JR Smith To The Knicks

 

According To Frank Isola of the New York Daily News, shooting guard JR Smith is expected to sign with the Knicks later this afternoon. Smith, played with the Denver Nuggets last season, before taking his talents to the Far East to play in China during the offseason, averaged 12.3 points and 4.1 rebounds last season, connecting on 39 percent of his shots from 3-point range.

Smith also confirmed the move via his official Twitter account with the following tweet: “New York it is!”

This move has been expected to happen for some time now, as Smith now gives the Knicks a deadly shooter off the bench who can get hot with ease. However, even though Smith is expected to place his John Hancock on a crisp sheet of contract paper from the Knicks this afternoon, he won’t be able to play for the team until Sunday, but he will be at the Garden tonight to watch his new team take on the Hornets.

Why Jeremy Lin’s Success Will Last

 

Many critics on the blogosphere are quick to come out in an attempt to put down Jeremy Lin’s success, as he has led this Knicks team to 7 straight wins, since he was given the starting job by Mike D’Antoni. Let’s address some of the criticisms circling Lin, shall we?

Criticism #1: “The sample size to evaluate Lin’s talent is too miniscule.”

Really Mr. Critic? Miniscule? A 7 game stretch of production is miniscule? The hype surrounding Miami Heat rookie Norris Cole after his 20-point outing against Boston was miniscule and overhyped, but not Lin, and I’ll tell you why. Lin has consistently been getting his teammates involved, such as Landry Fields and Jared Jeffries, and has been giving them easy looks to put in the hole, CONSISTENTLY. One game may be a fluke, two is an eye opener, three games and you start opening your eyes, but 7? That’s no coincidence my dear sir.

 

Criticism #2: “Lin may rack up a large amount of assists, but he turns the ball over way too much for a PG”.

Jeremy Lin is getting his first dose of consistent minutes in the NBA, and is still not accustomed to being the source of production on a team. In time, Lin can only get better with taking care of the ball, as he’ll get more acclimated to starter’s minutes. He’s only played 7 real games. Now if he was somebody like Russell Westbrook, who is a career 4 turnover per game PG, then we’d have a problem, I trust Lin and his Harvard IQ

 

Criticism #3: “When Carmelo Anthony returns, he’ll create havoc for the offense and slow down Lin’s production”

*Sigh* Is this Skip Bayless? Anyway, Carmelo Anthony will not slow down this offense or Jeremy Lin, and I’ll explain why. Anthony is surely taking notes while sitting on the bench in his expensive suit and bow tie on how ball movement can electrify the fans, pump up the team, and most importantly: generate wins. Anthony surely isn’t sitting on the bench itching to get back on the court so that he can hold up the offense once again. Carmelo is a human being like all of us, he just wants to be loved and adored, and what better way to do that than by producing results? Surely, Lin’s PPG will decline, since Anthony needs to take his shots, but his assists should increase with arguably the most well-rounded scorer in the league on sharing the court with him.

 

So, what do you think Knicks fans? What do you think about J-Lin’s success story? Post in the comments below.

The X’s and O’s of Carmelo Anthony

Earlier this morning, I had awoken to a tweet by John Schuhmann from NBA.com, and stated the Knicks are 6-6 since the Carmelo Anthony trade. Not only that, but Amar’e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony are a +1 efficiency rating in 335 minutes of playing time together. That +1 efficiency rating is mainly from their struggles on the defensive side of the court, but what can the duo do on offence to help better themselves and their teammates?

I was thinking that Chauncey Billups and Amar’e Stoudemire could run more pick and roll plays together in order to make the team more of an offensive threat. Stoudemire finishes at the rim so divinely, that he would need a double team, and when that happens, Billups is left wide open on a shot he wont miss more often than not. If Billups AND Stoudemire are trapped on a pick and roll, that leaves shooters and cutters open on the wings for an easy field goal attempt.

You would have Carmelo Anthony wide open on the right side of the basket, and he is a 60% shooter on jump shots this season. Also, if efficient marksmen like Andy Rautins, Shawne Williams, Landry Fields, Roger Mason, or Bill Walker are left open, they can cause some damage to an opposing defence without much effort.

