crzymdups wrote:agree with this post completely.

for everyone saying melo is dominating too much, explain what happened in memphis when melo went out. this team looks SCARED when melo isn't shooting. maybe it's the wrong response for him to continue to shoot it in that light, but it's not like ANYONE else is stepping up. iman tried to do that and he shot like 3-18 in memphis... or was it 3-20?

i think baron helps in the confidence department. hopefully he can help some other guys on this team get their swagger back (amar'e, looking at you.)

when the guy pretty much forced the team into being ISO heavy, it's no wonder that players who thrive on ball movement would be left feeling uncomfortable once he leaves a game. and it's also no surprise that since the team has started games with a renewed emphasis on moving the ball, that Landry is finally looking good again.

people like to say that Melo was passing the ball and guys weren't hitting shots. well, standing around waiting for Melo to (maybe) throw you a bail out pass, when he can't get his, is not the most comfortable confident position to get shots in. it's reminiscent of the way Marbury ran the offense.

every team has to be able to play team ball. the ISO game is a must-have, but you can't run it all game. Melo has to accept that the ball must move. simple as that.

once the ball starts moving crisply, the offense will be more efficient, commit less turnovers and, in turn, the defense will improve for not having to give up as much in transition.

ramtour420 wrote:One thing I have noticed, during our wins we get 20 or more assists per heme. In our losses we get less than 20. Against Denver we had 15 assists at the half and were up by like 10. Then our ball movement died off, assists wend down and we know the result.

Exactly

Once everyone buys into the idea that the idea is to get the best OPEN shot and NOT the first AVAILABLE shot, things will improve. There is more wrong with Toney Douglas hoisting a three off the dribble, than Carmelo taking a contested shot. Make better decisions and the ball will find the hoop.

Carmelo is a warrior and played despite being injured. Unfortunately, that injury may influence a reluctance toward contact - except in an emergency - which is why he started going hard to the rack.

Good News: There were 15 assists in the first half of the Denver game. Landry Fields led everyone all Knicks the end with 7.

Baron, take Toney Douglas' minutes. Please.

When Melo goes ISO and attempts 30 shots for the night, his teammates' confidence will drop. They're professional basketball players, they're not going to be SCARED when Melo isn't shooting the ball. If Melo steps up as a leader and is able to convey his trust in their jumpshot or get them involved in the offense, they will be the exact OPPOSITE of scared. They will be involved, hustle more on both ends of the court, and it will keep the opponents guessing.

When Melo goes ISO, the other teams recognize this and adjust their defense accordingly. Melo is double-teamed and begins to force shots, and our other guys are left flat-footed, watching the action from the other side of the court. There's no ball movement, and the other 4 defenders get to rest on Defense.

I'm not saying having Melo on this team makes the Knicks worse. We know he is capable of much more. But when he plays ISOlation basketball and shoots 30 while Amare is in the single-digit FG attempts, this will NOT yield long-term success.

Carmelo's play right now isn't ALL that is wrong with the Knicks but it is a damn good reason behind their woes.

We had a top rated offense last year and are ranked near the bottom this year. We are #1 in the NBA in isolation plays and almost last in efficiency. There is a reason.

Bonn1997 wrote:Melo creates a situation where his teammates aren't involved in offense and then, unsurprisingly, they don't do well with the rare shot attempts that they get.

unfortunately, he must be the player to initiate our offense. He is the only player that can draw 2-3 defenders to cheat and he must hit the open man.
We can't generate good looks because Tyson Chandler and Amare both cannot post up neither. We have to take good shots, so our own team, could predict when the crash the boards, and with the right angle. But when Melo goes 1v1, we do not know how or when the shot is going up. But the defense is already getting good position
for the rebound and preferring him to take a bad shot, especially a contested jump shot, and he is very willing to take it. When this happens, it often gives our opponents defense to predict and prepare for the next step, ready to get the rebound and launch a fast break to score easy baskets, before Tyson Chandler and the rest of our defense can get set.

We also have to stop constantly switching on the PnR on defense, letting our opponents dictate mismatches, whenever they want.
We have to fight threw majority of the screens, while sometimes, switching and look to rotate or switch back when we can.
Problem is when the Center or BIG is guarding the PG, he has to defend the pick for 1 or 2 seconds, and look to quickly rotate to another big when he can.

smackeddog wrote:Oh well, Melo's epiphany was nice while it lasted...

@alanhahn Alan Hahn
Meanwhile, Melo downplayed his post game melancholy from Sat nite. Said he was being hard on himself. #Knicks

Looks like he and Amar'e have had their talk though- we'll see if it does any good...

@AdamZagoria Adam Zagoria

Amare said he and Melo talked last night and today about 'how we can both dominate the game' #Knicks

Before seeing the post quoted, I was going to say how I believe it was very BIG and mature of Melo to publicly accept the blame when it isn't all his fault.

Guess what, I still believe it was big of him to do so. And I'm GLAD that he said he was being too hard on himself. To me that is Melo, saying "No, I am not going to accept all of this as my problem." And he is totally right to feel that way because it is NOT all of his problem. Who the hell else is going to step up? Can we even expect anyone else(aside from Amar'e and maybe Baron) to step up? I say no we can't because the rest of the team minus Jorts and Iman are a bunch of scrubs. needs to step up as well. But I don't expect that much from him either.

The Piper has to be payed now.

As he nears the Big 30, it will become tougher to put the sack of potatoes on the back and haul it. It's a blessing for him that the Piper came to collect while the kid has some years left in his prime. If he can learn to play basketball now, he will be a happy man later in his career.

This is a big season in many ways.