[news.google.com] — Saturday, January 14, 2023 7:04:21 AM
Kyle Kuzma Racks Up 40 Points Against The Knicks RotoBaller
[news.google.com] — Saturday, January 14, 2023 6:50:18 AM
Eastern Conference Recaps, Jan. 13: Jalen Brunson, Julius Randle Lead Knicks Past Wizards Sports Illustrated
[news.google.com] — Saturday, January 14, 2023 5:00:00 AM
Former Celtics, Knicks player has a $500,000 bounty on his head. Here’s why PennLive
[news.google.com] — Saturday, January 14, 2023 4:25:54 AM
Will the Milwaukee Bucks pursue the Knicks’ Immanuel Quickley at the trade deadline? Sports Illustrated
[news.google.com] — Saturday, January 14, 2023 2:03:26 AM
New York puts road win streak on the line against Detroit The State
[news.google.com] — Saturday, January 14, 2023 1:17:00 AM
Knicks hold off Wizards despite another big night from Kyle Kuzma The Washington Post
[news.google.com] — Saturday, January 14, 2023 12:04:00 AM
Knicks’ Quentin Grimes endorses Jericho Sims for Slam Dunk Contest New York Post
[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 10:09:00 PM
Fans went ballistic as LA Lakers target Kyle Kuzma dropped 40 on New York Knicks: “LeBron was holding him back!” Sportskeeda
[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 9:53:00 PM
Knicks hold on to beat Wizards after nearly squandering another lead New York Post New York Knicks vs. Washington Wizards Prediction, Preview, and Odds – 1-13-2023 Winners and WhinersEastern Conference Recaps, Jan. 13: Jalen Brunson, Julius Randle Lead Knicks Past Wizards Sports Illustrated
[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 9:43:21 PM
N.Y. Knicks 112, Washington 108 SFGATE
[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 8:27:33 PM
This Knicks-Pistons Trade Features Obi Toppin NBA Analysis Network
[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 6:41:46 PM
Knicks’ Tom Thibodeau is debunking stereotypes New York Daily News
[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 6:37:43 PM
“You wanna arrest me like Charles Oakley?!”: When $60 million … The Sportsrush
[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 6:00:00 PM
How to Watch Washington Wizards vs. New York Knicks: Free Live Stream, TV Channel, Start Time Sports Illustrated
[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 5:18:45 PM
Wizards’ Bradley Beal, Kristaps Porzingis injury status vs. Knicks ClutchPoints
[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 5:11:45 PM
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[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 4:46:46 PM
Knicks at Wizards: How & Who to Watch in the Nation’s Capital Yardbarker
[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 4:26:00 PM
Kristaps Porzingis wishes he handled controversial Knicks ending ‘differently’ New York Post
[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 3:51:19 PM
Knicks Considered Favorites to Land O.G. Anunoby if Raptors Make a Deal, Vegas Says Yardbarker
[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 3:39:32 PM
Knicks Considered Favorites to Land O.G. Anunoby if Raptors Make a Deal, Vegas Says Sports Illustrated
[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 3:17:58 PM
Wizards Will Have Their Hands Full Dealing With Brunson, Knicks Sports Illustrated
[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 3:00:00 PM
New York Knicks: Have we already seen the best of RJ Barrett? Hoops Habit
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Knicks and Suns reportedly interested in Gary Trent Jr. Empire Sports Media
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[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 12:10:56 PM
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[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 11:52:37 AM
Q&A: Kristaps Porzingis reflects on his days with the Knicks and overcoming injuries NBA.com
[news.google.com] — Friday, January 13, 2023 10:00:00 AM
Knicks News: Donovan Mitchell’s Jalen Brunson tweet, Chris Duarte trade rumors Daily Knicks
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Ep. 185 Shock Jacques Knicks Podcast Posting and Toasting
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3 possible trade deadline moves Knicks fans must prepare for Daily Knicks
51 replies on “Knicks Morning News (2023.01.14)”
Another not-so-fun win, following an ugly start and a better second half, with some really good basketball in the 4th quarter before some issues at the end, culminating with Randle’s unbelievable foul on Kuzma’s 3 (luckily, Kuzma missed one of the FTs, his only missed FT of the night).
Brunson is knocking for an All-Star berth (Randle has cooled off), our starting-five is good and IQ’s cementing his 6th man role, but our offense can be unwatchable at times and even when paired with some starter (usually RJ or JB) the 9-men bench limited scoring is a problem.
