Randle is not a star Thibs, for your own longevity, stop coaching as if he is.

If no other game this season showed you what is wrong with the Knicks last night had to have sealed the deal.

Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier were aggressive last night against the Celtics and the offense ran extremely well.

When Walker, 29 points, and Fournier, 32 points, played as if Randle wasn't on the floor in the 3rd quarter the Knicks 41 point quarter was the highest of the season.

In the fourth quarter, when Randle and Coach Thibodeaux ran the offense as if Julius is a super star who has to close out the game the Knicks fell apart and again New York handed a victory to a team which it should have easily beaten.

After the game Kemba Walker was asked if he wanted to stay in New York he did not say he does, he stated that he wants to play. Walker clearly put the coach and Knicks management on notice, play me or trade me. 

Walker has no allegiance to this organization anymore if he ever had any since he was banished to the hinterlands by coach Thibs.

And now we know why Thibs benched Walker. In Thib's mind Randle is the star and if anyone can't play well with him then he doesn't exist. Fournier makes too much money for such a banishment so Kemba was made the example.

This coach has hitched his wagon to Randle and it is going to be the very reason why he loses his job here. Randle is not a star Thibs, for your own longevity, stop coaching as if he is.

Knicks lose again, Celtics 114 - 107 Knicks.

You have your own problems stop worrying about the Nets.

 

The rest of the Eastern conference no longer takes you lightly. Every game against you now has playoff consequences and your pesky defense is no longer going to sneak up on anyone to steal a game here and there that you have no business winning.

Add all that to the more difficult schedule next season and, Oh no Knicks fans you will not be making any kind of run remotely like the Phoenix Suns.

In fact, your team is going to be worse before it gets better.

I even heard some of you fools saying that the Nets are in turmoil and worse off than the Knicks because of some obscure Kyrie Irving trade rumors.

C'mon guys you cannot claim to own New York yet the Nets are in your mouths all the time.

You idiots even have the audacity to claim that the Nets window of opportunity for a championship is now closed when Brooklyn's big three have two years left on everyone's contract. A bunch of Nets role players came off the books after the season, so they are free to sign vets who want to compete for a ring immediately at veteran minimums.

Tell me, honestly, in what way does that make the Nets worse off and in turmoil. You guys are delusional.

No team could the Knicks put together next season that could come close to competing against the Nets.

It is one thing to be a fan but keep your wits about you, please or you don't sound like the informed fans you always claim to be.

Go ahead, continue to have Dame/Kawhi fantasies. Nothing wrong with that. Maybe someday your dreams will come true but, in the meantime, keep a sane head will you please?!?

Here are the things you sad Knicks fans need to ponder.

Will RJ become a toughened young vet and have a good season after all the trade rumors, or will he have a season like Ben Simmons because he is worried about his place on your team? 

Could your fan base recover from another off season that a superstar is not signed, and you have to lie to yourselves about "rebuilding" again? 

Can Mitchell Robinson's foot come back as good as new, or will he be a big man with foot problems and never reach his potential like many big men of the past? 

If everyone now wants to come to the Knicks as you claim, then you should have your choice of free agents and therefore not have any pressing need to make irrational trades for one star.... again.  

These are the things to concern yourselves with Knicks fans not what is going on in Brooklyn. Sheesh

Enjoy your summer

Welp, it's finally over.

No more delusional fans dreaming of a magical playoff run that would see them defeating Brooklyn in the Eastern Conference finals and on to a chance at a championship.

Yeah, I know, crazy talk right. But hey these fools were really on one just because the Knicks made the playoffs.

The most important source of angst for the Knick fan this morning is the realization that this team is not one "more" star player away from competing for a title. Unfortunately, this team... has no stars.

Julius Randle, whom I like to call Regular Season Randle, is not on the level of Trae Young when it comes to performance in the playoffs. This team is still two stars away from vying for a championship.

Will the Knicks have enough cap room for two max contracts, Julius, and RJ Barrett? I don't know but that is the only way for this team to be competitive sooner than later.

Derrick Rose tried his best to will the team forward but if he is your best player, as he was this playoff season, you cannot count on being more than a one and done team.

Is there a veteran point guard willing to step in and take control of this team while being young and healthy enough to be the corner piece for the next five years? Oladipo maybe? Trade for Caris LeVert maybe? I don't know but that is the position that needs to be addressed first.

