In a game or heat of the battle he shows flashes of fortune but will often come up short
Amare is just like a boxer in a struggle though of basketball, If the opposition keeps hitting him
Or eventually cracks one on his chin, he isnt tough enough OR rough enough to brush it off & come
back for some impact in NBA game.

You try the same with MELO, or Pierce or Wade or Kobe them are tough son-of-a-guns whom will get off the
floor dust themselves off, sweaty or bloody and if you give them a crack at the end to beat you with
a HUGE shot OR a big play these guys will do it !

Same as MJordan use to do it, same as Reggie Miller use to do it, same as Magic or Bird use to do it.
These guys are all fighters in the game of Basketball.

Bust one on Amare Stoudemire's chin & its goodnight Irene', Good Night NY Knickerbockers

Thus no help to Knicks when the going gets rough...
Least Carmelo got some killa instinct in him. If you crack him in physical rough game of hoops he dont break.

You're never gonna get same from Amare Stoudemire.
1 tap 1 punch & he's done for the game.

Sometimes when he doesn't think about it he shows that explosion , there was one against the Cavs that was a bang bang play that he flushed like last years version of Amare. I really think he's getting there, his shot has looked somewhat better the last couple of games and he's also had some high rebound numbers. When he's in traffic I think he's worrying about the back because he hurt it in warm ups on a slam. He's worried about contact, there have been a few where he makes a 2 handed stuff where you can tell he's trying to get his legs underneath him so he doesn;t get twisted.

Hopefully he continues to show flashes, gets more comfortable that he won't hurt the back again and by the playoffs may be more like his old self.

We'll see - -I think if he can get to 20 and 10 that'll be enough.

mmorman wrote:I've watched Stat every game this season. I think the problem is that he's thinking about injuring his back again.

Sometimes when he doesn't think about it he shows that explosion , there was one against the Cavs that was a bang bang play that he flushed like last years version of Amare. I really think he's getting there, his shot has looked somewhat better the last couple of games and he's also had some high rebound numbers. When he's in traffic I think he's worrying about the back because he hurt it in warm ups on a slam. He's worried about contact, there have been a few where he makes a 2 handed stuff where you can tell he's trying to get his legs underneath him so he doesn;t get twisted.

Hopefully he continues to show flashes, gets more comfortable that he won't hurt the back again and by the playoffs may be more like his old self.

We'll see - -I think if he can get to 20 and 10 that'll be enough.

Thats smart, we need him healthy come playoff time.

RoyBatty wrote:It might be too much to ask, but hopefully the shift (either back to the old Amare or to a new, less athletic one but wiser and more savvy) shows its benefits before the season ends. I want to like Amare and to rally behind him; everyone has their bad spells. But he doesn't make it easier for us by not doing the things that don't need athleticism -- boxing out, having a decent post game, intimidating people who drive (6'10" and long arms and a reputation can still go a long way.) Kurt Thomas had only a fraction of Amare's athleticism but he could guard bigs 3-4 inches taller. Because if we see an older but wiser Amare, that's someone we can live with.

RoyBatty wrote:It might be too much to ask, but hopefully the shift (either back to the old Amare or to a new, less athletic one but wiser and more savvy) shows its benefits before the season ends. I want to like Amare and to rally behind him; everyone has their bad spells. But he doesn't make it easier for us by not doing the things that don't need athleticism -- boxing out, having a decent post game, intimidating people who drive (6'10" and long arms and a reputation can still go a long way.) Kurt Thomas had only a fraction of Amare's athleticism but he could guard bigs 3-4 inches taller. Because if we see an older but wiser Amare, that's someone we can live with.

Kurt lead the NCAA in scoring! HIs first few seasons in the league were awful as he kept breaking bones in his feet.

He adapted to survive and thrive in the league.

Guys like Marbury and Iverson did not adapt as they lost that edge of quickness that made them a Max player. Larry Johnson is an example of a guy who did adapt to stay in the league. While he was not the same player he was before back problems, he put in the work to stay relevant.

Who Amare becomes going forward will be an interesting developement. Its safe to say over the next 30 games one might not expect that much more than he is giving us.

I can hope, but I don't expect greatness from this team this year. WE have as much talent as any team in the league but we keep adding pieces on the fly and with a compressed schedule its gonna be what it is.

Lightening in a bottle is always a possibilty!

franco12 wrote:

RoyBatty wrote:And KT developed that reliable PnR jumper as well. Maybe time to hire Kurt for player development for our bigs, because we sure as the sun rises are not going to get any more top flight forwards and centers while we have those monster contracts.

we're going to have to wait a few years for KT to retire as a player

Well, we could get him now and have him sub occasionally when Amare slacks off on defense or fails to get rebounds or doesn't make jump shots.

arkrud wrote:There are only so many positions in the game and only so much space in the paint.
Melo took some space and shots from Stat and this year Tyson took even more out of Amare share.
The only way Amare can be mode useful if he will come with second unit.
Even Jorts will be much better start in place of Amare with his defense and outside shot.
But can Amare to put his ego aside and play the same or more minutes from the bench? If he want to be a champion we must.

This.

I always say, start him, give him a few minutes with the First Unit, then you run him with the Second for the rest of the game.

No shame in that.

He's been squeezed out by Melo and Tyson.

Bonn1997 wrote:

arkrud wrote:There are only so many positions in the game and only so much space in the paint.
Melo took some space and shots from Stat and this year Tyson took even more out of Amare share.
The only way Amare can be mode useful if he will come with second unit.
Even Jorts will be much better start in place of Amare with his defense and outside shot.
But can Amare to put his ego aside and play the same or more minutes from the bench? If he want to be a champion we must.

Amare's getting 15 shots a game. Shots being taken away by teammates is not the problem.

It's the context of those shots that's a problem.

He's been squeezed out of his comfort zone, out of the way he likes to work.

nixluva wrote:You have to be blind not to see that STAT isn't getting the same kind of touches he's had in the past in addition to fewer of them. Did you know that STAT last year was a league leader in Usage rate? Let's not pretend he hasn't had to make major adjustments due to the presence of Melo and Tyson.

In addition to changes in the roster, STAT didn't do any BB related work in the way he usually would. Sure he looked great physically and strengthened his back, but his game isn't as sharp as it was. His jumper was money last year and this year hasn't been as sharp and he's been a bit less explosive so add all that up and it looks like he's slowing down, but that may not really be the case. I just wouldn't put that much into this crazy season with all the off season issues he had plus the crazy lockout schedule. Besides STAT actually had a good game against the C's. It wasn't great by his standards, but he wasn't the problem in that game.

I don't think Amare had a bad game, but his defense left a lot to be desired. He let Bass get off to easily I'm not worried about Amare's offense but he is getting beat by everyone on the defensive side.