Knicks coming apart

[desertdawg]

Considering everyone considers us a non/borderline playoff team, then what's worth getting so upset about?

 

[AzStevenCal]

Considering everyone considers us a non/borderline playoff team, then what's worth getting so upset about?

Not everyone considered/considers us a non/borderline playoff team. We had a lot of 55 win predictions over the summer and a few of us that went too far in the other direction. But, it seemed to me that the majority thought we'd definitely make the playoffs although it was the rare poster that thought we would advance.

Steve

 

[AzStevenCal]

I think both teams will be near the .500 mark which will probably be enough to get the Knicks into the playoffs. I doubt 42 wins or so will be enough to get us in and barring an advantageous trade, I think that's where we top out. Unless, of course, we wear Nash down at which point 40 wins would likely become a fantasy.

Steve

 

[Trifecta]

Yes, pre-season is pre-season but losing a game by 50 with your starters is one thing, losing to the same team by over 30 again in what? less than 2 weeks should tell you something. Yes very likely we will beat them again, but as of then, they were a young and better running team. .

I find it funny that the most common phrase used on message boards every October is "I know it's only preaseason but *insert gripe here*". IMO it's silly to put any stock into preaseason games, especially in a debate about how the Suns are playing 1 month into the real season. Preseason games don't have much of a bearing on the real season as coaches are trying out different rotations/gameplans and whatnot. As I recall the Raptors were far from the only team handing us our ass every night in preaseason. Did it continue when the real season started? Nope.

Since Amare has called out that team and D'Antoni has allowed Felton to play his way; instead of trying to make him a Nash clone, they have beaten the teams they are supposed to. At least they have been almost consistent at that, can you say the same about the Suns? The Knicks are currently doing what the franchise haven't done in almost 10 years, you can swing it whichever way you want and say their schedule is soft but you cant deny they have improved. How good are they, or how better can they get? We will find out eventually but it is very likely they will make the playoffs this season.

I don't remember saying the Knicks havent improved or aren't good, I was just implying that they have had a soft schedule so far which has helped their cause and made them look somewhat better than they are. Clearly they have improved and are good to a point. But to put things in perspective they have merely gone from awful to good for the first time in 10 years so it's not all that remarkable an achievement. For the Knicks maybe but not for most NBA teams, especially teams with access to as much money as the Knicks.

We are barely getting by weak teams, and we are getting blown out by good teams. In case you haven't noticed; We are currently no better than the Knicks.

"Blown out" might be a bit overdramatic (unless you are referring to those preseason games again), but yes the Suns are a deeply flawed team and I have never denied that either. I have been laying into Sarver plenty over the past few weeks for sticking his beak in and putting together this ridiculously unbalanced team. But even with the team we have no one can say we are no better than the Knicks, at least not yet considering our schedule so far vs theirs.

 

[Cheesebeef]

uh, can someone tell me how our schedule starts to lighten up with OKC, SA, Dallas, Miami on tap in the next three weeks?

 

[Trifecta]

uh, can someone tell me how our schedule starts to lighten up with OKC, SA, Dallas, Miami on tap in the next three weeks?

My hope is it will be like last season where we had a brutal first half of the season and then a soft run to the playoffs which allowed us to float our way up to 3rd seed (3rd seed is probably not on the cards this time though).

 

[Cheesebeef]

My hope is it will be like last season where we had a brutal first half of the season and then a soft run to the playoffs which allowed us to float our way up to 3rd seed (3rd seed is probably not on the cards this time though).

sounds more like a prayer than hope.

 

[Trifecta]

sounds more like a prayer than hope.

Who's praying? It's not like we can play the Lakers, Mavs, Spurs etc more than 4 times a season is it? Eventually we will run out of games to be played against these teams and move onto the Wolves, Nets, Sixers etc. It all balances out in the end just like it will for the Knicks etc when they start facing the tougher opponents. We'll just have to capitalise on it and do a better job of handling the weaker teams.

But instead of saying "3rd seed is probably not on the cards this time though" I should have said "3rd seed is definately not on the cards this time though"

 

[Chaplin]

Not everyone considered/considers us a non/borderline playoff team. We had a lot of 55 win predictions over the summer and a few of us that went too far in the other direction. But, it seemed to me that the majority thought we'd definitely make the playoffs although it was the rare poster that thought we would advance.

Steve

That was the summer. We're talking about right now.

