Tag: alley oop

[Video] Race to 8th Seed: Knicks Offense Overwhelms Sixers 123-110

I love nights like this. Four guys with 20-plus points. Sharing the ball. Making plays. Having fun out there. Taking the load off me. I love nights like that. – CARMELO ANTHONY

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As bad as the Knicks have been this season, it could be worse. Dont’ believe me? Just take one look at the Sixers, who are not only out of playoff contention, but currently on a 17-game losing streak. The Knicks added to Philly’s misery last night, overcoming a 12-point deficit (29-17) in the first quarter to score a much-needed home win to remain in play (3.5 games back) to catch the Atlanta Hawks for the 8th and final playoff spot.

SLEEPWALKING: The Knicks came out very lazy and allowed the Sixer guards like Michael Carter-Williams and Tony Wroten to get in the paint at will. With Tyson Chandler out due to personal reasons, the Knicks missed his defensive presence and rebounding. In addition, Melo wasn’t his usual self, looking lethargic coming off a cold last game. He didn’t have good lift on his inside game nor on his jumper. Thankfully, the Knicks only had to settle for a 31-26 hole after hitting a few timely threes to close out the first stanza.

DEFENSE PICKS UP: By the second quarter, the Knicks realized their were playing the Sixers and started playing defense. They took a small five-point lead following two Raymond Felton threes, but hurt themselves by going in the penalty six minutes in, allowing Philly to stay close at the line and keep it tied at halftime, 61 all.

THE BEST PLAYER ON THE FLOOR: Amar’e Stoudemire has been beasting and his output was sorely needed yesterday to keep the pressure off Melo. Playing at the 5, Stat was too fast and quick for guys like Thaddeus Young, dropping 23 points (9/10 shooting). Stat’s defense was adequate as well, including a nice block at the rim that lead to a JR Smith three on the other end. A 9-0 run late in the third, after a few minutes of back and forth buckets early on, allowed the Knicks to take the lead for good.

FOUR OVER 20: The Knicks had four different plays score over 20 points: Melo (22), Stat (23), JR (22) and Hardaway Jr. (28). Tim’s output was the most scorching, including 13 points in the fourth that allowed Melo to rest the entire period.

The Knicks head to Boston Wednesday night to take on the Celtics. I wonder if Melo and Rondo will have any “side” conversations.

[Video] New York Knicks: The Top 100 Plays of the 2012-2013 Season

Knicks_Top100

The 2012-2013 season is at an end for the New York Knicks. But that doesn’t mean you can’t relive all the great moments from the last seven months that returned the Knicks to prominence. From our team captains (Melo, Chandler, Stat) to our tough role players, you’ll see plays you vividly remember (like J-Kidd’s four-play against Brooklyn), to others just as spectacular, but forgotten over the course of the year (like Novak and JR smashing on the Spurs). Even if you’re still down about the second round playoff exit, these highlights will undoubtedly bring a smile to your face.

Much respect goes to www.obglobal.net for taking that time to put together this awesome collection. Go there to register and talk Knicks all throughout the off-season.

100-90

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgJJyZBQ8O8&feature=youtube_gdata_player]

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89-80

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

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79-70

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjpJBu4ehMc&feature=youtube_gdata_player]

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69-60

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeoIZLVBHw8&feature=youtube_gdata_player]

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59-50

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZ05TISUQeU&feature=youtube_gdata_player]

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49-40

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rrzwe4t5Vs&feature=youtube_gdata_player]

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39-30

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF9VOo-8aI8&feature=youtube_gdata_player]

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29-20

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTUgIrC4IPA&feature=youtube_gdata_player]

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19-11

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PDsStMa7Qg&feature=youtube_gdata_player]

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TOP 10

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZ6eqyREC9w&feature=youtube_gdata_player]

[Video] Pablo Prigioni’s Sick Alley Oop To JR Smith 1/3/13

JRSmith_3

The interior defense. The rebounding. The hard effort over four quarters. There’s many reasons for Knicks fans to rejoice at the 100-83 victory the team achieved tonight over the Spurs. But for now, let’s marvel at this amazing alley oop to punctuate a blowout fourth quarter from Pablo Prigioni to JR Smith. Props to the good people from the Knicks board at realgm.com for getting this up on Youtube so quickly.

Welcome Back, JR! Knicks Stay Perfect at Home With 108-87 Wizards Blowout

JRSmith_3

The Friday night Knicks curse? Not with the Washington Wizards in town. The Knicks lets their haphazard opponent hang around for a few quarters, but blew the game open at the end of the third and cruised to an easy 108-87 win to remain undefeated this season at Madison Square Garden.

The Knicks were never in any serious trouble after falling behind 2-6 to start. The first quarter was quiet with no on taking over, but three-pointers in the final minute from JR Smith and Steve Novak pushed the lead to 26-17 after one.

This game was a coming out party, or rather a return to form for JR Smith, who after averaging 17 points off the bench to start the season had been shooting less than 30% and averaging 9 points over the last five games. His jumper was working and he finished at the rim to the tune of 10 points at the half. Pablo Prigioni was another spark off the bench; our 35 year old “rookie” was draining 3s off screens and making sure to feed Tyson Chandler. Melo’s jumper was working, but our leader was more focused on passing and notched five assists, the majority to Chandler for easy dunks and layups. Although the Wizards had eight offensive rebounds and roughly half their points in the paint, a Melo buzzer beating, 23-foot jumper gave the Knicks a 58-46 halftime lead.

