New York versus Phoenix

[Mr. J]

<font color="darkorange">Phoenix Suns (19-10)</font> at <font color="darkorange">New York Knicks (7-21)</font>
Madison Square Garden, New York
Monday, Jan. 2nd
7:30pm, MSG, WB35, NBALP

<div align="center">

vs.

</div>

<font size="2">Today, January 2nd 2006, the New York Knicks look to kick off the year strong. Although at a depressing 7-21, they are shockingly (or maybe sadly) 4.5 games out of the eighth and final playoff spot. A year ago this time, the Knicks were 16-13 and atop of the Atlantic division, however, since then, they would go 17-36. With a whopping 54 games left in this season, it will be vital for the Knicks to make the most of it and what better way to kick off the new year than with a win against the team with the second seed in the Western Conference. Will the Knicks begin the brand new year victorious or will they get sunburned yet again?</font>

[div=50%]
<font size="3"><div align="center"><font color="darkorange">Phoenix Suns</font></div></font>
Project Starters

<div align="center">

</div>

Backcourt

<font size="2">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/steve_nash.jpg[/imgl] <font color="darkorange">PG ? Steve Nash</font>
18.4ppg, 10.6apg, 46.8%fg
Your reigning MVP Steve Nash comes into tonight?s game still leading the league in assists with 10.6 per game. Nash is a talent offensively. If you guard him too close he?ll blow right by you and if you back off of him, he?ll rain down jumpers. He shoots 46.8% from the field and 37.4% from beyond the arc, so he definitely has the numbers to back him up. His ultimate flaw is his defense. Despite his quickness he just doesn?t put much effort in that area of his game. Will this be his downfall tonight?

[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/raja_bell.jpg[/imgl]<font color="darkorange">SG ? Raja Bell</font>
12.4ppg, 3.5rpg, 2.3apg
Signed for his lock-down defense, Raja Bell has made this team much improved on the perimeter both offensively and defensively. His man-to-man defense is what the Suns were missing last year in the playoffs as Q just let Manu Ginobili walk all over him. In addition, his three-point shooting has filled in the void left when Joe Johnson and Quentin Richardson got traded. The height advantage he will have on Marbury might work to his advantage. We?ll have to see.</font>

FrontCourt

[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/boris_diaw.jpg[/imgl]<font color="darkorange">SF ? Boris Diaw </font>
11.5ppg, 7.0rpg, 6.1apg
While not your typical household name, in terms of efficiency Diaw has given the Suns more production than Joe has given the Hawks. At 6?9? he is a walking triple double and plays exceptional defense. Last meeting in Phoenix Diaw kept Ariza in check! Well, that?s not hard to do, but I liked what I saw from him, though. Going up against David Lee who can rebound and pass the ball well is going to be interesting.

[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/kurt_thomas.jpg[/imgl]<font color="darkorange">C ? Kurt Thomas</font>
9.0ppg, 8.2rpg, 1.0bpg
Who?s missing Kurt Thomas right about now? We all know what to expect from Kurt Thomas. Pick & roll forever between him and Nash. Anytime Kurt looks to set a high screen, the Knicks must communicate. Making his annual trip to a place he called home for seven years, you know he will be pumped. We?ll see what happens.

[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/shawn_marion.jpg[/imgl]<font color="darkorange">PF ? Shawn Marion </font>
20.2ppg, 11.8rpg, 51.3%fg
The UNLV product is like no other. He is unbelievable athleticism and a sick shooting stroke ? literally. Marion?s form just gets uglier and uglier every time I watch, but surprisingly it goes in a good amount of the time, but it didn?t the last meeting against the Knicks where the natural small forward shot 6-18 (0-4 from three) to go along with five points. It?s that type of defense that will be need to be played against the Suns? leading scorer.

<u>Keys To Game</u>

<font size="2"><font color="DarkOrange">Transition Game:</font> The Knicks? transition game has been inconsistent this season and with the exception of Kurt Thomas, everyone can run the fast break. If the Suns can establish a high-tempo game early on, the Knicks might struggle countering it.

