Los Angeles Clippers vs. New York Knicks Pre-Game News and Notes April 25

Wednesday, April 25, 2012 8:00 P.M. ET
Los Angeles Clippers vs. New York Knicks

The playoff picture for the Knicks should be much clearer after Wednesday night’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers.  The Knicks have already secured a playoff spot, currently tied for 7^th with the Philadelphia 76ers for 7^th place in the Eastern Conference with two games remaining.  That can all change depending on the results of tonight’s game.

For starters, if the Magic win all talk of moving up to the 6^th seed ends.  7^th would be as high as the Knicks could be seeded.  But, if the Knicks win and the Magic lose, the Knicks stay in 7^th for the night, keeping alive the chance of moving up to 6^th place.  It would then take another Magic lose tomorrow night in addition to a Knicks win for them to complete the jump and move into 7^th place.  The only way the Knicks can fall below 7^th is if they lose and the 76ers win tonight.  Holding the tiebreaker over Philadelphia, any tie would result in the Knicks receiving the higher seed.

-Injury News and Updates

There will be restrictions on the Knicks tonight.  They are expected to play their full allotment of healthy players like any other game.  The only player not playing is Jared Jeffries, who is resting his sore knee for the playoffs.  Tyson Chandler, after missing Sunday afternoon’s game in Atlanta will be returning to the lineup and is a go tonight. 

News is not as light-hearted for the visiting Clippers.  They could be without All-Star Point Guard Chris Paul for tonight’s game.  Paul suffered a left groin strain last night in Atlanta.  Paul is considered to be a legitimate game-time decision, and is doing everything in his power to get into the lineup for the game against the Knicks. 

-Contain the High Flying Clippers

The Knicks will have their hands full tonight with high flying big men Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan.  Both Griffin and Jordan look to roll to the basket every time down the court so they can finish with thunderous alley-oop dunks.  If Chris Paul is indeed capable of playing tonight, it will make it that much more difficult on the Knicks.  Paul is a master in the pick-and-roll game and has shown that time and time again throughout the season with the highlight plays he has been a part of with Griffin and Jordan.

-Attack, Attack, Attack

The Clippers are playing their second game in as many nights with travel from Atlanta to New York in between.  Fatigue this late in the season is usually a factor, even more so when you have to play on multiple nights in a row.  The Knicks have to come out aggressive, feeding the big horses Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire early and often to set the tone in tonight’s game.  Running the offense throughout Anthony first is the best option for the Knicks with Stoudemire and the rest of the team playing off of him.  Anthony is a capable creator when given the opportunity.

-Continue to Build Chemistry

Amar’e Stoudemire will play in his third game tonight since returning from a back injury that kept him out nearly a month.  Only one of those games though has been played with both Carmelo Anthony and Tyson Chandler in the lineup.  The Knicks have to continue working out the wrinkles because they are a much more dangerous team when all three of them are playing up to their abilities.  They have tonight and tomorrow night in Charlotte to figure some things out.

The biggest problem for the three of them has been spacing.  At time it seems like they are playing tentatively, afraid that they might step on the others toes in a sense.  The most problems seem to come with 

Chandler and Stoudemire, as both players are best suited for the pick-and-roll game.  

The best way around this in my opinion would be to have Anthony run the pick-and-roll with both players.  Anthony is a capable passer when he wants to be and Stoudemire and Chandler are even more capable finishers at the rim. 

Another thing that would help is Stoudemire getting his jump shot down.  If he is able to knock down the elbow extended jumper the offense would open up that much more.  That would allow for Chandler to be the pick setter and Stoudemire to spot up.  Defenses will have to watch Chandler rolling to the basket because of his ability of finishing around the basket.  This will have defenses sagging off Stoudemire some, 

making for easy opportunities for everyone in the offense.

Getting both of them involved in the offense will be key; it is much harder to stop both of them compared to guarding one or the other.  Not just one player, but the team as a whole will be responsible for making that happen. 

New York Knicks vs. Atlanta Hawks Post Game Recap April 22

Final Score: New York Knicks 113 Atlanta Hawks 112

The Knicks bounced back nicely from their poor performance Friday night against the Cavaliers, picking up a much needed win tonight if they will have any hope of moving up to the 6^th seed in the Eastern Conference.  The team came out more focused tonight and with more energy, matching what was a very game Hawks squad.  It will not be easy as they need to beat the Clippers and the Bobcats to finish off the season and have the Magic lose the rest of their games.  For one night, things went according to plan.  The Knicks also put a half game between themselves and the Philadelphia 76ers, whom they hold the tiebreaker against as well. 