Trevor Ariza had some success early in the third, but the Wizard’s deficit hovered around 14 points for most of the quarter courtesy of good shooting from Ronnie Brewer. His defense remained strong as he got a steal that lead to a Chandler dunk. Raymond Felton got aggressive getting into the lane and finding Chandler, who got a three-point play inside. Add on some three-pointers from Rasheed Wallace and Novak, and the Knicks were resting on a 84-63 lead after outscoring the Wizards 29-19 in the third.

With another blowout, Melo and the other starters got to rest all of the fourth. The rest of the team stayed productive with Novak still hitting 3s, and Prigioni delivering a sweet alley oop to JR Smith. Chris Coperland and James White got significant minutes and were able to hit shots. The Garden got loud with Marcus Camby chants, but Coach Woodson sadly ignored them, saying later that Camby’s a “pro” and understood tonight we were going with the young guys.

Outside of a few too many fouls and the continued rebounding woes, the Knicks stat lines were great. Melo had 20 points in 27 minutes on 6-13 shooting. Chandler had a double double (12 points, 10 rebounds). JR had 20 points off the bench on efficient 9-14 shooting (2-3 from downtown). Prigioni had 8 points and 5 assists. Felton had an overlooked 11 points. Novak went 3-6 from long-range. As a team, the Knicks only had 8 turnovers while forcing 17. And with this blowout, the Knicks have held 10 of their 15 opponents thus far under 100 points while having one of the toughest schedules of November.

Yes, it was the Wizards. But any Knicks fan that’s been around longer than this season remembers quite well that no victory was guaranteed against any team in previous years. The Knicks are not just taking care of inferior teams; NY is doing it in dominant fashion which should bring a smile to all our faces. Our home stand continues tomorrow afternoon against the Phoenix Suns. Get well J-Kidd, Stat and Shump!

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJPbBvul5J4&feature=youtube_gdata_player]

We Woke Up Eventually: 4th Quarter Knicks D Overcomes Magic 99-89

What the hell is going on?! That phrase had to be going through the minds of most Knicks fans watching the first three quarters last night of the game against the Magic, the first of a three-game road trip. The Knickstape was being out hustled by rookies, whining to refs, not closing out on shooters and letting guys get easy drives to the basket. But then a light switch went off in the fourth, spurred by pivotal plays from Jason Kidd, that lead to the Knicks allowing only 12 points in the quarter in route to a 99-89 win to keep their undefeated streak alive at 5-0.

As with the Mavericks, the Knicks started slow in the first but ended the quarter strong with a 15-8 run to go up 27-23. Then the Knicks had their worst quarter of the season in the second, launching too many bricked threes (Melo, Wallace) and showing poor interior defense. JJ Reddick found the outside range with his jumper, and the Knicks became statues of defense, having an outrageous moment of letting Glenn Davis ignite a one-man fast break beating Melo and Felton to the hole. What made matters more frustrating is this collapse happened right after a Novak three had put them up 10. Magic rookie Maurice  Harkless had NY looking bad with his hustle plays and defense on Melo. The 19-year-old had 10 points and six rebounds at halftime, a major reason for the Magic holding a 53-49 lead at intermission. Adding on to the woes was the Magic holding a rebounding edge of 25-16.

The third was better; guys like Raymond Felton and JR Smith made sure to drive into the lane for buckets. JR continued to have the sweet touch, dropping a three-pointer to tie things early at 63. Still, the Knicks were not meeting the energy of the Magic and continued giving up their own three-pointers due to bad rotations. Melo got no calls inside and visibly frustrated. Thankfully JR’s play, capped by a nice alley oop to Tyson Chandler, helped the Knicks take a slim lead of 77-76 into the fourth.

The Magic had been shooting 54%, but that ceased when it counted. After some back and forth baskets early on, Jason Kidd made a three-pointer to take an 82-80 lead and tied up Aaron Afflalo to force a jump ball. Kidd later hit a floater in the lane after a Magic put back miss. Melo then got focused on defense, getting a steal that lead to a JR Smith step-back jumper to cap a 7-0 run. The better close-out defense on the Magic shooters forced contested misses, and Melo put his stamp on the game late with a turnaround jumper in the post and a three-pointer. Felton got Chandler back in on the action with another alley oop, and before you knew it, a JR Smith jumper had pushed the lead to 97-84 with just a few minutes remaining.

The Knicks ended with three guys dropping over 20 points: Melo (25), Smith (21) and Felton (21). Knicks fans can take solace in the fact this would have unquestionably been a game we would’ve lost at this time last season. The necessary adjustments  were made and the talent level of our team showed its class in the last quarter.

Now for the bad. I understand Melo’s frustration when he’s hacked inside to dead whistles. But that’s no excuse to not get back on defense and allow easy baskets. He’s the leader of our team and everyone will take their queue’s from his attitude. If you noticed, Chandler started complaining not long after Melo and seemed disinterested. While it’s great we still have that “0” in the loss column, that will quickly change if we come out for Thursday’s game against San Antonio like this. We have to click on all cylinders as that team’s confidence will by sky-high following that game-winning three-pointer Danny Green delivered over Kobe Bryant to down the Lakers last night.

Until next time, Knicks faithful.