Are the New York Knicks suffering from a selfish brand of basketball? When you think of this team, you primarily think of Carmelo Anthony as the team’s offense. That has always been the case (save for a brief period of Linsanity) for any team that ‘Melo has been a part of. And then, of course, you have J.R. Smith, who is known as volume-shooter number two on the team. So you have to figure that when Tyson Chandler is calling out
What goes into winning the prestigious NBA Coach of the Year award? Do you have to have the best record in the league? Do you have to defy the preseason odds of your team not making the playoffs? Must you overcome the absence of injured star players? Like most awards in the NBA, there are no standard guidelines as to why someone deserves votes moreso than others, and this makes it rather difficult for the writers to determine who the very
Tuesday night’s games were all about guard play and righting a set of wrongs from Game 1. The Knicks’ guards didn’t do enough to overshadow the strong play of Indiana’s frontcourt, but Pablo Prigioni helped New York rectify that problem during a historic fourth quarter run. And Memphis needed a boost from Mike Conley after a subpar Game 1 performance, and Conley redeemed himself during the Grizzlies’ huge Tuesday night road win. Let’s discuss these themes as part of the
NEW YORK — Call it irony, but with Floyd Mayweather watching from Madison Square Garden’s expensive seats, in the third quarter, the New York Knicks began to resemble a spent prizefighter. And although Carmelo Anthony turned in an inspiring performance, it was the combination of Pablo Prigioni and Jason Kidd that made the Pacers throw in the towel. Prigioni will turn 36 years old later this month and Kidd, at 40 years old, is older than Pacers head coach Frank Vogel, who
The second round of the NBA playoffs have kicked off with a bang. And after what was a rather drama-less first round has become quite the opposite as we watch the final eight contend for the title. Most notably, the Chicago Bulls shocked the Miami Heat in Game 1 Monday night — on the road no less — and the Indiana Pacers came into Madison Square Garden and punked the Knicks Sunday afternoon. Did you know the Bulls are 9-8 against the Heat
Here’s the bottom line on Carmelo Anthony’s recent play. Using the measuring stick of points per shot, it is his worst four-game stretch of the postseason since the first four playoff games of his career. Furthermore, when compared alongside other worst four-game stretches of contemporary solo superstars, it is near the bottom. Following Sunday’s loss to Indiana in the Eastern Conference semifinals opener, the Knicks are 1-3 in their last four games, including 0-2 at home. Their only win saw them nearly
Any of the residual gratification felt by the New York Knicks and their fans was quickly erased Sunday when the Indiana Pacers came into Madison Square Garden and manhandled the Knicks to take away home court advantage. Indiana’s top-ranked defense protected both the rim (eight blocks, five by Roy Hibbert) and the arc (the Knicks made just seven 3-pointers, one less than the Pacers) as they led for the entire second half and took away many of New York’s secondary weapons.
NEW YORK — When Pacers head coach Frank Vogel called a timeout with 12.1 seconds left in the first half of yesterday’s matinee Game 1 matchup against the Knicks, Paul George wound up and launched a jumper, smooth as could be, from near mid-court. [Read more…]