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The New York Knicks appear to be on the verge of acquiring Tracy McGrady. However, according to Yahoo! Sports, it will come at a significant price:The New York Knicks are getting closer to reaching the Houston Rockets’ demands for Tracy McGrady(notes) and his $23 million expiring contract, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.
The Knicks and Rockets have designed the framework of a deal that would unload New York’s Jared Jeffries(notes), Jordan Hill(notes) and either Al Harrington(notes) or Larry Hughes(notes) for McGrady, Joey Dorsey(notes) and Brian Cook(notes).
As talks stood on Monday, the price of dumping the burdensome contract of Jeffries – who is owed $6.9 million next season – comes with the Knicks and Rockets exchanging 2011 first-round picks and the Knicks’ 2012 first-round choice going to Houston. New York also might include a 2010 second-round pick. - Yahoo! Sports
I think this is a little too much to give up for a guy whose contract is expiring. The Houston Rockets simply think that they can milk this situation because the Knicks are desperate for cap space. However, it is not as if the Rockets are all that happy with where they are right now, and it does them no good to drive up the price on McGrady, risk not trading him at all, and then getting nothing for him when departs at the end of the year.
In my opinion, the Knicks need to either keep Jordan Hill in this trade or their 2012 first-round pick. The only way they should go forward with this trade as is stands now is if they are 100% sure that LeBron James is coming to Madison Square Garden.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
REPORT: Tracy McGrady Path to New York Being Paved
Monday, February 15, 2010
Knicks at NBA All-Star Weekend 2010
The New York Knicks were actually pretty well represented at the 2010 NBA All-Star Weekend in Dallas, Texas. With David Lee in the All-Star Game, Danilo Gallinari in the 3-point contest and Nate Robinson in the Dunk Contest, I’d say the New York Knicks are at least getting the recognition they have earned, if not more than that.
Danilo Gallinari in the 3-point Contest
I really thought Gallo had a chance at winning this event. He was the biggest of the players, so I knew he wouldn’t get tired near the end of the round like a lot of players do. However, Gallo didn’t do too well. He just never seemed to get in a rhythm, and he was immediately ousted in the 1st round of the competition. His score of 15 points was respectable, but I definitely thought he could have done much better. Perhaps it was the nerves.
Nate Robinson in the Dunk Contest
This is clearly a venue and a stage that Robinson is very familiar with. As the reigning dunk champion, Robinson came into this event as the favorite to win it and he didn’t disappoint. His best dunk probably came in the 1st round, and the only reason he won the title was because DeMar DeRozan used his best dunk up in the first round. Still, I get entertained and amazed by Robinson’s leaping ability, and I thought he did the best he could do as a guy who has been in the dunk contest a million times. Thankfully, he has officially “retired” from the dunk contest, so we’ll have some new blood in it next year.
David Lee in the All-Star Game
And finally, the game that the weekend is centered around. David Lee got to play in it, and he was not all that impressive. He got just a mere 12 minutes, which was tied for the fewest minutes on the Eastern Conference roster, and that was only because Paul Pierce didn’t really feel like logging a bunch of minutes. Lee used his time well though, shooting 2 of 3 from the field and scoring 4 points off the bench. However, he did cough up 3 turnovers and managed just 2 rebounds. But now that he has his first all-star visit out of the way, we can expect nothing but an upward trend from here on out.
Friday, February 12, 2010
David Lee in the All-Star Game!
Well, I think many of us did not want to jinx it, but I think there was a growing sentiment that felt that an all-star bow out would result in David Lee getting the nod to join the Eastern Conference All-Stars in Dallas, and that is exactly what happened yesterday. NBA Commissioner David Stern declared Lee a member of the All-Star team after Allen Iverson declined to join the festivities this weekend due to a family illness.
So is David Lee worthy of this spot?
Many of you are New York Knicks fans, so I’m sure you believe Lee should have already been on the team. But to add some substance to your argument, here are just some of David Lee’s credentials.
Valuable Playing Time
Lee leads the New York Knicks in playing time and is in the NBA’s top 20 in minutes played. On the face of it, Lee’s high number of minutes do not seem to mean anything since he plays for a horrible team like the Knicks. However, you have to take into account of the few guys that have been in the Knicks rotation all season long, Lee produces (http://www.82games.com/0910/0910NYK5.HTM) more than anyone else on the squad.
