I watched the game again this morning. What I got clarification on the second time around was the following:

Larkin played much better than I realized on first viewing. Not only did he run sets, he also delivered on almost every open jumper. Plus, he can be disruptive and create turnovers that lead to fast breaks. I'm kind of surprised his option wasn't picked up the next day. If he keeps improving, this team is significantly better. He is settling down.

Acy is an excellent team player. He plays big for his size and at 6'7" has the impact of many seven footers. He is 240 so he can handle himself, but he is quick enough to get to the right place on the floor. He has a good nose for the ball, has good court awareness and adds enough offense to balance out his game. If he keeps this up, Phil looks very good swapping Tyler and Ellington for Acy. Looks like Outlaw was the price to get Acy then.

Shump was key. I watched the last six minutes intently and Shump was without question the leader on the floor, even though Pablo was ostensibly the PG. The Knicks did not win the game without Shump on the floor at the end. I also think his handle has improved and this will help with his drives. I felt very relaxed with the ball in his hands at the end and evidently the rest of the team was as well. Not a boxscore masterpiece, but a really good game for Shump.

Jason Smith was better defensively and in his fighting for boards than I thought on first look. He was gritty and didn't take crap from Lebron and I liked his attitude. And his mid-range is money.

Melo was balanced in his attack, not demanding the ball too often and he was fresh at the end thanks to Fish. And he was more involved on defense than he has been sometimes in the past, so that's good. Him being fresh wins you a few more ball games in the clutch.

JR was productive and while the announcers and others said he played under control, he still did some jukey stuff, but being JR they went in. He can play even better, but it was sign of Fish's influence that he played as well as he did. That's obviously a big deal for this team.

Those were the best players on the team I think.

Cole was interesting to watch. I can't say I was blown away, but I was encouraged. I can see him thinking out there and anticipating as a result. I believe his viability is going to depend on regular minutes, even if it is only 15 minutes a game. This guy needs to get his rhythm to really do anything on offense. But he is long and I realize he is like an auto dealership balloon because he is not normally proportioned. He has orangutan arms. His wrists are where a normal human's fingertips would be.

Splat wrote:

Papabear wrote:

Splat wrote:

CrushAlot wrote:

Splat wrote:It was a good win. Now calm down.

Last night was a bad loss. You were pretty prolific in your criticism of every aspect of the team. I personally prefer over reactions to great wins. 80 games to go. Perspective is important.

Huh? I'm not insulting them. Its just teasing. I already said in bright lights that I was happy for them. I don't begrudge anyone their joy in victory.

And last night was abysmal. Tonight was not. I criticized then. I praised numerous things now. That's balanced on a per game basis even if I continue hold a deep ambivalence about the long-term scenario.

Good win. Plain english.

Papabear Says

Splat I don't know where you came from but you are a new poster and you are posting every day which make me think that you posted some place else. You seem to have joy knocking the knicks. I'm not posting a lot now but I sure would like to know where you came from. What blog? because you surly post a lot like taking over. I just hope that your posts are fair and not the hate game.

Fans should enjoy themselves and I'm not going to harp on anything in particular. I made my criticisms, but I don't need to repeat myself.

I'd rather people just focus on what interests them about the team and the game and leave each other to their own opinions. I won't rag on the Knicks all season. I do point out the positives when I see them and contrary to what anyone may think, I would be happier for everyone here if the Knicks have a decent season. I'm not rooting for their failure. So enjoy the season.

It is completely besides the point that I'd rather have a top 3 pick than a playoff spot, but if the team is more competitive than I anticipated, I'm happy seeing a winning mentality and positive culture being built, so there's two sides to every equation. In some ways, we can't really lose this season if it goes either way, so no need to get the blues about any of this.

I already have a real positive takeaway on Fisher. To me, coaching has been a black hole for this franchise and it had made me pessimistic. I already have more optimism about Fisher than anyone who has coached the Knicks this century.

Without a good coach and system, you've got squat. This looks different already. That makes me happy. I hope it makes others happy too as it could produce more wins than this roster would get from many other coaches handling their training and discipline.

I was not a Melo fan, but I'll support him and be cool here, because if other players on the squad get the message, it will inspire Melo too. We can't succeed without Melo, so I am not going to be anti-Melo by default. He is a star and I do want him to succeed because he is a Knick for a while to come. Let the games tell us where we're at, not me or anyone else. That's just fair and I don't need to fight over this stuff.

It was a really good win. I was glad for every fan too and I said so. If someone wants to portray me as disappointed by our win, then they are just being spiteful and weird and I don't have time for that. My response was to be playful, but that got twisted too, whatever. It could be a very defining game for this franchise and there are many good things that can come out of it regardless of how far the team can go this season.

Go Knicks!

Papabear Says

I still don't know where you came from, real GM? other Blogs? You don't have to say. But what you did say on your last post was very fair and balanced. Thank you and welcome. Go Knicks