<font color="DarkOrange">If the door?s closed, lock it!</font> We?ve seen this time and time again; the Knicks fall just short after making a little run. Now with them on their home floor kicking off a brand new year, the Suns might not get lucky if they leave an open door for the Knicks.</font>

[/div]
<font size="3"><div align="center"><font color="darkorange">New York Knicks</font></div></font>
Projected Starters

<div align="center">

</div>

Backcourt

[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/nate_robinson.jpg[/imgl]<font color="DarkOrange">PG ? Nate Robinson</font>
7.6ppg, 4.2rpg, 1.6apg
The 5?9? sparkplug is again starting for the Knicks just like he did in Phoenix. As one of the only Knicks who plays with consistent effort, Robinson, I believe, will be a problem for Nash. In Phoenix he had 14 points and against Milwaukee he had 19 points. Those two statistics right there should give him all the confidence he needs against Nash. Even if he struggled against them, would he really need something to give him confidence?

[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/stephon_marbury.jpg[/imgl]<font color="darkorange">SG ? Stephon Marbury</font>
17.9ppg, 6.2apg, 3.4rpg
Things aren?t looking too good for Stephon in this match-up. The height disadvantage on a 6?5?, active defender doesn?t usually spell success, however in the first meeting, he dropped 28 points on a very good 54.1 field goal percentage. With everything 0-0 like Marbury said, will he look to start strong and shut up his toughest critics?

Frontcourt

[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/david_lee.jpg[/imgl]<font color="darkorange">SF ? David Lee</font>
3.4ppg, 4.0rpg, 0.6apg
Look at Lee?s stats. Ugly, huh? Not quite. Statistics don?t begin to describe the impact Lee has on the game. He passes very well, rebounds well, and gives us energy we haven?t seen since the Junkyard Dog retired to the dog pound. Diaw is the same way except more polished. This should definitely be exciting to watch.

[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/eddy_curry.jpg[/imgl]<font color="darkorange">C ? Eddy Curry </font>
13.5ppg, 6.4rpg, 1.0bpg
Curry is coming off his second consecutive strong game. Going up against Kurt Thomas, a very strong post defender, he might struggle, but he definitely has the tools to dominate this match-up. In Orlando the big men trio of Dwight Howard, Kelvin Cato, Tony Battie was no match for him as he scored 29 points, two shy of his career high. Those three are excellent defenders and are both taller than Kurt Thomas. If Curry can assert himself on both ends of the court, the Knicks will be in a very good position to win this game.


[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/antonio_davis.jpg[/imgl]<font color="darkorange">PF ? Antonio Davis</font>
4.7ppg, 4.7rpg, 0.35bpg
I wish Davis was three years younger. That way he would be much more effective. But as Tribute said, if wishes were fishes, they would be no fishes in the sea. Davis is not the best match-up at all for Shawn Marion. I think Malik Rose might be put into the power forward position, but who really knows with the amount of starting lineups we have.

<u>Keys To The Game</u>

<font color="darkorange">Fire and Desire:</font> The Knicks very irregularly play with the type of passion that we want to see. Against Milwaukee we were all encouraged, but will they come to play tonight against one of the league?s better teams? If the Knicks play with intensity they have a very good chance of winning.

<font color="darkorange">Cut Down on Turnovers:</font> Against one of the league?s best fast break teams, the fastest way to face an insurmountable deficit is to turn the ball over. With Diaw, Bell, and Marion terrorizing the passing lanes, no pass can be telegraphed. Bad shots are just as bad as turnovers too. Most percentages of the time, they end up missing and the opposition is off to the races. We can?t have that tonight.

Prediction: Post them below.

 

[P.A.P.]

Nice preview, MrJ. Isn't Nate the starting SG though, rather than Marbury?

