New York Knicks vs Seattle Sonics Game Thread

How do you feel about Mardy Collins? (Check Game thread Spotlight for stats)

  • Not gettin enough consecutive playing time has hurt

    Votes: 6 66.7%
  • He got lucky last April

    Votes: 1 11.1%
  • He was never good

    Votes: 2 22.2%
  • I wish Carmello broke his jaw

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    9
  • Poll closed .

MSGKnickz33

The Gold Mac
The New York Knicks(14-32) vs The Seattle Supersonics(11-35)
Fri. 2/2 at 10:00pm ET on MSG​

Welcome to the MSGKnickz33 Pregame show, Im your host Jazzy Jeff and were here to take a look at Friday nights matchup. The Sonics have suprised everyone by winning 2 straight over the Spurs and the Cavs, the 2 teams that battled for the championship last year. Previous to that the Sonics had a 14 game losing streak. The Knicks lost their 4th straight game lasat night against the Portland Trail Blazers in overtime. The Knicks poor shooting finally caught up with them in overtimes as the Blazers were able to finish them off. They have now lost their first 4 of 5 games on this West coast trip.

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STARTING LINEUPS

The Seattle Supersonics

pg-Earl Watson
sg-Kevin Durant
sf-Jeff Green
pf-Chris Wilcox
C-Kurt Thomas


AND NOW YOUR NEW YORK KNICKERBOCKERS!!!!

AT POINT GUARD JAMAL CRAWFORD
AT SHOOTING GUARD FRED JONES
AT SMALL FORWARD QUENTIN RICHARDSON
AT POWER FORWARD ZACH RANDOLPH
AT CENTER EDDY CURRY


*Quentin Richardson and Eddy Curry are listed as day to day
*Wally Szczerbiak and Chris Wilcox are listed as day to day

MSG33 PresEnTs the KeY MatChuP: Kevin Durant vs Jamal Crawford

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bk_AAHP110_8x10~Jamal-Crawford-Posters.jpg

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As everyone knows by now this is the toughest part of the game thread. Im considering Crawford as a shooting guard because of the minutes Nate Robinson gets off the bench. I probably should have went with Zach Randolph vs Chris Wilcox but I told TheKidd that I would have someone else besides Randolph in the Key Matchup. Durant as a rookie has a similar build to Crawford but hes already a better shooter.

Jamal Last 5 Games

46mpg
20ppg
33.6fg%
27% 3P
5.4apg
1.2topg
22 field goal attempts per game

Kevin Durant Last 5 Games

33.4mpg
22.2ppg
43.4fg%
8 3P%(1-12)
3.8rpg
3topg
1bpg
1.6spg

Some very ugly numbers for Crawford. Suprisingly his turnovers have been low. As much as Crawford sucks these numbers are not all his fault. Look at his minutes per game. I think its time his father Isiah lets his son rest and gives some minutes to Wilson Chandler. When a player is only shooting 33.6% on 22 field goal attempts per game its the coaches job to step in and do something about this.

Kevin Durant has been turnover prone and terrible from 3 point range but other then that his numbers look good. He is very elusive and at 6'9" he will be a tough cover. Balkman showed he can do a good job in the summer league games. Back on Dec. 12 Durant scored 30pts(11-20) while Balkman only played 5 minutes. Isiah needs to start taking notes.

The Official MSG33 Pregame Strategy:
  • Prepare for a battle down low!!!!! Sonics are the best rebounding team in the NBA(45rpg)
  • Be Aware!!!! Sonics average the 4th largest amount of turnovers per game in the league (15.95), Look for steals and sloppy play
  • Put Balkman on Kevin Durant
  • If Wally Szczerbiak plays, do not leave him open!!!


Player Spotlight

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Mardy Collins has come up in recent discussions. Some still believe in him while others have given up on him.

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Mardy Collins gives a good hard foul (no homo)

Collins played great at the end of last year. He was passing the ball, showing leadership, rebounding, and defenending well. This year he hasnt been able to get things going. Lets take a look at what hes done over the past 5 games:

Mardy Collins Last 5 Games

15.2mpg
2.6ppg
2.4rpg
2apg
28.6fg%

These numbers are ugly. Even if you double them hes still not productive. Does he need more consecutive minutes or did fans overrate him going into this season? Last year Mardy Collins averaged 15.1 minutes per game for the season. Lets see if his numbers were any better since the minutes are almost the same.

15.1mpg
4.5ppg
2rpg
1.6apg
38.2fg%

Somewhat better but to get a true understanding of what Mardy might be capable of you have to look at his numbers from last April.

