DATE		MIN	FGM-FGA	FG%	3PM-3PA	3P%	FTM-FTA	FT%	REB	AST	BLK	STL	PF	TO	PTS
December	20.4	4.9-8.5	.574	1.6-3.3	.500	1.5-1.8	.857	1.8	0.4	0.6	0.4	1.6	0.8	12.9

JR has been stepping up and really with STAT down, there's no reason not to play the kid. He's earned a starting role. What the hell is the point of starting White for a few token minutes? It's the dumbest thing I think Woody has done this season. Woody should also look to put KMart in there rather than KT. Go with your best has not been a Woody motto. Felton, JR, Melo, KMart and Tyson. Kidd, Novak, White, Cope, Camby and Prigs is a good bench for the rest of the season.

nixluva wrote:

CrushAlot wrote:I think Woodson likes JR's scoring off the bench. In regards to Cope he can score but struggles in other areas. White has looked better to me as he has gotten more playing and is a much better defender. I like Cope but I don't see the need for a passionate response to him not playing. He is the same age as Melo and Felton and has banged around overseas for a reason. He was a good signing and I would love to see him breakout. I do think he gets more playing time now but KMart is also going to be a part of that. I think Prigs needs to get on the court as good things happen when he plays.

Cope is the only other bench player to demonstrate a legit level of NBA scoring ability from both inside and outside!!! What is it that so many around here can't see with this kid? No he's not a rebounder, but his defense is not as bad as some are trying to make it seems. Cope has shown that when he gets minutes and touches he scores at a high level of efficiency. There's simply no question about that. Also his age has nothing to do with anything. He's worked on his game and clearly has skills that few others on the bench possess. Who else on the bench can score in as many ways as Cope can? It's simple. Sit KT's ass down, start KMart and let Cope do his thing off the bench.

You move JR to the starting line up and give Cope, Novak and White the main scorers off the bench role. As for Prigs, he and Cope play GREAT with each other. I love Prigs. Woody needs to go with a deep bench from here on and the guys we have can help if he gives them a chance.

Smith is a 6th man of the year candidate, that's a great thing to have coming off the bench, not many teams have that luxury.

nixluva wrote:

GustavBahler wrote:If Woodson was keeping more of a rein on JR's shooting, a case might be made for starting him if Copeland plays well, but Woody doesn't. Don't like the idea of JR and Melo jacking up shots to start the game. I agree that Copeland should get more PT now that Stat is out though. JR has never been a consistent starter for a reason, in spite of his skills.

Smith is a 6th man of the year candidate, that's a great thing to have coming off the bench, not many teams have that luxury.

I really don't care about JR being a 6th man. Right now he has to be moved up the chain, cuz it makes no sense to have him come in midway thru the 1st qtr. when we are down a primary scorer. JR has actually had moments where he seems to understand, but those old habits are hard for him to break. The key to JR being more efficient is actually for him to pass the damn ball more. He gets in trouble when he holds the ball and then decides to go ISO. It's like he's got glue on his hands!!! He's better when the ball has been moving and he can get off a balanced and in rhythm shot. Rather than having to always dribble himself into a rhythm, which he has the talent to do, but overdoes it. It's about playing within the offense rather than breaking the offensive flow and forcing shots. When a player starts and gets used to it, they tend to calm down on jacking shots cuz they know they're gonna get minutes and plenty of shots.

We lost Stat, Copeland has yet to prove he can be a reliable sub, JR has yet to prove he can be a reliable starter. All those things you want him to do, he isn't doing. Until JR turns into the player you'd like him to be he should stay where he's thriving. I'm more concerned with first quarter D than I am with scoring right now. White is getting better, he plays D, and we still need someone to pick up the slack when Melo sits. That's what JR is for. He also helps orchestrate the offense, something Copeland can't do.

White Can’t Cope

March 12th, 2013 by Fred Katz (@FredKatz)

Five minutes of play and then to the bench. That’s pretty much NBA life for James White.

28-year-old rookie Chris Copeland is stuck in the opposite predicament: Mike Woodson parks him on the bench for every relevant minute, only to give him burn after the game is out of reach. (See: New York Knicks at Golden State Warriors, Mar. 11, 2013 for reference.)

White starts. Copeland sits. Supposedly, it’s for defensive reasons, but at this point a player who is capable of being a legitimate offensive contributor has to have more value to a Knicks team that is in dire need of scoring efficiency.

Last night was ugly – some might say uglier than Betty. The Knicks shot 27.4 percent from the field, 18.5 percent from the line and posted 63 points in Oakland. Only the basketball gods know if their 12-point second quarter or their nine-point fourth quarter was worse, but even on an off night for the team, Mike Woodson stayed in his usual rotation habits—James White got to spin for a confusing five minutes at the start and Chris Copeland entered once the outcome was already decided.

With Amar’e Stoudemire out for the remainder of the regular season, the Knicks need offense from the forward spot more than they have all season. Kenyon Martin was supposed to be an answer — if not the answer. He’s supposed to give the team grit, hustle, and toughness, and many believed that would be enough.

It’s not.