Toppin’s not useful as a missile launcher-only, I-Hart had a nice little game but he’s not a scorer, Deuce’s unreliable on offense, so maybe we need to give another try to Fournier as a sidekick shooter to IQ. Let him fire a couple and if he’s on play him until he cools off.
At 24-19 the record is nice (imagine where we could have be without some infuriatingly bad losses) and the forthcoming games are winnable but we always need to keep the focus level at the max.
Now let’s bludge the Pistons.
Funny Thing Of The Day:
The final score was exactly the same of our last road win in Toronto.
Play of the game:
– Obi’s alley-oop pass to RJ in the 2nd, just for the strange feeling…
– Randle’s MONSTER dunk in the 3rd quarter. He was fouled too and the Wizards made a dumb challenge on the play.
Stat Of The Day:
50-28. Knicks’ advantage in Points In The Paint (from now on PitP). It was nice because we didn’t shoot well from outside (8-29 3FG).
Brunson A
Lead the way with another great game (34, 8 REB, 8:1 AST/TO) and hit 4 clutch FTs (26-26 in the last 3 games).
The difference with him at the helm compared with the previous two seasons is astounding, nobody’s questioning his contract anymore and he’s probably going to the ASG (thus reducing Randle’s chances).
Randle B
Again he didn’t shoot well * but hit a couple of crucial shots and had a MONSTER dunk in the 3rd, plus his usual elite work under the boards (16 REB) and some good defensive effort. He looks spry but still suffers a bit from FT-itis (5-8), a 1:3 AST/TO is no bueno and his final foul is probably the worst thing he did this year. Anyway he’s having a remarkable season.
* He hasn’t in 2023. He’s shooting 38.1%/28.6%/68.6% for the year.
P.S. it was B+ before the foul, but I’m very reactionary about low BB-IQ plays…
Barrett B
Bad start, nice recover, solid game. He shot in the flow, didn’t force despite being a bit forgotten at times and his “only” 32 minutes were a good news, but hit your FTs RJ.
Robinson C+
Some lightning but looks discombobulated all night with too much ingenuous fouls. On paper he should have dominated, he didn’t.
Grimes C
Bad night for the Glue guy. The energy level was there but the shot was off all night long. It happens, he’ll score 20 in Detroit…
IQ A-
He sparked our best basketball of the night at the start of the 4th and was crucial for the win. He’s tailor made for the combo-guard microwave 6th man role and if he finds consistency (and accept the role) he can be a 6MOTY candidate for years.
Hartenstein B-
His best game in a while, his numbers could have been even better had IQ hit a couple of Hart’s good potential assists. I still noticed clumsy “too much thinking” moves and want him to rest a couple of games but maybe I’m conditioned by my achilles’ painful memories.
Toppin C-
He gets his last (shrinking) pass, the rustiness card’s expiring.
Since his return he has taken 8 shots, 7 of them three-pointers.
For the season, 58% of his shots are threes (last season 35.7%), his eFG% has gone from .586 to .514, his TS% from .614 to .534, his FTr from .262 to .106 (!!).
This isn’t Obi Toppin, he’s a different player and a worse one.
McBride C-
8 minutes with a team’s low -15 plus/minus. He needs to give us something on offense, right now his usual hustle steals and defense aren’t enough and I’m worried he’s back to pass on shots because his confidence is wavering…
Thibs B
Better minutes distribution than the last game, he uses his 6 men core well but need to find some recipe for the second unit’s offensive anemia.
Jared Jeffries winning a car on Price is Right! Everything’s coming up right for the Knicks!
https://youtu.be/QSyPlARvUDA?t=7
If we’re not trading him then I agree that Fournier for ten minutes a game is what we should try. He is a good three point shooter and our bench needs a little offense.
Max, once again, thanks for the comments and grades-spot on. I was particularly frustrated last night by the lack of motion and ball movement. It’s really tough to watch-no cutting, no passing-extreme even for the ThiboKnicks. Other gripes are the weak picks and lack of outlet passes/fast breaks. I would characterize the offense as a slog fest. Sure I love winning, but part of me thinks an adjustment on offense, just the fundamentals, would cure many ills and add 4-5 wins, even w/o better 3 point shooting or a trade/signing. We have the players but lack an effective basic offensive system–we don’t need to be the 69-70 Knicks. Relative to Fournier, he can hit the three, but if they plant his butt in the corner, his shooting may simply paper over these serious offensive flaws.
