Posted by bitty41:

Posted by Cosmic:

I will add on about Zach though. We're a far better team when he takes ~9 FGAs versus 15+FGAs. That's a given.

No he should be taking between 12 to 15 shots b/c he's not strictly around the basket scorer so he's going to mix in some jump shots. Like the last game against NJ he went 8-15 which I think is good numbers for him if he can stay in that area. 9 shots is very low for an NBA team' 2nd option IMO

The thing is that ball dominant players rarely get others involved because they are so busy putting up shots. When they do that, unless they are on fire, you're going to have a tough time to win. Given that most gunners usually aren't all that efficient - if you choose to rely on them heavily as we do - chances are your record won't be all that great over the long haul.

That's the problem I have with Zach or Crawford taking SO many shots. If Zach shot 50% then fine. If Crawford shot 45% or better? Then fine. Yet, they don't.

So you're basically hinging your success on whether or not a gunner is going to be on fire for a game. That's a horrible way to expect to win more games than you lose.
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[Edited by - cosmic on 01-18-2008 6:19 PM]

Posted by Cosmic:

Yeah, and in that, Jamal has to be on fire for us to have a chance, something he has clearly struggled to do over his now 8 year career.

So we're doomed to be a sub .500 team if we're making Crawful our Franchise Player - something Isiah has done.

Crawful is what he is. Unfortunately Isiah gives him the responsibilities and freedom you would give a franchise player, a Kobe Bryant or a Michael Jordan.

Until a coach treats Jamal for what he is and demands he plays under control and limits his responsibilities and freedom on the court - we're never going to be a good team.

Don't let 3 wins and a decent week by Jamal trick you into thinking some miraculous formula for an inevitable turnaround has been found. It hasn't. He has done this before. This Knick team has strung a few wins together before. It does not change the big picture one bit. When it reverses itself you will see that - yet again.

You know I have always said if you see Jamal start his numbers will go up. I would not be surprised if he finishes with shooting 42% this year or more with 20 to 21 points. Which is what he can do when he starts. I'm not into this give Eddy the ball thing.

The thing is Cosmic you have to go with what you have. Right noe this team does not have a franchise player. So why not go with the guy that gives you the best chance at winning? The Knicks have tried giving the ball through Curry for 2 years it has not worked. Jamal and Zach could work if we had a real coach. Not some guy fighting players with a bag of popcorn and beat up Eyebrows.

If this team gets a good draft pick Jamal will not be a franchise player. I don't even think Isiah thinks he is the franchise player. All that is happening is Marbury is not on the team so the players and coach look at Jamal as a leader. So who would you go with?

Posted by Queeniepop:

Jamal is shooting 42% from the field- his best % of his career

Jamal is shooting 36% from 3-FG - career high

Jamal is averaging nearly 20 pts and 5 assists

Jamal is shooting 87% from FT- best of his career

Posted by nixluva:

Cosmic, we all know that there is some talent on this team, but that it just hasn't played well together. If they do the things they need to in order to win, why be so skeptical?

It's not about Jamal being hot or not. It's the STYLE of play that matters most. If you have him taking more GOOD shots, due to running Screens, Curls and passing the ball so that he's taking open shots with his feet set, he's gonna be much more consistent. We've been hitting more shots cuz we've been sharing he ball better as a team. That's really all that we needed to do from the get go.

Someone finally got thru to Zach and he's been a little better at sharing the ball. He's still not perfect, but he's been better. We've also moved away from forcing the ball to Curry all game, WHICH I'VE BEEN SCREAMING about all year. Curry will always be a primary threat, but if you never take the open shots he creates by teams being so preoccupied with him then you miss the whole advantage of having him in the paint. Also as i've been saying over and over, we have elusive guards and there's not reason we shouldn't have defenders chasing those guys around screens all game.

Jones is a nice backcourt mate for Jamal cuz he doesn't require shots, but he's a ball mover and he'll hit an open shot from time to time. He also takes the ball strong to the hole and defends.

Posted by Queeniepop:

Jamal is shooting 42% from the field- his best % of his career

Jamal is shooting 36% from 3-FG - career high

Jamal is averaging nearly 20 pts and 5 assists

Jamal is shooting 87% from FT- best of his career

Jamal been doing a really good job this year. He is around that 20 and 5 mark that only a couple of great players like Kobe and Wade do better then. He has his FG% up in the "scorers" range of 41%-43% that alot of the other scoring guards in the league average(probably needs to still get to the basket and line more).

I think it will great if the knicks get a great player at the 1,2,3,4,5. Jamal is the kind of player a great player can lean on and feed off of IMHO.