NEW YORK CITY – Manhattan and Knicks fans across the country have been in agony over the past couple weeks. Their beloved Knickerbockers have been playing subpar, and landed themselves in a 7 game losing streak. During this horrid stretch, the Knicks have not done a good job protecting the Garden. They dropped four of their last seven games at home. Even when it seemed as though they had the ship righted against Utah on Friday, they lost at the buzzer to a step back fadeaway at the hands of Trey Burke. Opponents free throw opportunities, defending the three point line, lack of bench production, injuries, protecting the paint; you name it and the Knicks have had problems with it, and in turn has culminated to the 2-8 record they had coming into Sunday afternoon’s contest against the Denver Nuggets (2-6).
The Knicks showed in glimpses on Friday night against Utah that they could be an effective team defensively. This was shown again against the Nuggets as they held them to just one made field goal (8 points) the entire 2nd quarter. This proved to be the difference in the game as the Knicks built a big lead, and for once were able to hold it. New York would pick up their 3rd win on the season by winning 109-93. Defensively, the Knicks held Denver to just 39% shooting from the field (32-82).
Stepping into the starting role for the injured Iman Shumpert (hip), JR Smith had a huge game against his old team. Smith had 28 points along with 4 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals. Smith has been playing better, possibly due to pressure from the media on his lack of production. Carmelo Anthony has been playing like a stud. This is his second big scoring game in a row, but it was an efficient one at that. Anthony also had 28 points, and added 9 rebounds and 3 assists. Anthony shot 71% from the field (10-14) and Smith shot 62% (10-16). This shows the growth in both players within the triangle offense. They have been able to get better quality shots when they trust the system, and in turn has increased production. Even for a team who traditionally has shot dismally due to stagnant offense, the Knicks are now moving the ball and on Sunday shot 53% (41-76) on 16 assists as a team.
The Knicks moving forward if they are looking to start a win streak will need to fix some problems that have plagued them all year. Again they gave up double digit three pointers (13) on Sunday and allowed Denver to go to the free throw line 26 times (16-26). Against better teams, this will not contribute towards a winning formula. Also, no player on Sunday from the bench scored in double digits. Granted Smith usually is coming off the bench, but still there needs to be someone else to produce behind Anthony. The Knicks next test will be Tuesday night against the Milwaukee Bucks (5-5) on the road.
Barry Holmes/Pure Sports NY