NY Knicks vs. Orl Magic Recap 1/16/12

In a game where Dwight Howard only scores 8 points you would think the Knicks have a pretty good chance to win the game. Well they did until they decided to get lazy in the 4th quarter of today's game. The Knicks would eventually lose 102-93, leaving their record under .500 at 6-7. Not to mention, they are on a 3-game losing streak.

The story of the game was forward Ryan Anderson and the 3-point shooting of the Orlando Magic. Anderson has been a great asset to the Orlando Magic this season as he dropped a career-high 30 points, making 7-13 from downtown. The Magic as a team shot 17-35 (48.6%) from the 3 which is inexplicable. 

The Knicks should feel ashamed wasting the great defensive effort of Tyson Chandler as he shut down Dwight. It was clear Chandler came into this one with one goal in mind. He played physical and got in the head of Howard, drawing offensive fouls which led to a technical from Dwight as well.

Amare Stoudemire continued his inconsistent season. Stat only played 21 minutes in the game as he was constantly in foul trouble. He needs to get his head in the game and play smarter defense. The Knicks cannot continue to put so much pressure on Melo to carry the team as he put up 27 shots today (only making 9). I feel like Amare isn't giving it his all. He needs to sit down and study tape and learn from his mistakes or he will continue to struggle.

Even if Stat is in foul trouble, the Knicks need to find more offensive firepower on their team. Guards Landry Fields and Bill Walker should be contributing more. I depend on both of these guys to be scoring at least 10 points per game. Toney Douglas looked good at times today when he was taking the Magic off the dribble. His outside shooting has not been there this year and he needs to realize that.

Overall, this is a heart-breaking defeat considering the Knicks were leading most of the game and were even winning by 8 points at one point. They were doing a great job controlling the pace and contesting shots until the 4th quarter as I mentioned earlier. Their next game comes against the Phoenix Suns Wednesday in New York at 7:30pm. 

NY Knicks vs. OKC Thunder Recap 1/14/12

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.

NY Knicks vs. Phi 76ers Recap 1/11/12

                                           The Knicks won tonight as Amare played very efficiently posting a solid 20-10.


The Knicks undoubtedly played their best defensive game of the year, defeating the 76ers 85-79. Both the Knicks and 76ers came into tonight's game streaking in the right direction. The 76ers were riding a 6-game winning streak while the Knicks were on a 3-game winning streak of their own.

Led by the contagious hounding defense of rookie point guard, Iman Shumpert, the Knicks held the opposition to 39.5% shooting from the field. It is becoming evident that the play of rookies Shumpert and Harrellson is propelling the blue and orange to an overall better defensive team, something they have been longing for.

The rookies are also playing well on the offensive end as well. Harrellson came off the bench early in the game and provided an unexpected spark. He finished the game with 13 points draining 3 out of 5 3-pointers on the night. Shumpert has been decent leading the Knicks at the point but appears sloppy at times. It will get better over time considering he is a rookie.

The Knicks two all-stars continue to both score and rebound effectively. The one thing I would like to see is better shot selection from both of them on the same night. It seems that if one of the all stars shoots well, the other is shooting poorly and vice versa. Melo needs to keep composure during games as well. It seems so often that he is losing his temper, which effects his play. He needs to control his body better as well because he gets called for too many offensive fouls.

Tyson Chandler was pretty much nonexistent tonight on the offensive end, only scoring 3 points, but he did what we paid him to do which is rebound and play defense. He had 13 rebounds (10 def, 3 off) and 1 block in the game.

One thing I continue to hate about the Knicks is their inability to keep a lead. They were winning by 16 at one point in tonight's game and let the 76ers cut it all the way down to 4. The main reason was that they had a whopping 22 turnovers. If it wasn't for the defense stepping up, they would have been in big trouble.

The Knicks are beginning to figure out one of their biggest problems (defense) and as long as they keep moving forward, they should be fine. The next facet they need address is bench scoring and ball movement but the season is still young. This was a great win tonight against the hottest team in the NBA. Their next game is tomorrow in Memphis against the Grizzlies.