positives:
if melo can keep dishing to stat when doubles converge around the rim then he works with stat better and it merits their being on the floor at the same time. i am not a fan of melo getting his **** stuffed around the rim it's lame as it is predictable. but if he can dish like he did today then there is hope for the both of them. 7 assists. with all the doubles he draws at the rim he should be able to average 6 assists a game!
negatives:
29 shots by melo is 10 too many. come on, melo 45.8ts% geezus!
19 shots by smith is 5 too many. smith (42.8%TS) needs to have his minutes reduced as woodson tries to get shumpert back into the rotation. i think smith's ego and mind are fragile and he can't handle the reduced role that must occur. i see regression for him. 0FTA today is pathetic and mindless and not a playoff statline. ironically brewer does not look like he's going to have a problem even as he has less talent than smith. it's all about playing within your limitations. brewer does it and smith almost never does. felton has the same issue which will cause problems when he returns.
on shumpert he does not look like a particularly smart player out there but i am going to attribute that to the sheer newness of the situation. however he looks lost out there then we may have problems come playoff time with him as a starter.
if the knicks are being coached to not box out that is a mistake. the nets had 12 offensive rebounds. an offensive rebound is worth 3 defensive rebounds. the knicks had 7, 4 of them i figure are the chandler tap-out variety. not a true offensive rebound but at least provides another possession.
tough loss but if smith and melo don't chuck and instead work the ball a bit the knicks would have had a better chance at winning.
knicks win 38-43 games in 16-17. rose MUST shoot no more than 14 shots per game, defer to kp6 + melo, and have a usage rate of less than 25%
It's not all Novak's fault either.