The Knicks lost to the Nets last night 100-92. Deron Williams had 38 points and could’ve had 40+ had he not fouled out. Tim Smith of the Daily News writes that perhaps Deron Williams, like the NBA, isn’t too fond of being a backstory to Linsanity. Marc Berman of the Post says that Carmelo Anthony’s return proved disastrous as the Linsane Knicks looked confused after getting off to a fast start in the first quarter. Tim Bontemps of the Post wrote that Baron Davis didn’t prove to be the presence that Knick fans had hoped for a month ago but having a motivated and healthy Baron would help too. Stefan Bondy of the Daily News writes that Deron Williams had a point to prove and circled this date on his calendar.
Before people look at the scoreboard and put two and two together that because of Carmelo Anthony’s return the Knicks lost should promptly roll up their newspaper or turn off their IPads, close up their laptops and promptly smack themselves in their face with it. I will continue to insist that despite the return of the Melo-Man, Linsanity should only be strengthened despite conventional wisdom stating the opposite. We all know that Carmelo loves to ISO and take his own shot but so does JR Smith, why bring two one dimensional players on board? At least JR looks like he gives a damn on defense. And that’s where the Knicks have been brutal. Carmelo AND Amar’e logging major minutes on the other end of the ball creates a bigger problem than anything on the offensive end. The Knicks defensively looked lost and couldn’t stop Deron Williams coming off screens, on help defense, on drives right into the painted area, they just do not help the cause.
There was a bit of me that wanted to see the original group that helped the Knicks to so many wins these last few nights on the floor but D’Antoni rightfully so (Can’t believe I’m saying this) stuck with the new group for as long as he possibly could. The grouping you want on the floor is the one where Lin is the PG, Landry is the shooting guard, and its Melo, Amar’e and Tyson Chandler. THOSE GUYS need to learn how to play well together on both sides of the ball so its counterproductive to immediately remove them for a lesser team despite the success. Melo’s man is routinely left open and routinely has open shots and should camp out in the corner. Melo’s always been lax on the defensive end and that more than anything is what scares me about his return. IF Melo’s return is a problem on offense I put that squarely on the shoulders of the point guard. We’ve now removed the interim tag off of Jeremy Lin and have approved his status as NBA point guard and not as overnight fluke. The boy can ball but now what? Easy. His job is to provide the ball to his scorers in the best way possible. Nothing more, nothing less. Does that mean less shot attempts? Maybe. But knowing the flow of the game must be one of his duties and that is something that Lin didn’t do until late.
He seemed hesitant to be aggressive because Melo was there. Why on earth did he do that? His job is to distribute the basketball to the open man but you can’t do that when you’re NOT driving. The defense won’t collapse and defenders won’t leave their man thus leaving no one open. Melo wasn’t running through screens, the Knicks were still running the pick and roll offense without any one actually rolling. That was their problem offensively. Ball movement doesn’t just mean that Spalding touches everyone’s hand. It means that there are guys moving around constantly shifting position causing havoc on the defense trying to read and stay in front of their man. There was more of that wonderful: stay in one spot and let the ball come to you and let’s everyone move out of the way as Melo posts up his defender. That’s the kind of shit that brought Lin into the world, hopefully its not the shit he creates that will take him out. Lin must realize this and end it quick. HE must be aggressive to the rim if no one else will.
But the reason the Knicks lost is because they missed their threes while Deron Williams threw up enough threes and made enough to put the gellin in progress Knicks in enough of a hole that they had to abandon their live-game practice and had to actually play ball. By then the Nets had hit too many threes and had too many buckets and Kris Humphries had taken Tyson Chandler, and Carmelo Anthony off their games by doing it the old fashioned way: boxing out on the boards and causing mayhem on offense. Say what you will about his dating life but he sure was a disruptive presence, enough for Tyson to go chasing after him on the bench (though I thought that it was just Tyson going to ask him if it was ok if he saw Kim for a date) and for Melo to trip him while going up the court and draw a technical.