-Getting Things Together On Offense

For at least one night, Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire looked like the lethal combination they were hyped up as being when the Knicks brought Anthony on board at last season’s trade deadline.  Carmelo Anthony was lights out again, scoring 39 points and grabbing 10 rebounds.  Anthony was back in attack mode after taking a backseat it seemed in Cleveland Friday taking only 13 shots.  He took 12 shots in the 1^st quarter alone tonight.  Stoudemire had a strong game as well, scoring 22 points and grabbing 12 rebounds.  It was nice seeing Anthony and Stoudemire working hard on the glass in the absence of Tyson Chandler, who sat tonight because of what is being called a sore knee. 

The performances of Anthony and Stoudemire tonight are significant because numbers suggest that Anthony and Stoudemire have had trouble co-existing with each other on the court, playing better when one of the two are sitting on the bench.  Another reason of this being so encouraging is the team it came against.  The Hawks have been firmly cemented in the playoffs and are no slouches on defense, ranking 5^th in the NBA in overall team defense.  It needs to be taken with a grain of salt because the Hawks have really nothing to play for the final games of the season, but they did play their full complement of players and came out trying to win the game. 

-Total Team Effort

Anthony and Stoudemire were the vocal point of the offense tonight, but the other players did not stand around and watch.  Landry Fields had one of his better games of late, finishing with 18 points on 7-8 shooting and an impressive 3-3 from 3 point range.  Fields has played so bad of late that Mike Woodson benched him in favor of Iman Shumpert when Stoudemire returned Friday night; so it was encouraging to see him bounce back.

Baron Davis made his return to the lineup tonight and looked rejuvenated.  He scored 13 points, knocking down 3-4 from 3 point range and handed out a season high 10 assists.  If the Knicks can get performances nearly as great as this from Davis on a consistent basis in the playoffs, they will be that much more dangerous. 

The bench was uncharacteristically quiet tonight, scoring only 10 points with the starters logging big minutes.  The starting group did not disappoint though, with each player scoring in double figures.

-No Chandler, No Defense

Without Tyson Chandler manning the middle tonight for the Knicks their defense was not very stellar.  Players got to the basket at will with very little resistance.  One encouraging sign though was Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire dominating the boards in place of Chandler.  Anthony and Stoudemire led the Knicks with 10 and 12 rebounds respectively, leading the Knicks to outrebound the Hawks 37-33. 

The downside though was that the Knicks allowed the Hawks to shoot 53.9% from the field and 65.2% from the 3 point line.  Luckily for them, the Hawks did not play any defense either, as the Knicks shot 54.4% from the field and a blistering 63.2% from the 3 point line.  Both teams combined to knock down an absurd 27 combined 3 pointers.

The next game for the Knicks will be Wednesday at 8:00 against the Los Angeles Clippers a.k.a Lob City at the Garden.

New York Knicks vs. Atlanta Hawks Pre-Game News and Notes April 22

Sunday April 22^nd 1:00 P.M. ET
New York Knicks vs. Atlanta Hawks

The Knicks suffered a debilitating loss on Friday night at the hands of the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers and look to bounce back against the Hawks Sunday afternoon.  This is the 3^rd meeting of the season between the Knicks and Hawks, with each team winning on their home court in the previous match-ups.  It will be interesting to see how much energy and effort are put into the game because both teams are pretty much locked into their current spots in the playoffs with such a little amount of time left in the season.

-Playoff Picture

The Knicks now have a slim to none chance of moving up in the standings with only 2 games left after Sunday afternoon.  They no longer control their own destiny, needing the Magic and Celtics to both lose all of their remaining games in addition to the Knicks not losing for seeding to change in a positive manner.

The Knicks could conceivable move down in the standings, which may not be a bad thing. They currently hold the 7^th seed in the Eastern Conference, matched up against the Miami Heat.  This brings up an interesting debate to be had.  Do the Knicks play out the season and most likely get matched up against the Heat, or do they tank games and allow the Philadelphia 76ers to move ahead of them making for a series against the Chicago Bulls?  Seeing how things go in Atlanta will be a good indicator in which direction Mike Woodson will have the Knicks heading. 