Putting it in the hole
First of all, let’s just take a minute to pay homage to LeBron James who is leading the league in field goals made. That said, David Lee isn’t all that far behind him (ranking wise), in that Lee ranks 9th in field goals made with 238. That theoretically means that free throws points excluded, Lee is one of the league’s 10 best at putting the ball in the basket, something that had to be recognized when Stern decided to put him on the All-Star team.
Putting it in the hole—with accuracy!
While Lee is amassing field goals at an incredible pace, he’s also doing it with incredible accuracy. Lee is again among the top 10 in field goal percentage, shooting a remarkable 55.7% from the field. And it’s not as if he’s Kendrick Perkins or Dwight Howard shooting nothing but dunks and lay-ups in the pain. Lee is actually shooting jumpers at a rate of 48%, which means basically half of his shots are coming outside of the paint. That just goes to show how great his jumper has become and how much better he is at creating his own offense this season.
Rebound anyone?
Lee’s defense may not be great, but when the team gets a stop, you can count on Lee to come through with the rebound as much as you can count on anyone else in the league. Lee is second to only Dwight Howard in defensive rebounds. Lee ranks 5th in overall rebounds, and 20th in offensive rebounds. Needless to say, he is one of the leagues best rebounders. Only Dwight Howard is significantly better than him at this point, and he is even playing on a level that pars fellow All-Star and former New York Knick Zach Randolph.
Dropping Dimes
People who don’t watch the Knicks might think that Lee is just your prototypical low-post and rebounding big man. However, we’ve already discussed Lee’s outside shot, and now we have to talk about his great passing skills. Lee leads all centers in assists at 3.5 dimes a game. That’s better than Tim Duncan and Andrew Bogut, both notable big men passers. In fact, Lee ranks 4th in assists when you include all big men, behind only Josh Smith, Boris Diaw and Lamar Odom.
Overall
I think it’s fair to say that Lee is putting on quite the show this season, and it would have been ridiculous for him to be left off the team on the basis of his play alone. Don’t get me wrong, I understand that winners take precedence when putting together an All-Star team, but when guys like Allen Iverson get elected to the squad, you have to make Lee a member of the squad, and isn’t it only ironic that it’s Iverson’s withdrawal that now has him on the all-star team.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Knicks Playoff Chances Are DEAD
The 2009-2010 New York Knicks can kiss the playoffs goodbye.
I wish I had the faith to keep the hope alive and continue to come up with reasons and statistics backing a potential playoff push from these New York Knicks. But it’s just not going to happen.
The New York Knicks have no one to blame but themselves. Over the past month, the Knicks have lost to Milwaukee, Sacramento, Washington, Minnesota and Detroit. That does not a playoff team make.
So throw in your hat, Knicks fans. Start waiving the white flag. The regular season is where it will end for this Knicks team, and it won’t be a pretty finish either.
The Knicks have a very strong schedule over the next couple of months. After a fairly light February that was supposed to get them back in the playoff race, the Knicks have to play Cleveland, Atlanta, San Antonio, Memphis, Dallas, Boston, Houston, Denver, Phoenix, Utah and Portland in the month of March. And given the way the Knicks are playing right now, all of those are losses.
In April, the Knicks schedule eases up a little bit, but Boston, Orlando, Miami and Toronto make up 4 of their final 9 games, and some of the other games, such as at Golden State, aren’t exactly walks in the park for this New York Knicks squad.
At best, I see the Knicks finishing with 33 or 34 wins, which won’t be good enough to make the playoffs. John Hollinger of ESPN.com has his playoff odds for the Knicks set at exactly 0.5%, which is worse than both Philadelphia and Milwaukee.
So where did it go wrong? Who is to blame?
I will get into some specifics tomorrow, but I can tell you exactly when the Knicks playoffs chances were killed. The Knicks kissed their postseason hopes goodbye when they dropped back to back games to 17-33 Washington and 13-39 Minnesota on January 30th and January 31st. Yes, both games were on the road, but when you’re fighting for the playoffs and the NBA throws you a back to back like that, you have to take advantage of the opportunity and beat basement-dwelling teams—unless of course, you’re nothing but a cellar-dweller yourself.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Stoudemire to the Knicks? No Thank You
A report in the New York Daily News last week stated that the “New York Knicks won’t try to trade for Phoenix Suns’ star Amare Stoudemire.”
