| Knicks Ready To Rebound After Ludicrous Start Authored by Jason M. Williams - November 20, 2007 - 12:04 pm
The New York Knicks have limped out of the gate, miserably falling to a 2-7 start, with seemingly no end to their current six-game losing streak in sight. While it may seem like the city is on fire and the New York media has done nothing but pour gasoline on the heads of Isiah Thomas and Stephon Marbury, it may be too premature to count these Knickerbockers out.
Looking into their first nine games of the season with the glass half full, one would notice that the Knicks have already suffered through some strange off-the-court distractions and key players missing critical games. They have also been handed one of the tougher schedules to begin the season.
Nearly half of their games have come on back-to-back nights and they have already ventured to the west coast to play the likes of the Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Clippers, and Denver Nuggets. They have played only three games versus teams with records under .500 (1-2) and were missing their leading scorer and rebounder, Zach Randolph, for both losses, as he was home mourning the passing of his grandmother.
In addition to missing their productive power forward, they have also already been without Stephon Marbury, Quentin Richardson, Jared Jeffries, Renaldo Balkman, and Mardy Collins for various reasons this season, and only three of their first ten games are against Eastern Conference teams. While it may seem like the Knicks are off to one of the worst starts in franchise history, the season is still young and they still have plenty of time to make up ground in the East.
After the much publicized debacle in Phoenix last week, which saw point guard Stephon Marbury leave the team and return to New York, I decided to meet up with the Knicks in Los Angeles and get the scoop on what was going on with the team. The mood in the locker room was not what I expected. Starbury had returned to the team and Isiah Thomas and he were talking it up like nothing had ever happened. The two egocentric point guards were seen on the Knicks bench shaking hands and burying the hatchet prior to the start of their tilt against the surprising Clippers.
“Whatever happened in the past is in the past. We move forward,” explained Zeke.
Some Knick players didn’t seem so willing to accept the quickly-forgiving Thomas, and questioned what type of organization would allow Marbury to return to the court one day after an alleged fist fight with the coach that preempted him to ditch the team to return to New York. I overheard a couple of players and team officials discussing how bizarre and unfair it was that Marbury was allowed to come and go as he pleased, but could not gather any quotes on the record.
Following their buzzer-beating loss to the Clippers, the Knicks were then dealt with another set of back-to-back games in Sacramento and Denver. They lost the first game in double overtime without Zach Randolph to the Sacramento Kings in Ron Artest’s return to Arco Arena, and were then slaughtered by the Denver Nuggets the following night at the Pepsi Center.
Despite the pair of disheartening and disappointing losses, the team continues to rally behind its coach.
“We believe in Isiah,” spouted sparkplug guard Nate Robinson upon returning back to New York.
His sentiments explained that despite the swirling rumors about the fragility of Zeke’s job, his players are still rallying behind him and are looking to get back home to break out of their latest funk. With the banged up Golden State Warriors headed to town Tuesday night, the Knicks realize that this is a must-win to get their confidence back on track. This game is even more important for New York, considering that they will have their third consecutive set of back-to-back games as they travel to Detroit to take on the Pistons Wednesday night.
As the Knicks prepare to climb up the Atlantic Division standings, it will be important for them to take each game one at a time. They have a stretch in the schedule that is approaching that could see them regain some confidence and get back on a competitive level. Ten of their next fifteen games are against teams under .500 and only five of those games are on the road. This is the time where the Knicks need to make a stand if they want to save Isiah Thomas’ job. They have the talent and the depth to compete in the weaker Eastern Conference, but they need to cease the off-court shenanigans and play together similar to how they responded last season after the brawl.
Agree? Disagree? Feel free to contact Jason M. Williams with your thoughts. He can be reached at Jason.Williams@RealGM.com for comments or questions. |
