5 BOROUGH SPORTS

For the first time in seven games, the Knicks actually won a game. With a 39 point performance by Carmelo Anthony and 20 points from Amare, the Knicks defeated the Magic in overtime by the score of 113-106. Of course the Knicks still decided not to play any defense. But Tony Douglass felt like playing some basketball scoring 16 points. The past two weeks have been so frustrating because no one, with the exception of Carmelo and Amare, wanted to play hard. Finally, Douglass gave our superstars some help offensively. Even though the Knicks beat an impressive Magic team, I still have no faith in them. It looks like the Knicks are going to be a 7-seed come the playoffs. That means they would either play the Celtics or Heat, two teams that play phenomenal defense (you think it is a coincidence that the two best defensive teams in the East are going to be the #1 and #2 seed?). With D’Antoni as the head coach, I believe this team will never find success in the playoffs.

The 2011 Knicks Could Only Wish They Were As Tough as the 1994 Squad

Like we’ve said before, defense is the key to have a championship-caliber team. With the Knicks back in the mid-90’s, defense was their priority. With Anthony Mason, Patrick Ewing, and Charles Oakley, no one came out of the paint alive. I can’t say the same about Ronnie Turiaf, Amare Stoudemire, and Shawne Williams. The 1994 Knicks also had guards that were very aggressive defenders. John Starks would stir up fights every game because he was in his man’s grill throughout the entire game. Do I see Toney Douglas in anyone’s grill? Absolutely not. So as D’Antoni continues not to make the adjustments for the defense, the Knicks will continue to lose to teams with less talent.

So for the 2010-2011 season, we have made a full circle. In the beginning, the Knickerbockers were awful starting the season off 3-8. I was calling for D’Antoni’s head by mid-November. But then Amare had his 30+ points per game streak. They climbed all the way up to seven games over .500 by mid-January. But with an awful March, the Knicks are now at a mediocre 36-38. Think about it – with all the excitement the Knicks have had throughout the year (Carmelo drama, Amare’s PPG streak, etc.), they will finish the season with an unimpressive record. Not acceptable. If the Knicks don’t improve by the end of year and play awful in the postseason, D’Antoni must go. I know that it sounds harsh given the team chemisty, but I seriously believe that he is not the coach for this team. I will never agree with his no defense philosophy. The Knicks have eight games left in the season. Tomorrow night, they take on the Nets at 7:30pm on ESPN.

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