That was quite surprising to me, especially since Donnie Walsh hasn’t appeared to have taken a definitive stand on whether or not he’s interested in acquiring the Phoenix big man. In fact, a trade for Amare Stoudemire is right up the New York Knicks alley.
The New York Knicks are going to be in the market for a big-name player this summer, and having Stoudemire on their team and available to sign at the end of the season might make it more salary cap-feasible to sign two big names this summer. And the Knicks certainly have some pieces they can send the Suns way, including Wilson Chandler, Al Harrington and maybe even David Lee if the Knicks don’t think their long-term plans can incorporate Lee’s future salary request.
Stoudemire could be just what the Knicks need to finish out this season. They are 3 or 4 games out of the playoffs, and a healthy Stoudemire, in a system he is familiar with, could give the Knicks the frontcourt power and athleticism they have been lacking for years now.
But the long-time prospects for Stoudemire, a player that is certain to garner a maximum contract this off-season, aren’t very good. As good as Stoudemire is, the flaws of his game are masked immensely by the system and the players surrounding him in Phoenix. Granted, he’d be in virtually the same system if he came to New York, but he wouldn’t have the same type of players around him, especially considering who the Knicks might have to trade in order to get him.
Most importantly, the Knicks don’t have a guy by the name of Steve Nash, who has been the Stockton to Stoudemire’s Malone for the last 5 years. Stoudemire just has not been able to prove that he’s capable of scoring points on his own. Not to mention, it’s not as if he is the consummate scorer even with Nash getting him the ball. Stoudemire last averaged 25 points per game during the 2007-2008 season, but since then, he averaged 21 points last season and just 21 points this season, despite playing more minutes (on average) than he did in 07-08.
The Knicks already have players capable of scoring 21 points a game. That’s not to say Stoudemire wouldn’t be an improvement offensively, but not so much so that he’s worth the players the Knicks would have to give Phoenix or the money the Knicks would have to give him. And in the areas of the game that could make Stoudemire worth the players and the money, such as rebounds, blocking shots, passing and defense, he’s average at all of those things—at best!
So Knicks fans, if the Daily News is right, don’t be upset. Adding Stoudemire this roster at this point in the team’s transition would be an Isiah Thomas like move. It would look good early, but would slowly erode anything and everything the Knicks have built to this point.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Playoff hopes over for the Knicks?
It’s not looking good for the New York Knicks postseason chances. The Knicks have lost 3 games in a row, 7 of their last 9, and 9 of their last 12.
That’s not playoff-caliber basketball.
One of the most disturbing things about the Knicks recent struggles is who the Knicks are losing to. Over their past 12 games, the Knicks have lost to the Timberwolves, the Wizards, the Pistons and the Thunder. None of those teams are exactly high seeds preparing for the Playoffs, and yet the Knicks struggle with these types of squads.
Losses like those cause me to get closer and closer to calling the Knicks postseason hopes dead. But I’m willing to give them reprieve if they can stop losing these types of games and come through with a decent performance during the month of February.
So how can the Knicks still manage to make the playoffs?
Head to head matchups!
John Hollinger, of ESPN.com, has a playoff odds calculator that runs throughout the season. Right now, he gives the Knicks a 0.6% chance of making the post season. at this time, the Knicks are 6 games back of the 8th place Miami Heat and the 7th place Chicago Bulls, who are tied for the same spot.
I, however, give the Knicks a slightly better chance of making the postseason. With 6 games to make up on two teams, they only have to pass the Milwaukee Bucks, who are 3 games in front of them. The Knicks can make up considerable ground on these 3 teams during the month of February.
On Friday, the Knicks get to play Milwaukee at home, where a win would help them catch the Bucks. Then on February 22nd, the Knicks play Milwaukee once more, again at home in the Garden.
On February 16, the Knicks will play the first of a home and home with the Chicago Bulls, which will give the Knicks the opportunity to make up 2 games on the Bulls.
In addition to playing head to head with two teams they need to catch, the Knicks February schedule is pretty breezy. The Bulls, the Celtics and the Cavs are the only teams on the Knicks schedule that are currently in the playoff picture. The Knicks other games are all against teams that aren’t currently in the playoff picture.
So, in my opinion, the Knicks chances to make the playoffs rest firmly on their performance this month. I will deem the Knicks playoff chances dead if they don’t take 3 of the 4 games they have against the Bucks and Bulls, and they have to win at least 5 of the other 7 games. In all, the means the Knicks have to go 8-3 this month, otherwise they are going fishing early this year. They only have to go on the road 4 times this month, traveling no further east than Cleveland. If they can’t get 8 wins with a schedule like that, they don’t deserve to make the playoffs.
