Reasons Why the Knicks Offense Has Been So Horrendous Thus Far
Added by Stephen Zimkouski on January 27, 2012.
If you’re like me then you’re sick and tired of the watching the Knicks offense. I can accept mediocre results from a mediocre team but the Knicks have two of the supposed to be best offensive players in the game.These points have been reiterated dozens of time but I’m going to try to sum up most if not all the issues that the Knicks offense has this season.
Let’s start with the most obvious one that even casual basketball fans can spot. The Knicks lack a true point guard that can both manage the tempo of the game and distribute the basketball. I was not a big fan of Chauncey Billups on the Knicks last year because I felt that we could use a point guard who could push the ball up and down the court more, much like Raymond Felton did in his time here. However, Chauncey showed that his leadership and game management skills is what made the Knicks a respectable team at the latter half of last season.
Another issue is that the Knicks players fall into too many isolations. They do not spread the floor well and this involves a contested three pointer with the shot clock dwindling down most of the time. This becomes a huge issue every game because the Knicks poor lack of spacing and ball movement.
We see many possessions where Amare or Carmelo get the ball and go isolation with no players attempting to cut to the basket or find an open spot for three. To be honest I can’t remember many times the Knicks have had a backdoor cut for an easy layup this season.
The Knicks also need to play more free with far less hesitation. I understand that ball stopping is part of Amare and Carmelo’s game but if they could play an uptempo style like D’Antoni prays for, the team could be really effective on the offensive end. It’s still too early to call the Carmelo trade a complete failure but it’s definitely starting to look that way.
All the players that were involved in the Denver trade fit the D’Antoni system and made the game fun for the Knicks. I think most fans can agree that even though last year the Knicks weren’t the best team you could argue that they were the most exciting team to watch. The Knicks in my opinion are now one of the most boring teams to watch in the NBA.
About Stephen ZimkouskiStephen is a 21 year old from Forest Hills, Queens. He is a former Yankee Stadium intern who is currently studying at West Virginia University. Stephen has been covering the New York Knicks for Double G Sports since July of 2011.
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knickfan212
January 28, 2012 at 7:29 pm
Melo was supposed to be an addition to the crew we had.To trade what we had for Melo was a contradiction of logic.Why would we want Melo by himself? The word “Addition” was taken out of the request for Melo.Everyone in the front office was against this trade. Everyone except Dolan,the idiot with the money.Once Dolan saw how much fans liked Melo,winning became second and dollar signs took the top spot.Raise ticket prices and just wait for the season to end so he could count profits.If it took getting rid of the whole team so be it. Now, I call Denver the Knicks minus Melo and Stat. It’s too bad we can’t show our receipt and get our team back…. Now we search for the most rare of good players,a point guard that wont be afraid to wave Melo,Stoudemire off and find the right play to go with. Too bad Dolan isn’t a free agent on the trading block, if he were he could get on the bus with D’Antoni.
Stephen Zimkouski
January 28, 2012 at 7:49 pm
I agree with everything you just said knickfan212.
freddyj
January 29, 2012 at 11:08 am
Things we knew in Denver! 1)The ball stops with Melo, just like it did with AI and so many other SUPERSTARS(see “Stern’s Marketing Dream”) who build wonderful stat lines and bank accounts but fail to understand the basics of team play. 2) Who me, play defense? You’re kidding right? Gimme the rock and let others pick up fouls covering for me. I’ll be running down the floor for an easy 2 when/if you guys happen to get a T/O. 3)Management that can’t get out of their own way. Let it rain money up in here. Big names don’t win championships without commitment to team philosophy. What you gave up to get Melo has been working like a symphony for George. Team first young men who are and will get paid, because they are playing the game the way it is supposed to be played! Period. Watch out. This is a very good group of men out here and George has the best basketball TEAM he has EVER had. Thanks so much Mr. Dolan.