By: Ryan Stein

For the second time in the 21st century, it's exciting to be a New York Knicks fan. Currently occupying the 4th seed in the Eastern Conference, the Knicks have greatly exceeded expectations this year on the back of a stellar defense. Furthermore, the Knicks have gotten a career year out of star power forward Julius Randle, whose season averages of 23.9 PPG, 10.5 RPG, and 6.1 APG are only matched by MVP-frontrunner Nikola Jokic. His monster year, coupled with the Knicks' shockingly good season, is going to put Randle into the top-5 in MVP voting this regular season.

Welcome back to Far-Fetched Friday, where every Friday we give you a bold prediction that we believe will come to fruition. This Friday, we look at the Eastern Conference.

When coming to this determination, I realized there were probably four players that will most likely place ahead of Randle in MVP voting, and deservedly so: Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid, Steph Curry, and Giannis Antetokounmpo. The fifth spot is still up for grabs, however, and players like James Harden, Randle, LeBron James, and Damian Lillard will all be in the mix. 

While any placing outside of number one in the MVP voting doesn't really matter, it still provides context on the league's top dogs. Julius Randle has had a terrific season, but he still isn't usually talked about in the upper echelon of the league's players. This year's MVP voting will change that though, as Randle has the stats, winning team, and narrative to get a significant number of votes. 

Bringing a consistently awful franchise back to relevance in the world's biggest market is one of the biggest stories of the season, and Randle's top 5 finish in the MVP race will solidify the Knicks' stellar season.