After a start to the season that was filled with growing pains and awkwardness, the Knicks have now won four out of their last five and seem to be maturing as a unit. Their previous two wins came against the Hawks and Blazers- two of the more talented teams in the league- and they boast a five game win streak on their home court. Last night’s win puts the Knicks at .500 and just one game behind the Celtics and Raptors in the Atlantic division.
Even at the team’s lowest moments this season, Kristaps Porzingis has been their rock. He’s averaging 21.0 PPG on 50% shooting to go along with 7.3 RPG. His shooting from three–a skill that makes him so lethal- has also improved, as Porzingis’s 3PT% is up to 39% after finishing last year at 33%. Furthermore, Porzingis is one of the few Knicks players who hustles on defense and moves without the ball on offense; two things the Knicks need to do better collectively. I’m ready to sign off on this being Porzingis’ team” Not only is he playing an a high level, but his potential is still untapped. Thank God for our sweet, Latvian prince.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t talk about our “superstar” forward Carmelo Anthony. I’m still convinced Melo is a top five pure scorer in the league. His ability to shoot off the dribble granted his stature is paralleled only by a select few. But too many times have I watched Melo take the ball in the corner, draw a double team, and hoist up a fadeaway jumper. I feel like a broken record saying this, but he has to buy into unselfish basketball. How many times a game do you see him moving without the ball and setting screens to open up his teammates. The answer is rarely. This team is playing very good basketball right now, but for it to compete into May, Carmelo Anthony has to accept a lesser scoring offensive role, and put more effort in defensively.
The Knicks have historically struggled to find productive point guards- just think of names like Stephon Marbury and Steve Francis- but that was supposed to change this year with the signings of Derrick Rose and Brandon Jennings. A former MVP, D-Rose had some trouble fitting into the offense early on. His “shoot first” mentality further augmented the stagnation present in the Knicks offense. In fact, the Knicks are 1-6 when Rose scores more than 15 points. A main reason for the Knicks’ recent success is due to Rose allowing the offense to facilitate the ball rather than him forcing up contested shots. Rose is still a very talented player who has excels at attacking the rim, but it’s important for this offense that he knows when to create his shot and when to create shots for others.
Someone who has really come into their own and accepted their role this season has been Brandon Jennings. A highly touted prospect out of high school, Jennings struggled to live up to expectations due to injury and spells of inconsistency. Coming off the bench for the Knicks has proven to be a blessing for Jennings, who provides a ton of energy. Jennings loves to get the offense out in transition and its been an area where the Knicks have had success. Last night, Jennings came off the bench to provide 11 assists and had a +/- of 11, a true testament to his ability to foster ball movement and find open teammates. A player who can push the tempo and provide energy off the bench is a valued player.
The Knicks’ offense has really come around, ranking ninth in the league in field goal percentage. But their defense is still lacking and ranks in the bottom half of the league in most defensive categories. However, it was refreshing to see the Knicks’ perimeter defense frustrate C.J. McCollum and Damien Lillard, two of the top shooting guards in the league. Opposing guards have typically feasted off the Knicks inability to defend them, but McCollum and Lillard were held to 16 and 22 points on 35% and 44% shooting respectively. I’d like to see the Knicks’ guards continue to ramp up their perimeter defense, knowing they have a great rim protector in Kristaps Porzingis as their second line of defense.
The Knicks have a rough next couple games ahead of them. They have two games against the 8-5 Hornets followed by Russell Westbrooks’ Thunder and then the young, but talented Timberwolves. The team has taken a step in the right direction with their recent performances, but we are just 14 games into an 82-game season. The Knicks can continue this path toward improvement and ascend up the conference rankings, or they can revert back to their old ways- like they have so many times in the past- and miss the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year. Let’s hope for the former and not the latter.
