J.R. Smith hasn't been able to stay out of the headlines this offseason. The Knicks shooting guard and reigning Sixth Man of the Year has made back pages for knee surgery, driving an outlandish vehicle through the city streets, earning a drug suspension, and most recently, guaranteeing a 2013-2014 Knicks championship.
Smith told the The New York Post he was "100 percent sure" that the Knicks would end their 40-year run without an NBA title, and also took a shot at the Brooklyn Nets saying, "they're still not good." The Nets added Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Jason Terry on draft night this offseason and have made it their mission to own New York.
Terry has responded to Smith's guarantee in typical fashion. "Maybe the Rucker Park Championship," Terry said. I don't know, not the NBA championship. I don't see how they could guarantee that, at all. I'm not buying it, so ... I mean, it's a bitter rivalry, you know it's going to be intense, and however they feel over there in that locker room they are guaranteed and entitled to feel that way but we don't want to see that happen on our watch."
Terry and Smith have a history; this past postseason Smith's play fell off a clip after elbowing Terry in the face late in a Game 3 victory over the Boston Celtics in Round 1. Smith's shooting dropped precipitously following that boneheaded decision.
The sharp-shooting Terry stopped short of guaranteeing a Nets title, but made no secret of Brooklyn's championship ambitions. "We are going to kick butt and take names, and hopefully that's gonna end up in a championship," Terry said on ESPN New York radio. Later in the chat, he couldn't help himself though.
He predicted point guard Deron Williams would take home the MVP award, then stated the Nets would win the O'Brien trophy, albeit less emphatically. "There's something in the air here that says the Brooklyn Nets will be the NBA champions next year."
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