What's Knicks Playoff Ceiling?

The New York Knicks are just a few days away from the start of their third consecutive playoff run as they take on the Detroit Pistons in their first-round series.

The Knicks are the higher seed and favorites against the Pistons, but the goal for New York goes beyond the first round.

The Knicks have a desire to reach their first Eastern Conference Finals since 2000 and win their first title since 1973, but ESPN writer Zach Kram believes that New York doesn't have the ability to get that far this year.

"If New York is healthy, it has the talent to beat anyone in a series. The starting five is that good. But there's little reliable depth beyond that group. The defense has struggled to slow the NBA's best opposing offenses and, most of all, the bracket won't do them any favors. The Knicks should advance to the second round, but once there, it would be a massive surprise if they managed to push the Celtics into a long series, let alone upset the defending champs," Kram writes.

The Celtics are likely going to be their second-round opponent, and they finished 10 games ahead of the Knicks in the standings to clinch the number two seed. The Knicks have also struggled mightily against the Celtics all year long, failing to win a single game in their four-game regular season series.

It will be a challenge to beat the Celtics, but the Knicks must first find a way to get past the Pistons, who are seeking their first playoff game victory since 2008. After winning just 14 games a year ago, they are coming in hot and hungry, so the Knicks cannot underestimate them going into the playoff series, which starts at Madison Square Garden.