Fresh off an Olympic gold medal, playing with the best players in the world, Carmelo Anthony -- never svelte, but in shape for a change -- was all smiles as he prepped for the 2012-13 season, focused on propelling the New York Knicks beyond the first round.

That was until someone reminded him that he'll probably have to do it without Amar'e Stoudemire. Forced to carry the offensive load yet again, Anthony felt compelled to sigh, put his head down and walk away.

That moment of palpable frustration isn't about to go away, ladies and gentlemen, no matter what the Knicks would have you believe. The moment it was announced that Stoudemire's perpetual knee issues would have him out for at least the first six weeks, Knicks fans might as well have taken their lofty aspirations and thrown them in the trash.

Melo was all smiles in London. Garrett W. Ellwood/Getty Images

Right now, anyone who thinks the Knicks are getting out of the first round should be examined by a doctor. This team is, arguably, not even the fifth-best team in the Eastern Conference.

It's time to be real, folks: The Miami Heat and Boston Celtics are the top two teams. The Philadelphia 76ers are better with Andrew Bynum, one of only two legitimate centers in the East. The Indiana Pacers are rough, rugged and old-school. The Brooklyn Nets didn't spend $82 million, along with acquiring Joe Johnson, to play second fiddle. And that especially applies to their mentality when it comes to the Knicks, with the Nets being the new boys in town, hell-bent on stealing the hearts of New Yorkers.

"We feel good about ourselves," Knicks coach Mike Woodson told me. "We believe in ourselves. We believe in our personnel and what we can do. And we expect to be better than we were last year. We know what level of success we're in pursuit of."

So be it!

Far be it from me or anyone else to doubt Woodson or the team the Knicks assembled. After all, they were five points better defensively once Woodson took over the helm from Mike D'Antoni.

Anthony is a closer extraordinaire. There's no viable reason to dismiss the acquisition of Raymond Felton and Jason Kidd as point guards, since Anthony desperately needed them. And if nothing else, Kurt Thomas and Rasheed Wallace should be good for six fouls and some quality, albeit minimal, minutes -- even if they add years to the league's oldest roster.