Players are confident in the team and are saying they do not care who they match up with.  Tyson Chandler is just fine with facing the Heat in the first round.  "I'm OK with it," Chandler said earlier this week. "They've beaten us, obviously, every game that we've played them. But I don't feel like we've necessarily made the adjustments to that team. That's a team that you have to make adjustments (to) and make them pay for how aggressive they are. And we haven't done that yet in any of the games that we've played. We have to be willing to, if that's our match-up, to sit down, break down tape and really focus in." 

Chandler is not alone in not caring about match-ups, as the same sentiment can be felt by Jared Jeffries.  "If we keep shooting the ball the way we are, then definitely we're one of the top teams," Jeffries said Friday afternoon on ESPN New York 1050's "Ruocco & Lundberg" show. "I think against Miami's defense, I think you have to have a team that can shoot the ball very well. The way we're shooting the ball right now from outside, I think it'll be hard for a team like Miami to show on pick-and-rolls and rotate early to get to our shooters. So I think we're definitely one of the teams that they would be concerned about." 

-Continued Work to Cohesion

The game against the Cavaliers Friday night was a disaster right from the start with the Knicks looking out of whack on the offensive end and lacking the same intensity and cohesion they have been showing in recent games on the defensive end.  One reason behind this could be the return of Amar’e Stoudemire.  The Knicks need to get him up to speed and quick.  They are a much more dangerous team with him no matter how well Carmelo Anthony played when he put the team on his back.

For Carmelo Anthony, he needs to again readjust.  The Knicks play well when the offense runs through him and he gets touches every possession.  They need to continue to do that even with the return of Stoudemire.  They were unable to do that consistently enough on Friday, as Anthony had the same amount of shot attempts in the 2^nd half as points after the 1^st quarter, which was one.  

New York Knicks vs. Cleveland Cavaliers Post Game Recap April 20

Final Score: New York Knicks 90 Cleveland Cavaliers 98

The Knicks had a chance to take advantage of losses by teams ahead of them in the standings tonight and were unable to do so.  They came out flat and were unable to recover against a lowly Cavaliers team in Amar’e Stoudemire’s return to action after missing the past 13 games.  The Knicks will now have a difficult time overtaking the Boston Celtics or Orlando Magic to improve their playoff seeding.  A win by either team or loss by the Knicks will lock them into the 7^th seed at best. 

-Lack of Urgency

The Knicks came out flat and complacent against a lottery bound Cavaliers team after learning about their playoff spot being locked up the night before.  That was the feeling that head coach Mike Woodson took out of the game.  "I've seen this happen over the years that I've been in this league," Woodson said.

"You clinch a [playoff] spot and it's like a sigh of relief and they stop playing. And then they think that they can gear it back up. There's nothing about tonight's game that I liked at all." 

Tyson Chandler chalked up the game to players feeling fatigued and tired.  Whatever the reason behind the lackluster performance, the Knicks need to turn it around and come out ready for their next game Sunday afternoon at the Atlanta Hawks. 

-Out Hustled and Muscled

The rebounding numbers were absurd in the game tonight.  The Knicks got out rebounded 52-32, getting beat to all the loose balls by a Cavaliers team that has nothing to play for but come out with more energy than the Knicks.  The domination did not stop there for the Knicks, as they were outscored 42-28 in the paint by the Cavaliers. 

One glaring stat when looking at the final score sheet is how badly the Knicks frontcourt was outplayed.  Tyson Chandler, Amar’e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony were out rebounded by the smaller and less talented Cavaliers front court of Antawn Jamison, Tristan Thompson and Anthony Parker 19-12. 

You know it was a tough night for the Knicks when your backup point guard is your leading rebounder.

-Showing Up in Short Notice

With Baron Davis being a late scratch due to the stomach flu, Mike Bibby was thrust into action on short notice.  The short notice did not seem to have a negative effect on either Bibby or his backup for the night Toney Douglas.  Bibby scored 12 points and added four assists.  Douglas added six points, six assists and a team leading nine rebounds off the bench. 

-Gotta get the cohesion and rhythm back

Right from the start you could tell something was a little different about the game than it had been in the last few weeks. With the return of Amar’e Stoudemire there will be a period of time they will need to work the Kinks out. Stoudemire struggled for most of the night being plagued by foul trouble.  He managed as many field goals as fouls (five). 

