I believe that Amare is hurt

by StarksMiddleFinger on Mar 22, 2011 7:44 PM EDT

Sorry Rorschach, it's just what I believe. But feel free to disagree.

I think that Amare Stoudemire has been playing hurt for some time now. He will play a lot better if he can get a rest (All Star break didn't count for him) and the chance to heal.

Jump for a quick explanation:

First of all, Why do I think he's hurt?

Amare is a shell of the player he was the first few months of the season. He was posterizing fools, swatting shots everywhere, and was always running the floor like a gazelle and finishing fast breaks. And he was doing it on a nightly basis.

We're starting to see him fail at things that we're very routine for him just a few months ago. The aging process doesn't happen that fast, people. Think about how many dunks he's been missing lately. How many times he's been getting his shot blocked. How he's one of the last to get downcourt. How he's no longer seems to be able to muscle guys for tough baskets inside at will.

Remember last night in the 4th quarter when he came baseline for the dunk and was denied by Glen Davis (yes, it was a foul, but the point is that a healthy Amare would have flushed it for an And One). And there have been several of those plays every night, where you're like, "Buckle up for Amare... aw man... what happened?" That dunk on Greg Monroe was nice, but it he was kind of lucky it still went in since he threw it without touching the rim. He's been getting bullied by the likes of Chris Wilcox? Hansborough? JJ Hickson? etc...

Amare is 28 y'all. And just a few months ago, he was destroying the Lakers in the playoffs (playing for the Suns).

Think of how many times we've seen him go down and stay down for a minute or so holding a body part. You think those pains just disappeared? He's obviously dealing with lingering injuries, but he won't rest because...

Why doesn't he just rest for a few games?

Remember when he first signed with the Knicks, and the media was like, "Wow! The Knicks are SO STUPID! Amare is so fragile and injury prone. He'll get hurt after a few weeks." Well Amare has a lot of pride (which I love), and he doesn't want to give them the opportunity to say "I told you so." He knows the media will eat him up if he starts sitting out games, so he's playing through injuries and trying to be the Saviour that he knows New York is thirsting for.

Then he didn't want to take off any games because he knew the All-Star break was coming. But finally he had to rest one game (against the Nets), and was thinking about resting the final game before the break (against the Hawks) but the NBA informed him that he couldn't play in the All-Star game if he was missing regular season games. Again, his pride (which I think is an asset) got in the way, and he played that night against the Hawks.

Now he really needs a rest, but Carmelo is here. If Amare takes some games off now, the offense will inevitably run through Melo, and then Amare will have to deal with all that bullshit about, "Well, maybe this is really Melo's team? Amare couldn't do it on his own, and Melo had to come in and save the day." Amare doesn't want to rest because he needs to establish that this is his team and he's the unquestioned leader (and I think it is his team a lot more than Melo's.

I love Amare Stoudemire, and I am so grateful to him for coming here and putting the franchise on his back when all the other free agents were scared. He's been a leader on the court, and in the community, but dude really just needs to rest if he's going to be effective down the stretch.

Tweet Comment 20 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

He's fine.

like I said, the technical foul thing is weighing on him, he doesn’t want to go nuts and get it. And the trade affects everyone on the team, including Mare (his PG changed didn’t it?)

Last night, a comedian died in New York. Somebody knows why. Somebody knows

by Rorschach44 on Mar 22, 2011 8:24 PM EDT reply actions

yep, that dunk on monroe wasnt lucky ,ha

by BubbaChuck on Mar 22, 2011 8:34 PM EDT up reply actions

i think the T's

are in his head as well. Its bullshit.

Everything is bullshit.

I think it was Bobby V who said: "You are never as good as you are when you are at your best, and you are not as bad as when you are at your worst."

by gbaked on Mar 23, 2011 11:41 AM EDT up reply actions

i gotta agree with the poster on this...

i’ve been wondering, and commenting on it. something is missing. obviously it’s all speculation and while i agree that the technical situation is definitely affecting his defensive aggression… it shouldn’t be affecting his offensive execution and explosion.

perhaps it’s magnified by the crappy pnr’s he’s running with billups, though it started before the trade.

or perhaps his spring has sprung and the guy burned himself out a little trying to resuscitate knicks nation all on his own. either way, it’s fairly undeniable that his finishes haven’t been as fierce, nor have his cuts and drives been as decisive. but we’re with you amare… all the way.

by bucketsncents on Mar 22, 2011 8:32 PM EDT reply actions

the only thing I notice that's diffrent with Amar'e, at least when he gets the ball

is that he’s not trying to posterize everyone, which really has been there all year anyway. He just doesn’t do it anymore…tho I’d say 90% of that is no more Nash, who had the uncanny ability to pass to him in the paint (when the fuck was the last time someone passed to Amare in the paint???) so he gets those dunks.

Billups, Carmelo, they affect Amar’e. I mean maybe he’s dealing with some bumps and bruises but if anyone in the NBA doesn’t have bumps and bruises, they’re Eddy Curry.

