” Anthony said. “This whole season I will be dealing with that on the set.”

Another former Knick, Jamal Crawford, will be an NBC game analyst this season. He also picked the Knicks in the East.

He too was unconcerned about the pressure on them to take advantage of a season the Celtics’ and Pacers’ best players — Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton — will miss because of torn Achilles tendons.

“I think they put more pressure on themselves than what we can do on the outside,” Crawford told Newsday. “They know this time doesn’t last forever.”

While Anthony picked the Knicks as the No. 1 seed for the Eastern Conference playoffs, Miller said the Cavaliers might have a better record in the regular season, but barring major injuries, he expects the Knicks to prevail come spring.

“When the playoffs begin, it’s all about matchups,” Miller said, comparing basketball series with boxing matches. “Styles make fights. Indiana’s style has always bothered New York. Cleveland’s style doesn’t really bother them.”

One of the biggest Knicks story lines down the stretch last season was the fact that their two best players, Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns, are not top-level defenders. Miller said his former team, the Pacers, “exposed” the Knicks in last season’s Eastern Conference finals.

But with a new coach in Mike Brown and a tweaked system, NBC’s analysts think the Knicks will find a way around that problem.

“I think they’ll have more energy because the ball will move more,” Crawford said. “They won’t have the same responsibilities as far as making everything happen. They’ll have more energy for defense and everything else.”

The assumption is that Brunson will be able to play off the ball more often, easing his burden.

Anthony repeatedly referred to the Knicks, for whom he played from 2011-17, as “we,” a habit he might have to learn to lose in his new job. But that will not alter his view.

“They have everything that you could possibly need,” he said.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver, who grew up in New York, attended Monday’s event and was asked what it means to the league to have a contender in the city.

He tried to remain neutral but acknowledged, “It’s great, obviously, to have a competitive Knicks program.”

Said Crawford, “If they stay healthy, and with coach Mike Brown and some fresh energy, I think this is their run.”

By Neil Best

neil.best@newsday.com@sportswatch

Neil Best first worked at Newsday in 1982, returned in 1985 after a detour to Alaska and has been here since, specializing in high schools, college basketball, the NFL and most recently sports media and business.