It’s kinda surreal to see Randle finding ways to contribute to winning basketball when his shot isn’t falling. Maybe it really was the fact that he was counted on to do everything in the past for us that had him looking not as good as should be. Looking at his line from last night, you would think that he would have a negative +/-, but he had one of the highest numbers of the night. I like this trend. I like it alot. Now we just need to get Obi right so that he can give Randle a breather sometimes.
@Wayloncash
15 assists on 41 made baskets isn’t a good ratio (and we started 5:17 so we got better as the game went on, maybe that’s why we took a lead?).
For the second straight year we happily watched some good passes/good movements basketball in preseason and in the first few games of the regular season, then we always reverse to ugly offensive sets, with people playing 4-corners, a lot of isos and zero or little players movement (a trend that naturally tends to get worse in close games).
Cam, Obi, Fournier, Grimes, Deuce and even RJ (yesterday for instance) all took turns as “living statues in the corner” so far and our most offensively skilled center is used mainly for handoffs beyond the three-point line.
We’re a much, much better team when we move the ball and players cut, sometimes we get a glimpse of that but on balance our offense is stale, motionless and unimaginative.
I’m campaigning for an Offensive Coordinator since last year, but Leon doesn’t take my calls… 😉
So let’s have a poll- what would our record be without Brunson?
I’ll start – 17-26.
***how Knicksy is it that of all players realistically available, there is perhaps no better fit for us than Alec Burks?***
Reminds me (along with the price is right) of the knicksy time that the Knicks spent 18 months and a handful of assets trying to trade Jarred Jeffries, only to re-sign him a few weeks later.
d-mar: I really think that is about right w/o Brunson-huge impact. Max, I vote for you to be the offensive guru. Have fun hanging with Thibs though.
Brunson is the worst free agent the Knicks ever signed. Except for all the others.
It’s a great question. I guess it’s not quite fair to imagine a world where Deuce and Rose and IQ are the starters.
I think we would have 5-7 less wins in that world.
Brunson has been outrageously good. What’s funny about him too is that no one would argue he is a top 10 or even 20 kind of guy. Just a very good player. But what a difference he makes.
Remember when we collectively held our breath when Brunson pulled up with that hip injury? Folks were posting dire articles about Isaiah Thomas and what not. And we blew that Dallas game when he sat…
Yeah, we’d be in pretty bad shape without him.
It’s hard to value things like the calming effect Brunson has on his temamates because he’s capable of scoring under pressure late and comtrolling the game, but in our case it was likely he was going to have a huge positive impact beyond that by adding spacing, effiicient scoring, playmaking and taking some burden off Randle. We were going from a big negative to a big positive at that position.
Brunson has ten amazing spinning little jumpers in the paint every game, but there’s ALWAYS one simple bunny that he blows, usually short on the front rim, every single game, where you go, “How did you miss THAT one?”
There, balance returned to KB…
QUICK UPDATE. I noticed some odd things happening on the site yesterday. MySQL (databases) has always run at a very high CPU (100%) which I always thought was due to the age of the site, number of posts, comments, etc.
Playing around with it last night & this morning — I found a DB optimizer & ran that, and the site seems to be quicker. Please confirm if you feel the same. I’m seeing the DB at 20%.
Also for whatever reason, my custom CSS keeps disappearing (blue/orange colors are not used). I’m not sure why, but I hard coded some of these settings in the theme’s css.
Fingers crossed…
The foul on Kuzma was a non issue. He put his hand on him almost as the start of a little box out. I’m pretty sure the brick was already laid. That’s the modern NBA though and Julius should know.
On these finishes. You can get back nine points in three possessions and three possessions can be had in under ten seconds. So, there’s no lead big enough. I do agree that we’re not detail oriented enough on offense but this road win mitigates that circumstance. No style points. Good win.
