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Game Thread: Knicks at Nets, Nov. 24, 2025 – Posting & Toasting
Game Preview: Knicks at Nets, Nov. 24, 2025 – Posting & Toasting
Kristian Winfield: Knicks have championship goals but defend ball like a lottery team – New York Daily News
Knicks use big second half to put away Nets, secure second road win of season – SNY
Karl-Anthony Towns ‘trusting the work’ after carrying Knicks to win over Nets – SNY
Kristian Winfield: Karl-Anthony Towns’ 37-point night right on time for Knicks’ struggling star – New York Daily News
Knicks Nightcap – Knick of Time
Knicks at Hornets Preview w/ Brian Geisinger of the Buzz Beat Pod | PREGAME POD | Knicks Film School – Knicks Film School
The Knicks’ Problem Isn’t Towns (It’s This) | HHT 69 – Hot Hand Theory
37-Point Masterclass! KAT Puts the Nets in a Blender | Knicks vs Nets Recap – Knicks Fan TV
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37 replies on “Knicks Morning News (2025.11.26)”
Before we get to the Hornets trap game later today, just wanted to wish all the American-based Knickerbloggers a happy — or, at least, easy — holiday tomorrow. And to our international members, hope you have the best possible Thursday.
Thanks Alan, same to you and all!
“Thanks, Z-man. Totally serious. Never had the pleasure to watch Wilt play but the legend is compelling in so many ways narrative and by the numbers.”
Clarence, I love learning about history, about basketball and pretty much everything else.
Although I saw Wilt play both live and on TV, he was already at the tail end of his prime years. So, a lot of what I know about him has been relatively recently learned via you tube and google search article mining.
But I distinctly remember the narratives of the day, in particular the Wilt vs. Russell vs. Oscar GOAT discussions. And also the larger than life space that Wilt occupied, which was magnified by the lack of video evidence. There was a Paul Bunyan-esque quality to the narrative that still clings to life today. Much of that mythical stuff came out of Wilt’s own mouth…he was very prone to gross exaggeration and might have had more ego than any athlete ever.
I really do try to be thoughtful and well-informed when making statements about him and other past legends when comparing them to players and athletes of today. It is indeed a challenge, and requires both research and reckoning. There are tropes about both Wilt and the quality of play and opponents in that day that both inflate and diminish what actually is the case.
Thankfully, a sizable amount of game film exists to verify at least some of the silly handwaving about his ability and accomplishments.
As to legacy, I don’t know if there can actually ever be a comparison between Jokic and Wilt. The world of sports in general, and NBA basketball in particular, has changed so much that all accomplishments today get watered down by the general ecosystem. The sad truth is, most folks around the country (and world) never heard of Nicola Jokic. His fame is limited to basketball fans, and even there he is underappreciated. So his legacy will never be what it should be, even if he wins a couple of additional championships. Whereas Wilt was a romanticized household name in the same way that Babe Ruth was…someone that was bigger than the sport.
The only athletes in my lifetime whose outsized fame (meaning that they towered over their sports and were household names) compare to Wilt: Ali, Tiger, Pele, and Jordan. If anything differentiated Wilt from the others, it is the comical exaggerations about his feats of strength and the 20,000 women nonsense. Maybe Babe Ruth’s 600+ foot HRs is the only thing that really compares in terms of sports mythology.
I only saw Wilt at the very end of his career also. The one thing I think is certain is that you can’t argue the athletes of today are so much better he wouldn’t stack up. He belongs on the short list of greatest athletes ever even if Cs have better outside shooting skills now because of the 3 point shot.
Responding to previous thread. I also think AD’s health is a huge risk. I was asking hypothetically. If I asked about Wilt playing in the current era, I don’t need to hear your thoughts on the feasibility of time travel.
An anecdote to add to the Wilt legend. I was at a Knick game in the late 1960’s where Wilt got undercut, did a 360 degree flip in the air landing flat on his back…. MSG collectively gasped… Wilt got up without help and continued to play as if nothing had happened.
as incomparably amazing as wilt was, you just can’t goat with a 51% FT% (46.5% playoffs, 45% second half of his career) in a 58% TS world (average TS was around 49% when he played). he hit 61% the year he went rick barry, but reverted. maybe necessity would have mothered more skill, but if not you can’t be both goat and fourth quarter gift horse.
“…even if Cs have better outside shooting skills now because of the 3 point shot.”
I have a theory about 3-point shooting. When I was a kid, there wasn’t a 3-point line on any courts I played on. So we never practiced shots outside our range with the exception of half-court shots.
But today, elementary school kids start heaving 3-pointers when shooting around, and middle schoolers routinely shoot them in games.
The 3-point era in the NBA started in 1979-80. Players from the ’80s had to practice shooting from there after growing up without that line being imprinted on their brains.
This was even more true for bigs. Nearly all true C’s were obligated to play with their backs to the basket and inside of 15 feet. It’s hard to know how they would have fared if they grew up shooting 3’s in early childhood the way that bigs do now.
We do know of some great shooting bigs from back in the day…Jerry Lucas and Bob McAdoo are the two most glaring examples…but beyond that, it’s just a guessing game.
Something that might go unnoticed or unspoken is that Bill Russell was a lousy FT shooter as well! He was 56% for his career compared to Wilt’s 51%, with only two seasons above 60%. However, he did tend step it up in the playoffs.
“as incomparably amazing as wilt was, you just can’t goat with a 51% FT% (46.5% playoffs, 45% second half of his career) in a 58% TS world (average TS was around 49% when he played). he hit 61% the year he went rick barry, but reverted. maybe necessity would have mothered more skill, but if not you can’t be both goat and fourth quarter gift horse.”
