2011 Game Thread: Knicks vs. Magic
March 28th, 2011 by Brian Cronin | Comments | Permalink |
For your in-game discussion.
Melo says this is a “must-win.”
He is mistaken, but it sure would be a nice win!
- 5:02 am - ephus on Some Thoughts on J.R. Smith
- 2:45 am - yellowboy90 on Some Thoughts on J.R. Smith
- 2:38 am - yellowboy90 on Some Thoughts on J.R. Smith
- 2:36 am - ruruland on Some Thoughts on J.R. Smith
- 2:20 am - EB on Some Thoughts on J.R. Smith
- BasketballBoards.Net
- Buckets Over Broadway
- Knicks City
- Knicks Now
- KnicksFan
- KnicksOnline.com
- MSG Knicks
- Newsday Knicks Coverage
- NY Post Knicks Blog
- NYC Sports Report
- NYKFanPage.Com
- PostingAndToasting.com
- RealGM
- The Knicks Blog
- The Knicks Fix
- The Ship Be Sinking
- UltimateKnicks.com
- 82Games.Com
- Aaron Gleeman
- APBRmetrics
- Basketball-Reference
- BasketballProspectus
- BasketballValue.com
- BC Sports Treehouse Fort
- Black Fives
- Bullets Forever
- Bulls Blog
- Dime Magazine
- Eric Neel
- Forum Blue & Gold
- Hooped Up
- Hoopinion
- HoopsAnalyst
- Kelly Dwyer
- MavsCentral
- Popcorn Machine's GameFlows
- RaptorBlog
- Sactown Royalty
- SI's Point Forward
- Steveohville Speakeasy
- The Wages of Wins Journal
- The X’s & O’s of Basketball
- Traxx Radio
- TrueHoop
- WOXY
Recent Comments
Shirts
Sponsors
Schedule
Knicks
Links
Counter
Glad this is not a must win because I don’t see how they can win.
I have absolutely no reason to say this based on the recent string of beyond awful play, but I just have a hunch the Knicks may actually show up to play this game. Call me crazy, which I definitely am to have any faith in this bunch.
arenas is supposedly starting. Nelson – out. Not sure how that helps us since arenas burned us pretty good last game although he has the potential to play terribly.
Nelson not starting is huge. Not sure Arenas has seen this heavy a workload in a while. I see TD giving him major fits.
Not sure I wanna watch this game.
E is starting. Eeech.
I’m DDLing if you guys want to come there to commiserate.
I did it last week. Crowd’s getting pretty brutal.
I was doing a show in Louisville so I (fortunately) missed the last two games.
Back again for my RDA of agita.
I just got back from this amazing trip to Italy and I feel like this is going to ruin a great mood.
Don’t watch, go record the game, enjoy that good feeling and then if you must torture yourself watch it later.
Yep. Looks like I haven’t missed much
Never been happier to see Chris Duhon.
Duhon is going to be the bad player that steps up. 15 and 8.
Aren’t you supposed to use your fouls against Howard in situations where he will shoot FTs?
looking good so far, despite the score. Good looks.
Extra-E with the 3…he looked a little less hesitant on that shot.
Man, Amar’e has had zero lift on those two layup attempts.
Melo stops Howard then gets the rebound.
I can live with that.
They’re playing hard, if not well/smart
Magic playing horribly with 5 TO’s and the game is tied. Not a good sign.
@21, maybe.
But the Knicks actually have a defensive game plan this time around, and maybe that has something to do with the Magic TOs…I know at least 3 of those were from shock that the Knicks were challenging their path to the hoop.
Clyde and I finally have a second thing in common: we both love Snickers.
I love the way melo is playing. He’s moving the ball, playing defense, moving.
Good quarter!
Not perfect, but a step in the right direction.
I’m only watching this game because I discovered my AppleTV has NBA League Pass Broadband support all of a sudden… And it is lightyears more user-friendly than the browser versions, and somehow has better, more continuous picture. Go Apple!
@22 part of that game plan is doubling Howard. I’m not saying it’s a horrible strategy, but Van Gundy will figure out a way at halftime of making the Knicks pay, probably with wide open 3′s by Hedo and J-Rich. I’d almost rather play hack-a-Dwight, he can’t keep shooting 90% from the FT line against us.
Melo is playing Dantoni style, and the offense is much more fluid. Here’s the rub.the supporting cast is weak. If they don’t execute Melo will be inclined to do it himself. but a step in the right direction.
