The New York Knicks dropped Game 1 to the Indiana Pacers on Sunday but moved a step closer to getting one of their weapons back in the fold. Amare Stoudemire scrimmaged during practice on Monday and barring any setbacks will return to action in Game 3 on Saturday.
“The only way I wouldn’t be [available for Game 3] is if I don’t recover well from today and if I don’t recover well from the following practice [Wednesday],” Stoudemire said. “If there is any setback from that, then that’ll be difficult to deal with. But hopefully everything goes well.”
What Stoudemire will bring to the table for the Knicks on Saturday is anyone’s guess. He was admittedly rusty during the scrimmage and still appeared to be struggling with his conditioning. He did say that he was pain free during the scrimmage and that he felt explosive which is a positive sign.
Stoudemire averaged 14.2 points and 5.0 rebounds in 29 games off the bench for the Knicks this season. He hasn’t played since March 7 after his second knee debridement surgery of the season.
Indiana overwhelmed New York inside in Game 1 and had many calling for Mike Woodson to make an adjustment to their starting lineup and slide Carmelo Anthony back to his normal small forward position. All indications are that Woodson isn’t ready to make an adjustment just yet but Stoudemire’s potential presence on Saturday could help the situation in the frontcourt.
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