After a mind fart in the fourth quarter of Tuesday night’s game against the Orlando Magic, the New York Knicks bounced back against the New Orleans Hornets with a dominating 107-88 victory. Offensively the Knicks had it going all night as they shot 55% from the floor and 45% from three point range. However, the key ingredient for tonight’s game was New York’s ball movement, defense and the fact it was an entire team effort.
The Two Towers of New York had their regular stellar performances, as Amar’e Stoudemire had 24 points, 7 rebounds and Carmelo Anthony added 22 points. However, the win cannot be placed wholly on their shoulders as every member of the Knicks roster contributed Wednesday night.
Before the game, Coach D’Antoni addressed the media about the Orlando game and said that the supporting cast needed to stay aggressive and not defer too much to the Knicks two all stars and maintain ball movement. He added that they needed to focus on what they did best and not be hesitant to shoot the ball and become part of the offense.
The supporting cast heard the message loud and clear and they all had break through games against NOLA. None more so than second year point guard Toney Douglas. Douglas who started the game in place of Chauncey Billups, who was out with a deep thigh bruise, erupted out of his three game shooting slump for 24 points and 5 assists. Douglas’ defense was also superb as he held All Star point guard Chris Paul to only 4 points.
Another player who was able to arise out of the ashes was Shawne Williams. Williams has not been able to hit water from a boat as of late, but that all changed Wednesday as Williams scored 16 points, shooting 4-6 from downtown and 6-8 overall. The fourth quarter even brought out seldom seen lethal shooter Roger Mason who pointed to the fans after each of his baskets, as they chanted his name.
After trading for Carmelo Anthony, New York was still considered to be a lousy defensive team. Luckily, the Knicks finally have a competent General Manager in Donnie Walsh, who immediately addressed this issue and brought back a player who Coach D’Antoni had great faith in. Enter Jared Jeffries.
Jeffries is a defensive specialist, something the Knicks roster clearly lacked and he will fit in perfectly with New York’s current squad. Unquestionably, Jeffries will be an X factor come playoff time as he will be asked to guard the opposing team’s best perimeter player on a nightly basis. This is important, because it enables ‘Melo to focus on what he does best: Score and does not put too much pressure on rookie Laundry Fields.
All in all, it was a good rebound game for New York after a devastating loss. This reloaded team is coming together quickly and we should all be excited as the regular season dwindles down and the playoffs approach. Knick Fans Be Proud.
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