Marc and Jay talk about the Hornacek firing, the coaching search, playoff preview, 10 minutes with a die hard Knicks fan, revisiting our preseason predictions
jeff hornacek
Scott Perry, “General Manager” of the Knicks
Scott Perry, “General Manager” of the Knicks
The newly minted Knicks team president Steve Mills, a promotion that came as a surprise to no one, hired relatively unknown Scott Perry as the new general manager away from the Sacramento Kings. The front office was working tirelessly to appease Carmelo Anthony’s wishes to be traded to Houston, but since, the Perry hire talks have stalled.
The franchise was clear during Perry’s introductory press conference, the only way Anthony moves is if it benefits the team and not at the expense of the entire franchise. If not, he could easily be part of things moving forward. With these intentions made clear it seems that someone in the front office is thinking about the betterment of the Knicks for once, without a personal agenda. There was also much talk about culture change and an emphasis on youth.
The question immediately arises, how can you bring on a culture change if all the main cogs haven’t been replaced? Perry doesn’t have his own people while being forced to work with executives that were there long before him and will probably be there after he’s gone. Owner James Dolan had a real opportunity to clean house with Phil Jackson’s dismissal, instead he chose to re-up with the same rusty parts. Continue reading
New York Knicks vs. Los Angeles Lakers – 2/6/17 – Game Recap
New York Knicks vs. Los Angeles Lakers
February 6, 2017
Lakers 121, Knicks 107
I’m finished.
So after dealing with this one big crap of a Knicks season, it didn’t seem possible for the team to look any worse. They couldn’t possibly look any worse than they have, right?
Wrong.
The Knicks players, coaching staff, and front office should all be ashamed of themselves for the garbage that was on the floor against the Lakers, who by the way, had lost twelve straight on the road before Monday night. Twelve. There are so many things wrong with this team that I don’t even know where to start. Defense, rebounding, basically anything that has to do with effort, this team is bad at. They continue to look disinterested and unmotivated, and they’ve officially become unwatchable.
Carmelo Anthony needs to waive his no trade clause yesterday, because he’s going to go nowhere with this team. He scored 26 points in this one to lead the Knicks, with nobody else really bringing anything all that special to the table. Oh, and Derrick Rose was back, and he definitely looked like a guy who hadn’t played in over a week. He stunk up the joint. Also, Kristaps Porzingis needs to sit if he’s hurt, because all he is doing is giving himself a bigger chance of getting seriously injured. His shot is off, he couldn’t defend a fourth grader, he just doesn’t look like himself. There’s a conversation that needs to be had with him, and it needs to be done sooner rather than later. I know he wants to play, why wouldn’t he, but he’s only hurting the team with his current play. We all know he is better than what he is showing.
If the problem with this team is effort, than that starts with the coach. This is the first time all year I have thought Jeff Hornacek has looked overwhelmed, and I think he really doesn’t know what to do anymore. This team has a lot of moves to make at the trade deadline, and the trading block should have guys like Melo and Rose at the forefront.
Nobody but Porzingis and Willy Hernangomez should be untouchable. THINGS NEED TO CHANGE. NOW.
Sorry for the rant. If you want actual analysis on the game, here it is. The Knicks STUNK.
New York Knicks at Indiana Pacers – 1/7/17 – Game Recap
New York Knicks at Indiana Pacers
Game 39: January 7, 2017
Pacers 123, Knicks 109
Written by Eric Weinstein – @ericcweinsteinn
flagrant2blog.blogspot.com
If the Knicks don’t give up 120+ did they even play?
On the second night of a back to back, the Knicks spent the night in Indiana to take on the Pacers. New York has yet to win on a back to back, and that trend continued as the Knicks were defeated by the Pacers, 123-109. The Knicks were getting outplayed from the start in this one, and once again fell behind by double-digits early in the first half. Unlike last time in Milwaukee, the Knicks couldn’t muster up enough to complete the comeback. New York tried to make a game of it in the fourth quarter, but the deficit was just too steep. Brandon Jennings, after a rough game against the Bucks, led the way with Carmelo Anthony for 17 points apiece. Kristaps Porzingis finished with 16 points and 4 rebounds. The Knicks fourth quarter lineup of Jennings, Ron Baker, Mindaugus Kuzminskas, KP, and Willy Hernangomez was incredibly effective, with the other four starters watching from the bench. For the Pacers, Paul George and Jeff Teague each contributed with 19 points. Thad Young contributed 16 points for the Pacers.
Takeaways from this game:
IT’S TIME FOR HORNACEK TO STEP IT UP
IT’S TIME FOR HORNACEK TO STEP IT UP
Written by Guillem – @GoodOldLiam
Don’t get me wrong. I like what Hornacek has done so far.
Did I expect more? Not really. I liked what he did in Phoenix. How he had a creative offense, a fun team to watch. How he did the A/B teams, showing he will get the best out of the full roster. And I like his character.
He’s just done what I expected; I expected very good things from him.
Now he needs to find ways to improve the performance of the team. Not just wins. Offense and defense.
Right now we are 14th in offense and 25th in defense. With a net rating of -2.9, we are the 20th best team. However, in terms of winning %, we are 12th.
What does that mean? Continue reading
Is Basketball Back at MSG? Grading the Knicks Offseason.
Is Basketball Back at MSG? Grading the Knicks Offseason.
Written by Kevin Meng
* These grades are based on the situation at hand, including available players, the current market, the Knick’s cap space at time of signing, and whether or not the player was named Sasha Vujacic or Jose Calderon. It isn’t an evaluation of how awesome the player is*
2015-2016 was supposed to be a rebuilding year where the Knicks added assets, built a winning culture, grew together and attracted a big name to join up with them. There was reason for hope: a young rookie with boatloads of potential, another rookie who had just quarterbacked a solid NCAA squad to a good tournament showing, actual NBA-level talent in Robin Lopez and Aaron Afflalo, and a hungry Carmelo Anthony.
Hopes were relatively high for the Mecca. Could this team make the playoffs? Could they make noise if they got there? Could Kristaps GOATzingis really be this good? The season blasted off into space faster than anyone could have imagined, with the team playing .500 ball 40 games in and playing some top-level squads down to the wire (San Antonio and current ring-bearers, Cleveland come to mind).
Welp, we all know how that ended. The rocket burst in mid-air, with wicked, whipping flames that engulfed any and all things good in the souls of the Tri-State Area. Partly because of lack of talent, partly because of injuries, partly because of Sasha Vujacic, and partly because of coaching.
When the 2016 offseason started, nobody had any clue what was going to happen. PMFJ (Phil M***** F****** Jackson) had a king’s ransom in cap space but precious few assets, an aging star, and raw rookie to build around. Hardly cause for hope.
Yet here we are, not far removed from the mayhem that was 2016 free agency with a….wait….what is this?….an NBA-level basketball team? This must be some cruel joke. Is basketball back at MSG? This team may pose more questions than answers, and it may be a few twisted knees away from mediocrity, but at least the rotation has 7 guys that most people have heard of, and Jose Calderon isn’t playing the point..
* acquisitions like signing our 2nd round pick last season or acquiring some random Euro guy to warm the bench have been excluded for length’s sake. We know our reader’s have short attention spans*
Coaching change: signing Jeff Hornacek
Coaching salaries don’t really matter. Who cares about spending James Dolan’s money? What does matter is their experience, knowledge, ability to motivate, and ability to get respect from the players. When you haven’t proven yourself in the league or in the coaching ranks, then players rarely respect you(David Blatt or Kurt Rambis, anyone?). Continue reading
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