Stephon Doesn't Impress in China Debut
I know that most New York Knicks fans could care less about Stephon Marbury and whatever the heck he is up to at this point in his basketball career/life. However, many native New Yorkers still wonder what that crazy Starbury is up to. Henry Abbott gives you some insight into Marbury’s Chinese basketball debut on his blog, Truehoop.com:
The opposing team's point guard, Tre Kelley, had a huge night against Marbury, in the former All-Star's Chinese debut.
Marbury's team has been one of the worst teams in the Chinese Basketball Association. Yesterday they were playing the team just ahead of them in the standings. Alexander Chernykh, a Russian journalist who writes for sports.ru, happened to catch part of the game, and e-mails:
Read More... Read More......
Former Knick Channing Frye... All-Star Material?
Surely, Thomas’s decision to send Channing Frye to the Portland Trailblazers 3 seasons ago didn’t cause a whole lot of commotion. After all, the Knicks got Zach Randolph in the deal, and Frye was playing the worst basketball of his young NBA career at the time.
However, ESPN.com is reporting that Channing Frye, now of the Phoenix Suns, has just been selected to participate in the NBA’s 3-point shootout in Arlington, Texas. Frye has made the second most 3-pointers in the NBA, with 114 on the season. He also ranks among the top ten in terms of percentage, knocking down 44% of his long range bombs.
As a whole, Frye is really nothing more than a 3-point shooter though. Despite playing the Center position in the Suns scheme, Frye averages just 5.7 rebounds per game. While his 12 points per game are his best numbers in a while, he actually average slightly more points, and the same number of rebounds, in what was a very promising rookie season. He even plays 5 more minutes per game than he did that year, too.
So while Frye will be going to Arlington, Texas, and David Lee won’t be, New York Knicks fans need not concern themselves about losing out on Frye. His real promise came as a big man that could shoot, not as a shooter that was big. He is a glorified guard in the Suns system, and while I’m happy for his success and his role as a starter on the Suns team, his basketball efforts aren’t attributable to a winning basketball.
Friday, January 29, 2010
David Lee Feeling Down After Loss and All-Star Snub
From Chris Sheridan, ESPN.com:
"David Lee has grown fond of having a playful back-and-forth with a certain beat writer for a New York tabloid, always trying to pinpoint moment or the quote the New York Post will seize upon to accentuate the negative.
Following the Knicks' 27-point victory two nights earlier, Lee quipped that the Post would write that "it made Sunday's 50-point loss look even worse."
So it was no surprise when Lee immediately took notice Thursday night as the Post's beat writer began scribbling in his notebook upon hearing Lee say that the Knicks had let one slip away in Thursday night's 106-104 loss to the Toronto Raptors, and he bellowed it out again -- with emphasis.
"Knicks let one slip away!" Lee said.
"Is that your back-page headline?" Lee was asked later, a reference to a conversation two nights earlier between Lee and the writers which transitioned to the topic of the truly tricky tabloid talent of writing a back-page headline." Read More...
Also See: Knicks Record Cost David Lee shot at All-Star Bid
Thursday, January 28, 2010
BREAKING NEWS: David Lee Not to Make the All-Star Team
It is being reported by both The Daily News and Yahoo! Sports that David Lee is not going to be on the 2010 NBA Eastern Conference All-Star team.
This really is quite a tragedy. David Lee deserved to be on this year’s squad for a myriad of reasons. One of the most significant ones being that you would be hard-pressed to name three, not just centers, but big men that have had a better first half than David Lee has this season. While Dwight Howard and Chris Bosh are no-brainers, David Lee is in the discussion with every other big man in the East.
What probably hurt David Lee the most was the fact that he was listed at forward, where he had to go up against big names LeBron James, Chris Bosh, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. Shaquille O’Neal. He also had to go up against trendy names, such as Gerlad Wallace.
At the center position, however, the numbers should have had Lee in this year’s All-Star game. Howard and Brook Lopez are the only two starting centers in the East that have a better Player Efficiency Rating than David Lee, and Lopez doesn’t count because he plays for the New Jersey Nets. Andrew Bogut is the next staring center in terms of PER, but Lee’s 19 and 11 are better than Bogut’s 16 and 10. Al Horford follows Bogut, but he doesn’t even average a double-double.