2005 Kenyon Martin would be great. Heck, even 2010 Kenyon Martin could be a valuable contributor. But go back and watch 2012 Kenyon Martin with the Clippers. It’s a different player. He’s not as quick. He doesn’t move nearly as well laterally as he once did. His shot altering ability is far from what it once was. If you love 20-foot jumpers with 12 seconds left on the shot clock, this is your guy. But otherwise, 2012 Kenyon Martin looks so far to be merely a shade of his former self.

Maybe Martin just had an off year after spending half of the lockout-shortened season in China. Maybe he just looked slower and less effective because his stalker had finally psyched him out. More realistically, maybe a 35 year old is just starting to play like a 35 year old.

Martin won’t replace Amar’e. He can’t replace him. When the Knicks lost their sixth man, it’s pretty apparent they didn’t lose much on the defensive end. It’s the offense they need to replace, and Copeland fits that mold a heck of a lot better than Martin or White.

Common knowledge says White starts because of defense. Copeland can put the ball in the hoop on one end of the floor, but he is a turnstile at the other. But there’s a problem with that logic: While White can play some defense, the lineup around him simply isn’t producing with him on the floor.

Opposing offenses have cleaned up when White has been out on the floor with the starters. The Knicks’ current starting lineup of Felton-Shumpert-White-Anthony-Chandler has posted a 123.1 defensive efficiency. Now, that’s in only six games so that number could change. In fact, it probably will change. A figure that poor is hard to sustain for a long stretch of time, if only because it’s cartoonishly bad. But for now, that 123.1 defensive efficiency is good enough to earn the title of the second-worst defensive five-man lineup that has played more than 25 minutes for the Knicks.

I’m unimpressed.

With White, we’re talking about a player that has had two game scores better than 5.0 all season. White is someone known for his dunking and explosiveness, yet he’s shooting only 55.6 percent at the rim (compared to a ridiculous 70.2 percent at the rim for Copeland).

It’s safe to say that Copeland settles nicely into the Knicks’ offensive mold; New York is a team that executes a 4-out, 1-in scheme well. That means maximizing more efficient shots like threes and layups and minimizing less efficient ones like 22-foot, fadeaway jumpers.

That’s Copeland’s game, isn’t it? 38 percent on threes, effective at the rim, relatively smart with his shot selection — that ought to fit in well with this Knicks’ starting lineup, but for some reason we haven’t seen it. Copeland has scored 44 points in his past 38 minutes played on 16-for-27 shooting, but those 38 minutes have come over a 16-game stretch, one in which he played in only four contests.

At this point, there is simply no reason not to give Copeland a chance. The White experiment doesn’t seem to be working – neither superficially nor analytically. If you’re Mike Woodson, isn’t now the best time for change? Amar’e is out. Kidd has fallen off from the start of the year. Your million-tattoo man is playing with pain because he’s incongruously afraid of needles. (EDITOR’S NOTE: He’s also scared of cats. Ironically, given the state of Melo’s knee, a common house cat could have guarded him last night.)

There has to be an opening in the rotation, and Copeland isn’t giving the Knicks much of a choice of who it should be.

Papabear wrote:

nixluva wrote:

CrushAlot wrote:I think Woodson likes JR's scoring off the bench. In regards to Cope he can score but struggles in other areas. White has looked better to me as he has gotten more playing and is a much better defender. I like Cope but I don't see the need for a passionate response to him not playing. He is the same age as Melo and Felton and has banged around overseas for a reason. He was a good signing and I would love to see him breakout. I do think he gets more playing time now but KMart is also going to be a part of that. I think Prigs needs to get on the court as good things happen when he plays.

Cope is the only other bench player to demonstrate a legit level of NBA scoring ability from both inside and outside!!! What is it that so many around here can't see with this kid? No he's not a rebounder, but his defense is not as bad as some are trying to make it seems. Cope has shown that when he gets minutes and touches he scores at a high level of efficiency. There's simply no question about that. Also his age has nothing to do with anything. He's worked on his game and clearly has skills that few others on the bench possess. Who else on the bench can score in as many ways as Cope can? It's simple. Sit KT's ass down, start KMart and let Cope do his thing off the bench.

You move JR to the starting line up and give Cope, Novak and White the main scorers off the bench role. As for Prigs, he and Cope play GREAT with each other. I love Prigs. Woody needs to go with a deep bench from here on and the guys we have can help if he gives them a chance.

Papabear Says

I like Cope too. But must learn that when he has no shot give the ball up. I very seldom see Cope being a good passer. When the ball is passed to him you better believe he is gonna shoot it. Well lets see what happens.

Cope does pass and did so last night, but that's not why he's in the game. Cope is a scorer and a very efficient one. His bad shots are better than most everyone else on the team. You have to understand that some guys Melo included are finishers of offensive plays. If Cope was a wild chucker there's no way he'd have such high scoring %'s. He's VERY effective around the basket and he takes smart shots most of the time. Also hes not a guy that needs a lot of minutes. You use him like a Vinnie the Microwave off the bench. He's there to augment your scoring when your stars sit down. More importantly he's a reliably good offensive player for a team that has trouble scoring at times off the bench. Cope scores at 70% at the rim!!! LET COPE BE ONE OF OUR SCORERS OFF THE BENCH!!!