The game was way too physical early on and by the time the referees started calling it tight both teams were already pissed off at each other that there was going to be some frustration let loose. The Knicks were just outshot and the fact was Deron Williams put on a clinic. The man couldn’t miss. Even when the Knicks trapped him, they immediately ran screens for him and Landry couldn’t get through them in enough time to disrupt his shot which was just Drain-O all the time. Forget the fact that this is a top-tier point guard who took to heart alot of the negative press he had recieved as a result of Linsanity’s arrival at his expense. Having to read the musings of some fans who felt that Deron had gotten schooled by an Ivy Leaguer must’ve gotten him bent out of shape and decided to give the Harvard grad a little taste of state run higher education from Arizona University. The former Wildcat did enough on offense to put the Knicks away but it was the rebounding of Kris Humphries NOT allowing the Knicks to get second chance points like they did against the Mavs. Fact is, the Knicks lost this game because the other team outplayed them, namely two guys.
As for Iman Shumpert’s absence being a major miss, yes I would agree his defense would’ve helped on Deron Williams. He’s got the quickness to stay with him and the long reach to disrupt his shots which the other Knicks just don’t have. We dont know if it would’ve mattered with Deron Williams being this hot but it couldn’t have been worse. Either way, the major thing the Knicks don’t need is to limit the minutes of the rotation. If that means less minutes for guys like Melo and Amar’e then so be it. The fact is, the Knicks are in the business of winning games and for the next few, while the results may not be there, D’Antoni has to go with a steady mixing and matching to figure out who can play with who without the defense completely collapsing. The Knicks rested Shump today and will probably do the same against Atlanta in order for him to be at close to 100% for another major test against Lebron, Wade and the Heat.
Yesterday, with pitchers and catchers reporting and the first sign that baseball is coming back, Mariano Rivera decided his fate after the end of the 2012 season….but isn’t JUST YET SAYING WHAT IT IS. But that didn’t stop reporters from suggesting that the 42 year old baseball player is considering retirement. Joel Sherman of the Post writes that his early arrival to Spring Training was a sign. John Harper of the Daily News wrote that perhaps vocal chord surgery put a scare in Rivera making the immortal Mariano feel mortal again. Erik Boland of Newsday writes that despite all the uncertainty Mariano tried to convey it was clear what he was trying to spell out.
Like Mariano himself said: every year he comes in with a mindset that this may be his final season and while this may very well be his last, the thing about this announcement is that Mariano is pretty certain about his fate. Despite my anti-Yankee sentiment I’ve always maintained I look at them with open eyes. Mariano is the greatest closer hands down, in the history of the game. I know other closers will say that this version of the closer is different than the guy who would routinely pitch two or three innings to earn a save but there aren’t many guys who do what Mariano does at such a high level with just one pitch. Nobody who has his kind of accuracy in locating pitches and keeping hitters routinely off balance. Nobody who came into a game and the opposing team’s confidence fell flat. During that late 90’s run, NOBODY wanted to see Mariano Rivera in the game except the Yankees and their fans. Much of his later years success was built off that reputation and much of his record was accumulated and padded thanks to a menacing stare and an ability to put the ball wherever he wanted to much to the hitters dismay. He never threw it right down the middle, instead, nibbled on corners and broke bats and hearts.
He wore number forty two and at age 42, he seems ready to call it quits and perhaps his early arrival to Spring Training did say something: that perhaps he’d like to savor EVERYTHING about being a baseball player one last time. That perhaps going through a spring training and a full complement of workouts is something he doesn’t need for his playing career as much as he needs for his memory. To store. To cherish. To be able to bond with his teammates over a hot spring day in sunny Floriday. To enjoy Jeter, the final Core Four Member still remaining, and his company. To teach his magical cutter to young teammates who had his poster on their wall growing up. To take a victory lap through all the ballparks in baseball and enjoy the cheers AND the boos (both signs of respect) for a man who was a champion in spirit as much as occupation. A man who grew from humble roots and origin to become a success here in America. A man who never forgot who he was and his Christian background. A man who never allowed himself to be poisoned by fame and fortune but remained humble in victory AND defeat. I’ve long considered Mariano Rivera one of the greatest players in the history of the game because of his accomplishments but he’s one of my favorite players because of his personality, attitude and his ability to be humble about it all. He’s great. He knows it. He just wants to take in Spring and Summer, October and perhaps the Canyon of Heroes all one last time.
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