6-0 Knicks Winning With Defense

The Knicks proved Thursday night that their undefeated start is no fluke.  Coach Mike Woodson's team topped the 7-1 Spurs in their most impressive win of the young season so far.  We saw the resiliency in this team after coming back from a 12-point deficit with seven minutes remaining in the 4th quarter.  Five Knicks scored in double figures as the Knicks improve to 6-0 on the season. 

The Knicks have been getting contributions from everyone so far.  Carmelo Anthony only scored nine points last night and the Knicks still pulled off the win against what was the best team in the NBA.  J.R. Smith is having a career year early on scoring 18 points a game  Raymond Felton and Jason Kidd have been absolutely tremendous for this team and they showed it last night.  Felton led New York with 25 points last night.  Kidd scored 14 including a couple of big three pointers in the 4th quarter to propel the Knicks to the big comeback win.  So far, it looks like the combo of Felton and Kidd might be the better option than if they chose to retain Jeremy Lin.  The Knicks offense seems to have better chemistry without Lin at the point.  They are moving the ball around and getting everyone involved, which we didn't see as much last season.  The offense that revolved around Anthony now has been able to find other guys to contribute and score when their star has an off night like last night.  

The biggest reason for this team's early success has been their defense.  Coach Woodson has revitalized this team on the defensive end.  The Knicks are the second best defensive team in the NBA right now giving up just under 90 points a game.  Woodson's team is coming up with defensive stops in the 4th quarter when they need it most.  The defense has been the biggest reason for their unbeaten season.  

It's been fun to watch so far.  When "Ra-sheed Wallace" chants begin at MSG early in the 4th quarter, things have to be going right.  Sheed has actually played a key role off the bench for this team through the first six games contributing six points a game.  This team has beaten three playoff teams so far in the Heat, Mavericks, and Spurs.  The road only gets tougher tonight when they are in Memphis taking on the 6-1 in Grizzlies.  

2012-2013 Knicks Season Preview

The Knicks open their 2012-2013 season Friday night with high expectations.  After losing to the same Miami Heat team in May that they will play tonight, the Knicks hope to improve on their 36-30 season and 7th seed in the Eastern Conference.

Point Guards

The Knicks major loss this offseason came when they let Jeremy Lin sign with the Houston Rockets.  James Dolan chose not to match the offer the Rockets gave for the breakout point guard last season.  Lin was the major reason for the 8-15 Knicks turning their season around last year.
Raymond Felton will now lead New York's backcourt.  Felton returns to the Knicks after playing 54 games here in 2010-2011 in Amare Stoudemire's first season.  Felton looks to have the success he had early on here after having a disappointing season last year with the Portland Trail Blazers.

New York also brought in 40-year-old point guard and future Hall of Famer Jason Kidd to come off the bench.  Kidd is a nice addition providing some depth and a guy who can lead this team.  Kidd has been there before and will be able to mentor guys like Felton.
The Knicks also brought in 35-year-old rookie from Spain, Pablo Prigioni, to be another effective point guard off the bench.  

Shooting Guards

At shooting guard, the Knicks will mix and match a couple of guys until Iman Shumpert returns from his torn ACL.  New York brought in Ronnie Brewer, who becomes the opening night starter.  Brewer is known more for his defense, something the Knicks definitely need out of the backcourt.
J.R. Smith returns after being a key contributor in the second half of the season for New York last season.  Smith should come off the bench as a 6th man and will see plenty of playing time.  When he's on, he can score at will.  They're going to need his scoring out of the backcourt.  Smith has the ability to score 15 points a game off the bench.  The Knicks are going to need that scoring and energy from him that we saw last season.
The Knicks also added high flying guard/forward James White, who played overseas last season.  The 30-year-old will provide a spark off the bench as he should be the recipient of some big-time dunks.

Small Forwards 

At small forward, the Knicks are of course led by their star Carmelo Anthony.  After having an incredible Olympics run and winning the gold medal, Melo is ready to have a huge season.  With Stoudemire being out the first 6-8 weeks of the season, Anthony becomes the Knicks go to guy.  Look for him to play the power forward position a lot until Stat returns to action.  Anthony should thrive in that role with not many power forwards being able to stop the versatile scoring forward.
The Knicks also bring back three-point specialist Steve Novak this season.  Novak provided a huge spark off the bench last season making a plethora of big-time three point shots.  With Anthony playing at the four, expect Novak to get some big minutes off the bench at the three.
Expect to hear Chris Copeland's name a lot this season.  Copeland played overseas last season and had a huge preseason surprising a lot of people.  Copeland can score at will at times and will shock a lot of people coming off the bench this season.  If the Knicks continue having injury problems, look for the 6'8" 28-year-old to fill in.

