The roller coaster ride continues. This has been a season of streaks for the Knicks who suddenly look like they have forgotten how to score. I wonder if the swirling Carmelo trade rumors are getting to them?
Housekeeping:
Record: 22 – 21
Streak: L6
2nd place in the Atlantic Division
6th place in the Eastern Conference
Team Leaders:
Points: Amar’e Stoudemire, 26
Rebounds: Amar’e Stoudemire, 9
Steals: Raymond Felton, 1.8
Assists: Raymond Felton, 8.7
Blocks: Amar’e Stoudemire, 2.3
I officially have no idea what’s going on with this team. They beat the league leading Spurs and lost to bottom-feeding Kings in a matter of two weeks. About a month ago or so, they were one of the hottest teams in the entire league and were able to run the score up on anyone. They were becoming the talk of the NBA, but that has all changed. Last week, the Knicks extended their losing streak to 6 with losses to Phoenix, Houston, San Antonio and Oklahoma City.
You can’t win them all, and I understand that. But something has gone terribly wrong with this team. The Knicks average 107 points per game, which is good enough for 2nd in the league, but scored less than 100 in 3 of the 4 games last week. I’m not sure why but they’re not clicking on offense like they have been previously. They’re not running like they used to. It may be far fetched, but I wonder if the Carmelo rumors are impacting their play. I’m sure wherever Wilson Chandler and Landry Fields are right now, they’re wondering if they’ll be members of the Knicks by tomorrow. That sort of thing undoubtedly impacts players. Especially young players.
Aside from the 104 – 89 loss to Houston, the games were all close including a heartbreaking loss to the Thunder by way of a buzzer beating 3 by Kevin Durant. Amar’e had a season high 41 points against the Suns on their annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day matinee game, so his production hasn’t slipped. Nor has Felton’s. But what looked very bad last week was their defense. They just seem like they’re looking around too often. Amar’e is top 5 in blocked shots in the league but doesn’t play that intimidating defensively. He’s far from soft, but isn’t that imposing defensively for some reason. He’s supposed to anchor the defense and isn’t doing that.
If I had to put a positive spin on last week, it marked the halfway point for the season where the Knicks were 22 – 19 after 41 games. After 41 games last year, they were no where near that. From that standpoint, Knicks faithful must remind themselves that this is still a much improved team that will be in the playoffs. But they simply must play better and more consistent. Last week was inexcusable.
If you’re looking for your everyday, predictable basketball talk, then go somewhere else, because Kevin Burke of The Kevin Burke Project brings provocative, thought provoking content about basketball as only he can. Kevin also hosts The Hoop Doctors weekly podcast show, which you can subscribe to for free on iTunes. Follow Kevin on Twitter and Facebook