When Randle lost his confidence and the offense needed to make adjustments there was no point guard to direct this team on the fly and put players in position to be effective as well as showing ultimate leadership.

All I know is the Hawks of all teams came into the Garden game 1 and punked the Knicks out of homecourt advantage before running them out of their own building and the playoffs last night.

I don't ever want to hear a Knicks fan talk about how tough a team this is and how great they play defense. Clint Capela ripped your hearts out and laughed in your faces. Your team sucks. Its okay to admit that. It's the first step towards healing and getting better.

Knicks Lose Again and for the last time, Hawks 103 - 89 Knicks. Enjoy your summer. 😅

Tough Out My Ass

The biggest fear of Knicks fans was not potentially losing last night. The fear was Julius Randle was going to be exposed and proven not too big a cornerstone piece to building a championship. With Randle's play in three games, I think that the fear has become reality.

All season the offense ran through Randle, and not only did he put up big numbers but the other players learned their roles on the offense which helped to propel the Knicks team into the playoffs. However, in the playoffs Randle has played with little or no confidence and the most improved player in the league has choked when games matter the most.

If not for the play of Derrick Rose, the Knicks would be down 3 to 0. Rose's good play on offense had Thibs forced to start him om game 3. However it is the most important cause for concern. 

All regular season the supporting players grew comfortable in their roles following the lead of Randle on offense. But now that Rose has become the focal point on offense the past two games the offense is in disarray. The team, including Randle, are now standing around watching Rose because they don't have a clue what to do.

I don't know if Randle is just in a slump or is really a choke artist when it comes to being the leader of a team in big games. But I do know that he is not playing like he is worthy of a franchise player level contract right now and his future as a Knick might be in jeopardy.

Let's give Atlanta a little credit also. They not only came home and hit the shots they missed in game two, but they also played Knicks style defense more than the Knicks did. Giving the Knicks a taste of their own medicine by stepping into passing lanes and being more physical around the basket made mice out of men and the Knicks looked like they can't handle a team that isn't afraid of them.

A lot of media people and YouTubers swore this was going to a tough series because the Knicks are so much trouble on defense and not an easy out. All that "We play hard" doesn't scare anyone and it certainly doesn't scare Atlanta. 

Did they not think that the Hawks were grown men and they had no coaches that could make an adjustment to the Knicks juggernaut defense? Atlanta made an adjustment which worked. Give them credit.

Ironically, the only thing the Knicks could do that might be of help is the Triangle Offense, the pinch post part in particular. I don't know if coach Thibodaux however has the guts or the ability to teach and implement it in the next two days. Great teams and coaches adjust in the playoffs, let's see if the Knicks and coach Thib are ready to begin functioning like a great team.

This playoff run for the Knicks was never about making a run to the championship. This series was all about finding out if Julius Randle was the man. And now, it is clear that he is not going to be the cornerstone of a championship franchise in MSG. Julius can be a solid piece  but let's face it, the Knicks don't even have a big one yet let alone a big two or three like most teams vying for a ring.

Knicks lose again, Hawks 105-94 Knicks.

I didn't think the first round would be so entertaining.

Awww Knicks fans, don't cry. It's just one game. You guys will be okay.

Will you please now stop with all the fake tough talk about how you are the best team in New York City? 

Will you please now stop with all the defense wins championships stuff and your team will be a tough out? No you won't. Your star had an awful game and the rest of the team has no playoff experience.

Don't blame Frank Ntilikina because Trae Young got around him for the winning shot. Trae goes around everyone. 

It is not fair to ask a guy who only played about 90 seconds to come off the bench cold and no feel for the game to save the day with a stop on defense. Blame Julius Randle whose shot was tighter than Lizzo's waist band. Julius couldn't hit an elephant in the ass with a 2 by 4 tonight.

If Julius doesn't find his confidence in his day off the Knicks will get swept.

I told you guys that making the playoffs was the accomplishment to build on and not have false hopes about a playoff run. That was ridiculous. Now all the pressure is on the Knicks who have lost the homecourt advantage.

I didn't think the first round would be so entertaining. 