Power Forwards 

The Knicks will go the first 6-8 weeks of the season without their starting forward, Amare Stoudemire. Stoudemire went down in preseason with a knee injury and will not return until late December.  Coach Mike Woodson is going to use a lot of different lineups with Stoudemire out.  The Knicks acquired veteran Kurt Thomas in the trade with Raymond Felton.  Thomas is very familiar with New York after playing here for seven years from 1998-2005.  Thomas should see some minutes and is a nice veteran to have to help some of the younger guys.
The Knicks also signed 38-year-old Rasheed Wallace to come off the bench.  Wallace came out of retirement to join a Knicks team that went with some veteran bench presence this season.  Wallace will get minutes with Stoudemire out along with Thomas at power forward.

Centers

Tyson Chandler returns as the Knicks starting center this season.  Chandler had a solid first season in New York averaging 11.3 PPG and 9.9 RPG.  Chandler is a double-double machine at center and will be pivotal in the paint, especially in the first two months of the season without Stoudemire.  His defensive presence down low will be essential for the Knicks success this season.
The Knicks also bring back another one of their former players in Marcus Camby.  Camby will back up Chandler and get some major minutes this season.  The key for the 38-year-old is staying healthy.  Camby has been injury prone throughout his career dating back to when he played for the Knicks from 1998-2002.  Camby's defense and ability to block shots will be big for this team over the course of the season.

Prediction

The key for the Knicks this season is staying healthy.  Stoudemire is already out and injuries have been a major issue for this team.  If Stat and Melo can gel together, this team could be a contender in the East.  Melo is expected to have possibly the best season of his career.  The key is him working well with his teammates.  Coach Woodson did a tremendous job last season filling in and getting this team to the playoffs.  Woodson hasn't been able to get the Hawks or the Knicks over that first round playoff hump.  With the talent in the Eastern Conference this season, it will be tough for him to do it this year.  If the Knicks stay healthy over this 82-game season they will return to the playoffs.

Expect a 46-36 season and the 5th seed in the East for the Knickerbockers this season.

Knicks Are Lin-Sane

Last night the Knicks might have made a move (or lack of move) that they will regret in the coming years.  They chose to not match the Rockets offer sheet for Jeremy Lin.  Lin was offered a 3 year, $25 million deal by the Rockets.  At first the organization said they would match the offer.  Lin reconstructed a deal with the Rockets that would pay him $5 million in the first two seasons and nearly $15 million in the third season of the contract.  This hurt the Knicks because in the third year it would cost them in luxury taxes and bring the total contract to about $43 million in 2014-15.

The breakout guard brought magic to Madison Square Garden and an energy that the Knicks have been missing for over a decade.  Lin was days away from being cut from the team because they did not have room for him.  Everything would change on Saturday night on February 4th against the Nets.  Lin would be inserted in the lineup and score a career high 25 points.  It would be a start to a 7 game win streak that turned the Knicks season around.  Lin would be the talk of the NBA for weeks to come.  "Linsanity" would take over New York as jerseys sold more than any other player, endorsement deals were coming in, and he could finally move off of his brother's couch.  The Knicks were 8-15 before Lin came on the scene out of nowhere. Nobody could have predicted the former Harvard guard to break out and turn the Knicks season around.  Lin was dropped by the Warriors and Rockets where he did not get much playing time.

The Knicks made a sign and trade with the Blazers to acquire Raymond Felton, which essentially marked the end of the brief, remarkable Jeremy Lin era in New York.  The Knicks chose to go with the combination of Raymond Felton and 39 year old Jason Kidd to lead them at the point guard position.  It seems as if James Dolan let his emotions get the best of him.  Dolan was frustrated with Lin for working out the new contract with the Rockets that made it tough for the Knicks to match. Dolan also did not like the fact that Lin did not play at 85% in the playoffs following knee surgery.

Dolan and the Knicks front office let their personal emotions have an effect on business.  The Knicks will now be led by Felton, who averaged around 11 points and 6 assists a game last season, and an older Jason Kidd who just was arrested for a DWI.  The Knicks decided to go with the two older, more experienced point guards as they try to improve on their 36-30 season and first round exit in the playoffs last season.  The Knicks get nothing in return for losing Lin and cannot use the money they could have used on Lin elsewhere.  Jeremy Lin will be missed by many Knicks fans, who embraced the young guard when he broke on the scene in February.  Over 10,000 fans signed a petition for him to stay, but to no avail.  Lin will be successful in Houston where he will not have the spotlight on him every second.  Lin  said he wanted to stay with the Knicks, but it did not work out.  The Knicks will miss the young and rising guard and the organization will realize the mistake they made by letting him go.