nixluva wrote:The Knicks have improved on D. Now it's all relative, cuz we were so bad that what we do now is a revelation. It's not 48 mins of intense D, but that's not what MDA is trying to do. He wants to keep teams from getting good offense. We switch and keep guys from getting easy entry into the lane, that leads to bad passes and steals which have increased this year for this team. All that switching looks excessive, but it has a purpose and the end result is that we are #9 in the league in steals per game!!! We used to be dead last in the league in Blocks per game and now we're 22 with 4.3 per game. That's great for a team with no real shot blocking center. The thing is that on every count this team is playing better D. No matter what the pace is now, it's good D.

I agree nix, but the pace has slowed down alot, and even though we still jack up more 3's then 29 other teams, atleast now were setting up the 3 ball shot instead of coming down and jacking up the first available shot.

M

AnubisADL wrote:

Paladin55 wrote:

AnubisADL wrote:

Paladin55 wrote:Honestly, if you think that out D has not improved and been a contributing factor to the team's change of fortune, you:

1) Have not watched all the games they have played this year

and/or

2) Have no idea what you are watching when you do watch the games

and/or

3) Have no idea how the team has changed the way it plays D since the beginning of the season

No, we are not going to stop every team we play against, but if you watch this team you know that their effort and success on D is no illusion.

Our defense is so good we have been losing leads to mediocre teams in the fourth by giving up layups. This improved D is just an illusion. Guys are playing harder because their offense is rocking. Notice how active Chandler is now? His offense feeds his energy on the defensive end.

You are just being provocative and you don't seem to have any sense of persepective about the evolution of this team on defense or how the game is played in the NBA. You have obviously not watched the team very carefully this year,

Evolution? I watch more than the Knicks. Our defense isn't good plain and simple and the Eastern conference is abysmal. Pretty sad when the 12th worse team in the west would be the 8th seed in the East. I'm not trying to be provocative, I'm watching the same games as you. Hahn's even noted today on the Brandon Tierney show that these weren't "quality" wins.

As far as being in the Eastern Conference- you play where you lay, and we are in the EC. If the EC sucks you take advantage of your situation and become the best of a mediocre bunch. Can't change our conference- we can change where we end up in the heap.

I think there is some truth to the second and third sentences of this paragraph. I do agree that the timing is strange because the team is finally experiencing a stretch of consistent success.

Andrew wrote:Chicago blog on the subject:

http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/chicago-bulls-confidential/2009/12/how-would-life-be-different-with-dantoni.html

That was a good rebuttal to the other article. I remember having to keep hearing how the Bulls had such a better org. Than the knicks and were on the way to a contender before us. Dolan's only problem has been trusting the wrong people. Now I think we have the right people in place. If MDA can push this team into the playoffs it's gonna make our off season one to remember.