“The Knicks gave up too much.” “How are Melo and Stat going to play together, they both need the ball.” “Miami's going to score 140 in this game” “The Knicks can't play defense.” Bringing out the old Chris Jericho fan in me, critics will you please Shut The Hell Up!
Not one basketball “expert” gave New York any chance of winning Sunday nights game against the Miami Heat but the new look Knicks came out and won a game, ESPN is already claiming to be an “instant classic.”
The game was not picture perfect as the Knicks came out slow and it was obvious from the start that they are still not used to playing together. Many times there was extra unneeded passes and missed opportunities. Turnovers almost cost New York the game and when they did get shots, they most often threw up bricks and failed to get the offensive rebound. The result of this had the Knicks playing from behind almost the entire game and every time I checked the score, Miami seemed to be up by eleven.
However, New York finished strong which is an important attribute to have in any sport. At the end of the first quarter, the Knicks were down 34-25 but ended up taking a 52-51 lead into halftime after a 16-0 run the last 4:25 of the half. The lead came after Carmelo Anthony brought the double team leaving Bill Walker open for a buzzer beating three which he was able to kiss off the window.
The end to the half was impressive, and gave New York much needed momentum. Still, at halftime the critics did not speak a squeak about the Knicks and focused only on what Miami was not doing, other than what New York was doing. Michael Wilbon even seemed to be going out of his way to avoid complimenting the Knicks.
When the second half started, Miami came out of the gate on fire and took the lead back up to eleven. The third quarter was sloppy for New York and they did not play well. However, that changed when the buzzer sounded and the forth quarter began.
The forth quarter was a thing of beauty for New York fans all thanks to one man, the player overlooked in the trade and was thought to be a throw in, Mr. Big Shot himself Chauncey Billups. Billups had an incredible forth quarter with seven points and two big steals in the final three minutes. Mr. Big Shot even scored a long distance three which was able to give the Knicks their first lead of the half.
In the final fifteen seconds of the game, with New York up by one, Miami was able to get the ball to LeBron James and he was guarded by Carmelo Anthony. LeBron drove the lane but stellar defense by 'Melo payed off as the man who started the New York Renaissance Amar'e Stoudemire came from the other side of the lane to get the big block and seal the win for the New York Knicks.
Once again, New York finished strong and was able to end the game on a 15-4 run, which gave them the W with a 91-86 victory.
This was a statement game for the Knicks and it had the intensity of a playoff game. At the end of the game when asked on his decision to ask to guard LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony stated, “ I came here for challenges, this was a play hard game and we all stepped up.” That could not be more accurate because even though the big two names got the highlight defensive play, it was a team effort. As stated earlier Billups had two huge steals late in the game, and during the middle part of the game, great defense was played by the supporting class, especially Bill Walker, Shawne Williams and Anthony Carter.
The effect Anthony has had on New York that will probably be overlooked is his ability to lead. It takes a lot of guts to ask to guard a player of LeBron James' caliber and Anthony showed he is here to be a complete basketball player. Besides his 29 points and 9 rebounds, it was his defense that led to the Knicks winning the game. Anthony wanted to be in New York and he is stepping up his game and playing like we have never seen him before on the defensive end.
Another question and criticism which I find to be absolutely retarded is questioning how Amar'e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony are going to co-exist. These are two of the best basketball players in the game today, and any person who fails to see how they are going to play together needs to get their heads checked. Playing together is going to make themselves and the others around them better and it is going to make the game easier. Carmelo Anthony is one of the most versatile scorers in the NBA, while Amar'e is one of the most dominant big men. The game against Miami showed how great they will co-exist. It was established early on that if the Knicks are able to get the ball to Stoudemire in the post, and they are able to get themselves open, Stoudemire will happily give up the ball and if not he has an easy isolation play in which he excels. New York ran this play between 'Melo and Stat many times with positive results almost every time. New York's new Twin Towers are going to be a beautiful and sick combination and difficult for anyone in the NBA to guard.
Another thing I do not understand is how in God's name people considered it a loss that the Knicks gave up Raymond Felton for Chauncey Billups . It is beyond on me how people seemed to forget that Billups was the MVP of the 2004 NBA Finals and the fact that in the forth quarter, there is not a point guard better in the NBA at handling the ball and making the right decisions at the right time. Well I don't need to tell you, Billups did so himself by playing excellent basketball which charged New York's comeback.
I'm sure these “experts” will say that Miami lost this game instead of saying the Knicks won but the fact that the Heat can not win close games is a result of New York playing better basketball. Possibly, it could be a curse placed on Miami due to LeBron, since his former team the Cav's only defeats the best teams and the Heat fail to show up and deliver at the biggest games. Whatever the case may be, New York made a statement Sunday night and are only going to get better as the season progresses into the playoffs.
Sorry critics, it is no longer the “cool” thing to hate on the Knicks. I know it was a great ice breaker to make a joke on New York's behalf before, but that time is over. The Knicks are a real team and are going to make noise during the playoffs. New York delivers on the biggest stage as evident as their defeats over Miami and Chicago this year, aka the darling teams of the NBA. New York has the ability to make a deep run in the playoffs and I am expecting big things. New York basketball is back and it is finally time for the Knicks faithful to rejoice!
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