If you were the coach of the Knicks, what would be your play to correct Anthoy and Stoudemire’s +1 efficiency rating?

Tags: Amar'e Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups

Knicks Fail To Close-Out Pacers, Lose 117-119

If there was any game this season to show the Knicks flaws as a basketball team, it was definitely this one. It’s been a reoccurring theme this season, but the New York Knicks must learn how to play defence against the other 29 teams in the NBA.

Throughout the period of 4 quarters, the Knicks were out-rebounded, invaded in the paint, and out matched, as Indiana’s frontcourt combined for 71 points. If this were the 90s, fans would be calling for the team’s heads on a platter for allowing such a defensively lax performance.

It is up to Carmelo Anthony, Amar’e Stoudemire, and Chauncey Billups as the leaders of this Knicks team, to get everybody into a defensive mindset. Especially Stoudemire and Anthony, since the two of them are the main culprits in this supposedly mysterious entity which we call “defence”. Offence is only half of the game, with out the other half (defence), you will not succeed as a basketball team. Only time will tell how much the Knicks improve their defensive struggles.

Tags: Amar'e Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups

Toney Douglas Is Going To School

After the Carmelo Anthony trade, a few analysts on ESPN said the Knicks gave up too many of their complimentary pieces in the deal with Denver. What most analysts neglected to mention however, was the impact newly acquired veteran point guards Chauncey Billups and Anthony Carter could bring to the young Knicks team.

Toney Douglas, who was drafted 29th in the 2009 NBA draft, is in his second season with the Knicks, and has shown fans he can score and play defense at a relatively high intensity. Prior to the trade with the Nuggets, Douglas was a shooting guard in a point guard’s body, and really didn’t possess many playmaking skills on the court.

As many of us know, when Chauncey Billups went down with an injury last week during the team’s loss in Orlando, Douglas was called upon to take the reigns of the offense, and lead the team to wins in the absence of Billups. Since Billups’ injury, the Knicks are 4-2 and Douglas has averaged 17 points, 4 rebounds, and 7 assists starting in those games mentioned.

Before the trade, Douglas likely wouldn’t have been able to put up those assist numbers, so something is obviously happening to Douglas’ game. He is clearly being mentored by the veteran point guards, Chauncey Billups an Anthony Carter. Chauncey Billups has a reputation for teaching young guards how to play, like Ty Lawson and Rodney Stuckey for example. Anthony Carter is a defensively adept player, who was responsible for shutting down Dwyane Wade in the team’s recent victory over the Heat.

With these two players taking Douglas and showing him the ropes, the Knicks may have possibly have a good future playmaker in Douglas, who can come off the bench and serve the team well. The ceiling of Douglas is pretty high, especially with the arrival of Carter and Billups, which automatically raises the ceiling of this new-look Knicks basketball team.

Tags: Anthony Carter, Chauncey Billups, Toney Douglas

Video: What If The Knicks Were Animals?

This is my first YouTube video, there will surely be more on the way in the future. Leave a comment below and let me know what you guess think.

Carmelo’s Gamewinner Lifts Knicks Over Grizzlies, 110-108

The Knicks were a damsel in distress, after having their double-digit lead cut down in Memphis, but Carmelo Anthony came flying to the rescue to save the day. Anthony’s midrange jumper over Tony Allen with 0.5 seconds left on the clock allowed the New York Knicks to win their third game in a row, along with stellar play from Toney Douglas and Amar’e Stoudemire.

Amar’e Stoudemire wreaked his usual havoc in the paint against the defensively lacking Zach Randolph, and was able to provide the team with 26 points on the night, as he harassed Randolph on the offensive end at every opportunity.

Toney Douglas was the real surprise this game, as he showed some playmaking efficiency. Douglas had 18 points to go along with 10 assists to help the Knicks defeat the Memphis Grizzles.

Tags: Amar'e Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony, Toney Douglas