Of course, you can go a lot deeper than just points and rebounds, and for the most part, all of these players are better than Lee, defensively. Not to mention, Horford, who reportedly has made the All-Star team, is on a winning squad in Atlanta, while Lee’s team is several games out of the playoffs and below .500.
But even when you factor in defense, Lee’s offensive value is so much higher than the other centers that it’s not even fair. And yes, the Knicks aren’t a good team, but as John Hollinger points out, “Lee’s 8.7 EWA are at least 2 more than those of any other center candidate except Lopez…”
You know, people complain about who the fans vote in, but sometimes, the coaches don’t get it right either.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Don't Be Surprised if the Knicks Are Blown Out Again...And 3 Reasons Why
The New York Knicks managed to bounce back from the beating they took from the Dallas Mavericks.
They beat the Minnesota Timberwolves by a whopping 27 points, becoming only the third team in NBA history to win by 20 or more points after being bounced by 50 or me.
What a dubious distinction.
While I would love to give the stats on this game and praise the Knicks for bouncing back strong, I still can’t get over what happened against the Mavericks. Sure, we could chalk it up to a one-time scenario and say that is was nothing more than an aberration. But we can’t say that. Because every once in a while this is what the New York Knicks do. And this time it is even more disappointing, because they really had us fooled. We really thought they had moved past the point of NBA jokester, and yet here they are again.
I know the time to make fun of the fat girl is not when she’s coming back from the gym, and so the idea of harping on the Knicks 50-point loss to the Mavs only hours after a 27-point win over the T-Wolves doesn’t sit well with many people. However, I can’t allow myself or our readers to be lured in once again. There are reasons why the Knicks are capable of lapses like the ones they had on Sunday, and I want to point them out so that none of us are surprised when this happens again. In fact, the only thing that can prevent another poor showing like the one the Knicks displayed on Sunday would be one of the many trades being floated around across forums and blogs everywhere.
Al Harrington Still Comes Off the Bench – Coach Mike D’Antoni is just going to continue to be defiant about this, and it’s why the Knicks are capable of losing big in just about every game they play this NBA season. The Knicks have gotten off to bad starts in just about every game this season. Last night against the Timberwolves was the exception, but even in wins, the Knicks usually start off with a near double-digit deficit in the first quarter of games before coming back to make things interesting at the end. This would not happen if Harrington started off the games, giving the Knicks somebody who is more equipped to create his own shot when the offense has failed to get into a rhythm early on in the contest. According to 82games.com, the Knicks “winningest” five-man unit involves Harrington (in place of Danillo Gallinari), and yet that unit gets less than half the minutes the starting lineup gets. If the Knicks want to change their first quarter woes, D’Antoni needs to put Harrington into the starting lineup to keep his team from falling behind early on.
The Knicks Do Not Play Fast Enough – I never was a huge fan of the “7 seconds or less” offense, but from an offensive standpoint, the philosophy worked in Phoenix. However, the Knicks don’t run it nearly as well. You can blame it on the personnel, or maybe even on the coach, but whatever it is, the Knicks fail to produce quality shots as quickly and as often as the Suns did when D’Antoni was in Phoenix. I understand the Knicks don’t have Steve Nash, but D’Antoni knew that when he got here, and that’s why he went out and paid all that money for Chris Duhon to run point guard. Yet, with D’Antoni’s guy running the show, only 38% of the Knicks shots happen within the first 10 seconds of a possession. On the other hand, the 2007-2008 Suns, D’Antoni’s last squad in Phoenix, shot 43% of their shots within the first 10 seconds of a possession. That Suns team also put up 72% of its shots within the first 15 seconds of the shot clock, compared to the Knicks 65% this season. That may sound like mere percentage-point differences to you, but these 5 and 4-point differentials go a long way in determining the pace of a game. Not to mention, when the majority of these early shots are quality shots, the more you get can have a big impact on the game, which is why the “7 seconds or less” offense is supposedly so effective. If the Knicks are going to be competitive from here on out and exhibit the ability to be a playoff-caliber team, they need to adhere to their own philosophy and get some shots up!