44.1mpg
14.8ppg
6.7rpg
4.7apg
39.2fg%
2spg
4topg

He played very good defense as well last April. The turnovers were high but hes still only in his second year now. Does Mardy still deserve a chance with his weak statistics this year?


Eastern Conference Standings

  1. Celtics(36-8)
  2. Pistons(33-13)-4GB
  3. Magic(30-18)-8GB
  4. Cavs(25-20)-11.5GB
  5. Raptors(25-21)12GB
  6. Wizards(24-21)12.5GB
  7. Nets(20-26)17GB
  8. Hawks(18-24)17GB
  9. Pacers(19-28)18.5GB
  10. Bulls(18-27)18.5GB
  11. Bucks(18-29)19.5GB
  12. Bobcats(18-29)19.5GB
  13. 76ers(18-29)19.5GB
  14. Knicks(14-32)23GB
  15. Heat(9-36)27.5GB

The Official Playoff Race: Knicks are 6 games out


Lets compare numbers from the first 4 months of the NBA season.

November(5-11):Opponents Points per game=101.5
93.1ppg,43.4rpg,17apg,42.9fg%,32.2%3P,70.2FT%,6.9spg,3.2bpg

December(3-11):Opponents Points per game=102.6
94.6ppg,41.3rpg,16.4apg,42.6fg%,33.1%3P,70.7FT%,6.7spg,1.5bpg

January(6-10):Opponents Points per game=98.8
96.4ppg,40.4rpg,21.3apg,46.1fg%,35.2%3P,74.4FT%,5.8spg,2.3bpg

February(0-1):Opponents Points per game=94
88ppg,55rpg,12apg,39.4fg%,11.8%3P,80FT%,3spg,4bpg

As we see the Knicks rebounds and free throw shooting is off to a good start for the month of February. Other then that they did a bad job of moving the ball against Seattle and scoring from the perimeter. At the end of the day the only thing that counts is that the Knicks are 0-1 so far in February and they are 14-32 on the season.

SuperSonics Top 3 Point shooters
  1. Szczerbiak-41.1%
  2. Watson-35.7%
  3. West-35.6%
  4. Wilkins-32.7%
  5. Durant-28%
  6. Ridnour-20%
Should not be too much to worry about here. Seattle is the 6th worst 3 point shooting team in the league.

If Wally Szczerbiak plays the Knicks need to stick to him like glue. Shooters have killed the Knicks all season long. I can see Wally going for 25 to 30 points. Kurt Thomas and his tough defense will slow down whoever plays center for the Knicks which could be Randolph, Curry, or Lee. Earl Watson is known as a tough point guard defensively. We'll see how he matches up with Nate/Crawford. Same goes for Delonte West, the former Celtic. Damien Wilkins is not what his father or uncle was but hes had a couple of big games this year so you can't forget about him.

You dont know what to expect from Chris Wilcox. On some nights he'll go for 20 points and 12 rebounds; other nights he disappears. He is more athletic then Zach Randolph but Zachs the more skilled of the 2. This might be a good matchup to watch. Nick Collison is a serviceable bigman averaging similar numbers to David Lee. Jeff Green is an explosive rookie who will dunk on you if your in his way. He has no perimeter game but he has a good shoots well (43.4fg%). Johan Petro is a good shotblocker and Luke Ridnour is a good passer.



Throwback HipHop Video of the Day:

Artist:Eric B. and Rakim
Title:As the Rhyme Goes On
Album:paid in Full
Year:1987



That does it for my pregame show. I thank everyone for joining me and remember to tune in Saturday night to catch the Knicks and the Sonics.
 

abcd

KnicksonLIN.com
I do not know how the Knicks are going to win this game.Nobody has respect for the Knicks, in the NBA, and teams know that all they have to do is drive to the rim, and they'll get easy lay ups and dunks.Even coach Nate McMillan was saying this to the Trailblazers, when they were down by double digits, late in the game.I doubt the Sonics won't exploit this weakness,and I look for Durant to son Jamal Crawford.The only hope the Knicks have of winning this game is if the Sonics shoot below 38% from the field for the game.If they even shoot 40%, they'll get the win.
 

Trin_Starr

Starter
the knicks will win this one.
Isiah has stopped being an ass with Balkman and continues to give him minutes. He will shut down Durant tonight.

By the way - Imagine if Balkman had landed that MONSTER dunk on Prybilla - that would have been the dunk of the century lol :)
 

nyKnicks126

Go 1990s New York Knicks!
Nice addition with the arena. I think we gunna win tonight, even though yesterdays game was long, and the result wasn't good. Curry, and Q Rich are probably still out with the flu, so David Lee, and Balkman will get their well deserved minutes.
 