The Knicks kept the game close until the final seconds I must admit. The home crowd thought they were on the verge of witnessing the first playoff win in damn near a decade.

We saw Spike Lee jumping around, Tracy Morgan dancing, all up in the videos. Or so they thought until Trae Young crossed up Frank and gave the fans the kiss of defeat with the tear drop of death.

I'm loving this.

Knicks lose again, Atlanta 107 - 105 Knicks.

Let the booing continue.

Last night the Knicks lost to a team named after a cub scout badge.The Charlotte Bobcats, after losing to Cleveland the night before, knew they'd have easy pickin's when they came into the Garden.

Despite the fact that Boris Diaw looks as if he ate his way through Europe during the lockout he was swift and motivated enough to look like Olajuwon as he dusted Amare Stoudamire on the way to a win last night.

It looks as if this team goes on the court and waits for the superstar fairy dust to kick in and then are surprised that other teams dare make shots against them. Well guys get used to it because you haven't done a damn thing to earn anyone's respect. Not from other teams and certainly not from your fans.

Hey, Mike Woodson, would you mind telling the players that they need to box the hell out when a shoot goes in the air?

Right now, I'd take Nate Robinson over Landry Fields and Toney Douglas put together.

Let the booing continue.

The Knicks Lose Again, Bobcats 118 - Knicks 110

It is time to make drastic changes

The Knicks attempted to fight back and win this game but they got nothing out of Chandler and Fields, both of whom may have checked out mentally because of their names mentioned in trade rumors earlier in the day for Carmelo, and the rest of the team missed a lot of open shots.

It is time for this franchise to make drastic changes with or without Carmelo Anthony. Well, it was fun while it lasted.

The Knicks Lose Again Spurs 101 - Knicks 92

Let's make it happen Donnie

From what I understand the Knicks showed up at an arena in Houston tonight but decided not to play so the Rockets ran circles around them and got a victory.

I also heard that the Russian has broken off talks with the Nuggets so I am sure Donnie Walsh knows that Denver will be open to taking a bag of bagels for Carmelo Anthony right now. But Donnie is a nice man and will probably offer Fields, Gallinari, Curry and one of the two 1st round draft picks he acquires for trading Randolph to a third team. Personally I wouldn't even go after Carmelo.

I would work on getting Marc Gasol and Iguadala which would make the Knicks contenders for the East today. Unfortunately my opinion doesn't matter, except to you nice folks.

Whatever deal you can make Donnie let's make it happen immediately and move forward, I can't watch much more of this.

The Knicks Lose Again Houston 104 - Knicks 89

The wheels have officially fallen off

I have to admit, I didn't watch today's game. I figured that since the Knicks couldn't beat the Kings at MSG they certainly can't beat the Suns at home either. And I was right.

Donnie, make your trades now since the wheels have officially fallen off. Get as much value out of the current roster on the trading block that you can while the getting is good.

The Knicks Lose Again Suns 129 - Knicks 121

No guts and no pride

No guts and no pride
The Knicks Lose Again Kings 93 - Knicks 83

The players should donate tonight's wages to charity since they certainly didn't earn it.

This is what happens when you don't develop your bench

The Knicks Lose Again, Jazz 131 - Knicks 125

Everyone is going to chalk this loss up to the Knicks being tired and several players banged up. But when you witnessed the Jazz coach not afraid to go 10 players deep to get the most out of his teams effort it is abundantly clear why the Knicks lost.

When D'Antoni attempted to go beyond his normal group of players and they gave him nothing he too could find nothing on his bench. Why is that? Because he hasn't played and developed the bench so there was nothing there to call upon when he needed it the most.


Will he learn from this? Of course not. And the Knicks will keep on losing to teams that they have no business failing against even on back to back road trip games.

Thanks for giving up before the game began coach

You can tell when D'Antoni concedes a loss even before the game starts by the starting lineup.

Tonight against the Lakers everyone knew that the Knicks were going to face a steady diet of Bynum and Gasol down low so it only made sense to start Turiaf at the center position so that Amare wouldn't have to wrestle with two beasts in the first half. But D'Antoni had already made up his mind that his team had very little chance of winning and thought (wrongly of course ) that his only chance was to play Shawne Williams and hoped that he could hit some three pointers and pull one of those guys out of the paint. We all know by now that with this coach the three point shot is the answer for all that ails you. Well it didn't work tonight.