 

[Mr. J]

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting P.A.P.:</div><div class="quote_post">Nice preview, MrJ. Isn't Nate the starting SG though, rather than Marbury?</div>
I think Brown wants to put Marbury at shooting guard because of the height disadvantage would be even greater with Nate. They will be switching on offense quite a bit though.

 

[Mr. J]

Halftime
Knicks: 61 Phoenix: 49

<u>Knicks Stats:</u>

Leading Scorer: Stephon Marbury

14 Points

Leading Rebounder: David Lee

5 Rebounds

Leading Disher: Marbury & Crawford

&

5 Assists


<u>Suns Stats:</u>

Leading Scorer: Shawn Marion

14 Points

Leading Rebounder: Shawn Marion

8 Rebounds

Leading Disher: Steve Nash

8 Assists

<u><font color=""Red"">Hot @ Half Player:</font></u>
David Lee

The 22-year-old from Florida is making Brown look like a genius. He has given the Knicks energy, rebounding, and overall smart basketball. In his 19 minutes he has 11 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals. If he continues this way his energy will hopefully rub off on the rest of the Knicks and we can get a win!

 

[Platehpus]

Excellent post my friend, Channing Frye just threw down a monster jam over Phoenixes Bald White Guy with authority. I love Channing Frye.

 

[Drake Remoray]

This has been the most exciting game of the year so far lol

 

[JWohl]

What a game!! 3 and a half hours later the knicks come down with a great win over the Suns. If they could have shot foul shots this game would have ended an hour ago....

 

[Beat]

Good game for the knicks. That was an exciting game. They didnt do well in the clutch situations but we got the win thats all that reall matters.

 

[rookie789]

WEEEEEE WONNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!! we got 4 of the suns fouled out and nash and marion both had 5 fouls, david lee man i thought this guy was wack but now i changed my mind, he can rebound like hes camby, man what a great game... and larry brown didnt had any subs since the end of the regulation, the same 5 players played all 3 ot's... so glad we won this game!!!!

 

[Jurassic]

Daaaaaaaayum. 22 dimes for Steve Nash. That's insane.

You can't get outrebounded like that and expect to win a game, the Knicks killed them with free throws as well. Nash took too many threes, as did the team as a whole.

 

[Platehpus]

Unbelievable is all I can say. We needed this win in the worst way, and we grinded our way to a W in an effort that I'm going to call the beginning of the turnaround for the Knicks. David Lee playing 51 minutes is completely INSANE, and he showed that he deserves to get more minutes thanks to his arsenal of hustle, athleticism, and heart. Nate the Great and Lee the Glee are two of the most energetic and upbeat people I've seen in the eastern conference, and Marbury played like a leader for the entire game. Awesome, inspirational stuff that hopefully will propel our season.

 

[giftedvisionz]

Most of us fans knew what Lee was capable of, and today he finally got to showcase his stuff. He only missed ONE field goal, and also grabbed 15 boards. Crawford was clutch off the bench, and personally this is my favorite starting lineup Brown's gone with so far. The team as a whole played great, and hopefully this win can help lead to more.

 

[Mr. J]

Man! What a game! I can't even get my thoughts out entirely because I'm too hyped. 3 OTs and we came up victorious. Finally, I can go to bed easily.

 

[JWohl]

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting rookie789:</div><div class="quote_post">WEEEEEE WONNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!! we got 4 of the suns fouled out and nash and marion both had 5 fouls, david lee man i thought this guy was wack but now i changed my mind, he can rebound like hes camby, man what a great game... and larry brown didnt had any subs since the end of the regulation, the same 5 players played all 3 ot's... so glad we won this game!!!!</div>
we? You don't even list the knicks as one of your favorite 3 teams for gods sake! I understand you live in queens but identifying yourself with a team you don't consider one of your 3 favorite?

 

[rookie789]

living in new york, of course i gotta love the knicks, i got like 8 favorite teams and i cant even squeeze a forth one in... if i had the space i would list all my favorite teams...
ok i squeez the knicks in you happy?