Pricey

Rotation player
Knicks will win this one. I expect Crawford to score big today cause he is a incosistent mofo.
Lee to get another double double and Isiah to get a large coke thrown at his head when going to the locker
 

New New York

Quiet Storm
How can I did I forget to big you up with the Rakim video! I wouldve prefered Know The Ledge, but I don't think this Knick squad is worthy of such a classic.
 

MSGKnickz33

The Gold Mac
How can I did I forget to big you up with the Rakim video! I wouldve prefered Know The Ledge, but I don't think this Knick squad is worthy of such a classic.

Know the Ledge will be coming up, stay tuned.

The official MSG33 Prediction

Crawford-17pts(34fg%,25%3P,3TO)
Randolph-17pts(44fg%),11rbs,5TO
Robinson-14pts,6asts
Lee-10pts,14rbs
 

NYKnicks15

Starter
haha yeah man very good point on the craw situation. he is a 7 year vet playing like a promising rookie. which brings me to a trade idea send him back home to seattle with Malik Rose and Wilson Chandler for Watson (or Ridnour) and Delonte West. gives them a year off the guards contract and gets them somethin in return for West who wants out.

btw, i miss marbury. i hate to admit it but i do. his D and yes i must say.. passing ability.. 8 assists the whole first half? thats embarassing/
 

abcd

KnicksonLIN.com
wasnt like stephon was racking up the assists either
He wasn't racking up assists, but he was trying to.It's just that when you got inconsistent Crawford,inconsistent Richardson,no passing ability Zach Randolph, and no passing ability Curry, it makes it hard to get others involved.In my opinion, not even Steve Nash could average high assits/game on the Knicks.I mean,Jamal Crawford is our lead assist man, and he attempts almost 17 shots per game.That tells you how unreliable the Knicks can be, when you pass them the ball.
 

abcd

KnicksonLIN.com
I think the Knicks did the right thing by giving Zach the ball, for the last shot.The mistake the Knicks made was that they didn't get themselves open for a shot, in case Randolph got double teamed.Nate had a good look, but you don't want a player that hurt their quadricep to have to hoist up a 3 at the end.In a way, this losing streak isn't so bad.It tells people that the Knicks aren't better without Marbury.Like Marbury or not, he can score, pass, and makes Crawford's minutes go down, because you have a guy that can play the point guard position.Without him, you have to overplay Crawford, and you risk him either being injured or not being effective, because of fatigue.Also, you make it easier for your oponent to drive to the basket, because you don't have a guy that can fight over screens, like Marbury does.
 

datruth

Your Best Bet is B Ez
He wasn't racking up assists, but he was trying to.It's just that when you got inconsistent Crawford,inconsistent Richardson,no passing ability Zach Randolph, and no passing ability Curry, it makes it hard to get others involved.In my opinion, not even Steve Nash could average high assits/game on the Knicks.I mean,Jamal Crawford is our lead assist man, and he attempts almost 17 shots per game.That tells you how unreliable the Knicks can be, when you pass them the ball.

i totally disagree, ever since stephon has gone down wit the injury, the assist per game as team has gone so much higher and its been obvious, the ball is moving so much quicker and smoother
 

abcd

KnicksonLIN.com
i totally disagree, ever since stephon has gone down wit the injury, the assist per game as team has gone so much higher and its been obvious, the ball is moving so much quicker and smoother
If what you're saying is true, then why have the Knicks lost 5 in a row?The ball movement has not improved, since Marbury left.Everyone has actually been saying that the Knicks have played with good ball movement, until the fourth quarter, where they start to play 1 on 1, and it's showed, hence the 5 game losing streak.The stats are decieving, because a lot of why the Knicks are averaging more assists, is cause Nate has become a better distributer.But as we've seen, he doesn't like to pass the ball in the 4th quarter, and neither does Crawford.I'm not trying to attack Nate, cause he's been great, and I think he deserves to start, but he still has a long way to go before he can be considered a pure point guard.A few games where he has high assists doesn't prove he can do this on a consistent basis.Marbury has averaged 8 assists for most of his career.Nobody on the Knicks is currently averaging above 4.That tells you something.The main reason the offense has been going more smoothly is because they've minimized their turnovers.But Marbury has nothing to do with their turnover problems, cause he only played 24 games this season, and only averages
2 to per game-a low number for a guy that played 33.5 mpg.
 
Last edited:

theknicks3

Benchwarmer
lottery here we come.

