The New York Knicks appear to be precisely what we thought they would be all along: a team with two highly paid stars, saddled with high expectations but destined for nonexistence in the pantheon of championship contenders. The thing is, those assumptions were made with the belief the Knicks would simply be second-class citizens in the Eastern Conference. Not playing second fiddle in their own city. Yet here we are a week into NBA free agency and, before basketball even matters again, the Knicks already find themselves inching toward irrelevancy. Sure, it's nice that they'll officially land Jason Kidd this week, nabbing themselves an experienced floor general capable of nurturing their point guard of the future in Jeremy Lin. But anyone who thinks the roster in Manhattan is better than the one already assembled in Brooklyn might need to visit their nearest eye doctor. Make no mistake, it was the Brooklyn Nets making news this week instead of the New York Knicks. Not only did the Nets re-sign Deron Williams to $98 million over the next five years, but they pulled off a trade for a six-time All-Star guard in Joe Johnson, assembling one of the top three backcourts in the entire NBA. Couple that with the Nets having the tough and rugged Gerald Wallace as their small forward to buffer a front line that, for the moment, includes Brook Lopez and Kris Humphries, and the possibility that they may not get Dwight Howard doesn't appear so ominous after all. "It was a tough decision," Williams told reporters following his decision to remain with the Nets. "I was really close to heading to Dallas, but I looked at the pieces we had here." We know what pieces the Knicks have. And history alone should tell us the picture isn't that pretty at 33rd Street and Seventh Avenue. Read more: http://espn.go.com/new-york/nba/sto...ks-danger-playing-second-fiddle-brooklyn-nets
