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Pre-Game Notes from Knicks vs. Bulls, October 31st

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by Anish Philip (@da_k0mish) – new contributor here on the New York Knicks Podcast website

Chicago is one of the favorites to dethrone the Heat in the Eastern Conference. They had a rocky start in Miami, and will be motivated to bounce back in a big way. That, plus Derrick Rose’s return, will have the Madhouse on Madison rocking to start.

Knicks’ turnovers nearly cost them the game against a far less competitor in their home opener. Woodson needs to right the ship, because the best quality the Knicks possessed last year was taking care of the ball.

Last year, the Bulls swept the series 4-0. 3 of those games were blowouts.

Komz keys to the game:

A. Run as much as you can. Let’s see theses Bulls keep up that defense in the final 5 mins after running a track meet. Continue reading →

KNICKS WIN!!! Knicks fan call for seconds on their heart medication.

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  • Oh, we are up by 20, this is fun, this is easy…goddamn it, I forgot these are the Knicks.
  • Did the Knicks flip a coin as to whether to get the 2nd quarter or the 3rd quarter off?
  • Wow, can’t figure out why Toronto wanted to get Bargs out of town so badly?
  • Woodson said in his postgame presser that Bargs needs to find his niche. I think he has found his niche, lead killer.
  • Speaking of my new found hate for Bargs, is Cole Aldrich really that bad that we are better off having Bargs at Center??? I think I am ready to play Chris Smith at Center over Bargs at this point.
  • I feel bad for Beno as his plus/minus looks real bad only bc he was forced to play with Bargs every time out there. Continue reading →

Jay’s 2013 Eastern Conference Preview

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Jay’s 2013 Eastern Conference Preview

Paul George and LeBron James

The Riggin’ For Wiggins Bracket

15. Philadelphia 76’ers – How excited are you if you’re a Philly fan that your team gutted its roster for a 25% chance at getting supposed first pick in next year’s NBA draft, Andrew Wiggins. Highlights of the season will be game 1 when Allen Iverson will have his retirement ceremony (remember he retired, it clearly was not that he couldn’t find a job) and the last few weeks of the season when they could be serious challengers for worst record of all time.

14. Charlotte Bobcats – The soon to be Hornets have had 8 top 10 draft picks in 9 years and have never drafted an all-star. Every year their strategy seems to be ‘tank and get a high draft pick’ yet they suck at drafting. Well congrats Charlotte, the acquisition of Al Jefferson will probably boost your record just enough so that you won’t get the number one pick, guaranteeing you’ll screw up whatever pick you do get.

The We Suck But Not As Hard As The Last Bracket Bracket

#yolofro

13. Toronto Raptors – After trying to give away Andrea Bargnani last season, the Raptors managed to get two players who are even less effective in Tyler Hansbrough and Steve Novak. At least they have a bunch of inefficient ball stoppers. Continue reading →

It’s Only Preseason

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act_iman_shumpert
“Its only the preseason” is the claim that many will make regarding the perfect shift Iman Shumpert put in during the Knicks opening preseason game versus Boston on Wednesday night.  For those of us who have been watching Knicks basketball for years, it was confirmation of what we have been whispering for over a year.  Iman Shumpert is ready to take the next step into stardom in the NBA.
Shump was flawless from the field, going 7-7 including 3 from behind the arc.  The most encouraging improvement is his shot selection.  There were many times early in the game when a younger Shumpert would have forced a shot or had one of those pointless drives into the paint.  On Wednesday night, Shumpert drove and created, making plays happen for his teammates.  How many years has it been since the Knicks has possessed a player with a solid combination speed and scoring ability?

Optimism and the Knicks

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Optimism, defined as:

“A tendency to expect the best possible outcome or dwell on the most hopeful aspects of a situation”

Of course this word has strayed from the dictionary of Knicks fans in recent years, but you can’t deny the last three years have offered more cause for optimism than any other in the post-Ewing era. I suppose to a certain extent then we should feel lucky that what was a consistently sinking ship of a team year upon year under the direction of Isiah Thomas has now turned into what is expected of a New York franchise; big players, big results, and most importantly of all, big ambitions. Furthermore, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the last two years of the Melo trade have been disappointing given the reasonably swift post-season exits, because when it’s all said and done, there has been improvement. In 2011-12 the Knicks achieved a .545 regular season win percentage, and in 2012-13 a .659 win percentage; the improvement is clear to see, losing in five games to the current NBA champions Miami Heat is hardly an embarrassment, and even losing to the Pacers in the conference semi’s is understandable given Roy Hibbert’s inexplicably high level of play against a banged up Tyson Chandler and a makeshift center in Kenyon Martin.

