Brief Knicks Bulls recap plus Bill Simmons

Hey everyone,

I apologize for not updating the blog after the game last night. I ended up going out as soon as the game was over and forgot to update until today. I just want to have a brief recap of last nights game because I want to go through something else with you.

In the first half we played brilliantly. I saw a lot of hustle and hard work. Everyone was doing what they were supposed to. Gallinari did not have a good shooting night by any means, going 2 for 13 from the field, but I remember him fondly in this game because he did everything else extremely well. Grabbing 7 rebounds, dishing out 3 assists, and most importantly, blocking 3 shots. He also iced the game at the end by making all of his free throws. It is games like this that lead me to believe that Gallo can be a franchise Dirk Nowitzki type of player, he is beginning to show little by little that he can do more than just shoot the lights out. But more on him in a second.

David Lee had a superb night, scoring 18 points, grabbing 21 rebounds, and dishing out 5 assists. Lee is beginning to pass much better, averaging 4 assists in the last 5 games. I think Lee has played well overall in our past couple of games.

Wilson Chandler should be getting the bulk of his points on drives. Period. He is just a much more valuable player when he is driving to the hoop. His jump shot comes and goes, but he proves to be a very valuable asset when he is going for the lay-ups and dunks.

The team overall played brilliantly in the first half, but once again, as us Knicks fans have seen a thousand times, we blew the lead in the 3rd and 4th quarters. We still managed to get the win but if we messed up once in those final minutes, we lose. Knicks fans, we have to learn to keep our leads when we have them. This is what separates us from the better teams. Teams like the Lakers and the Celtics take leads and suck the life out of a team to the point where they don't want to fight back. When we take leads in games, we give up mini runs and allow the teams to come back into the game. We have to learn to manage a lead at the end of games.

But now I want to turn your attention to an article by ESPN.com writer Bill Simmons. I first want to point out that I am a HUGE fan of Simmons and I look forward to each and every one of his NBA articles, but I have to severely disagree with the things he wrote about the Knicks in his column today. In his column, he made several trade scenarios involving different teams to "save" their franchise. I quote...

Trade! Trade! I am thinking something like this …

Fake Trade 1a: Gallinari, Curry and $3 million to Minnesota for the Mark Blount/Brian Cardinal ECs. Basically, Minnesota would be paying $10 million next year to get Gallinari for 2011, 2012 and 2013. Total financial commitment: $23 million. Isn't a lottery pick and potential 50-40-90 percentage guy worth $23 million over three years (just $9 million for the last two), especially for a team stupidly playing the "we're waiting for Ricky Rubio, so tuck yourself in and enjoy three years of losing and misery!" card? Of course.

Fake Trade No. 1b: Jeffries, Hill and $3 million to Sacramento for Kenny Thomas' EC. Same principle, less money: You just bought a lottery pick for the price of Jeffries' 2010-11 contract ($6.5 million, and by the way, he's a valuable defender). The same offer could work for the Nets (Bobby Simmons), Zombie Sonics (Etan Thomas) and Blazers (Steve Blake/Travis Outlaw). Someone will bite.

Back to the Knicks: Scott Layden and Isiah Thomas did so much damage to that franchise that, really, there's a certain symmetry in them emerging from the 2000s without keeping a single lottery pick thanks to the aforementioned two trades. But if they cleared the decks completely, couldn't they seduce LeBron with the offer of building his own franchise from scratch in America's biggest city -- the metropolis where basketball matters the most, in a market he could potentially own like no New York athlete since Namath, in one of the two cities that would allow him to pursue all the non-basketball things he wants to pursue -- and put himself on the map for eternity as the guy who saved basketball in New York City? Anyone can win a title. Not anyone can own New York for a few years.

Look, I change my mind on this topic almost every month. I have no idea how it will play out. None. I just know the Knicks have a chance to offer LeBron James something that nobody else has ever been offered in sports history: A blank canvas and unlimited resources for a potential top-10 player of all time who is just hitting his prime to build his own All-Star team. It's unprecedented. If Gallinari and Hill have to be sacrificed to make it happen, you do it. You don't even think twice.

Look, I agree that we need to trade Curry and Jeffries to someone, but there are 2 clear holes in Simmon's theories.

