It seems like just a couple of days ago the Knicks were streaking in the right direction; but now they are most certainly not. They dropped their second game in a row, getting beat down by the Oklahoma City Thunder 104-92. Although the score shows the Knicks only lost by 12 it was much worse than that. For example the Knicks were losing 70-47 at the end of the first half (yes I said 70 points in the first half.
The biggest problem was once they were down early in the game, they just couldn't come back. They couldn't get any stops as the Thunder shot 48% from the field tonight. If you have watched the Knicks before, you know how soft their defense is. That defense combined with one of the most efficient scoring teams in the league spelled disaster. They needed to know coming into this game what they were up against, and clearly they did not.
It didn't help that the Knicks leading scorer and All Star forward Carmelo Anthony sat out this game with an ankle injury which he suffered on Thursday against the Grizzlies. He is currently day to day and it is not known whether he will player Monday against the Magic. After this performance, I hope he is healthy enough to play but I don't want to rush him back and risk reinjury.
Amare Stoudemire continued his rough, inconsistent season so far with less than desirable play tonight. He scored only 14 points and grabbed 6 rebounds on 7-19 shooting in 31 plus minutes of play; not to mention he added 5 turnovers. This performance is not helpful to the Knicks. He really needs to get his head in the game and play the way his paycheck suggests he should be playing.
Some good news: the Knicks got forward Jared Jeffries back tonight. Although he is not very effective on the offensive end, he will provide solid defense and rebounding; some intangibles the Knicks are desperately in need for. Also, point guard Baron Davis should be back by the end of the night. He will provide veteran leadership and true point guard vision on the court. My only concern is how will the Knicks react chemistry wise. There is no telling how long it will take for the team to mesh.
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