Terrible foul call on Mitch against KP late as well. KP pirouettes on the baseline. MItch completely vertical. What’s up with KP anyway? Still basically the same guy. Can raise up and stroke it like Curry but often looks like Kevin Knox as well. And what? 5 rebounds. That’s just bad coaching…
IQ had one nice lefty finish but on the big three point play, he got lucky and needs to finish strong left.
some remorseful comments from KP.. it’s a wonder what time and perspective can do for everyone…
“Could I go back and do things differently? For sure, from our side. I was hurt. If I kept playing, it would’ve been completely different. I’m young and listening to people and what they’re telling me on what I should do with my career. You don’t know any better. That’s how things went at that time. I can only say really good things about the organization because I enjoyed it so much playing there in New York and playing in front of those fans.
It was a dream come true. In the moment, I didn’t realize it’s not like that everywhere. New York is a special place. Madison Square Garden is the most special place I had ever played in. But at that moment, I thought it was like that on every team. I had the most fun playing in The Garden.”
i’ve actually think he’s been sneaky good and wished they were able to keep working at it in dallas…. but ultimately he probably needs a really good pg (watch out if he can get to indiana)… which is why it was never going to work in ny…
i know most folks are still bitter… and some may still love him… but i kind of look at it like a crazy ex gf… had little chance to work out and ended up with things being thrown and your house on fire but there were some fun moments along the way… and maybe that’s why i like hearing this from him.. the crazy ex gf might not be so crazy anymore…
We’re 10th in the league in offense, so whatever we’re doing is working even if it’s not aesthetic (obviously there’s room for improvement)
i’m not sure if it’s quicker… it is wordpress… but it’s probably more consistent in the 5 minutes of so of clicking…
From KP’s many comments in the last year I think it’s apparent the trade to the Wizards was a mutual desire. Dallas wants to play 5 out and let Doncic dominate everything. They were bascially paying KP a max contract to be a floor spacer (makes no sense) and the “know nothing” fans and media were constantly giving KP grief and putting the blame on him when he didn’t score or do enough in a loss. I’d want out too.
Brunson saw the handwriting on the wall and what his role was going to be and that’s at least partly why he was open to coming to NY rather than playing with Dallas on what would have been a serious contender.
KP is playing a more diverse inside/outside game for the Wizards. He doesn’t move as well as when he was in NY pre ACL and other injuries, but he’s moving better now than last year.
Kemba Walker’s in Italy,
he’s taking his physicals and if there’s nothing (too) wrong he will play in EL/Italian League for Olimpia Milan, 15 miles from my home…
“We’re 10th in the league in offense, so whatever we’re doing is working even if it’s not aesthetic (obviously there’s room for improvement)”
Attacking the offensive boards is helping. Thibs is taking a page out of Phil’s playbook where certain shots lead to more OREBs and he attacks the boards.
mike– massive improvement from yesterday to today here.
Shooting FTs helps too,
we’re 3rd in FTs made despite being only 19th in FT%.
@Mike
Site feels faster.
I’ll be interested in seeing the two minute report for this one. The play Mitch fouled out on seemed like an offensive foul, if anything. I don’t understand how they reviewed that and didn’t change it.
The Knicks actually rank 7th as of today in offensive rating. There are a bunch of teams lumped in together in the 114-115 range and we’re in the middle of that group.
Our offense is good because of possession control. We rarely turn the ball over, and we get a lot of offensive rebounds.
yeah…that Mitch foul was a joke but the refs in the league are horrible…they tore apart that crew that did the Laker-Mavs game the other night…that was atrocious…
I haven’t seen too much of the last few games but it appears that we have the 3rd best road record in the league now behind celts and nets…putting aside Thibs inability to figure out end of game offensive and defensive strategy (like maybe going away from Randle setting a pick for Brunson on every play and letting everyone else watch)….the ability to have a winning road record regardless of who is out on the other team speaks to some mental fortitude…which bodes well for the likley opening the playoffs on the road situation…
on the flip side…we are 7-12 against teams with winning records and 17-7 against teams below 500…so…there is that nugget…
Site was crazy yesterday. Feels great now.
Love Kemba going to Italy after making 150 million or whatever he has made.
And totally agree on that Mitch foul.
Kemba should be in Italy enjoying retirement, not trying to play basketball.
For everyone who likes to say the Knicks win total is inflated by games against teams missing their best players, the Miami Heat are playing back to back home games vs Milwaukee both without Giannis.
That’s great, Max. Time to get another #8 jersey signed. 😉
I think we’re still getting used to be the better team on the court, and sometimes they lose focus. But i thought the game was under control, and maybe they can learn from the scare in the final minute.
The site is great today, Mike.