Hole #1: I will put periods after each word for dramatic effect. We. Are. Not. Trading. Gallo. After watching him this season I am convinced that Gallo could be a star very soon. He is proving that little by little he could be a very nice player in the next couple of years. He is showing us that he can do a little of everything out on the court. And I would be flabbergasted if Donnie even considered giving away Gallo to the T-Wolves just to dump Curry's contract. If we were getting back pieces along with expirings, say Travis Outlaw, Steve Blake and Jerryd Bayless, that I can kind of see. But for the rotting corpse of Brian Cardinal and Mark Blount? How could we make a trade like that? What would Donnie say in the news conference?

"I just traded the most valuable piece we had for the future, but we got Mark Blount and Brian Cardinal! They'll be nice pieces!"

I just think, even if we are getting back expirings and ridding ourselves of Curry, Gallo is too valuable to just give away in a clear salary dumb like that. It leads me to believe that Simmons hasn't watched one Knicks game since the awful 1-9 start. He talks about Gallo as if he's just a nice player and that's all. Bill, to us Knicks fans, he's more than a nice player, he's our glimpse into a brighter future.

Hole #2: The fact that Simmons suggests that GMs look at Jordan Hill and say that he would be enough reason to take on either Jeffries or Curry also leads me to believe he has not watched a Knicks game this season. Jordan Hill has not played like a lottery pick. Jonathon Bender, a player who hasn't seen the court in 3 years, is getting more minutes then him. That's saying a lot about his play. If some GM out there sees Jordan Hill as the backbreaker to a trade that sends away Jeffries or Curry for expirings, then I think Donnie does the deal without thinking twice about it. So far Hill has been a bust, and I think Donnie has admitted that to himself. But realistically, I just don't see any GM wanting any part of a deal like that.

So those were my rants Knicks fans. I still suggest you read Simmons stuff, he's a great sportswriter and his work is very entertaining, it's just clear he just doesn't watch the Knicks. (and for good reason. He's a lifelong Celtics fan.)

Until next time Knicks fans.

P.S. We are a half-game out of the last spot in the East. Thought I should bring that up. :-)

Knicks Bobcats recap

That was close Knicks fans. But we pulled it out, 95-91. The team was on fire from 3, hitting 44% of them. As happy as I am for the win, the turnover when Wilson Chandler throws it away in an attempt to pass it to Al Harrington concerned me. If we want to make the playoffs we have to be able to close out games effectively. Not taking away from Danilo's great block on Acie Law (I don't know what he was doing in the game, that final play was the first action he saw) but if he did make that shot, the Knicks would have found themselves in overtime. But lets not concentrate on the negatives.

Some things I noticed tonight-

• Chandler showed his full arsenal tonight, hitting 3's, pull up jumpers, hitting from the line, driving to the hoop you name it. He scored 26 for the Knicks
• Jonathon Bender had another good game tonight, scoring 11 points and hitting all 3 of 3 from the 3 point line. There is still notable rust, but he is proving that he can be a nice player in D'Antoni's rotation.
• David Lee had a great all-around game, scoring 15 points, grabbing 15 boards, and dishing out 7 assists. This is the second great game by Lee.
• Augustin had a quiet game tonight, but I still think for the right price he could be a solid player on our team. Any chance the Bobcats could be interested in Nate?

Thats all for now Knicks fans. Our next game is Tuesday against the Bulls.

Talk to you soon.

Nate Robinson's agent requests a trade

According to ESPN.com, Nate Robinson's agent, Aaron Goodwin, has asked team president Donnie Walsh to trade the disgruntled guard. It is said that Walsh will have discussions with the agent. Robinson has not played since the beginning of the month.

I don't see how this changes anything besides the fact that if a trade comes up, Robinson won't block the trade. (Robinson has the right to refuse any trade involving him)

I would be shocked if Walsh hasn't already felt around the league for interest in Robinson. It is no secret that D'Antoni has had it with the antics of his energizing point guard.

The team would need to take back an expiring contract for Robinson to maintain maximum space for the free agency period in 2010, further complicating the trade. I just don't see a trade out there that would make everyone happy. But i'm sure Donnie will try, continuing to feel around the league for a team who would want to trade for Robinson.

That's all for now Knicks fans, if you have any comments about the situation you can email me at nyec2010@yahoo.com

Talk to you after the game against Charlotte. Big game Knicks fans!