The refs are clearly very confused by our defensive activity, cuz they’re calling everything.
Amar’e looks like Ewing in 1999.
Walker had a fastbreak layup to put the Knicks up 7, instead he loses control of the ball, Knicks dont score and the game is now tied. Little plays like that have killed the Knicks recently.
Where’s DDL? I need a good knicks bar
If they play hard and smart, and lose, I can live with that. At least it’s good basketball.
If, after the horrible play lately, you guys can’t see some positives so far tonight I understand.
But they’re there.
DDL is like a bar, except digital and with a far angrier clientele.
It may be an ugly game but I like it. They’re moving on O and trying on D. Bill Walker the latest out of rotation guy to play well when given time.
Totally agree, but I’m a little greedier. Take advantage of their 2nd best player being out and get the damn W.
Fields with the Houston bounce on that baseline jumper.
Not gonna get my hopes up, but the appear to be moving the ball well.
Anyone got a good stream they’re watching?
“Still working on Du-hand”
oh Clyde……
http://www.soccertvlive.net/watch/57232/1/watch-new-york-knicks-vs-orlando-magic.html
“Still working on the hond of Du-hand…”
Thanks Robert. Link 1 wasn’t working for me earlier but it might be my internet connection too…
Arenas just psychosomatically gave Van Gundy an ulcer
League pass broadband is 25 bucks for the rest of the year, support the Association y’all!
Knicks are clearly a better team with Douglas in over Billups right now.
TD should get the crunch minutes.
@45 absolutely. And maybe cost him another handful of hair.
If not for Gilbert Arenas’ suckitude and Jameer Nelson’s DNP status the Magic would be killing us.
No matter how many times Clyde says it I always get a chuckle out of Kung Fu Fighting
Thanks Bobby! Great clear picture.
Any half in which Howard has 4 points is a good half.
I know, those poor poor team owners (cue the tiny violin.)
If your aunt had testicles, she’d be your uncle.
I guess that’s what defensive effort looks like. I can’t even wrap my head around how horrible Arenas looks.
Not trying to be negative here, but with virtually the entire Orlando back court out and Howard getting 0 points, the knicks only lead by 4?
I think that bodes badly for us…
I’m just a poor medical student =(
Eh. Melo and TD are both off. If one of them steps up, we should be ok. I swear if we can just shoot a minimum of 45% and 33% from three every night, we’ll win a lot. We’ve just been shooting so poorly over this loosing streak.
4 points
I know we have looked at scoring now v. before, but has anyone looked at efficiency now v. before?
Hey… look what the cat dragged in? Kick D!
Arenas has a +3 so far for the night, haha
What worries me is that we’ve been saying that for the last few games… “They’re moving well (fine?) without the ball” “they look more in sync on d” “At least tonight the effort is there”… Every night there has been some improvement, but they don’t seem to be able to carry it over to the next game… Hell, most of the time they don’t seem to be able to carry it over to the 4th quarter..
In other (reasonably) good news: bucks are leading the ‘Cats.
I bet Dwight Howard has 40 points on us in the 3rd quarter lol.
melo had only six point s in the half and i think it’s one of the best half’s i’ve seen him play. He didn’t look happy walking off the court, but hope i’m wrong about that.
by going 0-7 with 4 TOs? impressive.
He probably won’t be happy until we win. I do agree that he’s playin his heart out though. Despite the suckish-level scoring.
Philly is spanking Chicago!
Yeah I did, back when Spree8 or something like that and I had a flame war… I still have a spreadsheet around my home pc somewhere… Bottom line we are like 5% lower in effective fg% and like 3% lower in regular fg%… And that was like a week ago, the night we lost in Milwaukee before losing to Boston…
That sounds about right.
Knicks have the tie-breaker vs the Bobcats and not the Bucks so not sure if its that big a deal. Bucks 1 game back of Bobcats.
We have been good on offense since the trade, that hasn’t been the problem…
boxscore wonder: Knicks have out-rebounded Magic on the offensive end!
I think our magic number is 4 with the bobcats. A win here and a loss there should account for 2.
I sound like a broken record but… But we are scoring more, in a less efficient matter… Maybe Shawne gets past his finger injury and we become a dynasty???
Um. No foul on Howard there?