Last night, a comedian died in New York. Somebody knows why. Somebody knows

by Rorschach44 on Mar 22, 2011 8:41 PM EDT up reply actions

i'm hoping you're right...

but i have my concerns… and it’s not even that we need him expending energy on posterizing dudes… but it definitely gets his troops up when he does. and yeah, not having nash, and even felton has lessened his opportunities…

and come to think about it, i can’t remember the last time we had “easy buckets” born from dribble drives and dishes or effective pnr’s (with a few exceptions)… it’s just gone from our arsenal, and will hopefully return when the real billups shows up and the chemistry evolves.

by bucketsncents on Mar 22, 2011 8:46 PM EDT up reply actions

its taken its toll on Amare

and maybe he’s more tired then hurt. But yea, the easy basket thing is valid. Nash used to get him probably 10-15 easy points just last year

Last night, a comedian died in New York. Somebody knows why. Somebody knows

by Rorschach44 on Mar 22, 2011 9:00 PM EDT up reply actions

cmon guy.

Its the normal wear and tear of the season. He isn’t limping or anything. He might be a little banged up but he isn’t injured. He’s mostly just leaning his sweet sweet jumper.

by Crackback on Mar 22, 2011 9:58 PM EDT via mobile reply actions

again, i hope y'all are right...

but it does make one wonder given his history…

by bucketsncents on Mar 22, 2011 10:36 PM EDT up reply actions

He's played almost 700 NBA games

Players lose some explosiveness after that many miles. If he relied solely on his physical prowess I’d be worried, but he doesn’t, so I’m not.

"But when he saw it, he just put his hands up and they couldn’t give it to him. It just fell to the ground, I-I don’t, you know … So, that showed me he had great experience..." - Jeff Van Gundy

by Anthony Bonner's Subpoena on Mar 22, 2011 11:55 PM EDT reply actions

Amar'e is about as hurt as anyone else playing his type of minutes at this point in the season.

Guys get banged up in this league. He’s fine. These are also essentially the dog days of the NBA season. At this point everyone is just trying to get to the playoffs before they start hyping themselves up for the post season. You will see these guys play with more of a fire lit under their ass in these last 12 games, trust me, too much pride with that group.

With that said I can think of a few things as to why Amar’e looks different on the court.

1.) New PG and Toney Douglas

Billups and Amar’e haven’t really had a good time gelling. Have any of you noticed that he’s just not getting the ball fed to him by Billups down low in the paint where he’s arguably the best PF in the L? And Toney Douglas just can’t seem to want to pass the damn ball on pick and rolls (Billups guilty here too). Amar’e is left arms raised all by his damn lonesome EVERY TIME Toney is running the offense. That kind of shit is frustrating to us, imagine how Amar’e feels about it. Everytime he gets the ball he’s forced to create his own shot. It’s amazing to me he’s performing the way he is.

2.) Melo

Melo and Amar’e have to learn to complement each other. It’s tough for Amar’e because he wanted Melo here and he wants Melo to be himself but that’s just not gonna cut it in this offense. Someone will have to take a backseat to the other and that’s part of what this adjustment period is all about. Unfortunately Melo is right, these kinds of things take time.

3.) Technical Fouls

As someone above mentioned before, this has to have some sort of effect on Amar’e. He plays with emotion and this ridiculous rule is not letting him play the way he is used to playing. The refs have WAY too much say in the game. I wish there was more I could do about that absurd “no emotion or a tech” rule the league has now. I’m not paying to watch refs make bad calls, I’m paying to watch some of the best athletes in the world go head to head giving it all they have. Amar’e would get hyped off of very insignificant plays early on in the season. Now he’s forced to tone himself down or get suspended. It’s absurd and I think it may have an effect on our leader.

In Donnie we trust.

by $100M Contract on Mar 23, 2011 3:19 AM EDT reply actions

He’s just waiting for the playoffs. You’ll see a monster in the Knicks like you haven’t seen for a very long time.

ITS CALLED DEFENSE! D.E.F.E.N.S.E.! I MAYBE-I MAYBE WRONG...BUT I DOUBT IT!

by Jipeon on Mar 23, 2011 3:23 AM EDT reply actions

According to the stats we should.

Proud Islanders fan, the organization that iced the greatest team to ever play the game and won 4 straight cups. Best overall player in the nhl right now=Pavel Datsyuk.
I'm also an optimistic Knicks fan, pessimistic Mets fan, and a happy Jets fan.

by OzzyFan on Mar 23, 2011 2:09 PM EDT up reply actions

Of course Amar'e is hurting

As is every player in the league that has played his minutes. And yes for the record he is dealing with several aches and pains actually. But he is playing because the teams needs him to play and there is a difference between playing hurt and playing injured. But really apart from the disappearance of posters for folks, Amar’e has been pretty effective.

by Robert Curre on Mar 23, 2011 9:17 AM EDT reply actions

he has been effective...

and nobody’s questioning his heart or the impact of a season… i think some of us are just pointing out the difference in his play, and preparing ourselves for the bulk of his contract years being played more as a jump shooter (albeit a great one), than a dominant, drive to the basket, intimidating big.

by bucketsncents on Mar 23, 2011 3:21 PM EDT up reply actions