The Knicks tried to work Stoudemire into the offensive flow early and often, but was unable to get anything going.  It seemed to also ruin the offensive games of everyone but Carmelo Anthony, who scored 11 of his 12 points in the first quarter.  Anthony only had 1 attempt after halftime, sitting the whole 4^th quarter as the Knicks were unable to mount much of a comeback.

The Knicks have three more games on the season to figure things out with Stoudemire returning from injury.  The first game is Sunday afternoon in Atlanta against he Hawks at 1:00 P.M. ET.

Orlando Magics vs. New York Knicks Post Game Recap March 28

Final Score: Orlando Magic 86 New York Knicks 108 

The Knicks have been great under Mike Woodson since he was named interim head coach, but nothing like tonight against a team in the Orlando Magic many consider an NBA title contender. The Knicks blew the Magic out of the water pushing their record under Woodson to 8-1 and also lengthening their lead over the Milwaukee Bucks for 8th place in the Eastern Conference to 2 ½ games. The Knicks also are over .500 now with a 26-25 record. What makes this win even more impressive is that they were able to do it without 2 of their starters in Amar’e Stoudemire and Jeremy Lin and without defensive stalwart Jared Jeffries. 

-Defense, Defense, Defense 

After a first quarter in which the Knicks allowed the Magic to score 29 points, led by 11 from Jameer Nelson, the Knicks put the locks on the Magic. Throughout the last 3 quarters of the game, the Knicks held the Magic to only 57 points, going on a 21-0 run at one point during the 3rd quarter, a quarter in which the Knicks have struggled mightily in throughout the season. The Knicks were able to neutralize the Magic’s 3 point shooting, holding them to 9-26 (it would have been worse if not for a let down at the end of the 3rd quarter into the 4th when the Knicks had a 39 point lead.). Led by Tyson Chandler, the Knicks were also able to effectively shut down Dwight Howard, who was held to only 12 points and 5 rebounds. The rotations were on point, and the Knicks were able to hound the Magic all night leading to a huge victory. 

-Ball Control 

Entering the game tonight, the Knicks were averaging 20 turnovers a game in their last 3 contests. Tonight was a different story, as the Knicks only committed 10 turnovers and were able to dish out 24 assists. The ball movement was impeccable, precise and crisp, leading to numerous open jump shots for everyone on the team. Carmelo Anthony and Baron Davis led the team with 6 assists each. 

-Domination of the Paint 

Against the Orland Magic controlling the paint is no easy task with Dwight Howard around, but that is exactly what the Knicks were able to do tonight. The Knicks controlled the boards to the tune of a 49-34 out-rebounding performance. They also outscored the Magic in the paint 42-30, enabling them to control the game from all facets. 

-Picking up the Slack 

With so many injuries ravaging the team, the Knicks were looking for people to step up, and that is exactly what happened. Carmelo Anthony is going to be relied upon to handle a large portion of the offensive load without Amar’e Stoudemire and Jeremy Lin, and for a second straight game he did not disappoint. Anthony finished with a very efficient 25 points on 9-15 shooting, also adding in 6 assists and 5 rebounds. He seems to finally be finding his rhythm, something he had said he needed to do after the loss in Toronto last week. Anthony was scoring from all over the court, but did the most damage from the post. 

Anthony had help tonight in picking up the slack in the form of Iman Shumpert, who had a career high 25 points to go along with 7 rebounds and 4 assists, playing quite possibly his best game of his short lived NBA career. He brought the normal intense defense that he is known for as well as a great game on the offensive end. Shumpert has been working with Allan Houston on his jump shot coming off screens, and it is evident as he is showing much more confidence in his jumper, as he had another 4 3 pointers tonight against the Magic. 

-Fantastic Bench Play 

The bench once again was a strong point for the Knicks, led by Steve Novak and J.R. Smith. Novak had 16 points and added another 4 3 pointers to his season total, and Smith wasn’t far behind with 12 of his own. Josh Harrellson is still looking to get back to his shooting form, but played great defense against Dwight Howard and was able to corral 8 rebounds of his own. 

The next game for the Knicks is Friday, March 30th against the Atlanta Hawks in Atlanta at 7:30 P.M. ET. It will be a homecoming for Mike Woodson, as he was the coach of the Hawks for 6 seasons.