Wow, that’s unbelievable Howard blatantly hacks Easy E on one end and no call, then E barely touches him on the other end, 2 shots. Ridiculous.
What are these fouls they are calling for Howard??
E with the corner 3. I think his misses are mostly from other spots. He still seems good from the corners. Of course he misses as I type and Orlando takes the lead.
Are you kidding?
I feel bad for D’Antoni. He looks like he’s having a tough time.
CRJOE – From Mike’s most recent post.
Although the New York offense has gotten better (from 109.8 to 110.4 pts/100 poss) since making the deal, that doesn’t address the specific matter of Carmelo making his teammates better. And from the evidence at hand it appears that the theory of a great scorer opens up opportunities for his teammates is overstated.
Ugh
Stoudemire just doesnt get calls
Some great passes from Amare tonight.
Got to give Breen some credit for noting that Howard should be MVP.
I stand corrected…
I can’t tell if I like that fact that Melo smiles a lot out there. Is he not intense enough?
Dude I’m having fun with this game… It could be I’m watching it with the lowest expectations, but I’m pretty glad to see Melo trying in D, and a couple of bodies making things difficult in the lane… I just hope they don’t crumble once again in the 4th… Even if they lose at the very least die with your boots on…
Howard is the best player in the NBA this year IMO. No one dominates all facets of the game like he does right now. In fact I don’t think it’s close… and he’s not even close to his full offensive potential yet.
Pirate if you want — I’ve certainly done my fair share in my day — but if you love the product, you should pay for it IMO. Watch 8 more Knicks games by EOY, you’re talking just over THREE BUCKS A GAME. And you won’t have to deal with all that crap searching for a shitty feed. It’s a good deal for a great product (Knicks recent play notwithstanding)
“Dude I’m having fun with this game… It could be I’m watching it with the lowest expectations, but I’m pretty glad to see Melo trying in D, and a couple of bodies making things difficult in the lane…”
I think that might be the method to all our killjoy magic…
Howard should definitely be the MVP.
Go Melo!
Although if you want to know why Melo isn’t a great player it’s that rebound he let Anderson get right there, never should have happend, just lazy…
I like this Shelden kid. He should start. He looks like he tries and he’s got some meat on his bones.
He’s so frustrating. 19 points in the quarter, then that lazy rebounding effort and that horrible possession as the clock expires. You just get the feeling that Carmelo could be so fantastic, with just some small changes. But who knows if he’ll ever make them.
Well Dwight is certainly getting the MVP calls
Celtics lose again, in Indiana. Those midseason trades will bite you on the butt every time (-:
Why does Leon Wood hate us so much?
I’m definitely getting it next year… Moving back to Costa Rica…
Interesting lineup to start the 4th quarter. Not in a good way lol.
Melo said that all he wants is to win, but he only seems happy when he’s scoring.
Now, he’s back to shooting like crazy, not moving, not passing. Yeah, he’s scoring a lot and the fans like it, but usually ends in a loss. An ugly loss.
&%$* that trash from Turkoglu.
Tough ass shot by Turkeygule
Damn, Amare should not try to dribble unless he can look down and see orange.
Point guard and Douglas v size and height offense rather than defense to begin the fourth. If Douglas gets hot we win if he’s cold we lose
D’Antoni should leave Billups on the bench for the rest of the game.
I don’t think you can just leave Melo on the bench here for half the quarter. That’s one major part of the rotations that I can’t understand. Melo and Stat need to play at least like the last 9 minutes of the quarter together. MDA needs to figure that out.
Wasn’t the last game with Orlando also a whistlefest?
Horrible lineup to start the 4th quarter. AC/JJ/Walker all playing along with TD and Amar’e.
Another fine start to the 4th quarter
These officials aren’t giving us any help
Why is Jeffreak playing instead of Earl Barron? I just don’t get it.
everytime Carmelo lines up one of these terrible shots I start writing out a complaint, but then he makes them. Long may he continue to shut me up.
Someone should put that clip of Melo failing to help out rebounding in a post, don’t know how but it would be killer…
He’s cold sigh
Wow, Melo playing in your face D.
THE DEFENSE HAS ARRIVED!!!!!
Hopefully it stays here for a while.
Itchy trigger finger seems to be going around these days. He’s playing a really good game.
There’s your smile after the defense, hoolahoop
some terrible calls to go against the knicks, the mystery fall by howard
Breen bellowing “Why can’t he (Melo) do this every night?”
