MSGKnickz33
The Gold Mac
The Indiana Pacers (10-21) vs The New York Knicks (12-18)
Sun. 1/2 at 7:30pm ET on MSG
Sun. 1/2 at 7:30pm ET on MSG
Welcome to the MSGKnickz33 Pregame show and Happy New Years!!! Hopefully the Knicks can begin 2009 better then they ended 2008, with the exception of the win against the Bobcats. Wilson Chandler showed us encouraging signs in that game, as he was the go-to-guy down the stretch. Its still unclear who the Knicks go-to-guy is at this point. Sometimes its Nate Robinson, sometimes its Al Harrington, and most recently it was Wilson Chandler. We'll see what the new year has in store for the Knicks starting tonight.
The Indiana Pacers have lost 4 games straight. They have fallen to 10-21, and they have only won 3 of their last 10 games. The Pacers can however say something that no other team can say, they're the only team that can say they have beaten both the Lakers and the Celtics. The Knicks and the Pacers play a similar style. Indiani is 6th in points per game, and 4th in most points allowed per game. The Knicks are 3rd in points per game, and 2nd in most points allowed per game. Danny Granger will be a tough player to stop for the Knicks. Hes averaging just under 25 points per game.
Expect this to be a high scoring game. Both teams have no problem putting points on the board. Both teams also have no problems giving up over 100 points per game, it should be a fun game to watch. Its a winnable game for the Knicks. I expect it to be a close game in the 4th quarter, a couple of key stops is all it will take for either team to win this game.
If you were unable to see the Bobcats game heres the highlights:
STARTING LINEUPS
The Indiana Pacers
pg-Jarret Jack
sg-Marquis Daniels
sf-Danny Granger
pf-Troy Murphy
C-Roy Hibbert
Backups: Jeff Foster, Brandon Rush, Travis Diener, T.J. Ford, Rasho Nesterovic, Stephen Graham, Josh McRoberts
AND NOW YOUR NEW YORK KNICKS!!!!
AT POINT GUARD CHRIS DUHON
AT SHOOTING GUARD QUENTIN RICHARDSON
AT SMALL FORWARD WILSON CHANDLER
AT POWER FORWARD DAVID LEE
AT CENTER JARED JEFFRIES
BACKUPS: AL HARRINGTON, NATE ROBINSON, TIM THOMAS, ANTHONY ROBERSON, MALIK ROSE, JEROME JAMES
MSG33 PresEnTs the KeY MatChuP: Wilson Chandler vs Danny Granger
VS
VS
Wilson Chandler
Wilson Chandler will most likely be asked to defend Danny Granger, which is a difficult task for any small forward. If Chandler can slow Granger down and provide some offense of his own, the Knicks will be in very good shape. Chandlers stats so far this year have been impressive. Hes shown that he can do some of everything, so even in games where hes having scoring problems he can still make an impact with his defense and rebounding.
Chandlers 08-09 Stats
PPG 14.2
RPG 5.7
APG 1.9
SPG 0.9
BPG 0.9
FG% 0.423
FT% 0.808
3P% 0.302
MPG 33.3
Danny Granger
PPG 24.9
RPG 5.2
APG 3.3
SPG 1.0
BPG 1.4
FG% 0.451
FT% 0.844
3P% 0.376
MPG 36.2
Grangers putting up very good numbers so far this year. Hes been a problem for every team hes played against. How do you stop a player who can shoot, drive, post up, and pass? Granger has a complete game and at age 24 he still has time to improve.
The Official MSG33 Pregame Strategy:
- Watch out for players like Troy Murphy
- This game can be easily won with some defense
- Team Defense!!! Trust Each other!!!
- Crash the Boards!!! We cant afford to get badly outrebounded
Player Spotlight
Chris Duhon
Chris Duhon has had a career year because of Mike D'antonis seven seconds or less offense. Hes been one of the most consistent players on the Knicks this year and has shown that hes in great shape, playing big minutes. Averaging 8.5 assists per game, Duhon ranks 5th in the NBA.
PPG 12.0
RPG 3.8
APG 8.5
SPG 1.1
FG% 0.419
FT% 0.881
3P% 0.398
MPG 39.7
As we can see Duhon has been putting up very solid numbers. Hes not a great point guard, but he gets the job done. If he can do a solid job of running the Knicks offense tonight I can see them winning this game easily, especially if they play defense occasionally. I can also see Duhon getting 10 or more assists in this type of game.
Throwback Joint of the Day:
Artist:Wu-Tang Clan
Title:Da Mystery of Chessboxin
Album:Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
Year:1993
Download "Da Mystery of Chessboxin" Here:
06 Da Mystery of Chessboxin_.mp3 - 8.77MB
Knicks Upcoming Schedule:
- Sun, Jan 4 Boston 6:00 PM
- Tue, Jan 6 @ Oklahoma City 8:00 PM
- Thu, Jan 8 @ Dallas 8:30 PM
- Sat, Jan 10 @ Houston 8:30 PM
- Mon, Jan 12 @ New Orleans 8:00 PM
Thanks for joining me for my pregame show. And remember to watch the Knicks Friday night on MSG and Happy Holidays to all!!!!!