 

[Buckets]

DAVID LEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

David Lee was amazing tonight, 23 and 15. He's really gonna be something under the coaching of Larry Brown, Lee has all the potential in the world and he's a great player. I think he will be the most dependable Knicks rookie down the road of this season, Nate is inconsistent and Frye's Efence doesnt cut it in certain games.

 

[Platehpus]

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting giftedvisionz:</div><div class="quote_post">Most of us fans knew what Lee was capable of, and today he finally got to showcase his stuff. He only missed ONE field goal, and also grabbed 15 boards. Crawford was clutch off the bench, and personally this is my favorite starting lineup Brown's gone with so far. The team as a whole played great, and hopefully this win can help lead to more.</div>
If by "most us fans" you mean us Knicks fans then yeah, I agree, but if you ask the average fan about David Lee you'd probably get the same result from everyone, "Who?" It's a shame we have such a logjam at PF, because Lee completely excells at the position and learning how to play SF won't be easy and it might kill his career.

 

[Bleed Green]

It was a great game by the knicks. Lee, Crawford, Nate, Steph, and Curry led the way to a huge win. They only dressed 11 so we were bound 2 win. 20 missed free throws though. They have to drop. It wouldve been done a long time ago. Lee really impressed tonight rebounding and scoring but he left Marion open alot of times. Theyre lucky he didnt drop all of them. LoL, funny pic from last night. the knicks are looking at nate like he's a bum
.

 

[Avery]

I've always said David Lee was the guy that was supposed to be playing and he proved me right. Well that was one heck of a game by the Knicks. I tip my fitted off to them. Watching that game go to Triple OT on an HDTV and hearing the fans going wild, I never felt so much energy. This is the second game that I had an opportunity to go to and I missed another great game. I though the Sixers/Knicks game was going to be a blowout and that was one heck of a game and I wanted to see Nash, but I though he would probably play only three quarters so I shoot myself in the foot AGAIN!

Btw, the Knicks are the BEST FT shooting team in the league.

 

[NJNetz]

I watched only the first half but I was really impressed by David Lee. IMO he played really great. Great game for him with 23 pts and 15 rebs.

 

[Platehpus]

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Avery:</div><div class="quote_post">I've always said David Lee was the guy that was supposed to be playing and he proved me right. Well that was one heck of a game by the Knicks. I tip my fitted off to them. Watching that game go to Triple OT on an HDTV and hearing the fans going wild, I never felt so much energy. This is the second game that I had an opportunity to go to and I missed another great game. I though the Sixers/Knicks game was going to be a blowout and that was one heck of a game and I wanted to see Nash, but I though he would probably play only three quarters so I shoot myself in the foot AGAIN!

Btw, the Knicks are the BEST FT shooting team in the league.</div>
What's a game like in HDTV? If you can actually feel the Garden going nuts then maybe it's time I step to the plate and get me one of those.

 

[giftedvisionz]

HDTV is almost as if you're there. At least, that was my reaction watching my first Knicks game in HD. It especially kicks ass if you have that surround sound.

 

[Miami Flash City]

It was really a great game although I only got to see the last overtimes. Curry and Starbury in the 2nd and 3rd overtimes started heating up which helped get this victory. Nate and Lee also did well late. Good win for the Knicks, also after the game it was fun watching that celebration that team really has heart.

 

[rookie789]

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting TheTruth5:</div><div class="quote_post">It was really a great game although I only got to see the last overtimes. Curry and Starbury in the 2nd and 3rd overtimes started heating up which helped get this victory. Nate and Lee also did well late. Good win for the Knicks, also after the game it was fun watching that celebration that team really has heart.</div>
yea the playere did played their best, and i hope sometimes frye could get some more minutes, he was aggresive in that game, but played like 12 suttin minutes, and hope david lee could keep up the good work hustling the ball...