MSGKnickz33
The Gold Mac
The New York Knicks(15-37) vs The Wasington Wizards(25-27)
Tues. 2/19 at 7:00pm ET on MSG
Tues. 2/19 at 7:00pm ET on MSG
Welcome to the MSGKnickz33 Pregame show, Im your host Jazzy Jeff and it feels like its been a long time. The Knicks have now lost 9 out of their last 10 games. Their most recent loss occured against the Boston Celtics. Some might argue that the Celtics lost also, because of my classic game thread. In all reality, only the Knicks lost.
The Wizards have been struggling, losing 8 of their last 10 games. Gilbert Arenas has set March 2nd as his return date, hoping to help his team climb the ladder and get the highest playoff position possible once he comes back. The Wizards are only 1 and 7 so far in February, so they will be looking to take advantage of an easy oppertunity against the Knicks.
STARTING LINEUPS
The Washington Wizards
pg-Antonio Daniels
sg-Deshawn Stevenson
sf-Caron Butler?
pf-Antawn Jamison
C-Brendan Haywood
*Caron Butler is listed as day-to-day
AND NOW YOUR NEW YORK KNICKS!!!!
AT POINT GUARD JAMAL CRAWFORD
AT SHOOTING GUARD FRED JONES
AT SMALL FORWARD QUENTIN RICHARDSON
AT POWER FORWARD ZACH RANDOLPH
AT CENTER EDDY CURRY
MSG33 PresEnTs the KeY MatChuP: Antonio Daniels vs Jamal Crawford
Jamal Crawford
Before the All-Star break, Jamal Crawford was leading the team in scoring and assists. His numbers, however, were not very efficient. Lets take a look at what he did in his previous 5 games:
44mpg
23.8ppg
39fg%
34.3% 3PT
6.4apg
3rpg
1.6spg
2.6topg
Good numbers for Crawford, excluding the shooting percentages. Dont be confused by those 1.6 steals per game, he had 6 steals against the Celtics but in the other 4 games he only recorded 2 steals. The shooting percentages dont tell the whole story, as well. Lets look further into the stats.
7.8 field goals made per game
20 field goals attempted per game
2.4 3PT made per game
7 3PT attempted per game
One last quick note, Crawford has attempted 35 3pointers and 34 freethrows over the last 5 games.
*Just a reminder, all of the above stats are for the last 5 games
Antonio Daniels (February Stats)
31mpg
8ppg
44.7fg%
3.7apg
3rpg
1.5spg
1topg
While Antonio Daniels doesnt blow you away with stats, he is a solid team player who does not turn the ball over and plays within the team system. Hes a better passer then his 3.7 assists indicate. He has averaged 5 assists in just over 31 minutes for the season. In his 1 game against the Knicks, he scored 8 points and dished 7 assists.
The Official MSG33 Pregame Strategy:
- Limit Fouls!!!! Wizards=3rd best free throw shooting team(79.8%)
- Get Physical Down Low!!!!!(no homo) Wizards=42.4rpg(10th)
- Play careful, because the Wizards do (13.4topg,9th)
- Try different matchups with Jamison and Butler, instead of playing Z-Bo and Q-Rich 35 to 40 minutes
Player Spotlight
Fred Jones is having his best month so far. He has been getting more minutes then previous months and continues to play good defense, and attempting almost 8 shots per game. In January, Jones only averaged 3.7 field goal attempts per game.
Fred Jones-February Stats
- 34.7mpg
- 10.6ppg
- 41.8fg% (7.9fga)
- 41.4% 3PT
- 4.6rpg
- 3.3apg
- .86spg
Good stats for Fred Jones but they dont tell the whole story, he is the best guard defensively on this Knicks team. Isiah needs to continue to find minutes for him and give him more freedom on offense.
Eastern Conference Standings
- Celtics(41-9)
- Pistons(39-13)-3GB
- Magic(33-21)-10GB
- Cavs(29-23)-13GB
- Raptors(28-23)13.5GB
- Wizards(25-27)17GB
- Nets(23-30)19.5GB
- 76ers(23-30)19.5GB
- Hawks(21-28)19.5GB
- Bulls(21-31)21GB
- Pacers(21-32)21.5GB
- Bucks(19-34)23.5GB
- Bobcats(19-34)23.5GB
- Knicks(14-35)27GB
- Heat(9-42)32.5GB
The Official Playoff Race: Knicks are 6 games out
- The Green team and the Pistons continue to distance themselves from the rest of the Eastern Conference.
- Orlando has quietly held down the 3rd spot in the East
- 76ers have snuck into the playoffs
- Chicago Bulls still a game and a half out, dissapointing season
- Miami Heat are now 32.5 games behind the Celtics
Lets look at what is the opposite of the standings, the race for the worst record in the league. Suprisingly the Knicks managed to somehow be in the hunt for both the #8 spot in the playoffs and the worst record in the league. One outcome is much more likely then the other.
- Heat(9-42)
- Timberwolves(10-41)1GB
- Sonics(13-38)4GB
- Grizzlies(14-38)4.5GB
- Knicks(15-37)5.5GB
- Clippers(17-33)8.5GB
- Bobcats(19-34)9GB
- Bucks(19-34)9GB
- Pacers(21-32)11GB
- Bulls(21-31)11.5GB
- Hawks(21-28)13GB
- 76ers(23-30)13GB
- Nets(23-30)13GB
- Kings(23-28)14GB
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,2.2bpg
February(1-6):Opponents Points per game=99.1
94.6ppg,43.1rpg,18.3apg,44.1fg%,32.3%3P,75.4FT%,5.9spg,2.6bpg
The Knicks have 1 win so far in February, only blocking 2.6 shots per game.
Wizards Top 3 Point shooters
- Nick Young-37.9%
- Roger Mason-36.9%
- Caron Butler-36.5%
- DeShawn Stevenson-36.3%
- Antawn Jamison-33%
- Antonio Daniels-28%
Isiah should mention the name "Nick Young" several times.
Caron Butler has become one of the top small forwards in the league with his all around play. He makes an impact on offense, defense, and on the boards. It seems like Butler is underrated, theres not enough talk about him. If hes not a top 5 small forward, hes very close.
It is unclear whether or not Butler will be playing. He missed the All-Star game, and is listed as day-to-day. Rookie Dominic McGuire could be getting some minutes again. He is a 6'9" athletic small forward from Fresno State. In the Wizards last game before the all-star break, McGuire played 24 minutes grabbing an impressive 12 rebounds against the Clippers, but was unable to score.
Brendan Haywood has the size to slow down Curry, that is if Currys not already slowing himself down. Deshawn Stevenson is a good defender who is capable of slowing down Jamal Crawford. If we rewind back to January 15, it was Roger Mason who scored 20 points (8-14) in only 31 minutes. Hopefully the Knicks will come prepared, after playing the Wizards twice last month.
Throwback HipHop Video of the Day:
Artist:Lost Boyz
Title:Get Up
Album:Legal Drug Money
Year:1996
Knicks upcoming Schedule:
- Tue, Feb 19 @ Washington 7:00 PM
- Wed, Feb 20 @ Philadelphia 7:00 PM
- Fri, Feb 22 vs Toronto 7:30 PM
- Sun, Feb 24 @ Toronto 6:00 PM
- Wed, Feb 27 vs Charlotte 7:30 PM
That does it for my pregame show. I thank everyone for joining me and remember to tune in Wednesday night to catch the Knicks and the Wizards.