Knicks Weekly Report -- 3/6
A Look Back at the Past Week:
The New York Knicks haven’t had a winning week since the first week of December (when they won 4 in a row) and that streak continued as they dropped three out of four this week.
It started with the Knicks waiving backup point guard Brandon Jennings upon his request. Jennings was brought in to provide scoring and a spark off the bench, and did so at times, but overall the fit just wasn’t there. Jennings was never able to adjust the triangle (he’s not the only one) and he wanted to be a part of a contending team. Jennings has since signed with the Washington Wizards.
Later that day, the Knicks fell at home to the Raptors 91-92. The game came down to a turnaround jumper from Demar DeRozan with 1.9 seconds on the clock. Carmelo was the only Knick to finish with more than 16 points (he had 24) but Anthony was just 9 of 26 shooting the ball.
The Knicks then traveled down to Orlando and came away with their lone victory of the week, defeating the Magic 101-90. Kristaps Porzingis led the team in both points and rebounds with 20 and 9. The key to the Knicks victory was limiting the Magic to just 5/25 shooting from beyond the arc.
But New York couldn’t carry the momentum into Philly where they fell to the 76ers 102-105. Courtney Lee’s shot at the buzzer for the win went off the back iron. Philadelphia was without injured Joel Embiid but New York still couldn’t slow down their offense enough. The Knicks are now 1-2 against the 76ers this season.
The Knicks then wrapped up their week with a 105-112 loss at MSG to the Warriors on Sunday. Derrick Rose and Kristpas Porzingis each played well, tallying 28 and 24 points respectively, but New York couldn’t stop Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson down the stretch.
Quiet Experiment: During the first half of the Warriors game, Madison Square Garden experimented by playing no music while the ball was in play, or during timeouts. The idea was for the fans to be able to enjoy the game as it was meant to be played.
In theory, it sounded pretty interesting, but it didn’t play out as well as they may have hoped. The arena was eerily quiet for most of the first half, and almost silent when the ball wasn’t in play. Players on both teams expressed frustration with it, including Draymond Green calling it “trash.”
Guys in the Knicks locker-room felt like it really took the fans out of the game and took away their “home-court advantage.”
I applaud the Knicks for the experiment, but don’t expect it to see it anytime soon in NBA play.
Week ahead: The Knicks play 4 games, all on the road next week, starting with Orlando, then Milwaukee, Detroit, and Brooklyn.