Knicks Clippers recap

We can celebrate Knicks fans. For the first time I can remember this season, we were on the winning side of a game that came down to the final seconds. The game came down to the final possession, with a (very lucky) Lee tip in (we will cover this in a bit) and a three point miss by Rasual Butler, someone who hit 39 percent from three last season. Tonight played the opposite of last night, at halftime we were down 16 and came back to win. That is a good feeling Knicks fans, and not one that we can enjoy too often. Some points that I observed from the game.

• Curry did not play tonight. When I watched the post-game interview with D'Antoni, it seemed frustrated with Curry's play. And for good reason. The last 3 games Curry played in, (New Orleans, Charlotte, Chicago) whenever Curry checked in we had the lead and by the time he left we had lost the lead. If I were D'Antoni, until I see in practice that Curry is without a doubt ready to contribute, I would not even play him, because no one is going to trade for him if they see he is still not playing well. I would count on the chance that someone can use Jeffries versatility and trade an expiring for him instead. Looking at tonight, it seems like D'Antoni is doing just that
• Jonathon Bender had a great impact on the team tonight. As soon as he checked into the game he hit a driving layup and hit a three on the next possession. In 14 minutes of play, Bender had 9 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 block. Knicks fans, this is a guy who hasn't played a professional game in three years, and on his first game he was altering shots on defense and creating offense. This is a great sign. He is long, athletic, and can run the floor. I mean the guy is a 7 footer who can drive to the hoop, he has skills. If he contributes more of what he did tonight, he could be a valuable player in D'Antoni's system.
  
• D'Antoni seemed more apt to playing his 7th and 8th man more minutes to give his starters more of a breather in this game. Bender played 14 minutes and Tony Douglas played 11. Of the 8 players only David Lee and Wilson Chandler played more than 40 minutes. This was a good sign, as the players had enough energy to make a run down the stretch of the game.
• David Lee, although having a good night offensively with 25 points, got destroyed on defense against center Chris Kaman. In the off-season the team would really benefit from a big man who can defend the paint because teams know the liability Lee is on defense and they take advantage of it night in and night out. How about Marcus Camby Knicks fans?
• In the beginning of the game, Chris Duhon was not playing well on offense, settling for a lot of threes and when he drove to the hoop, he would either pass it off to one of his teammates at the three point line or pass it to Lee on the pick and roll. However in the fourth quarter, we saw Duhon driving to the hoop and making lay-ups. I don't know about you guys but I want to see him do this more often. On a team with players who jack up a lot of a three point shots (that's an understatement) it is refreshing to see someone like Duhon taking it to the hoop, especially with him being a point guard.
  
• If anyone watched the Lee tip-in, they would know that it was a very lucky shot. As happy as I was for getting the win, I am still concerned by the team's overall lack of a go-to scorer. This is why we lose so many close games. We have no guy who we can give the ball to and say "get us two points." Unless Harrington is hot, I don't trust him with the ball at the end of the game. If Gallinari is open, I would trust him with an easy three, but there are few teams who are going to give him any space in a close game and he isn't a guy who can create his own shot yet. David Lee can get an easy two if the team is poor at defending the pick and roll, but most teams have caught on to Duhon and Lee's pick and roll game, and are defending it much better. (Dunleavy just isn't a good coach and did not convey the message to stop the play, hence why Lee got 25 points and Duhon had 10 assists.) As displayed so brilliantly in the Bobcats game, Chandler chokes on the big plays. So there are your options on the final possession. Not so good are they Knicks fans. The team needs that player who they can go to down the stretch. They just don't have it yet.
  

Thats all for now Knicks fans. We play the Bobcats on sunday, hopefully we can redeem ourselves from the game on tuesday.

Check with you later!

Knicks Bulls recap

Stick with me Knicks fans as I try to make sense of this 98-89 loss to the Chicago Bulls.

This wasn't a loss because the Bulls played well. The Knicks came in strong, opening the game with a 17 point lead. I never got the feeling the Bulls overpowered us. They out-hustled us, going for lose balls and driving to the hoop, but they never had a firm grip on the game.

