Tuesday Panther Chameleons

by Seth on Feb 28, 2012 8:24 AM EST in Mamphibitiles

Photo: Marc Staub

Good morning, cavepersons! The Knicks are finally back at practice today and I'm sure there'll be some reports coming from over there. In the meantime, how about a small serving of links to start your day? Very nutritious.

Take the jump.

- Panther chameleons, like all good things, live in Madagascar. Their natural coloring varies wildly depending on where they live on the island.

- Something I didn't know (Knickerblogger's Brian Cronin is good for things like this): The Knicks were the first NBA team to have a roster composed entirely of black players, and thus the first team to play in a game in which only black players participated.

- A suggestion that Carmelo Anthony might see increased success as a roll man...

- ...and a detailed analysis of how poorly Amar'e Stoudemire has played as a spot-up shooter.

- Melo on the Heat:

"The way that they prepared for our team, for our game, that's something that I would like to take and bring that back to my team," Anthony said after playing in Sunday night's All-Star Game. "Just the preparation that they put into the situation that it worked out."

- Sketchin' J.R. Smith.

- Anthony Donahue of TKB's sister Gianna is a cancer survivor, a friend of the Knicks, and the coolest.

- Jeremy Lin isn't on the cover of Newsday today, breaking a 23-day streak. Good lord.

- Finally, today's medical updates heading into practice: Yes for Josh Harrellson, Kinda for Iman Shumpert, No for Bill Walker.

That's all for now. Have an excellent morning! Wear a seatbelt!

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i hate that i'm awake right now

but lovin’ that I can read about the Knicks.

thank you Sethers

by dank7 on Feb 28, 2012 8:39 AM EST reply actions

I really liked

what melo said about being like Miami, in the sense of intensity, that drive to win, I just have this weird feeling about this team, a gut-wrenching feeling of anticipation and expectations.

Beard of Baron

by Dual on Feb 28, 2012 9:03 AM EST reply actions

btw idk if anyone has seen this but a recent pic of Michael Sweetney

https://twitter.com/#!/JohnnyNBA/status/174344831823388674/photo/1

WOW

Beard of Baron

by Dual on Feb 28, 2012 9:15 AM EST up reply actions

He's in midseason form!

by flossy on Feb 28, 2012 10:45 AM EST up reply actions

why does it look like he's trying to play basketball?

sreh ladien e' ta janjia

by Lord Smackington on Feb 28, 2012 11:47 AM EST via Android app up reply actions

Oh my lord.

I actually feel bad for him.

by Joamiq on Feb 29, 2012 6:15 PM EST up reply actions

yeah

did you guys see theknicksblog comments on this? TommyD put it up as a post.

Its all about how Melo is attacking Mike D by saying this, and it proves that he is a horrible coach. The level of hate is fascinating.

I like the comment and I hope melo takes it upon himself to be the leader in that reguard. Because he sure looked unprepared in how to attack the Miami D.

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 Feb 28, 2012 12:44 PM EST up reply actions

Amar'e has sucked on jumpers from 20 feet

and Melo has sucked on 3 pointers. And both of those of those shots are vital to get proper spacing in this offense. Oh well, here’s hoping they’re due.

by Chuck Burly on Feb 28, 2012 9:23 AM EST reply actions

they were both WET from there last year

by dank7 on Feb 28, 2012 9:39 AM EST up reply actions

He just needs to shed off that weight he put on

honestly he’s a step slow because of that weight, 15 pounds does a lot to you, if you ever watch boxing a 3 pound +- makes a WORLD of difference, imagine what 15 pounds does to you…Plus he shouldn’t worry about taking that abuse that he would as a C since we do have tyson. Amare should just keep running and doing agility drills to gain that first step back, as well as the elevation

Beard of Baron

by Dual on Feb 28, 2012 9:53 AM EST up reply actions

agreed

by dank7 on Feb 28, 2012 9:57 AM EST up reply actions

not to mention it would help with the stabilization of imbalanced muscles that occur with weight lifting

People dont realize that even though lifting is great, successive gains in a small amount of time affects the reaction and response of the muscle, its been broken down so fast that its hard for the fast-twitch impulses to give an efficient result right away, that’s why you see Amare starting to play better throughout the games, before the death of his brother. Then he stopped suddenly, and then started up again, so again another adjustment period. I’m telling you guys just wait and see, STAT is coming back.
I just wish someone would work on his lateral footwork (shuttle run drills, and suicides, as well as tire drills with parachutes) he has tools of being a lockdown defender, he just lacks that flexibility laterally, it would also help his dribble drive game as he gets older.)