Were getting everything we want from this bunch we just need 10 points from the SG position. Were not getting down low right now period no prob let’s go TD
I hope SOMEBODY is telling him that if he plays defense like that all the time, he’ll be the best player in the NBA.
I cant stand Billups
Well he just shut me up
Ugh. That was a bad turn of events.
redemption as I type.
See that’s smart iso ball. Turkeyglue’s got 5 — and is a bad defender — you take it at him every time.
Orlando is playing no D they obviously are banking on a knick collapse.
I liked that, terrible possession, 8 sec left… Just give me the ball and get the hell away, even if he hadn’t been fouled I’d still like the idea…
Wow Sheldon.
Wow Melo.
Carmelo Anthony is really feeling it.
Another no. … yes moment. MELO!!!!
Well that was just absurd.
billups the ball stopper, not melo?
Sheldon has played really well this game
Not the prettiest possession, but it worked.
I said GO NY GO NY GO!
Jeez, Owen, give it a rest!
HOOO SHIT.
Quick bucket from Douglas turns the game on its head the carmelo iso is working offense defeats defense tonight.
Shelden!
Shelden Williams just earned my respect.
no, with 2 mins to go, half court / iso game is the smart move – if you are up by 4
i really hate billups’ play, just causing the offense to remain stagnant, he also allowed the 3 orlando pointer after missing his mr.big shot 3 pointer in transition
SHELDON WILLIAMS!!!!
She Will!!!
(I’m a couple minutes back in the time lag – oops)
THE LANDLORD IS EVICTING TENANTS
Nice! Amare was wide open all possession.
Shelden’s been huge. He looks like a noticeable step up from Jeffries and Extra E.
It’s just me and I know Melo deserves it, but I might give the game ball to Shelden for at least impersonating a real center tonight….
Shelden again. This time with the offensive rebound.
FINALLY!!! Chauncey DOESN’T take the quick 3
she-williams!!! my new fave player, please perform like this every night
What a sight Carmelo and toney walking in each others arms that’s the togetherness that makes a good defensive spell.
You hate to give the guy a starting nod with one performance…. but Shelden Williams deserves the starting nod with this one performance.
What on earth is D’Antoni thinking.
+1
Great job on D by Shelden. Guarding Dwight Howard and his tiny ears cannot be easy.
lame
Sheldon should be starting, turiaf backing up, and jefferies on the bench
Now this putz gets hot?
TD for the win !!!
That was some nice dishing
great dish from melo…i was afraid he was going to force it.
Melo made the right play!
what does it say about ur team when ur $100 million star gets subbed out for offense defense…. for jared jeffries
See? Melo always has to go and ruin a good thing. Can’t he just look for a teammate once in a while?
Awesome feed from Melo. He’s full of pleasant surprises tonight.
How the hell did MDA not call a timeout there and get STAT back in the game??????
That just ruined the whole thing.
Stat’s face coming off the bench after that play was ridiculous.
I am shocked by that move.
MELO PASSES!
I’ve been killing Melo since this trade, but he’s really looked wonderful tonight. Self-less, hard-working, the whole shebang. Encouraging signs.
Melo makes the “LeBron-esque” play finding TD on the baseline
That was the shot before I was talking about.
Selfless. Why didn’t they foul?
jeffries did play some good D on the perimeter, on the sequence before, please do not let arenas burn us again
Basketball gods, please be good to us here.
It takes a giant forehead to cover tiny ears?
One more from TD off the melo Iso. Please.
I really wish you hadn’t said that
Was that Jeffries on Richardson?
Please, no overtime!
Good grief.
Ruined what thing? The play where they scored? D’Antoni has explained a number of times that the doesn’t like to call time out down the stretch, because he wants to avoid allowing the other team to sub in defensive specialists and set their defense.
Jared Jeffries is not my favorite player…
Shush Clyde.
this is deflating
wtf jeffries I mean seriously
how do they not foul
This is even more exciting! Are you kidding me?
DAMMIT!
I can’t take this anymore…
Fields was wide open.
This really has been the best and worst of Melo in a nutshell…
How does D’antoni not call for a foul with those 10 seconds left…?
Seriously, what’s the point of Jeffries? I know he’s a pretty good defender, but he can’t shoot, he can’t pass, he can’t dribble and he doesn’t rebound.
@196, yes, but Melo had 3 guys on him and couldn’t have made that pass safely.