More of the same please Shump

More of the same please Shump

he point I am trying to make, is that this year, more than any other year, we have reason to be optimistic about the Knicks. Continue reading →

Government Cheese and Andrea Bargnani

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How is it that a team can enter the NBA Playoffs as the Eastern Conference Number 2 Seed and not seal up the obvious weaknesses on the roster?  If you are a lifetime fan of the New York Knicks, you have seen the offseason become a series of laughable blunders year after year.  Large, pointless contracts to shockingly bad players and more-than-questionable free agent signings leaving the roster the only NBA team in history to equal the average age of the Golden Girls cast, have been the norm.  This season, the Knicks ownership went another direction, bringing in Andrea Bargnani to bolster the roster in ways that not even the most basketball-savvy Knicks fan can understand.  Somewhere in the New York Knicks mission statement is a sentence stating a hatred for 1st Round Draft Picks.

How did Nate Robinson grab that rebound over you?

In the latest edition of “Let’s Refuse to Make Sensible Moves”, the “wow” move made by the Knicks brass was bringing in Andrea Bargnani in exchange for two role players, a sign-and-trade player, a first round pick in 2016, and the second round picks in 2014 and 2017.  All this for a player that his present team would have taken a trade involving three slices of government cheese, an RC Cola and Lavor Postell just to unload him.  Being one that would rather hear the bad news first, lets look at what positivity could come from this trade.  Continue reading →

4th Annual fantasy league

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It’s time for our annual fantasy league.  Here are the changes and information for playing this year:

1.  It will be an Auction draft, meaning every team will have a budget of 200 and can bid on any player.  Your draft order is what order you can nominate players to be bid on.

2.  The draft will be on Saturday, October 26th at 1pm EST.

3.  There is a $20 buy in with the pot going to the top 2-3 players depending on how many people join.  Send $20 to my paypal account – chkenparm@hotmail.com and put your email in the note section and I will send you an invite to join the league.

4.  We will be doing a live podcast during the draft, the link to listen will be posted closer to the draft date so you can listen in/call us while the draft is taking place.

It’s been a ton of fun in previous years, looking forward to doing it again this season.

A Scoring Comparison

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A big thanks to Patrick for making these charts. So we’ve been talking about how the Knicks offense is predictable when Melo and/or JR is on the floor and stagnant when they are off.  And this chart would be even more skewed if you consider Amare missed 53 games last season.  This breakout of team scoring pretty much sums that up:

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Now lets take a look at that when compared to the two teams that made the finals last year.  First the Miami Heat: Continue reading →

Top 10 Reasons the Knicks traded for Bargnani

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Top 10 Reasons the Knicks traded for Bargnani

1. They no longer wanted Amare to be the worst defender on the team.
2. They won a lot of games last year with a bunch of injured players so naturally they will win even more games if you add more injury prone players.
3. With JR possibly leaving they needed another extremely inefficient scorer badly.
4. Anyone who can’t crack the Raptors rotation is someone I want on my team.
5. They had to take Bargnani to make up for the Raptors taking Landry Fields last season.
6. You can’t have too many soft bigs on terrible contracts.
7. Figuring out who to draft is so complicated. It is just easier to not have draft picks.
8. They need someone who can’t play defense for when Chandler is on the bench.
9. They wanted to prove that no terrible contract is really unmovable.
10. The Knicks hate their fans.

Knicks Draft Prospects 2013

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A big thank you to Will Villanueva for putting together this writeup
Knicks Draft 2013
3 Guys the Knicks should consider drafting
 The New York Knicks currently hold the 24th pick in the upcoming 2013 NBA draft. There are many rumors leading up to the draft as it pertains to what any number of teams plans might be for their respective pick. I’m here to tell you who your New York Knickerbockers should take with their only draft pick. Will weigh the pros and cons of each of the following 3 prospects and what their strengths and weaknesses are as well. Without further ado:
 
 
1. Gorgui Dieng PF/C Louisville 6’11” 235 Lbs.
 
Why you take him:
If he’s there, you take him, no questions asked. The biggest issue is if he lasts until pick 24 in a weak draft. It’s possible, not probable. There are 4 teams ahead of the Knicks who will look to take Dieng if he is there : Boston (16th), Atlanta (17th & 18th), Cleveland (19th) & Brooklyn (22nd). He has good size at 6’11” and a wingspan of 7’4”. He’s already a highly intelligent defensive player and he’s more quicker and agile on the back line than Chandler, Martin and Camby. He’s obviously a more capable defender than Amar’e so from a depth chart standpoint he fits playing behind STAT and Chandler and possibly along side Camby making for an extremely capable defensive front court. Outstanding help defender at the College level, should translate well. He’s got a good mid range touch from the baseline and from 10 to 15 feet from the basket. Decent passer for a big, will find cutters from the high and low post. Will be a solid rotation player for years to come, even from the start of his NBA career.
 
Why you don’t take him:
He’s currently older than I am, he’s 23 years old so the whole upside thing isn’t there. Lacks any true post skills so he’ll fit right in with the current front court. Not great in transition, much more of a threat in half court through Pick N Roll or Pick N Pop situations. Will never be a go-to scorer by any means, wasn’t able to average double digits in scoring as a senior. Good rebounder, potential to be better, relies on his athleticism and length. Needs to catch the ball better, plain and simple, not bad hands but could be better.  Shot 66% around the rim but only 42% right outside the restricted area. Not that strong despite his size. He can be bullied by more bruising center types, luckily aren’t a lot of those types around. Continue reading →