 

[Chaplin]

Who's praying? It's not like we can play the Lakers, Mavs, Spurs etc more than 4 times a season is it? Eventually we will run out of games to be played against these teams and move onto the Wolves, Nets, Sixers etc. It all balances out in the end just like it will for the Knicks etc when they start facing the tougher opponents. We'll just have to capitalise on it and do a better job of handling the weaker teams.

But instead of saying "3rd seed is probably not on the cards this time though" I should have said "3rd seed is definately not on the cards this time though"

Too bad "cards" and "3rd seed" won't be able to get used in the same sentence again for the next 10 years.

 

[Bufalay]

Who's praying? It's not like we can play the Lakers, Mavs, Spurs etc more than 4 times a season is it? Eventually we will run out of games to be played against these teams and move onto the Wolves, Nets, Sixers etc. It all balances out in the end just like it will for the Knicks etc when they start facing the tougher opponents. We'll just have to capitalise on it and do a better job of handling the weaker teams.

It doesn't all balance out the same. At the end of the season the Knicks will have played many more games against crap teams than the Suns because they are in different conferences.

The Suns schedule didn't get much easier at the end of last season. Take a look at their last month or so. It was a brutal schedule, but the Suns were playing really well. That isn't going to happen this year.

 

[jagu]

Considering everyone considers us a non/borderline playoff team, then what's worth getting so upset about?

Yea, we are a borderline playoff team and these two losses weren't very upsetting considering we battled tooth and nail against them. I don't understand how beating a Grizzlies team on a back to back is a given thing? They have a huge front line with Gasol and Randolph and we almost stole that game using our bench! Not disappointed at all at our performance. Sometimes you lose. I enjoyed watching our second unit play last night and hope this is the start of some really good chemistry.

 

[jagu]

uh, can someone tell me how our schedule starts to lighten up with OKC, SA, Dallas, Miami on tap in the next three weeks?

There is no let up cheesebeef. Kind of scary but hey at least the games are fun. Looking for some upsets on SA and Miami by our Suns! Unleash the Dragon , ye who breathes fire in the Alamodome.

 

[cly2tw]

The Suns schedule didn't get much easier at the end of last season. Take a look at their last month or so. It was a brutal schedule, but the Suns were playing really well. That isn't going to happen this year.

Suns were playing well inspite of Nash's worn-out legs, because they unleashed Amare who played like the league MVP after ASB. Wait, we have Hedo, Warrick, and Childress to replace Amare. They will do better with more salary committed to them collectively.

 

[Trifecta]

It doesn't all balance out the same. At the end of the season the Knicks will have played many more games against crap teams than the Suns because they are in different conferences.

Yes I'm aware that the Knicks will play a lot more easy games than the Suns because the East has less good teams than the West. I didn't word it brilliantly but what I meant by "it all evens out in the end" was that with the Suns having a tough schedule to open the season it is bound to get easier as we eventually face more weaker teams, just like the Knicks who have had the easiest run in the league will start facing tougher opponenets evantually.

The Suns schedule didn't get much easier at the end of last season. Take a look at their last month or so. It was a brutal schedule, but the Suns were playing really well. That isn't going to happen this year.

I'll take your word for it. Perhaps I am remembering the large number of home games the Suns had to close out the season rather than the level of opposition. I just remember us cruising home despite not having Lopez to close out the year.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I'll take your word for it. Perhaps I am remembering the large number of home games the Suns had to close out the season rather than the level of opposition. I just remember us cruising home despite not having Lopez to close out the year.

I'm too lazy to look up the schedule but I do remember we caught a lot of breaks down the stretch. It was a fairly tough mix of teams but we caught several of them on the trail end of a back to back and oftentimes without their best player.

Regardless, we finished strong and our schedule should afford us a similar opportunity this year. I haven't looked but I can't imagine we have that many more home games ruined by being on the road the night before, we've already had 5 of them I think.

Steve

 

[Trifecta]

Suns were playing well inspite of Nash's worn-out legs, because they unleashed Amare who played like the league MVP after ASB. Wait, we have Hedo, Warrick, and Childress to replace Amare. They will do better with more salary committed to them collectively.

At some point you will just have to accept that Amare is gone and our front office sucks. Drinking a lot helps.

 

[BC867]

They have a huge front line with Gasol and Randolph and we almost stole that game using our bench!

I wish I could be a glass half-full guy when it comes to the Suns but, with forty years of being a fan, I can't help but lament, "Why couldn't it be us?" with the huge front line that can make a superstar-for-a-night out of a marginal player?

And somehow, "We almost stole that game." is not an acceptable outcome.

Rooting for my team is not like working to put food on the table. It is meant to be a pleasure. A diversion from the challenges of everyday life.

