Game Thread: Knicks@Cavs

You can't imagine a worse scenario for a teams second game. Playing a back to back, traveling to a city where the Cavs are going to be energized in the most hyped home opener for a team in NBA history after a drubbing the night before.

And those are the intangibles, the Cavs may also be a better team than the Bulls ranked second in the ESPN power rankings with James, Love and Irving who each averaged 30 pts a game last season against the Knicks. Add it all up and it may be a worse blowout than yesterdays rout by the Bulls.

Only chance the Knicks have is to start fast, open a big lead and make the crowd a non-factor. I would expect Fisher to start Stat again despite being criticized in the media for flip flopping on the move to make Amare a starter. Calderon also gives the Knicks the better chance of getting off to a fast start but he may be held out again for Larkin. Amare and JC in the starting lineup give you the best chance for a fast start against the Cavs in hopes of scoring a huge upset. It's going to take a miracle though.



Knicks-Cavaliers Preview

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/knicks-cavaliers-preview-043622981--nba.html

This will be a season opener unlike any other - one that also brings closure.

Part homecoming, part family reunion, part revival meeting and a huge party rolled into one.
When LeBron James takes the court on Thursday night wearing a No. 23 Cavaliers uniform in a regular-season game for the first time in four years, an entire city will be able to wash away a painful past. Any lingering bitterness will give way to forgiveness and excitement about the future.

''For these fans,'' James said Wednesday, ''it means everything.''

That's because he means everything to them.
James and a Cavaliers team transformed over the summer by his return - plus the signing of All-Star guard Kyrie Irving to a contract extension and the acquisition of power forward Kevin Love - will open their NBA season on Thursday night against the New York Knicks at Quicken Loans Arena.
This is the night Cleveland has been waiting for.
More than 20,000 fans, some paying more than $1,000 per ticket, will welcome James back home to where he began his basketball career. He'll again play before family, friends from Akron and the Cavs fans who feared he would never return after the 29-year-old bolted for Miami in 2010 to chase championships.

There's never been a night like it in this city's tortured sports history, and it promises to be emotional for everyone, including James.


''It means everything to be able to open our NBA campaign here in Cleveland with these fans. It's going to be a special moment,'' James said after practice at the Q. ''We can't take it for granted. You don't get moments like this, they don't come around every day.''
When James announced his return to Cleveland in an essay written for Sports Illustrated in July, he stated, ''I'm not promising a championship. I know how hard that is to deliver. We're not ready right now. No way. Of course, I want to win next year, but I'm realistic.''
Those expectations changed drastically just over a month later when the Cavs acquired Love from Minnesota for No. 1 pick Andrew Wiggins.
With the NBA's newest ''Big 3'' of James, Love and Irving, complemented by the signings of key role players Shawn Marion, Mike Miller and James Jones, Cleveland is now the favorite to win the title.
However, James is trying to tone down roaring expectations. While he has plenty of postseason experience, Irving and Love have not logged one playoff minute.
"I don't want to talk about it too much because then it could be used as a sound bite," he said. "So I'm not even going to get involved in that right now. We've got a long way to go.''
New coach David Blatt also thinks all the championship talk is premature. The successful European coach who was hired in June after the Cavs fired Mike Brown following a 33-49 season, feels his team is ready to go, but realizes the Big 3 still need time to jell.
''Obviously now that the real games are getting started, we're going to find out," Blatt said. "I thought we showed in preseason that we're a pretty good, competitive group and we played some good teams. But there's a big difference between preseason and regular season for everyone."
While James needs no extra motivation in his return to Cleveland, he also has a history of raising his game with meetings against the Knicks. The four-time league MVP averaged 32.8 points on 63.8 percent shooting in four games against New York last season, and has been on the winning side in 21 of his last 27 matchups.
Irving also frustrated the Knicks last season, averaging 30.3 points and 7.3 assists in three contests. The Cavs split four games with New York in 2013-14.
The Knicks opened the season Wednesday with a 104-80 home loss to Chicago, spoiling Derek Fisher's first game as an NBA coach.
Running the triangle offense that Fisher played in under Knicks president Phil Jackson, New York shot 36.5 percent and missed 14 of 17 3-pointers.
''Embarrassed? No, I am not embarrassed,'' said Carmelo Anthony, who had 14 points on 5-of-13 shooting. ''We will get better. I believe that. I know that and we have another shot at it tomorrow night.''
New York was without starting point guard Jose Calderon, who was a late scratch because of a strained right calf. Shane Larkin made his first career start.
''We're going somewhere, but at the beginning of where we're going it's going to be difficult to get wins,'' Fisher said. ''We have to fight really, really hard to win games.''
Like James and Irving, Anthony has also thrived in this series, averaging 29.0 points and 7.0 rebounds in four games versus Cleveland last season.

