Knicks, Celtics proving they don't belong
By Terry Brown
NBA Insider
Wednesday, April 21
If the NBA is going to let the New York Knicks (39-43) and the Boston Celtics (36-46) into the playoffs, then the least it can do is match them up against each other so they don't ruin it for the rest of us.
To be specific, I want Brandon Hunter guarding Kurt Thomas.
Kurt Thomas
Forward-Center
New York Knicks
As it stands, both teams are a combined 0-4 against the Nets and Pacers, respectively, with an average margin of defeat of 17.7 points and are now the most dangerous teams in the NBA.
"If we can take one of their guys out of the game by being physical with them, then that's definitely an advantage for us," Thomas said in the New York Times. "We were hitting hard. We were laying some wood out there."
Thomas said that before Tuesday night's game in which the Knicks lost to Nets, 99-81. Of course, he said that after the Nets beat them 107-83 in their first game of this year's playoffs. But he could have also said it after the Nets beat them 108-83 on April 2 in their final meeting of the regular season.
Or he could have said it on March 28, 2003, when the Nets smashed the Knicks 122-101 in the final regular-season meeting of that season. How about the 105-76 thrashing on Feb. 26 of that same year. Or the 115-93 whooping of Feb. 22, 2002.
In all, the Nets have beaten the Knicks 12 of the last 14 times they've met on the basketball court, the only two victories coming this year when Net all-stars Jason Kidd and Kenyon Martin were both out injured and last year when Allan Houston hit a running jumper with 36 seconds for a 101-99 victory.
Other than that, the Nets have beaten the Knicks by an average of 17.4 points per game over the last three years.
Regular season, playoffs, in New Jersey, in Madison Square Garden. It doesn't matter. The Knicks do not belong on the same floor with the Nets.
Don't get me wrong. I'm all for the underdog, and still remember Knick back-up center Dikembe Mutombo, then the starting center for the eighth-seeded Denver Nuggets, clutching the ball on his back after his team upset the No. 1 seeded Seattle SuperSonics.
But this is different.
This is as different as Brandon Hunter and Jermaine O'Neal.
By now we know that in the first game of their matchup, Hunter grabbed O'Neal and tossed him to the floor, prompting Ron Artest to temporarily leave the bench and eventually get suspended for the second game.
But even without Artest, the Pacers still beat the Celtics, 103-90, Tuesday night after beating them 104-88 in the first game.
Brandon Hunter
Power Forward
Boston Celtics
"We knew he was sent in to shake it up. This is the NBA," said O'Neal. "Each team has a person that's supposed to do that. I just have to do a better job keeping myself focused. If I get thrown out, our loss is greater than theirs."
What you may not know is that Hunter scored 125 points this year and grabbed 118 rebounds. In the playoffs, he's totaled two points and one rebound.
On the other hand, O'Neal scored 1,566 points and grabbed 778 rebounds on his way to becoming an MVP candidate. In this year's playoffs, he's totaled 46 points and 22 rebounds in two games. Artest was recently crowned the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year and rang up 24 points, six rebounds, five assists and two blocks in that first game.
But that's not the only difference.
The Knicks and Hunter aren't the most dangerous entities in the NBA because they can beat the Nets or stop O'Neal and not because of what they can do to Jason Kidd or Richard Jefferson or O'Neal.
They are the most dangerous people because of what they can do to the NBA since there are no longer any consequences.
Fine them, suspend them, kick them out of the playoffs for good. It's too late. The Knicks are going to lose no matter what, and Hunter is still the third-to-last player selected in the second round of the last draft who didn't play a single second in Game 2. They had little or no chance coming into these games, and the last four contests have only confirmed that.
But what happens if Kidd ends up injured? What do we do if Artest gets suspended again? How about Martin taking revenge on Chauncey Billups and, all of a sudden, we're a Tim Duncan knee injury away from proclaiming the Miami Heat the 2004 NBA Champs with a 42-40 regular season record.
Meanwhile, the 42-40 Utah Jazz are wondering why they didn't even get invited to the playoffs instead of the Knicks and Celtics.