Amare only had 5 points in the first half because he and no answer for Bynum's bulk on either end of the court. And Shawne Williams finished the game 8 points. Great move Mike.

Now, I am not saying that starting Turiaf and having Mozgov backing him up at the center position would have gotten the Knicks a victory at all. However it would have done more to neutralize the advantage the Lakers had in the front court and allowed Amare to open his game up offensively thereby giving the Knicks a decent shot at defeating the Lakers.

Thanks for giving up before the game began Mike. Nice job.

The Knicks lose again Lakers 109 - Knicks 87

This Isn't Rocket Science Got Dammit!

Got Dammit Amare will you please stop watching the fucking ball and box out?

The Knicks came back from being down more than twenty points had the momentum and were on the verge of breaking Orlando's will. Only down by two points Dwight Howard tossed up a shot out of frustration which missed of course. So what does Amare do when Howard let's the ball go? He completely disregarded his man, Howard, and followed the complete path of the ball in the air. Howard, knowing he can't shoot for crap, followed his shot, got the rebound and kicked it out for a wide open three pointer swinging the momentum right back to the Magic and that was the game.

What does it matter if the Knicks get Carmelo Anthony or any other big name free agent if the biggest star and center doesn't even have the fundamentals ingrained in his muscle memory. For all the points he can score Amare doesn't have a clue what to do when he his defending his basket.

Listen, when the Knicks are playing dominant centers D'Antoni has to wake the fuck up and use the fouls from his back ups especially on the likes of Dwight Howard, Bosh and Shaq. I don't want to hear shit about Mozgov not being ready. If he isn't ready then send his fucking ass down to the D-League where he can play every night and learn the NBA game. As far as I know he is not hurt, he gets a paycheck and starts each game with six fouls in his pocket. If you use Mozgov and Turiaf during the beginning of games it will at least keep Amare out of foul trouble and prevent teams from jumping ahead of the Knicks by twenty points at the half. Move Wilson Chandler and Gallinari down a position and have Landry coming of the bench. This isn't rocket science Got dammit.

D'Antoni, wake the fuck up and when you do take Amare into the gym with Herb Williams and every time he doesn't box Herb out shoot him with a taser. His shouts of "Don't taze me bro!" should be loud and often enough to reach Brooklyn.

Landry, if you're not going to shoot the ball with confidence then don't fucking shoot. You see Allan Houston and Walt Frazier every fucking day you can't ask these men for some got damn pointers? There is no excuse for your shot to not be pure and confident at this point of the season.

Fucking pathetic Knicks lose again Orlando 112 - Knicks 103

It's nothing to be ashamed of losing to the Miami Heat

The Knicks just aren't good enough to beat the Miami Heats of the world, it's nothing to be ashamed of.

They needn't fear the Magic either. If Felton stays in front of Nelson and Wilson forces Turkoglu to his left they can whoop dat ass on Thursday night. We will see.

The Knicks Lose Again, Heat 106 - Knicks 98

Lazy Coaching + Lazy Playing = Loss

There is a saying that bad habits die hard and the Knicks are living proof.

After playing so well and within themselves they decide to resort to their old ways and play to the level of the competition. 

The immature play from the Knicks included going for pump fakes and getting cheap fouls called on them, Amare forcing the issue by attempting to beat his defender off the dribble, not boxing out on defense and settling for low percentage shots instead of passing the ball around for the best shot made for a very sloppy and lazy effort against the Cavaliers. The result of course was a loss to the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers who had lost 10 games in a row before tonight's gift.

It is time for D'Antoni to open up his lineup and get Mozgov on the floor late in games even if just to play the scarecrow and make the opponents think twice about penetrating for easy baskets, also to get Amare off centers on the defensive end. But as I said in the beginning, old habits die hard.

The Knicks lose again, Cavaliers 109 - Knicks 102

The Knicks Are Not Ready

The Knicks lost for no other reason than not having a two guard who could force Wade to expend energy on defense and penetrate well enough to pull the Heat off double teams on Amare.

Not having such a player allowed Wade to possess lots of energy in the second half to prance and cross up for jump shots and display spin moves which got him easy dunks and layups against Landry Fields.