Thanks for the great game thread! I don't like to be a naysayer, but I put the odds of Lebron and the Cavs letting us spoil his return to Cleveland at like a million to one. I just hope we can come out and at least put out a good effort tonight. Latest news is that Calderon is out at least 2 to 3 weeks now, so Larkin and Prigioni are going to have to carry the load. Can they do it? Maybe. Let's go Knicks!

Acy starting instead of Stat. Basically, we are going with 3 defensive specialists and putting the offensive burden on Melo. At least, it gives our second unit a scorer with Stat, but man, he was one of our few guys who played well last night.

Melo hobbling, I think he turned an ankle. Also, I think I am starting to hate Larkin. He seems to make the wrong play every chance he gets.

Brief prediction of how every game is going to go this year. Opposing team's point guard easily penetrates against us, scores himself or kicks it out to a wide open 3 pointer who drains it. Our ball defense is crap.

Also, Lebron is playing like garbage and they are already beating us by 9.

Travis Wear getting some 1st quarter minutes. Clearly, Fisher just trying to find any combination of guys who can hold it together for even a few minutes out there. Knicks now forced to take a timeout as JR hurt his back or something.

Down by 7 at the end of the first. Melo turned his ankle. JR got kneed in the back. Lebron hasn't even shown up yet. This is not going in the right direction

Hanging on by a thread...can't let this one get outta hand with hatin azz Reggie and Chuck on the broadcast

Our current lineup on the floor: Aldrich, Wear, Acy, Prigioni, and THJ. Unless THJ is going to go berserk, how can we not get blown out going against a lineup with Lebron and Kyrie on the floor in the 2nd quarter?

Look at the unit they have on the floor, Stat, Wear, Prigs, TJH and Aldrich. That's not going to win u any games against the 76ers let alone the Cavs.

Shooting like crap again, 39%. Melo no help at 33%.

Nice little run by the Knicks to get the lead back down to 6. Cavs are struggling to play together right now, but still light years ahead of us in talent and it's not like our guys know how to play with each other either

Lead down to 3. Maybe jumping the gun here, but Aldrich is giving us a presence in the middle on both ends that none of our other big men seem able to do

Had the game briefly tied for a second there. Cavs worst lineup is the one with Lebron, Love, and Kyrie on the court at the same time right now

htr10 said:

Acy starting instead of Stat. Basically, we are going with 3 defensive specialists and putting the offensive burden on Melo. At least, it gives our second unit a scorer with Stat, but man, he was one of our few guys who played well last night.

Click to expand...

Fisher only took Stat out of the starting lineup after the Home opener loss ....

Nice to only be down 2 to end the half but what an idiotic close to the 2nd quarter. Stat stands there with the ball and lets the shot clock run out and then we let them get an easy alley-oop in less than 7 seconds. Maybe the worst half of basically I have ever seen Lebron play and we are still losing. Got to get some kind of consistent rhythm together in the 2nd half. I say Aldrich has earned more minutes at least.

Lebron is going to come out super aggressive. I wouldn't be surprised if he scores 25 yhe seconf half.

Fisher played 11 guys the first half, thats not a great long term solution but he's trying to find the right combo of players that can win a game. The D was good the first half with a number of forced turnovers against the Cavs.

Larkin looking better.

Shaq actually explain a good triangle, and a bad triangle with the Knicks in this game.

The Cavs are a weak 4 to 5 seed team in a weak eastern conference
The Cavs dont come close to coach Thibs Bulls team.