Category: News

Rasheed Wallace to Have Foot Surgery, Done for Season

My season ain’t over,” Wallace told reporters when the team was in London in January. I’m going to be back. I was laid off for three years, so one little foot injury ain’t going to stop me. I’m good. – Rasheed Wallace in January

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The mystery of whether Rasheed Wallace would return soon the Knicks has ended with the announcement the All-Star forward will undergo season-ending surgery on his left foot.

Wallace’s most recent X-ray found a fracture in his fifth metatarsal and a scheduled surgery for next week has an eight-week recovery time.

Wallace has been out of the Knicks lineup since December 13 with that was initially called a “stress fracture.”  Although both Wallace and the Knicks management maintained that a return was imminent, Wallace had only been able to do light running since the injury.

Early in the season, Wallace’s outside shooting and defensive presence helped the Knicks storm out to a fast 17-5 start. During his 20 games played, he averaged 7 points and 4 rebounds.

At press time, it’s not known if Wallace will attempt to play in the post-season.

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So we waited 2 months for an even more severe injury? What happened? Was Sheed brawling in some NYC bar and messed up his foot further stomping someone’s head in? Slipped in the shower? Fell down stairs? I’m just completely dumbfounded how the simple running messed his foot up further.

Thank God the Knicks made that move for K-Mart, because our frontcourt defensive presence and rebounding is in sore need of a boost (especially with the prospect of facing Boston or Chicago in the first round).

My gut tells me the Knicks knew well beforehand Wallace was likely done. Let’s hope we don’t have a similar situation when it comes to Marcus Camby’s comeback.

[youtube http://youtu.be/hu6CplaS3gk]

JR Smith Takes the Guesswork Out of Courting

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It’s no secret that JR Smith is a ladies man with several notable conquests already (K. Michelle and Tahiry the most prominent). Yesterday, our shooting guard provided some more hilarity with the leak of several Twitter DMs with one of his “fans.”

Ladies, we as men know you’re very big on honesty and being upfront with our intentions. JR adheres to that philosophy — no pretentiousness, no deception… just up and direct about his “pipe dreams” as you’ll note below.

From the below pic he posted on Instagram, one of these pipe companies might want to endorse our man JR.

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Knicks Sign Kenyon Martin to 10-Day Contract

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The Knicks’ long-standing interest in Kenyon Martin has come to the fruition today with the two sides agreeing to a 10-day contract.

The Knicks appeared close to signing Martin during the off-season but were reluctant to offer a long-term deal, instead choosing to invest multi-year agreements with veterans Jason Kidd and Marcus Camby. With Camby and fellow big man Rasheed Wallace out indefinitely with injuries, the Knicks are hopeful Martin will have an immediate impact on the team’s problem areas of rebounding and defense.

Martin finds himself reunited with several teammates — Carmelo Anthony and JR Smith, with whom he made it to the 2009 Western Conference Finals with as a member of the Denver Nuggets, and the Jason Kidd, two vital parts in the back to back NBA Finals Nets teams of 2003 and 2004.

The 35-year-old Martin played 42 games for the Los Angeles Clippers last season, averaging 5 points and 4 rebounds in 22 minutes of play.

Martin will not be suiting up this Friday when the Knicks head to Toronto to face the Raptors.

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Solid move. No, it’s nothing spectacular, but Martin’s addition should provide welcome relief when it comes to rebounding and interior defending. It also doesn’t hurt that he’s quite familiar with three of our core players in Melo, JR and Kidd. And hopefully some of his goon mentality can toughen up the overall team mentality.

With that said, Knicks fans need to tempter expectations. I’ve noticed over the last year fans have become enamored with annoiting “saviors.” Last year it was Baron Davis and Jeremy Lin. This year it was Shump’s return, then Felton’s. There is no one player that will save this squad — team ball had us riding high atop the East, and it’ll be a team effort to get us back there.

The main concerns with this signing will be what type of shape Martin kept himself in and praying to the basketball gods that he can remain healthy. I can’t wait to see how he does over these next 10 days. Woodson better not be stingy with the playing time. Case in point, see the below impact Martin can have on a game on offense and defense.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkToMdLtIrA&feature=youtube_gdata_player]

Knicks Trade Ronnie Brewer to Thunder

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Knicks have completed a last-minute deadline trade that will send forward Ronnie Brewer to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for a future second round pick.

Brewer had a hot start for the Knicks in November and early December while a starter, recognized for being able to nail open three-pointers and force turnovers with his defense. However, Brewer’s production came to a grinding halt and Knicks Coach Mike Woodson benched him in favor of several lineups that have included the likes of Jason Kidd, Iman Shumpert, Marcus Camby and Rasheed Wallace.

Brewer has seen little playing time in recent weeks and is averaging 3.6 points and 2.2 rebounds for the season.

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This doesn’t seem like a major move on the surface, but as many fans have already pointed out it leaves an empty roster spot. Already the speculation has centered around possibly nabbing Kenyon Martin, who’s yet to play this season, for our sorely lacking areas of rebounding and interior defense. While I’m sure no one is completely ecstatic about recreating the Denver Nuggets core, it can’t be much worse than the play we’ve seen on the court recently. With bruising defensive minded teams like Chicago, Boston and Indiana looming in the playoffs, the Knicks have to find some toughness quick and Martin may just be the answer.