Man, I don’t believe in curses and all of that hippie crap but I’m starting to wonder.
Crap
If they pull this one out, I think it augurs well for the rest of the season.
No way they win in OT. Magic win by 7 or 8. The torture continues.
why does Melo go one on four there. Stat had his guy backed down in the paint. Smaller, weaker. Melo goes one on four
(NBA JAM voice) OVERTIME!
melo, going 1 on 3. that’s the shot.
yeah it might be too much to come back after that, also no shelden williams to play D, we’re pretty much fucked, thanks Jared Jeffries, you piece of shit, why, why
that MDA defensive sub felt wrong. he’s coaching nervous. it was the wrong move. we’re effed.
Seriously guys, wtf was he supposed to do?
Pass through 3 guys across the court?
That’s your idea of high percentage basketball?
The game is tied because he missed it, yes, but it’s also tied because he’s been scoring and passing and defending all games.
This was absolutely MDA’s worst coaching performance of the season. This is 100% on him.
Subbing out Amare for Jeffries should almost cost him his job.
And, DRed, you go away from your “I don’t call a timeout at end of games” philosophy when your best player is not in the game.
I have never agreed with the ideology, but anyone who knows d[antoni[s career knows he is philosophically opposed to giving the foul….really stupid….dont you recall when phoenix blue a game allowing tim duncan to shoot a 3 in and force OT in the playoffs.
d’antoni has got to be one of the worst coaches in late game situations… he has consistently fucked up in last second defensive situations by not using the fouls properly, and hes teams go completely iso and standstill on their own last second shots- never get anything good off…. u would think with two of the best offensive players in the game he might be able to come up with a clever last second scheme
jeffries was afraid to foul him? like seriously what was his reasoning for not even fucking JUMPING
I understand we all have ptsd, but if we lose that will be agonizing enough…no need to start the suffering early with cowardly declarations that we’ll lose for sure.
I’m with Breen, can we go to STAT?
put derrick brown in instead of jeffries, is that possible?
Let’s all just try and DWTDD.
Yeah if they pull this out D’Antoni should buy every one of these guys a new car.
F-that, we’re winning this one. This from Debbie Downer.
Yes, that’s exactly what he supposed to do in that situation. Find the open MEN.
GET OUT AND RUN BABY!!!
Wow that was actually “gorgeous”.
My roommate stepped on the router plug with 1:20 to go and the Knicks up 6. By the time it was back up, there were 5 seconds left and the game is tied, AYFKM????
looking pretty determined right now.
But if Jameer, or any of their guards are healthy this game is over.
lucky bounce on the miss, as bass was wide open for the offensive rebound just jumped too soon
@221 I’m not an idiot, and I’m not a flamer.
I just happen to believe that:
1) Melo was absolutely the right option then.
2) We’re going to win.
Come on guys, they can do it… I just know they can… This could be it…
We’re gonna win.
But seriously Jeffries – how are you in the nba?
Big Melo board!
yeah lucky that nelson is injured
How is Howard not the league MVP, btw?
Tobias Fünke, is that you?
Put HERB in, for chrissakes.
a lot of open 3′s for TD
Jared Jeffries: worst player in NBA history or merely terrible? Discuss!
gone cold
Stan Van Gundy when kvetching about calls, looks like a guy from Jersey trying to send back soup at a fancy restaurant.
Cant go with STAT he has to run back we need TD to hit that shot. If he’s hot we win easy the iso with movement beats the height.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We’re gonna win!
that’s why he’s not the MVP – he’s a maniac.
Horrible tech by him.
Now there will be no excuse if they lose.
howard complainig, but he got so many other calls tonight c’mon
na na na
na na na
hey hey hey
goodbye howard
How was hat not a foul on STAT?
Nice Melo
Man, howard got jobbed there….
Amare looks like he’s about to collapse.
good lord that was ugly by amare, thank you refs!
Our long nightmare may…may be over…
Two teams doing everything in their power to lose the game.
Ridiculous how Amare is nearly forgotten on offense
on a side note, espn 2 analysts just suggested that the Heat pick up Eddy Curry. “you know Pat Riley will get him into shape. What do you have to lose?”
How do they say that with a straight face?
Seriously?
