MSGKnickz33
The Gold Mac
New York Knicks(8-24) vs Chicago Bulls(13-19)
Tuesday, January 7 at 8:30PM ET Live on MSG
Welcome to MSGKNickz33 pregame show, Im your host Jazzy Jeff and Im here to breakdown Tuesday nights matchup. The Knicks have lost 7 straight games and I think its safe to say their season is over. The last time the Knicks played the Bulls it inspired me to make a poll question that asked which of these 3 teams have had the most dissapointing season: The Knicks, the Bulls, or the Miami Heat. Since then the Bulls have played good enough to no longer belong in the same question with the other 2 teams but they are still struggling, winning 5 out of their last 10. Being 6 games under .500, they are still in the playoff picture. When your team is 16 games under .500, you know its time to give up and start thinking about the draft.
Lets take a look at the starting lineups for both teams.
The Chicago Bulls
pg-Chris Duhon
sg-Kirk Hinrich
sf-Luol Deng
pf-Joe Smith
C-Ben Wallace
AND NOW YOUR NEW YORK KNICKS!!!!!!
AT POINT GUARD, STEPHON MARBURY
AT SHOOTHING GUARD, JAMAL CRAWFORD
AT SMALL FORWARD, QUENTIN RICHARDSON
AT POWER FORWARD, ZACH RANDOLPH
AT CENTER, EDDY CURRY
:gony::gony::gony:
Tonights Key Matchup: Stephon Marbury vs Chris Duhon
Chris Duhon does a good job of taking care of the ball and finding his teammates. He is not a great shooter and he should not be a major problem for the Knicks. I do not think this team can win this game without a good game from Stephon Marbury. They need him to play well on both ends of the court but you cant put to much pressure on him, this is still just his 4th game back after missing almost the entire month of December. He was a key in the Knicks victory over the Bulls earlier this season at the Garden. His defense on Ben Gordon and Kirk Hinrich combined with his efficient offense helped the Knicks defeat the Bulls.
Marbury vs Chicago on November 24:
19pts(6-12)(2-3 3pt), 6rbs, 4asts, 1 blk, 1stl
Kirk Hinrich-11pts(5-18)
Ben Gordon-13pts(4-17), 5TO
Not only did Marbury get it done on offense but his defense was nothing short of spectacular.
What do the Knicks need to do to win?
- Chicago is the 11th best team defensively in the league. Knicks need to take care of the ball, move the ball around and play as a team.
- Ben Gordon is very productive off the bench and the Knicks cannot let him run up the score because he is fully capable of doing this.
- Attack Ben Wallace!!!! He's getting older and Curry had a couple of good games against him last year.
- Box Out!!!! Chicago is a better rebounding team. At the same time, the Knicks should be a better rebounding team then they are so they need to work on boxing out and putting more effort in.
Chicago has a tough bench. Ben Gordon, Tyrus Thomas, Andres Nocioni, and Joakim Noah are all capable of coming into the game and making an impact. Once this Chicago team gets things together, they're going to be tough because they have a good starting 5 and one of the better benches in the league. Nocioni would be a starter on many teams, he is intense and passionate about the game of basketball. The Knicks also have a talented bench. Look for David Lee and Nate Robinson to come into the game and make a difference. Nate Robinson has been on a tear, lets look at some of his numbers over the last 7 games:
31mpg
18.4ppg
49.5fg%
49% 3pt
1.7to
Very impressive shooting percentages and keeping the turnovers done. Nate has really stepped up his play and the percentages dont lie, he is the best shooter on this team.
Now lets take a look at some interesting Ben Gordon stats. They show how he is much more productive off the bench then as a starter.
Ben Gordon
Starter
26 games, 35.7 minutes, 17.6 points, 3.7 rebounds, 33.6 3p%
Off the bench
6 games, 37.2 minutes, 28.2 points, 4.5 rebounds, 45.2 3P%
Im sorry but I think Im outta stats and that will do it for this show. Im Jazzy Jeff and I thank everyone for joining me, catch the Knicks and Bulls Tuesday night on MSG.
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