Carmelo Anthony Injures Right Arm, May Miss All-Star Game

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Carmelo Anthony may be forced to sit out the All-Star game after suffering a contusion to his right bicep in Wednesday night’s 92-88 loss to the Toronto Raptors.

The injury happened in the first quarter due to a collision with Raptors player DeMar DeRozan, resulting in Anthony’s shooting arm being completely numb the rest of the game.

“It was kind of like a dead arm out there,” Anthony confirmed.

He would have one his worst shooting performances this season, going 5-24 from the field (1-6 from downtown) and 1-4 at the free throw line.

Anthony will be overly careful in deciding whether to start for the East this Sunday in the All-Star game. Should he feel any pain, he vowed to sit out and rest.

I’m not going to force it, definitely not going to force it. As bad as I would want to play in the All-Star Game, participate, if I can’t go, I can’t go. Nothing I can do about that.

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Well, at least Anthony has an injury excuse for last night’s performance. Why was everyone else throwing up bricks?

[Video] Knicks 2/12/12 Practice Roundup: Chandler Banged Up, Energy and Focus High

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Coming off a very disappointing performance against the Clippers on Sunday, word is the Knicks had a great practice yesterday in preparation for tonight’s game against the Raptors. Tyson Chandler was apparently pulled early from practice because of soreness (it sounds in the below video that Woodson says it’s his ankle), but he’ll be playing tonight.

The Knicks are currently three games behind Miami for the #1 seed.

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[youtube http://youtu.be/pUasKEB45r8]

STAT

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MELO TALKS WHITE AND NOVAK AT THE ALL-STAR GAME

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PRACTICE FOOTAGE

[youtube http://youtu.be/VwHR_8tO2JU]

[Video] Carmelo Anthony Talks Knicks Resurgence on Jimmy Fallon

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Last night, Carmelo Anthony appeared on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon to speak on the Knicks returning to the elite of the Eastern Conference, the All-Star break, and his number being retired by Syracuse University. Melo will be starting for the East during this weekend’s All-Star game.

[youtube http://youtu.be/-h0miQI2iR4]

Melo and Woodson Shoot Down Shumpert Trade Rumors

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With the All-Star Break and trade deadline looming, Knicks coach Mike Woodson and team captain Carmelo Anthony spoke out against the rumors that guard Iman Shumpert will be traded.

News broke last week that the Knicks were interested in Suns player Jared Dudley and would consider dealing Shumpert for him. Anthony, who called the current Knicks team “the most talented” squad he’s ever played with, told the New York Post that the Knicks organization should not entertain any trades.

He [Shumpert] shouldn’t be worried about that. The Knicks shouldn’t even be in trade talks right now.

Coach Woodson echoed those sentiments, but stopped short of making a guarantee that Shumpert would definitely be staying.

I don’t think you can ever tell a player he’s not, that’s kind of out of my hands. If te owners came to me and said we have to do a deal, then you do the deal. I sat him and told him. He knows how I feel about him. We show him love and he’s a big part of what we’re doing. Those are just trade rumors.

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I wonder how much traction these rumors would be having if Shumpert did get torched by Chris Paul yesterday afternoon. Dudley would be a nice player to have, but he does nothing to fix our current biggest woe, which is perimeter defense. Shumpert is around 11 games back from an ACL tear; I’m fully confident that he’ll be close to the pesky defender he was in 2012 by the end of this season.

Steve Novak and James “Flight” White Headed to All-Star Weekend

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The New York Knicks will be well-represented on All-Star Weekend with the announcement of Steve Novak and James “Flight” White being named to the Three-Point Shootout and Slam Dunk Contest.

Novak is shooting 44.4% (third in the league) from downtown this year. White has vowed to deliver a “classic” dunk performance that will be the best since Vince Carter’s memorable 2000 win.

Novak and White will mark four Knicks participating in All-Star Weekend, with team captains Carmelo Anthony and Tyson Chandler playing in the All-Star game.

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Maybe I’m a tad bias, but I’m predicting Novak takes the three-point contest easy. Unless he gets a severe case of nerves, the three-point contest pretty much mirrors his warm-up routine. And White’s dunk acumen needs no introduction. All we need now is Melo to show out in the main game.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pi0zrzQxwnU&feature=youtube_gdata_player]

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[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpNNhbGm0VM&feature=youtube_gdata_player]

Raymond Felton Begins Shooting Drills, Eyes Jan. 26 Return

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Raymond Felton, currently out with a right pinky fracture, completed his first non-contact practice yesterday at the Madison Square Garden training facility. It’s no secret that the Knicks desperately need Felton, who’s been out since late December. The loss of Felton has forced New York to put heavy minutes on its aged guard reserves Jason Kidd and Pablo Prigioni.

From the below clip, the recovery period has already done wonders for his shooting form. If everything continues to go well, Felton could be back this Saturday when NY heads to Philly to face the Sixers.

[youtube http://youtu.be/xoi_USg2i-E]