Melo and Toney, getting it done for my fantasy team, oh yeah
Anyone else notice that Melo didn’t give billups the ball after he got the rebound? He knew he was gonna get fouled. He WANTED to shoot the FTs. I like that
Wish he’d made both – I didn’t like that
You’d need a forklift to pick up Eddy Curry. HAHAHA
Jameer out
Howard out
redick out
Turkoglu out
How is this still a game?
ok
You like that he didn’t give it to the statistically better FT shooter?
LMAO
Howards one of the best players in the league – yet the Bulls, Celtics, and Heat aren’t scared of the Magic at all. They’re team is full of wierdos. Who on that team has a normal personality (both on and off the court)? Bass and Richardson? That’s it.
jeffries please do not now try to play aggressive D and foul the 3 pointer
Smart coaching tonight we won the matchup game and our offense played what they gave.
I thought STAT got hit, that’s what I meant.
Say goodnight, Gracie
All I have to say is thank God we didn’t also throw Toney into the trade lol.
Hahahaha, gotcha. I figured that had to be it.
Book it!
Frank O, Owen, Hoola etc: a win is a win.
Whether the Magic had all personnel or not, I couldn’t care less.
Good play tonight…a good step in the right direction…and a good sign for all. Whether Melo should have made a nearly impossible pass on the last play of regulation or not. In fact, I’ll give you that. He should have. Now, are you okay with the other 37 points he scored or should we give those back?
Sheldon Williams impressed me tonight
“Amorphous blob” is a shape.
Gosh. Now I can finally bathe again.
Victory! This is still very much a work in progress, but hey, I’ll take it.
Knicks win. Hooray. I can finally shave my losing streak beard.
As bad as Stoudemire looked on offense tonight, he did get 20 points on just 10 shots
Say what you want about the Magic missing people, but Melo talked the talked and then walked the walk tonight
LOL Toney impersonating Melo’s “Who me?” gesture.
ball movement looked pretty good, i also thought anthony carter played pretty well, some good defense and some nice passes
throws coach under the bus…:)
someone had to.
d’Antoni should have called for the foul.
Very PC answer to Tina Cervasio’s question about not fouling at the end of games. Hopefully D’Antoni gets asked it at the postgame conference and doesn’t dodge the question
And he looked totally fine not having the ball down the stretch. Obviously he should have touched it a lot more, but I think Stat is big enough to take the emotional / spiritual leader mantle, if only because, if the rolls had been reversed, Melo probably would be pouting despite the win. Really a good sign from Stat, who I think emerges as the true leader in the long run.
I’m not gonna say anything negative tonight… I’m just gonna go to bed satisfied for the first time since the trade… If Melo played that way on D, EVERY OTHER NIGHT, he would be hands down the MVP…
He gave the ball back to Melo every time he got it. He was deferring to the hot guy, I have no problem with that.
Glad we got a win. Couldn’t watch much of it. I guess Toney Douglas really played well too. +17 despite the rough shooting?
next up, please do NOT LOSE TO THE NETS on national tv, k thanks
Ive had at least 5 heart attacks tonight…..
Amar’e had worse lift and quickness tonight than Ewing did in his final couple of seasons with the Knicks.
The fact that he had no problems not getting the ball on offense and still played hard on D and was celebrating and still very much into the game was great.
Also dare I say it, Knicks on the verge of a 4 game winning streak with next 3 games at home vs NJ, Cle and Tor?? Nah. lol
Maybe we can pick up 2 more wins before we face our arch nemesis, the awesome Cleveland Cavaliers.
tough game coming up on sunday vs. CLE
Yeah, you could see his athleticism is definitely back yet (due to fatigue or, god forbid, bad knees), but he played smartly and very within himself, didn’t really force things, and ended up with a very efficient line. His defensive effort was pretty good too
If Melo plays D like he did tonight, I don’t think the amazing Anthony Parker will be able to put his usual 30 points….
Amar’e had worse lift and quickness tonight than Ewing did in his final couple of seasons with the Knicks.
Yessir. And is it me, or are his legs getting wrapped higher with each passing game? I worry he may be mummifying before our very eyes.
1 game out of the last 8 Anthony looks like a superstar. Is it a sign of things to come or fool’s gold? I’ll check back with you in 8 games.
If Melo plays D like he did tonight, Kevin Durant wouldn’t score 30 points.
Billups had 10 asts/0 to last game. Tonight 6 asts/0 to. He is looking alot better (still needs to start making his 3′s more) and played pretty good D tonight as well.
