|
nyk4ever
Posts: 41012
Alba Posts: 12
Joined: 1/12/2005
Member: #848
USA
|
Cato lights fire under Curry
BY FRANK ISOLA
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Kelvin Cato is Eddy Curry's sparring partner, the player in practice who absorbs more hits than he gives.
"I don't try to hurt him but I try to let him know that I'm there," Cato says. "He scores in practice like he scores in games. We don't double-team in practice but we need to so I can get some help."
Team Curry is a diverse group of coaches and players that has played a small role in helping the center evolve into a consistent scorer this season. It begins with Isiah Thomas, the coach who changed the Knicks' offense from perimeter-oriented (Stephon Marbury) to low-post (Curry).
Then there is assistant coach Mark Aguirre, one of the best back-to-basket players of his era. Aguirre has taught Curry to use his enormous body to gain an advantage. Herb Williams, the sage old voice, advises Curry on shooting and reminds him of the work ethic Patrick Ewing needed to be a perennial All-Star.
Malik Rose is a veteran teammate with a championship pedigree who played with Tim Duncan and David Robinson for San Antonio. Jamal Crawford is Curry's best friend and a shoulder to lean on when the center is down.
And then there is Cato, who over the past three seasons went toe-to-toe in practice with the likes of Yao Ming, Dwight Howard, Ben Wallace and Rasheed Wallace.
Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy says that Cato's basketball IQ is as high as any player he's ever coached. It's not unusual to find the 6-11 center talking to Thomas after practices and during games about strategy and adjustments. Cato has also taken it upon himself to become a useful aid for Curry.
When asked why he often converses with the coaching staff, Cato joked, "I'm trying to make sure my place is going to be settled first," a reference to his spot on the roster. Cato, a first-round pick of the Blazers in 1997, has career averages of 5.6 points and 5.4 rebounds with five teams. He was traded with Steve Francis to Orlando in the Tracy McGrady deal and last season was shipped to Detroit in the Darko Milicic trade.
Cato signed with Knicks during the preseason and has appeared in 13 games. Cato is no longer the leaper he once was but still possesses an intimidating gaze and serves a role as a practice player, an emergency fill-in and a mentor to Curry.
"We're going to ride the Big Fella," said Cato, unknowingly using Ewing's famous nickname. "Zeke brought me in there to make (Curry) a better player. Not just by beating on him but giving him little things I've learned playing against the better players at the center spot."
Curry went 9-for-9 against the Sonics on Friday, scoring 27 points in three quarters. He leads the Knicks in scoring (18.7) and is shooting 57%.
Cato gives a fair and balanced report card on Curry, reiterating what scouts say: He needs to become a greater defensive presence and should rebound more. Defense and rebounding continue to be weak areas. Two years ago, when a reporter asked Scott Skiles what Curry needed to do to become a better rebounder, the Bulls' coach replied: "Jump."
"I try to tell him that everybody is going to come to play you," Cato said. "You've got to play defense and do other things out there, like making the right pass, when to go to the hole and getting more rebounds."
Curry is adjusting to being double-teamed and is working on making better and quicker decisions with the ball. Curry's passing set up open shots for Marbury and Crawford against Seattle. Cato is impressed with Curry's willingness to learn and believes that he needs to add more moves to his repertoire.
"If it was up to me, I'd like to see him post up on the (left) side," Cato says. "He's got to get a move coming toward the middle of the paint.
"The thing with Eddy right now is that he's got to come up with a couple of moves he can go to when things aren't going his way. Yao had those things. He had the turnaround, the hook. He could back you down and could pass better out of the double-team. But (Eddy) is still learning. He's never been double-teamed. He's going to be pretty good. He's just got to stay focused and continue to want to be good."
Originally published on January 8, 2007
"OMG - did we just go on a two-trade-wining-streak?" -SupremeCommander
|
1/8/2007 1:39 PM
