Charley Rosen / Special to FOXSports.com
Posted: 8 hours ago
New Yorkers like to think of themselves as being tough enough.
And when it comes to pro hoops, they swear that they're more rabid, cynical, and knowledgeable than thou. In truth, Big Applers are soft and sentimental where their Knicks are concerned.
Forget about the Russellian Celtics, the Magical Lakers, and the Chicago Jordanaires — according to Noo Yawkiz the "Old Knicks" were the best NBA teams that ever there was. Earl the Pearl, Clyde, The Captain, Snazzy Cazzie, Dave the Rave and Dean the Dream, Head & Shoulders, Fall-Back-Baby, Luke and DaBush. Those guys comprised the smartest teams of all-time, and by association, the hard-core Knicks fans are likewise the smartest fans in the history of the New World.
The Knick fans' blind bathos even embraces infamous dim bulbs such as Patrick Ewing (a choke artist embraced as a "warrior"), John Starks (another choker who's mostly celebrated for dunking over MJ in a playoff game), and Larry Johnson (a blow-hard deluxe). The latest object of the Madison Square Garden regulars' gushing affection is Stephon Marbury, who (like coach Lenny Wilkens) is home-grown.
The beloved Knicks are currently 8-8, yet maintain a slippery grip on first place in the Atlantic Division. Not to worry, though. All these guys need is time to get their act together. Wait till Jamal Crawford gets used to potato knishes and chocolate egg creams. Wait till Allan Houston is ready to go. Wait till Tim Thomas puts two good games back-to-back. Wait till Steph learns how to play the point like Lenny did. Wait till the Knicks trade for another savior — Vince Carter or Eddie Curry or Shareef Abdur-Rahim. Wait till Isiah Thomas locates Keon Clark. Wait till Phil Jackson returns to his old stomping grounds. Wait till ...
Until then, exactly what is the Knicks' destiny? Are they a legitimate threat to win their division? Or are the hearts of their soft, sweet fans doomed to be broken once again?
On Tuesday, the Knicks ventured into Memphis to do battle with the Grizzlies. The home team was especially dangerous because all the players were geared up to play their butts off and thereby impress their brand-new coach, Mike Fratello. Minutes were at stake, and the Grizzlies' were eager to prove their talents and their understanding of Little Mikey's game plan.
A valid test to gauge the status of the Knicks' hearts and minds.
OffenseThe Knicks' offense was just plain ugly. Marbury seemed determined to prove that he was a real point guard, so he passed up virtually every scoring opportunity and concentrated on distributing the ball (he finished 2-12 from the field, with 9 assists and 4 turnovers, and didn't register his first basket until late in the fourth quarter). So where did their offense come from?
Mostly from drives to the middle (by Marbury, and because he was in early foul trouble, his backup, Moochie Norris), and, when the defense collapsed around the ball, dishes back out to what were supposed to be wide-open shooters. Trouble was that that Grizzlies' sprightly defensive rotations caused most of those shots to be taken under extreme pressure.
The Knicks did try to stuff the ball inside — on their very first possession, Tim Thomas ran a slant cut from the foul line to the opposite box, but fumbled the incoming pass. Nazr Mohammed also took a turn in the low-post and, although he tends to dribble in place without gaining any advantage, he did manage to sink a pair of jump hooks. Otherwise, the Knicks had no inside presence at all against a Memphis team that (aside from 7-foot-2-inch, 290-pound Jake Tsakalidis, a second-string center) was all finesse and no bulk. (The Knicks tallied 28 points in the paint to the Grizzlies' 48.)
Again, due to the Grizzlies' quick-footed defense, only a handful of screen/rolls (and screen/fades for Kurt Thomas) produced acceptable shots. Indeed, for nearly the entire 1st quarter, the Knicks had no offensive continuity and the majority of their shots came about through individual moves. (The sole 1st quarter exception being a neat staggered pick and curl run for Crawford that freed him for an easy jumper.)
From the start Crawford was very shaky. His initial three touches resulted in a pair of turnovers and an air ball. In all, he forced six of his 18 shots and only bagged a total of five. That said, Crawford remains a potentially dynamic scorer who demonstrated legitimate 30-foot shooting range. Too bad he routinely settles for jacking up jumpers instead of utilizing his incredible speed to zip to the hoop. (Crawford was awarded only four free throws in 34 minutes.)
Midway through the second quarter, the Knicks finally began to execute their sets: Marbury setting a back-pick that enabled Mike Sweetney to get prime position on the right box. More choreographed slant cuts, staggered picks and curls, and even a few baseline snakes. With everybody in synch, the Knicks erased an 11-point deficit and actually led by two points for about 30 seconds. But, just as quickly, their offense turned sour.
There was 6-foot-10-inch Tim Thomas posted against 6-foot-7-inch Mike Miller, a strictly mediocre defender. Time for a power-move hoopwards, yes? Score a bucket and/or draw a foul, or at the very least force the defense to make emergency adjustments. But, no. TT settled for a fadeaway that barely grazed the rim.
There was Crawford firing away from beyond the pale — hitting a few, missing most, and playing as though he was being paid by the shot.
There was Marbury passing up short jumpers.
There was the entire team driving to the ring with a noticeable lack of passion-and allowing the Grizzlies to block a total of 14 shots.
For the game, the Knicks shot 34.1 percent from the field.
DefenseOn the other hand, the Knicks' defense was (and is) beyond ugly. For the season, the Knicks rank last in 3-point percentage allowed — 38.1 percent. And 29th in overall field goal efficiency by opponents — 47.4 percent.
Against Memphis, Mohammad, Marbury and Crawford repeatedly over-committed to ball-penetration and were unable to get back to their original coverages in time to prevent wide-open looks. That's why Memphis was a rousing 8-11 from 3-point range. In addition, Marbury and Crawford were both faked off their feet by phantom shots that were at least 25-feet from the basket. Norris repeatedly failed to throw a hand at the ball when his man unloosed a shot in his vicinity. Double T's weight was so far forward that he couldn't possibly react quickly enough when his man started from a stand-still and then drove the rock to the hole.
All game long, the Knicks were tardy in transitioning from offense to defense. When Mohammed lazily trailed a Memphis fast break in the third quarter, Marbury was moved to snarl at him. The Knicks' defensive rotations were likewise late, lazy, and confused — so much so that the paint was as open to traffic as a four-lane highway at midnight.
Kurt Thomas was the only Knick defender who showed any skill and gumption. He absolutely locked up Pau Gasol throughout the second half, yielding a single bucket after Gasol had scorched the Knicks for 14 first-half points.
If ugly is only supposed to be skin deep, the Knicks' defense was ugly to the bone.
Too bad all you Knick-o-philes. The Nix are now 2-7 on the road and headed nowhere fast. But wait till Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, and Kevin Garnett become free agents ...
Charley Rosen, former CBA coach, author of 12 books about hoops, the next one being A PIVOTAL SEASON — HOW THE 1971-72 LA LAKERS CHANGED THE NBA, is a frequent contributor to FOXSports.com.
12/8/2004 3:58 PM