By Terry Brown
NBA Insider
Wednesday, April 21
If the NBA is going to let the New York Knicks (39-43) and the Boston Celtics (36-46) into the playoffs, then the least it can do is match them up against each other so they don't ruin it for the rest of us.
To be specific, I want Brandon Hunter guarding Kurt Thomas.
Kurt Thomas
Forward-Center
New York Knicks
As it stands, both teams are a combined 0-4 against the Nets and Pacers, respectively, with an average margin of defeat of 17.7 points and are now the most dangerous teams in the NBA.
"If we can take one of their guys out of the game by being physical with them, then that's definitely an advantage for us," Thomas said in the New York Times. "We were hitting hard. We were laying some wood out there."
Thomas said that before Tuesday night's game in which the Knicks lost to Nets, 99-81. Of course, he said that after the Nets beat them 107-83 in their first game of this year's playoffs. But he could have also said it after the Nets beat them 108-83 on April 2 in their final meeting of the regular season.
Or he could have said it on March 28, 2003, when the Nets smashed the Knicks 122-101 in the final regular-season meeting of that season. How about the 105-76 thrashing on Feb. 26 of that same year. Or the 115-93 whooping of Feb. 22, 2002.
In all, the Nets have beaten the Knicks 12 of the last 14 times they've met on the basketball court, the only two victories coming this year when Net all-stars Jason Kidd and Kenyon Martin were both out injured and last year when Allan Houston hit a running jumper with 36 seconds for a 101-99 victory.
Other than that, the Nets have beaten the Knicks by an average of 17.4 points per game over the last three years.
Regular season, playoffs, in New Jersey, in Madison Square Garden. It doesn't matter. The Knicks do not belong on the same floor with the Nets.
Don't get me wrong. I'm all for the underdog, and still remember Knick back-up center Dikembe Mutombo, then the starting center for the eighth-seeded Denver Nuggets, clutching the ball on his back after his team upset the No. 1 seeded Seattle SuperSonics.
But this is different.
This is as different as Brandon Hunter and Jermaine O'Neal.
By now we know that in the first game of their matchup, Hunter grabbed O'Neal and tossed him to the floor, prompting Ron Artest to temporarily leave the bench and eventually get suspended for the second game.
But even without Artest, the Pacers still beat the Celtics, 103-90, Tuesday night after beating them 104-88 in the first game.
Brandon Hunter
Power Forward
Boston Celtics
"We knew he was sent in to shake it up. This is the NBA," said O'Neal. "Each team has a person that's supposed to do that. I just have to do a better job keeping myself focused. If I get thrown out, our loss is greater than theirs."
What you may not know is that Hunter scored 125 points this year and grabbed 118 rebounds. In the playoffs, he's totaled two points and one rebound.
On the other hand, O'Neal scored 1,566 points and grabbed 778 rebounds on his way to becoming an MVP candidate. In this year's playoffs, he's totaled 46 points and 22 rebounds in two games. Artest was recently crowned the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year and rang up 24 points, six rebounds, five assists and two blocks in that first game.
But that's not the only difference.
The Knicks and Hunter aren't the most dangerous entities in the NBA because they can beat the Nets or stop O'Neal and not because of what they can do to Jason Kidd or Richard Jefferson or O'Neal.
They are the most dangerous people because of what they can do to the NBA since there are no longer any consequences.
Fine them, suspend them, kick them out of the playoffs for good. It's too late. The Knicks are going to lose no matter what, and Hunter is still the third-to-last player selected in the second round of the last draft who didn't play a single second in Game 2. They had little or no chance coming into these games, and the last four contests have only confirmed that.
But what happens if Kidd ends up injured? What do we do if Artest gets suspended again? How about Martin taking revenge on Chauncey Billups and, all of a sudden, we're a Tim Duncan knee injury away from proclaiming the Miami Heat the 2004 NBA Champs with a 42-40 regular season record.
Meanwhile, the 42-40 Utah Jazz are wondering why they didn't even get invited to the playoffs instead of the Knicks and Celtics.