Bosh was not forced to bailout Wade and defend the paint so he was able to do pretty much what he wanted and stay both fresh and out of foul trouble. In tonight's game Bosh was double teaming Amare and getting easy shots around the basket

Notice I didn't mention Lebron James because honestly when he is shooting like the way he was tonight he was going to get his points no matter what.

The way to beat the Heat is by forcing Wade and Bosh to defend which draws fouls and makes them expend energy. The Knicks have no players whose games could command enough respect to pull the double and triple teams off Amare Stoudemire and take it to Wade and Bosh making losing inevitable. Miami is just better than them.

Now the Knicks need to regroup and remember that other than Boston, the Lakers and the Heat they should whoop everyone else and get after it tomorrow against the Bulls.

The Knicks Lose Again, Miami 113 - Knick 91

The Knicks are good but not elite

The Knicks lose again but let me say that this was one helluva basketball game. The margin of losing was still a simple fundamental that is lost in today's game.

Amare played good defense several times on Garnett late in the fourth quarter that resulted in bad shots but because of poor fundamentals Amare lost track of Garnett who was able to get his own rebounds and make put back baskets.

Instead of watching the path of the shot Amare should have pivoted to place his back into Garnett's chest to box out first while turning his head to the basket to locate the ball. At the very least he would have drawn an over the back foul on Garnett at best he would have snatched the rebounds preventing the second shots.

So, although they played well it is a matter of poor fundamentals like this when it counts that will keep the Knicks from being an elite team.

Celtics 118 - Knicks 116

They'll be soft until they die

The Knicks are just a bunch of scared boys with only a handful of real men on this team. When this group of guards and small forwards face a group of skilled basketball players they bitch up and there is no other way to describe it.

So afraid of being beaten off the dribble or getting contact the guards don't play tight defense or fight through screens. The small forwards are so afraid of playing against athletic bigs they force jump shots because they don't want any part of going mano a mano.

The only chance the Knicks had to be competitive today against the Hawks was to do exactly what got them the five game winning streak they enjoyed against lesser opponents. By slashing to the hoop for easy baskets and fouls, moving the ball around until the best shot became available and playing the passing lanes to get easy steals or place themselves in position where they could contest the next pass or the shot.

Other than Turiaf, Stoudemire and Landry this team gets intimidated very easily and only see themselves capable of nothing more than hoisting desperate three point attempts. When you are bitch made like the majority of these guys there is no amount of practice or experience to that can overcome it. They'll be soft until they die.
The Knicks Lose Again, Hawks 99 - Knicks 90 and it wasn't nearly that close

At Least They Tried

The Knicks lose again, Denver 120 - 118 Knicks  however, there were some promising signs.

The Knicks attacked the rim with gusto which led to lots of easy baskets and drew enough fouls to force the Nuggets to respect them.

They still didn't shoot particularly well from beyond the three point line, got out hustled a bit on the boards at times and were way to cavalier from the free throw line which was the cause of them losing tonight. However, I think that collectively they now understand the style of play that will make them competitive against the better teams and able to easily beat the mediocre teams of the league.

When Gallinari grows up a bit and learns how to contribute in other ways when his shot isn't falling the Knicks will be a .500 team. But not until then.

Landry Fields was impressive again.

This is a dumb team

The Knicks lead after the first quarter by attacking the basket on offense and crashing the boards. It was a surefire formula for victory over the Rockets that couldn't miss. Which is probably why the didn't stick with it for the remaining three quarters of the game.

Let's face it. This is a dumb team. Any excuse to toss up a three point shot and not box out on defense this team will take.

It's not a matter of this team not knowing how to win, they clear did in the first quarter. The problem is they don't want to win if they can't show off their skills shooting from the perimeter and Amare' can't show off his ball handling skills and ability to create his own shot off the dribble.

At some point a player with a high basketball IQ would understand that when his shot wasn't falling and the other team's big men were scoring that it was his job to penetrate and attempt to draw fouls to get the opponent's best players in foul trouble. Unfortunately there are no such players on the Knicks and D'Antoni seems completely unable to teach.

The Knicks will be back in the lottery after this season because they will not be in the playoffs. On the bright side, Landry Fields is doing his best to contend for rookie of the year.

The Knicks Lose Again, Rockets 104 - Knicks 96