It is not a reflection on the efforts of the coaches and players . . . or fans. It reflects on the banker who fashioned himself to be a temporary General Manager with little regard for what I said in the last paragraph.

 

[Proteus]

I'm too lazy to look up the schedule but I do remember we caught a lot of breaks down the stretch. It was a fairly tough mix of teams but we caught several of them on the trail end of a back to back and oftentimes without their best player.

Regardless, we finished strong and our schedule should afford us a similar opportunity this year. I haven't looked but I can't imagine we have that many more home games ruined by being on the road the night before, we've already had 5 of them I think.

Steve

We're 2-2 so far at home on the 2nd night of a back to back (loss to the Lakers, win against the Nuggets, win against the Pacers, and a loss to the Grizzlies).

We have 4 more home games on the 2nd night of a back to back (Nets, Raptors, Thunder, and the Timberwolves).

 

[AzStevenCal]

We're 2-2 so far at home on the 2nd night of a back to back (loss to the Lakers, win against the Nuggets, win against the Pacers, and a loss to the Grizzlies).

We have 4 more home games on the 2nd night of a back to back (Nets, Raptors, Thunder, and the Timberwolves).

If I counted right, we have 16 back to backs this season, 8 of which include a home game following a road game. The Lakers have 14 back to backs, 1 of which is a home game following a road game. Oh yeah, it's a fair world.

Steve

 

[elindholm]

Road-home back-to-backs are quite unusual, and to have eight in a season is probably unprecedented. The Suns can't seem to catch a break from the schedule makers. But I'm sure it's all coincidence.

 

[tobiazz]

The Knicks are still coming apart, winning 9 of their last 10. Amare is at #3 in scoring, #2 in dunks, shooting 53% without Nash to "set him up."

The Knicks come to Phoenix on Jan 7th and it's on ESPN. Mark your calendars.

 

[Michael]

The Knicks come to Phoenix on Jan 7th and it's on ESPN. Mark your calendars.

I hope he'll get a warm welcome from the Phoenix crowd. After that I hope he won't have his way with our frontcourt.

 

[Covert Rain]

The Knicks are still coming apart, winning 9 of their last 10. Amare is at #3 in scoring, #2 in dunks, shooting 53% without Nash to "set him up."

The Knicks come to Phoenix on Jan 7th and it's on ESPN. Mark your calendars.

Check out my ealier post. Amare is SICK right now.

 

[AfroSuns]

Excerpts from race to MVP on nba.com
http://www.nba.com/2010/news/features/12/10/race-to-mvp-week-7/?ls=iref:nbahpt1

The peg for Stoudemire and the Knicks on Friday against Washington, though, concerns Naulls' stretch of games from late February to early March in 1962. That season -- a high-scoring one in the NBA overall, with Wilt Chamberlain averaging 50.4 points -- Naulls was at his most prolific, scoring 25 points per game for New York. And from Feb. 22 to March 4, he strung together seven consecutive games of scoring at least 30 points. That stands as the franchise mark, and that's the streak Stoudemire has in his sights Friday.
The Knicks' happy free-agent addition -- the NBA's best signing so far from the most ballyhooed free-agent class ever -- had six consecutive games of 30 or more in a streak that began Nov. 28 at Detroit. He had 37 that night, followed soon thereafter by 35 vs. New Jersey, 34 at New Orleans, 31 at Toronto, 34 vs. Minnesota and 34 more against Toronto Wednesday. In that stretch, Stoudemire has averaged 34.2 points and 11.5 rebounds while shooting 59.4 percent.
But his wonderfulness didn't just start there. Over the past 12 games, Stoudemire's numbers have been 29.9 ppg, 10.2 rpg and a 58.3 field-goal percentage. More impressive, the Knicks have gone 11-1. His personality, and his eagerness to embrace team responsibility and a New York spotlight from which other players have run, have been big bonuses, too. (Enough to overlook his career-high turnover rate.) He has won two Player of the Week awards already, and Knicks assistant general manager Allan Houston recently compared Stoudemire's arrival in 2010 to Patrick Ewing's drafting in 1985.
"Amar'e's got broad shoulders and we jump on them a lot of times," Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni said last week.
If clutch performance is one measure of an MVP candidate, consider this: Stoudemire leads the NBA in fourth-quarter scoring at 7.7 points. The next four in line are the Clippers' Eric Gordon (7.4), Golden State's Stephen Curry (6.8), Dallas' Dirk Nowitzki (6.8) and Oklahoma City's Kevin Durant (6.4).