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NEW YORK -- Even as Lenny Wilkens aims to keep early expectations low, there's no doubt the New York Knicks are setting the bar higher for the longer term.

"Our expectation, basically, is to go further," said Stephon Marbury, who struggled as the Knicks were swept out of the first round of the playoffs last spring by the New Jersey Nets.

Still, it was New York's first appearance in the postseason in three years -- a tangible sign that the long-awaited evolution out of the Patrick Ewing era was finally taking a turn for the better.

Wilkens came in at midseason after Don Chaney was fired, one of many shake-ups made by team president Isiah Thomas after he took over for Scott Layden in December.

A month of training camp and exhibition games has left the Knicks' players more comfortable with each other after they were thrown together on the fly last season.

And although they'll be without Allan Houston at the start of the season while he continues his slow recovery from chronic knee pain, they believe they've found an adequate replacement in Jamal Crawford, acquired from Chicago in the offseason.

"My greatest area of confidence is the fact we've had a whole month together before the season starts, gotten familiar with each other. I think that'll certainly be an advantage that we didn't have last season," Wilkens said. "And the worry is that we've got a tough start. If you look at our schedule, its not an easy schedule in the beginning."

Indeed, five of the Knicks' first eight opponents are Minnesota, Indiana, Houston, San Antonio and Dallas -- and New York will be the road team in all five games.

But by the time the first eight to 10 weeks of the season shake out, the Knicks believe they'll have established themselves as one of the stronger teams in the Eastern Conference's middle class, behind the three teams regarded as the strongest: Detroit, Miami and Indiana.

Whether the Knicks can make the leap into that top echelon will depend in large part on two factors: how hard they play defense, and whether Houston -- the highest-paid player on the team and one of the few remaining links to the Knicks of the '90s -- comes back after sitting out the entire preseason.

Houston, the team's best outside shooter, has given no indication of his timetable for returning.

"We're not evasive," Wilkens said. "I just don't know. I can't tell you what I don't know. I have to wait until he says he's ready to get out there. I'm going to be patient. I'm not going to go nuts about it."

Crawford will start in the backcourt alongside Marbury, with Penny Hardaway backing up at shooting guard and small forward. Tim Thomas, Kurt Thomas and Nazr Mohammed comprise the starting front line, and the bench rotation will include Michael Sweetney at power forward and Vin Baker at center.

Rookie Trevor Ariza will play ahead of Shandon Anderson, whose contract, with three years and $18 million remaining, has prevented the Knicks from finding a taker in a trade.

"Our biggest strength is our depth," Crawford said. "We don't really lose anything from our first to second unit."

The Knicks' key component will once again be Marbury, whose eight-year career has been marked by four first-round playoff exits and three changes of address.

Marbury, who was left frustrated by his poor performance with the U.S. Olympic team in Athens, is comfortable raising expectations for himself and his team.

In his mind, the two biggest problems from last season -- a lack of familiarity and the absence of an insurance policy behind Houston -- have been solved.

"One, we've played with each other. And two, we have Jamal Crawford as an addition," Marbury said. "He's definitely a person who brings a lot to the team, and Sweetney's gotten a lot better. We've all gotten better as a team."

Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press

This story is from ESPN.com's automated news wire. Wire index