This wasn't a loss because the Knicks were lazy. I think this team comes in and competes every night, and it may not look like it Knicks fans, but this team tries hard consistently every night. You can see it in their eyes, they want to win. There's a fire in these players eyes that just wasn't there in the Isiah era, where it seemed like they were going through the motions. This team wants to win.

They lost for one simple reason.

They were exhausted.

That was the simple fact. I have been a fan of D'Antoni's 8 man rotation, as I think it keeps the players fit and it creates a stability with the team that just wasn't there in the Isiah era. The team knows who's going to play and what their role is and I think that's a good sign. But the simple fact is that Coach cannot play 6 guys for 48 minutes. By the 4th quarter the team was outright tired.

It all comes back to point guard Chris Duhon. If Duhon has a bad night, the team has a bad night, it's as simple as that. When Duhon settles for bad shots so does the rest of the team. When Duhon is calling plays the team thrives in the system. Don't be fooled by his stats tonight (18 pts 7 assists) as 9 of his 18 came in the first when the team was up by 17, and 3 of the points came from the final minute of the game when the team was down by 10. This means in the meat of the game he scored 6 points. Duhon's play in relation to the team's play shows how vital the point position is to D'Antoni's system. As much as I like Duhon, we need someone more consistent at the position. If we don't the team will continue to live and die with Duhon's play.

But back to the Knicks fatigue for a second. I am usually supportive of D'Antoni and his coaching moves. I think he's a smart coach who knows whats best for his team. But the fact he basically played 6 guys on the first night of a back to back is absurd. Toney Douglas played 4 minutes (1 in the final minute of garbage time) and Curry played 4 (we'll get to him in a second) I know Larry Hughes is out and he plays a lot of minutes but if he is missing games coach can't replace him by playing the other guys more minutes in an already short rotation. Maybe he should play Toney for more minutes. Maybe get rookie Marcus Landry in the game for 4 minutes and just let him play some hounding defense. The kid tries hard when he is in the game. Jordan Hill plays well in short stretches, maybe the Knicks play him for a few minutes in the game. I don't know what D'Antoni's stance is with Nate so I can't say whether or not to play him because I simply don't know the situation. I do know we could have used him tonight. Maybe when Jonathon Bender gets rolling he could help us, I don't know his game enough yet to comment on him. But I do know that the team can't continue to basically play 6 guys the entire game. Something needs to change.

Now I want to comment on Eddy Curry for a second. I noticed the past 3 games that Coach puts Eddy in whenever we have a lead, and as soon as he comes in, our team loses the lead. This cannot continue. I understand the reason why we're playing him, we need to trade him and no one is going to want him if he gets continual DNP-CD's, but no one is going to want him either if whenever he comes in the team loses their lead. He runs the pick and roll well and he does get great positioning, and I have to credit him for the mass amounts of weight loss... But man does he play terrible defense. I mean the Bulls just toyed with him tonight, driving right to him and making shots. He also has a lot of trouble getting into the flow of the game. I commented on this in the Charlotte game, he just looks lost out there. I watched the post-game report and it seems D'Antoni is getting really frustrated with him. I don't know how much longer this is going to last.

I will be at the Clippers game tomorrow night, and I will deliver a blog after I come back from the game. Hopefully we can get a win because the playoff hopes wont last if we continue to lose like this, even in the east.

That's all for now Knicks fans, as always if you have questions or comments about the game you can email me at nyec2010@yahoo.com

talk with you later.

Knicks Bobcats recap

This one hurt...

The Knicks lost this one, 94-87. The Knicks had a lead during most of the game, namely the second half, but the Cats went on a mini-run at the end of the game to take the lead permanently. In my opinion, we lost this game when we lost Jared Jeffries. He played a great game tonight, registering 11 points, 5 rebounds, 6 steals and 2 blocks. His effect on the defensive end was the reason we were leading the game. When he fouled out (on a questionable call, in my opinion) the Knicks lost their intensity on defense. The Knicks had plenty of opportunities to seal this one and just didn't grab it.

Some other notes

• Duhon started off on fire tonight. He scored nine points in the early minutes of the game. I was convinced he was going to have a great game after those early buckets, but after that he turned timid, only scoring nine in the rest of the game and more importantly, had five turnovers. The team needs more consistency from it's point guard if they are going to have any shot of making the playoffs.
  