The Knicks Are Just Too Small – Bless David Lee’s little heart, but he is not a center by any definition of the term. David Lee is too small to guard the likes of Dwight Howard, Shaquille O’Neal and Chris Bosh, and time and time again, that has been proven on the court. The Knicks have been blown out of games by virtue of interior play alone, the Knicks game against Toronto a couple weeks ago serving as a prime example of that. The numbers also give merit to this notion, with 37% of field goal attempts against the Knicks coming from “close-range,” meaning shots inside the paint or from the short corner. This ultimately means that Knicks opponents only shoot jumpers against the Knicks 63% of the time, and that is partially inflated by the fact that the Knicks defend the 3-point line so terribly. As a result of all the close shots, Knicks opponents have an effective Field Goal percentage of 51%, which in comparison to a middle of the road defense like the Pacers, is 2-points worse. That is just unacceptable, and with a defense like that, one should never be surprises when the Knicks get blown out of the water like they did this past Sunday.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Can the New York Knicks Make the Playoffs?
As we approach the All-Star break, NBA playoff talk has to begin. Not the usual stuff that we’ve already been talking about. You know, “Who’s the favorite?” “Which conference is the best?” “What trades will be made to make a playoff push?” I’m not talking about those playoff issues. I’m talking about the one concerning the New York Knicks; specifically, the question of whether the Knicks will make the playoffs.
According to ESPN’s John Hollinger, the Knicks have a pretty good chance at making the postseason tournament. By Hollinger’s playoff odds calculations, as of January 20, 2010, the Knicks have a 1 in 3 chance of making the playoffs, far better than their odds at this point in the season last year, the year before that, and the year before that.
Of course, Hollinger’s odds are based on silly things like wins, margin of victory and Hollinger’s dubiously calculated power rankings list. But we don’t need silly things stats. We can go off a more tried and true method of projecting the Knicks fate: our eyeballs.
Because when it comes down to it, you either envision the Knicks as a playoff team or you don’t. And while things like strength of schedule, number of home games and the performance of other teams may come into play, at the end of the day, a real NBA fan knows what a playoff team looks like. So ask yourself one question, “Do the New York Knicks look like a playoff team?”
Well, in using our “eyeball test,” we’re going to keep it simple. Let’s compare the Knicks to their peers battling for the lower-end playoff spots, according to the current NBA standings.
Four games separate the Knicks from the 5th spot in the Eastern conference, which is currently held by the Miami Heat. Are the Knicks better than them? Not in my opinion. I definitely think the Knicks can beat the Heat on any given night, but the Knicks lack the consistency that Dwyane Wade brings to Miami each and every night, so I can’t say that I see the Knicks being 4 games better than Miami for the remainder of the season—assuming Wade stays healthy.
In the 6th spot is Charlotte, a team that I believe is on the same level as New York. However, the Knicks are r games behind Charlotte in the conference standings. Can the Knicks outplay the Bobcats by 4 games over the next 40? Maybe. But I wouldn’t bet my life on it.
In the 7th spot is Toronto, a team that just eviscerated the Knicks a couple of nights ago. Prior to that beat down, I would have said the Knicks could easily handle a team like the Raptors that plays virtually no defense. Now, I’m not so sure, and I’m not sure the Knicks can make up 3 games on the Raptors at this point either.
In the 8th spot, and the last team ahead of the Knicks in the standings, is Chicago. Chicago is playing their best ball of the season right now, beating some really good teams and bouncing back from their December woes which nearly had their head coach fired on Christmas Day. However, despite the Bulls record of 6-4 over their last 10, I do think the Knicks are better than this team, and it’s for one reason really—they don’t have that superstar player that is going to bring it every night. Sure, Derrick Rose is a great point guard, but he’s not Steve Nash or Chris Paul (yet), and he’s not going to “get his” every single night. I know they have other players like Luol Deng, John Salmons and Tyrus Thomas, but once again, these are guys that have big nights every once and while, but none of them bring a constant energy each and every night.
And for that reason, I think the Knicks can catch the Bulls, which are currently 2 games ahead of the Knicks. Even though the Bulls are playing well right now, how long do we think that’s going to last? They are a jump shooting team that appears to be hitting their jump shots, but when that goes away, they no longer play the defense they once did in order to have the boost they need to win games win the jumper isn’t falling.
So the Knicks do have a chance, and in my estimation, and in comparison to the rest of the teams vying for the playoffs, the Knicks can surpass the Bulls over the next 40 games. Logically speaking, the Knicks can pass any of the 4 teams ahead of them right now and get a higher seed than 8th, but they have their work cut out for them. But I won’t get ahead of myself, so here’s to hoping the Knicks are just a tad more consistent than the Bulls over the next 3 months.
