Philc1 wrote:I freaking hate Harden but the injuries caught up. Knicks have 3 point guards including their superstar face of the franchise/face of the nba out.

The way harden and Leonard was shooting, there’s nothing JB could do. He would’ve did too much and hurt the other ankle.

We are no worse than 4th place which is fine. Team too fragile to win it all. Just good playoff experience.

blkexec wrote:

Philc1 wrote:I freaking hate Harden but the injuries caught up. Knicks have 3 point guards including their superstar face of the franchise/face of the nba out.

The way harden and Leonard was shooting, there’s nothing JB could do. He would’ve did too much and hurt the other ankle.

We are no worse than 4th place which is fine. Team too fragile to win it all. Just good playoff experience.

franco12 wrote:

Clean wrote:

Tweet was deleted or there was problem with the URL:

https://www.twitter.com/BenRitholtzNBA/status/1905056194894475575

WTF is Kat doing on D? Why was he so far to his left when the pick was going to create space on the right?

It was Hart! He backed off because his 3 fouls.

Or actually Thibs for having him out there.

I found someone who screen shotted the main problem here.

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https://www.twitter.com/BryanGibberman/status/1905073285588468036

Kat is literally guarding the wrong side of the PNR and I use the word guarding loosely. This is unacceptable. I know high schoolers who would never made a mistake like this. Its actually common sense really.

Knicksfan wrote:I got to say that while I love the Knicks as a whole and always want them to win, I’m SO UNINSPIRED by this year’s team. I was spoiled last year with the scrappy overachieving group that we had. Once we got new shiny pieces, I just thought it would translate and even get better. But this team is so unfocused and so undisciplined for being so close to the end of the season that it’s hard to see this team as nothing more than a first or second round bust.

The offense varies to the point that I wonder if Thibs is paying attention. The defense? It hasn’t been there the whole season to the point that it’s evident they don’t have what it takes to beat elite teams or those who are in great runs like the Clips right now.

Brunson is really the sole piece that could make us overachieve this playoffs. But this team is too flawed and even though I’m thankful for all that he has done, I wouldn’t mind a new coach next season.

100% agree- though not sure what a new coach will do. I think Kat, Bridges, OG are all super nice guys and what we are missing is whatever edge in personality that Randle, Donte and iHart brought to the squad.

And some combination of Kat (Charles Smith 2.0), Bridges a nd maybe OG need to be traded to bring back some grit and depth.

Last years team could have gone to the finals if healthy and had as good a chance as anyone to win it all.

This year, maybe they win the 1st round, but after that, giant ? And no way they get to or win the finals unless something incredible happens with other teams as far as injuries or planes disappearing in Bermuda Triangle.

Mitch - no impact. Got dominated on the glass. So much time off and he sucked. Cant play back to backs and was saved for this game to provide nothing.

Precious- He has flashes, but he has been dreadful lately. He does 5 or 6 things per game that make you wonder how he made the NBA because they are so bad.

Shamet- leads the league in getting someone's face on D and still getting scored on. He is too small/slight to play Wing in the NBA and is too inconsistent to be a shooter/sniper.

Wright- I don't blame him, but he made zero impact. His time in the NBA is done.

Guys this is our depth last night. Every piece of it has to be upgraded. Payne and Deuce have been our only real bench players this year.

martin wrote:Haven't watched past 2 games. What's the initial impression of Kolek? Just needs a bit of time? Defense?

Last night he got exposed in pick and roll defense in the 3rd quarter vs. Harden. It is an EXTREMELY tough matchup for him, so take it with a grain of salt. I think he has positioned himself well on defense and competed. The game before against Dallas he was a plus. Last night he struggled.

His biggest issue is he can't score. He missed 2 FTs. He bricked a few 3s. He can't make a layup. His passing and ballhandling is real, but he has to keep defenses honest. He has only 2 FGs and 1 FT in the 3 games he's gotten minutes.

VDesai wrote:Knicks depth was a problem. Kolek aside, how bad was the bench?

Mitch - no impact. Got dominated on the glass. So much time off and he sucked. Cant play back to backs and was saved for this game to provide nothing.

Precious- He has flashes, but he has been dreadful lately. He does 5 or 6 things per game that make you wonder how he made the NBA because they are so bad.

Shamet- leads the league in getting someone's face on D and still getting scored on. He is too small/slight to play Wing in the NBA and is too inconsistent to be a shooter/sniper.

Wright- I don't blame him, but he made zero impact. His time in the NBA is done.

Guys this is our depth last night. Every piece of it has to be upgraded. Payne and Deuce have been our only real bench players this year.

No cred to the clippers who are pretty good? Two HOF's still getting it done and they were very good last night.
Zubic is good and a beast on toe offensive glass.
Thats a good team in a better division.

Yes, our starters were good and our bench awful. Precious is delusional and not on his game without big minutes.
Mitch had a bad night and perhaps is hurting?
Shamet vs. Powell or Harden? Totally not fair. Few stop these guys. Powell is really underrated. Good five shots, hit 2. His +- was pretty bad. He don't get all the blame, but he was part of the bench.

Its why few pundits gave knicks a great chance this year. our bench is not strong. Deuce was missed. All teams get injuries.

Kolek? had some nice passes. His job to distribute he does well. PG need to score. Missed two FT's after getting the start and looked nervous. Kolek nut suckers got their wish. He got some prime time play and the 3rd quarter went to ****. "Now he knows what he has to work on"? The is not some Montessori experience.

Why we comparing him to Frank? To make ourselves feel better? Kolek is 24. If we comparing him to "Stockton" or "Price", this white guards can shoot. throw Steve Kerr in to the mix. Im sure there is a Paxon here somewhere.
Kolek needs to shoot and hit shots. Simple. Its his job. Bring the defense by being a threat then do that thing to get by your man and playmake.

Funny fact, Frank is 26 years old.

martin wrote:

VDesai wrote:Knicks depth was a problem. Kolek aside, how bad was the bench?

Mitch - no impact. Got dominated on the glass. So much time off and he sucked. Cant play back to backs and was saved for this game to provide nothing.

Precious- He has flashes, but he has been dreadful lately. He does 5 or 6 things per game that make you wonder how he made the NBA because they are so bad.

Shamet- leads the league in getting someone's face on D and still getting scored on. He is too small/slight to play Wing in the NBA and is too inconsistent to be a shooter/sniper.

Wright- I don't blame him, but he made zero impact. His time in the NBA is done.

Guys this is our depth last night. Every piece of it has to be upgraded. Payne and Deuce have been our only real bench players this year.

I'm not surprised at the other guys but am completely disappointed in Precious. He is in a contract year and will prob end up at the same level next year. He has so much potential and not enough IQ it seems.

I keep looking at this

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https://www.twitter.com/IQfor3/status/1905051244575568291

Precious was unsigned and no one really was reported as having interest. I think he's a league min player next year and maybe you bring him back for that, just because. I have never seen a player who can make such difficult layups and amazing timing blocks on defense and also be so casually inept at basic basketball skills. The worst part is he is a fringe player so when he gets chances you'd expect a high motor, but his motor leaves something to be desired. We have seen him impact plays with hustle and activity and other games he's just making unforced turnovers and watching plays not knowing what to do. I know he came to the game late, but he's had 5 years of NBA coaching now. Come on.