• Curry continues to struggle when he gets into the game. He gets good positioning but it seemed like the team was forcing it into the big man on every possession. Each time they threw it in to him either it was a bad pass, someone stole it, or Curry dropped it. It just seems like Curry can't get into the flow of the game, and it's going to take some time to get him back to his dominate form.

• I want to point out to all my Knicks fans that yes, it is still a priority to trade Jeffries for an expiring because the future is more important than this season, but I want you all to realize that as soon as Jeffries is gone, so is our playoff hopes. If we get someone like a Mike James, our team's chance of making the playoffs are gone. Jeffries is the sole reason why we are playing better defense lately. He covers for players like Lee who don't switch on their man, or players like Harrington who lose their man on offense. If Jeffries is gone it leads to very easy buckets. If we could get rid of Curry and keep Jeffries, that would be ideal, but the way Curry has been playing, I just don't see it.

Thats all for now Knicks fans. The playoff hunt isn't lost but we're going to need a win in Chicago on Thursday to bounce back. I think we can do it and if we do, our spirits will definitely be lifted. Lord knows we need this one.

Until next time

DJ Augustin to the Knicks?

Hey everyone.

During my usual browsing of the Internet this morning, I stumbled upon a trade rumor on Yahoo Sports that talks about the Bobcats maybe trading PG DJ Augustin to the Knicks due to Larry Brown's discontent with the 6'0 sophomore. You can read the article here.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/rumors/post/Charlotte-Bobcats-sending-Augustin-to-New-York-;_ylt=AtvEhdkVRPeEKj6pfSNPpBO8vLYF?urn=nba,208813

I would agree to a trade for the guard depending on who we would have to give up to get him. Augustin is a great shooter who does not need the ball in his hands to score. In his rookie season Augustin averaged 11.8 ppg, shooting 44 percent from 3. The Knicks could always use another three-point shooter in Coach D'Antoni's system. Augustin's numbers did drop this season but my speculation is that it was due to Coach Brown asking Augustin to do things he is not used to doing. Coach Brown has a record of de-moralizing his players and getting rid of them whenever he sees fit. (Remember Trevor Ariza Knicks fans? Wouldn't you like him back on our team now? That trade of Ariza and Penny Hardaway for Steve Francis was the work of Coach Brown.) I think, again, depending on who we have to give up to get him, Augustin could be a nice addition to the club.

Another note

Thinking back, we really got a steal at the trade deadline last season. Think about it, we traded Jerome James, who was the biggest blunder of the Isiah era (Knicks fans, you know that's saying a lot) and Tim Thomas, a player who had little impact on our team last season, and got a guy in Larry Hughes who is making a huge contribution to the ball club this season. I think this was an underrated move by Mr. Walsh in getting a veteran guy (many forget that he played in the finals just 3 seasons ago) who has really helped us stay in the playoff hunt.

That's all for now Knicks fans. If you have any questions or comments email me at nyec2010@yahoo.com.

Talk to you after the game tonight!

Knicks sign Jonathan Bender

Yesterday, the Knicks signed Jonathan Bender to a non-guaranteed contract for the veteran's minimum. Bender, 28, was drafted 5th overall by the Toronto Raptors in the 1999 NBA Draft. He was later traded to the Indiana Pacers for Antonio Davis. The 7 ft 230 pound forward has career averages of 5.6 points, 2.2 rebounds and 15.0 minutes in 237 games over seven NBA seasons, all with Indiana. He enjoyed his best season in 2001-02 when he averaged 7.4 ppg and 3.1 rebounds. He was forced to retire with knee issues in 2006

Walsh, having drafted him, seems to really like Bender and thinks he can contribute to the team. From what I remember Bender is a versatile forward who can play the 3 through the 5, making him a good addition to D'Antoni's system, which relies on players who can defend multiple positions. There are questions on if he can still play, however.

I think this is a no-lose situation for the Knicks. Bender is on a non-guaranteed contract, meaning that the Knicks can wave him with no repercussions at any time. If anything the Knicks gained a practice player who can maybe show rookie Jordan Hill some moves that he learned in his seven years in the NBA. If we gain anything more out of him it is a definite plus and it will make Donnie look like a genius. But the odds are D'Antoni will stick to that eight man rotation (9 if you count Curry) and keep Bender around for practices and injury insurance.