I don’t think it can be objectively argued that Wilt is the GOAT based on statistics, for the reason above and other reasons as well. He was a weird guy who probably didn’t love basketball as much as he loved being utterly dominant at it. As overwhelming as he was, and yes, both physically and skill-wise, I don’t think he got the most out of his gifts.
FT shooting is the one constant across eras. Would Wilt have shot them better today? There is no grounds to believe that he would. But maybe if he wasn’t utterly spoiled by his physical gifts compared to others from the time he was a kid, he might have been more humble and dedicated to the nuances of the game. I don’t think Wilt spent countless hours in the gym working on his game and his body, like a MJ, a Bird, a LeBron…he didn’t really have to.
I’ll be at the game tonight so it’s a guaranteed win!
gk the groupie!
How many offensive rebounds a game does Mitch need to be considered the GOAT with his ft%?
Thank you for the lovely blessing, Alan. Happy tomorrow everyone.
Listening to a solid Hot Hand Theory podcast on the Knicks while chopping broccoli. Very pro KAT. The dude’s shooting unsustainably poorly and having one of the best offensive seasons of his life.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/7mxnf2J4nLlHlYbSrjup53?si=eK4UOasdTe2Z5OBWE_aKzA
That’s a hypothesis, not a theory, CSI-man.
Having said that, I also think it’s an undeniable truth. Which, I know, makes me a hypocrite.
Shamet to be reevaluated in 4 weeks
oh yeah, did a bird up yesterday, came out okay, forgot though to do the thing where you inject fluid beneath the skin, so a little dryer than intended (to be honest, i kind of like my meat like jerky, so whatever), still though came out pretty okay…best thing of all – i cleaned up as a cooked so afterwards was easy peasy on the cleanup…munching on a turkey sandwich as i type 🙂
kind of amazed that i’ve had a total of six other humans (all family) visit me this week at the house, i don’t think that has ever happened before…
goodness knows there’s more than enough of must do’s programmed in to all of our schedules, so hope you all are enjoying the day and able to do whatever it is you feel like doing…
That’s the point I was trying to make, but apparently not very well. 😉
I love those guys at HHT, but I think they focused too much on KATs offense in that clip .
Other than the casual fan or hot takes when he has a terrible game, is anyone actually worried about KATs offense longer term?
I’n fine with discussing the relative merits of playing him PF instead of C, but I’m not worried about his offense, especially at C.
I think he was too busy working on female bodies to care about his FT%. I’m not entirely sure I blame him. 😉
Plus, I think we know so much more about shot mechanics and shot arc these days almost everyone would shoot better now with any kind of shooting coach.
“That’s a hypothesis, not a theory, CSI-man.
Having said that, I also think it’s an undeniable truth. Which, I know, makes me a hypocrite.”
hypotheory?
“oh yeah, did a bird up yesterday, came out okay, forgot though to do the thing where you inject fluid beneath the skin, so a little dryer than intended”
glad i remembered that geo is in cali and not in england
“Shamet to be reevaluated in 4 weeks”
I’m guessing (hypotheorizing?) that the 4-week timeline is based more on the fully guarantee deadline (January 7) than anything else. In other words, if he is sufficiently progressing after 4 weeks, they might decide to keep him on the roster, but he won’t be ready for a while after that. If not, they will release him. As with Julius, no harm in waiting before deciding on surgery.
Apparently just a “sprain” — pleasant surprise.
Didn’t Randle in his final season in NY have a really bad shooting slump to start the season before making the ASG?
has anybody else realized that they literally couldnt care less about the in-season tournament and our standing in it i thought i would care but i just dont i feel like when it was new i cared a little bit but its kind of worn out its welcome with me
The tournament means exactly zip to me, Doogie.
I hope it means something to the players so the extra motivation leads to wins the next 2 games. Although not advancing would probably mean 2 much easier games instead of the Cup knockout stages…
Anybody have THIS on their bingo card?
“NBA Power Rankings: Raptors, Pistons battle for top of East standings”
“Apparently just a “sprain” — pleasant surprise.”
“Sprain” is sort of a generic term for a joint that has had its soft tissue disrupted by moving beyond its range. I’m thinking it was at least a partial dislocation with some ligament damage, and that they are saying “sprain” to be slick, i.e. to avoid questions about potential surgery.
Just a guess, of course.
Cutting Shamet would be difficult as we need to continue paying him until he’s healthy or until the end of the season, whichever comes first. This applies specifically to non-guaranteed contracts.
Because we cannot afford to sign another player until Shamet is healthy and are required to have at least 14 players on the roster, we’d need Shamet to fully recover within the 2 week grace period for dipping below the 14 player minimum.
We could sneak a 10-day contract in there and extend it another 24 days (10-day contract length + 2nd two week roster minimum grace period).
So at most Shamet would need to recover within 38 days after being cut (14+10+14) if we push this to the most extreme limit, or we’d need to complete a trade.
If he is back within that time frame, it’s probably not worth cutting him anyway.
I remember this game. And I didn’t like it.
That seems like an odd rule, EB… doesn’t that defeat the purpose of a non-guaranteed deal?
You can cut him if he sucks, you can’t cut him if he gets injured
Sorry, I know you’re only the messenger, but that makes zero sense to me.
I can imagine the players association insisting on it to protect their member from being cut because of injuries. They also need the medical care when injured and it should be provided by the team.