I had to follow the game via play-by-play, the site being wonky probably saved me a scolding or two.
It seems like Randle has recently ound another level of athleticism, with blocks and dunks like I haven’t seen from him before.
Yeah, the Randle block was excellent.
I remember thinking Randle was too bulky last year. This year he has a lot more spring. Very subjective assessment of course but he has looked lighter and quicker.
IQ had a really nice outing. When the floaters are falling he is pretty devastating.
Also, loved this from Clyde, via Bondy.
Clyde Frazier on his train ride to Washington D.C. today: “It was so cold I saw politicians with hands in their own pockets.”
Alex Caruso, anybody?
From https://www.nbcsports.com/chicago/bulls/ranking-value-bulls-trade-assets-deadline-pulls-within-month
I know the NBA is more of a position-defying game these days, but I really need them to go back to the positions guys play full time for all star voting. Mostly because Randle and Brunson will likely get snubbed- not gonna lie. But think about it. Guys like Brunson, Randle, DeRozan, Haliburton, Franz Wagner, Dame, Markannen, Garland, etc could get snubbed because voting is grouped into Frontcourt and Backcourt players. Add the fact that voting is mostly a popularity contest and it makes it worse. There are a TON of players deserving a spot this season, and I’d like to see more of them get in
Caruso would be a great get. Cam Reddish and one of our protected picks, who says no?
I wouldn’t hate Caruso but he feels a bit duplicative with Grimes? I suppose we could just give him Deuce’s minutes but I think we need a wing more.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/10/books/review/path-lit-by-lightning-david-maraniss.html
This biography re: Jim Thorpe seems like it would be an excellent read, has anyone heard of it?
I know we have some holes to plug but I wonder if the FO will be leery of doing anything that would disrupt the team’s chemistry. Seems like all the players really like each other…
Kuzma apparently had a huge night, did anyone see anything to change their opinion on acquiring him? (assuming that opinion was a hard no like mine and most others here…)
Kuzma could be a pretty solid bench player. If we can get him for that price I’d be in. He’s also older than every player in our rotation not named Julius. I guess a protected 1st wouldn’t be bad.
Caruso is probably worthwhile get but he takes minutes away from Grimes & IQ or only takes Deuce’s handful of minutes. Plus the 2nd unit needs offense more than defense. It’s a huge upgrade though.
Both trades make more sense to me if we move one of our young guys. Maybe move Obi for a pick we send to Washington for Kuzma, plus other detritus. Something like that.
I think targeting Caruso or Javonte Green would both be really good. They both can play SF (Green moreso, though we could also slot Grimes in at SF in such a lineup; either way we need SF mins if we’re not playing Cam or Evan), are GREAT defenders, and shoot the 3 credibly on low volume. Plus, they’re eminently rootable. If the price is right I’d jump on either.
Reddish for Caruso straight up works in the trade machine (we’d add a pick, ofc), Green could be traded directly into cap space (we’d also add a pick here of some sort, ofc.)
We could also field one of the the most rootable 5 man Knicks rotations of all time: Brunson, IQ, Caruso, Grimes, and Mitch
Is there any trade buzz around the Pacers? They kind of have more young players than they can really play and they’re weak at pf, I wonder if we could pick up Nesmith for Obi. Duarte could also work I guess, but I’m higher on Nesmith, seems like an archetypical three and d wing.
It’d be kind of sad to see considering we could have had both, but Hali and Obi would be a sight to see, especially with turner at the five.
We could only have one or the other, but seeing them together in Indiana would be tough to watch.
Unless Kaminari means that we could have had both if we ever suspected that Hali might be available from the Kings and got to him before the Pacers did. That’s my best guess.
That’s the definition of a trade that worked out well for both teams
Oh yeah duh we couldn’t have, sorry that was just me having a brain fart and mixing up my draft year lost lenores. Presumably we could have traded for hali if we really wanted to, though.
https://www.yahoo.com/sports/knicks-head-coach-tom-thibodeau-221744362.html
Nice Begley piece on Thibs.
Duarte seems the most likely to get dealt. I’d much prefer Nesmith though. Duarte, if he’s been playing injured, wouldn’t be a terrible as a backup.
Don’t know if we should move Obi because he’s our only backup PF and the Sims/Hartenstein experiment fizzled out despite the unexpected early success.
I guess RJ could play some 4 but we’d be pretty undersized at the 3 too.