Tomorrow we play the Charlotte Bobcats. This is a huge game for our playoff hopes, as the Bobcats are currently tied for the 8th spot as of this writing. We are currently a game and a half behind the final spot in the east, a win tomorrow will bring us even closer to the goal of making the playoffs for the first time since 2004.

D'Antoni is in a tough spot. As I mentioned in my previous post, Bobcats coach Larry Brown thinks very highly of Eddy Curry, and playing Curry tomorrow may give Brown the idea of bringing him to his team and giving us a couple of expiring contracts in return. However, as we saw in the New Orleans game, playing Curry almost blew the game for us, and we needed a big second half to win that game. I don't know if I would want to risk blowing this game if I was D'Antoni. The fact is Curry does not rebound well right now, and I still see him getting lost in the flow of the offense. If coach decides to play Curry it could get ugly for Knicks fans. I could be wrong and if Curry improved since the last game it would be great, but I just don't see four days making a huge difference.

That's all for now Knicks fans. I will post tomorrow after the game with analysis and thoughts. Cross your fingers!

Questions or comments? E-mail me at nyec2010@yahoo.com

Chat with you later!

Greetings!

Hello to all my readers! This is my first post on this new site! I'm creating this to give you, the reader, all the news and happenings of our beloved New York Knicks. I will also give you my opinion on each piece of news that comes through, good or bad. I will also try to give you my analysis of every game this season, noticing things I think were good and things I think the team needs to improve on. (I might miss a few games due to school and such, which you would have to forgive me for, faithful readers.)

Our situation as it stands now is this.

Our team is now an unsatisfactory 8-15. It is better then the way we started the season, losing 9 out of 10 games, but there is still plenty of room for improvement.

We have won 4 in a row as of now, Monday, December 14th. Our team has scrapped the SSOL offense, as our team simply isn't built for it, and has adapted a system that comprises of pick and rolls, screens, and finding the open shot. This move seems to be paying off, as our team has been playing better recently.

We also sent our energizer, Nate Robinson, to the bench. His antics caused him a seat in Coach D'Antoni's doghouse. I can only speculate that the final straw was the game in Orlando where Nate was celebrating every bucket he made, while the team was still losing badly. Knicks fans, we're trying to build a team that celebrates winning and hard play, not baskets made when the team is down by 20. I don't know about you but I am tired of 20 point loses, I want to start accumulating some 20 point wins. The 113-96 win in New Orleans was great, I want to have more of them. I'm sure Coach D'Antoni will bring Nate back when he realizes our focus should be to win, not score points. If Nate never realizes that, well he can stay on the bench, rooting on our team when we win games.

Finally, it's no secret that the team's focus is to get LeBron James in the offseason. As of right now, with our cap space, we have enough money to sign someone like LeBron and a few other pieces to compliment him. Our goal is to trade Eddy Curry and/or Jared Jeffries by the February trade deadline. If we manage to trade one of them, we will have enough money for two, count em, two, max contract guys. (Imagine LeBron and Amare Stoudemire running the pick and roll, or LeBron and Bosh, or.... Dare I say it... LeBron and Wade just killing every team in the league with their tantalizing play. It makes me giddy.) There are no offers that we know of now for these two, but there are still two months left until the deadline. Jeffries has been playing excellent defense recently, so NY is hoping that a team who needs a lockdown defenders who happens to have an expiring contract takes a look at the versatile Jeffries. Curry is going to be harder to trade with his big contract and the fact he has been injured a lot recently. But the fact he has dropped a lot of weight (that is an understatement, he looks like another person) helps the cause, if he could retain anywhere close to that 06-07 form, where he was almost in the all-star game, then I am confident there is some team out there who could use his services. (We are playing the Bobcats tomorrow, if I were D'Antoni, I would get Curry involved early and cross my fingers that he has a good game. It is no secret that Brown liked Curry from his days in NY, and may be able to swing a trade that brings us some expirings.)

That is all for now. I hope you enjoyed my first post, I will try to update you later with the recent news of Jonathon Bender joining the team. I will give you my opinion on the signing as well as what I have been hearing about it.

If any of you guys ever have questions about the team, or want to comment on an article, or just want to chat about the team, you can email me at nyec2010@yahoo.com. I will try to answer any email's you guys send.