If he can get back to 100% health, or as close to it as possible, there could still be some hope of not going down that easy in the playoffs. Also maybe finish over .500 as well??
Jeffries should just be released after not raising his hands on that Richardson 3, he certainly should be benched for the entire next game.
amazing effort by Melo on both ends tonight. I wish he was smarter, but maybe D’Antoni can help with that a little.
Shelden Williams with some essential minutes, it’s almost as if playing a real seven footer against Howard can help occasionally.
This win was a product of unquenchable desire on defense and a smart offense production. Without any quick guys on the magic all we had to do was pass the ball and stay with what works on offense. We had three quarters to set their defense up for a game of hot potato in the fourth. You can’t play that way if no one is hot though and Amare had to understand it wasn’t his night to score someone has to run back and force them to play like us.
Shelden’s 6’9″ (at most). If he was a 7-footer, he wouldn’t be a journeyman backup.
Just a random note: we’ve seen Melo play good D for the Knicks before. Remember the Heat game? Hopefully this isn’t a one-off thing
I dont think Melo is a bad on-ball defender at all. His problem is off the ball. Thats where the laziness on D comes into play. He loses sight of his man at times and isnt very quick to react on help defense.
Or at least jacking ‘em up less, if he cuts down on his 3′s, in favor of some ball movement, he wouldn’t look so bad as he has since he came back from injury..
I don’t think it is laziness as much as loss of focus.
The Knicks played their hearts out and were still lucky to get this one. Not a good sign going forward. It is excruciating to have to think about possibly missing the playoffs at this stage, even if the odds are greatly in our favor.
Billups played better tonight, but Orlando had no point guard so it’s hard to judge. Walker had a nice 2nd Q.
The Nets game will be a good test of whether we have progressed or whether this was just a fluky win. The 3-day rest will be nice, especially for Amar’e. Then the dreaded Cavs…
I think billups has looked worse more so when he tries to force the ball into the paint either via pass or by forgetting he has 34-year-old legs and can’t elevate to teh rim and attempts to dish while not really knowing what he is doing in mid-air…there actually was one play like that in OT and fortunately he found TD in the corner (who subsequently bricked a 3 that would ahve put us up 7)….that was dangerously close to a dumb TO and he also nearly had the ball swiped away by Turkoglu in OT….I can deal with the 3′s as he is a good enough shooter for it to be a net positive for the team….what scores me the most has been his poor decision-making and ball handling…hopefully that will change as he adjusts to the system more.
maybe we can draft Zeller?
so i read that the knicks can release billups’ contract and have 11 million leftover. Enough to sign someone like Deandre jordan or Gasol?
Pipe dream for the night: Knicks implode, Rockets don’t make the playoffs, Stern fixes it so that Knicks win lottery & Rockets get #2, they switch picks, Knicks draft Kyrie Irving, let Billups go, sign Nenê and STILL have money left over to make some sort of trade attempt at Howard next year!!!
Chances of happening: 1×10^-10 hahaha
More than enough, but… Gasol (best case), Amar’e, Melo, Landry & DWTDD… With Shawne, Turiaf, Walker, Mason, Balkman, Rautins??? We won’t win nothing with that bench… What if we work a sign a trade with Nene & Chauncey??? We’ll send him back to Denver, and we could still wind up with Birdman, or Harrington to round out the bench… Also in both cases we’d still need a backup PG… Ridnour maybe??? If Rubio actually comes…
Have to go back 300 or so posts and toot my own horn, but I will make no such prediction for the Nets game!
We’ll have a first round draft pick right? Problem is that we did trade a way too much of our depth, and we didn’t ask more than the scrubs from the Nuggets. yea She-williams had a great game tonight, but we should’ve tried for like you said Birdman, or JR Smith after giving away 3 of our key rotation players.
It may end up that giving away, Gallo, Chandler, Felton, and Moz will only translate into just Melo once we don’t pick up Chauncey’s option. And also the the draft pick giving away AR and 2 round draft picks, just thinking about it hurts my head.
Hey folks, recap is up. Not sure what’s more impressive: Melo’s 39, or this thread getting above 300. Nicely done.
i vote that we get rid of chauncey and his 14mil…let TD start…get earl watson as a back up pg, deandre jordan or dalmebert at Center (or both)…no need for a 3rd star if u have solid role players…and a real def coach
Well, nobody’s perfect.