I don't know if he can, but if thomas trades our first pick this year away i will be more than pissed.

Trade Curry and Rose for Swift, Brown and Navarro. they would do that. (works on espn trade machine)

Trade Crawford, Chandler, and Jerome James for Jaric and Ratliff (works on espn trade machine).

Then we draft Gallinari.

Marbury/Robinson/Jaric
Navarro/Balkman
Gallinari/Qrich/Balkman
Lee/Swift/Brown
Randolph/Ratliff

That has to be one of the teams with the most depth.

Marbury (16/3/8)
Navarro (12/4/4)
Gallinari (15/4/4)
Lee (12/11)
Randolph (17/9)
 

knicklover

Benchwarmer
If what you're saying is true, then why have the Knicks lost 5 in a row?

1. 4 of the 5 teams are better than the Knicks.

2. They were on the road

3. Winning is not all about having more talent and skill. It's also about character, heart, the ability to perform under pressure etc.... The Knicks lack those intangibles. So they typically find ways to lose close games at crunch time. The best example was Portland. Portland has a very young team. Portland did everything they could to give that game to the Knicks, but the Knicks found a way to play even worse at the end and lose. That's pathetic. If the Pistons, Spurs, etc.. outgut you at crunch time, well, what are going to do. That's why they are champions. But this was bad.

The Knicks are playing MUCH better now. They are competitive in every game regardless of whether the team is better, they are on the road etc.... They simply aren't that good and haven't learned to win.
 

nyKnicks126

Go 1990s New York Knicks!
Jamal Crawford got cookied... OUT hustled and OUT played by WEST. That player is better then Jamal Crawford. West>>Crawford.
So if JC wants out let him go Isiah that will be one of the best moves that you might make. I am starting to not like Crawford at all. No Captain says he wants to be traded other then Kobe.

1 turnover, but that turnover was such a bad position. The ball went out of Jamals hands without anyone touching it.
 

nyKnicks126

Go 1990s New York Knicks!
And one other thing we were out rebounded. No hustle at all from the Knicks. 55-34 in Rebounds by Seattle. 19 offensive rebounds for Seattle and 3 for NY.
 

MSGKnickz33

The Gold Mac
wasnt like stephon was racking up the assists either

i totally disagree, ever since stephon has gone down wit the injury, the assist per game as team has gone so much higher and its been obvious, the ball is moving so much quicker and smoother

This is a message to everyone who thinks datruth is telling the truth. I have already addressed this, I said the Knicks were playing better from the start of January before Marbury got injured.

For future reference, when Msg33 the "King of Stats" says something please believe it. Instead of being ignorant next time check the stats first instead of wasting my F*ckin time. Im gonna make you my son B*tch.

Im about to teach datruth the truth and heres proof.

Marbury played the first 5 games of January for the Knicks. If anything the better teamplay started because of him.

We know from my game thread stats that the Knicks only averaged 16.4 assists in the month of December. Marbury barely even played, he only played a couple of games.

Lets look at some stats now. The first 5 games of January which Marbury played in, total assists:

Jan. 2-20asts
Jan. 4-17asts
Jan. 5-17asts
Jan. 8-28asts
Jan. 9-18asts

20 assists per game

Thats 20 assists per game, a 3.6apg improvement from the entire month of December. From there on the Knicks without Marbury managed to increase their assists for the month of January by 1.3apg

Marbury deserves credit for improving ball movement but what the F*ck does it matter, were still losing. The only reason why it matters is because of ignorant assholes like datruth who need to check on things.

If you think the Knicks are a better team without Marbury shoot yourself in the F*ckin head.

i totally disagree, ever since stephon has gone down wit the injury, the assist per game as team has gone so much higher and its been obvious, the ball is moving so much quicker and smoother

I felt it was necessary to quote this again just to make you feel dumber. Your clearly a hater. No matter what Marbury does you wont give him credit. You jumped to the conclusion that we are playin better without him because you hate him, not because of any stats or facts.

You should change your name because you dont speak datruth.

Ball movement? 2 games so far in February and were averaging 14.5 assists. It doesnt matter what someone thinks of Marbury. You can criticize him for this and that but no way are we a better team without him.

Jamal Crawford got cookied... OUT hustled and OUT played by WEST. That player is better then Jamal Crawford. West>>Crawford.
So if JC wants out let him go Isiah that will be one of the best moves that you might make. I am starting to not like Crawford at all. No Captain says he wants to be traded other then Kobe.

1 turnover, but that turnover was such a bad position. The ball went out of Jamals hands without anyone touching it.

Co-sign, west>>Crawford
 
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