Beard of Baron

by Dual on Feb 28, 2012 10:10 AM EST up reply actions

Good shit.

Totally agree with you on his lateral agility. But he’s got those tight hips man. Not sure if there’s a whole of improvement that can be done there.

by Crackback on Feb 28, 2012 9:28 PM EST up reply actions

Exactly

People underestimate what 15lbs will do. Plus, he’s not playing C anymore, so he needs to be quicker and more explosive. Kind of counterproductive, putting on weight this summer.

"the Me comes first in Melo" - irishnyer
http://cokupit.com - 2nd best blog on the internet, check it out!

by moose35 on Feb 28, 2012 10:07 AM EST up reply actions

True

A lot of that was probably core muscle to support his back.. but you’re right. I think the lockout is largely to blame, as the team had no access to him to guide his rehab. But also you have to remember that Amar’e figured he’d be spending a lot of time at the 5 this year.

I think he was losing the weight prior to his time off to mourn Hazell and was starting to look more springy. He probably gained some of it back (heck, I certainly would) and now he’s in the process of losing it again.

Get The Frickin' Rebound

by fuhry on Feb 28, 2012 10:18 AM EST up reply actions

Sounds about right

Whether the fact that he was starting to play well was because of lost weight or increased explosiveness…we might never know. But he’s on the right track, and people severely undervalue how great this team can be offensively now that they actually have time to practice and get on the same page.

Not to mention we have a 2nd unit that, when healthy, is capable of demoralizing opposing bench players.

"the Me comes first in Melo" - irishnyer
http://cokupit.com - 2nd best blog on the internet, check it out!

by moose35 on Feb 28, 2012 10:46 AM EST up reply actions

No kidding

I would have drank a LOT less beer in college if I knew what 15 lbs would do

GO CUSE, BLUE, AND EAGLES!

by tanman5 on Feb 28, 2012 12:53 PM EST up reply actions

That is one badass Chameleon!

OREGON DUCKS ROSE BOWL CHAMPIONS - Time to drink Dr Pepper and ship stuff with UPS!!!!!
Follow @MattyFnRaider
ONE NATION UNDER AL
Respect the reputation or it's an altercation.

by Ozraider on Feb 28, 2012 10:10 AM EST reply actions

2 year anniversary

here at PnT best blog on the planet period.

Beard of Baron

by Dual on Feb 28, 2012 12:07 PM EST reply actions

happy anniversary

and as a gift, 2 internets

by blackhova on Feb 28, 2012 3:24 PM EST via mobile up reply actions

While Seth is the Chancellor of all NYK stuff...

Jared Dubin is the Dean of PnR! Very keen observations, indeed!

by chellepretty on Feb 28, 2012 12:51 PM EST reply actions

thx

i dont come here often enough

by PinstripesSince'78 on Feb 28, 2012 1:09 PM EST reply actions

I recall my uncle telling me about the all black knicks team when I was a kid

He told me they were mercilessly tormented on the road and were called the NY Ni**erbockers. My uncle told me that he used to go to the games back then and the whole crowd would be black and latino with a few white people there but not like it was in the 70’s. For him it really cemented the Knicks as a team for everyone in NY and he respected ownership for having the balls to play an all black team when Manhattan is mainly white. We still see the Knicks leading the way today by stumbling upon Jeremy Lin. There is no doubt some teams didn’t play him due to his race and that is why Kobe Bryant went so far as to say he’d fire the management that missed him.

But still, there is an element of white people supporting the white player. Gallo being traded for Anthony probably made some eternal Anthony haters. It is interesting that Lin on a team with many black players, is described as having a high basketball IQ and not credited for his athleticism and really no player on the knicks have been described as having a high IQ. Things are still out there but things are much better.

Freedom is a road seldom traveled by the multitudes...

by Major on Feb 28, 2012 1:39 PM EST reply actions

I really don't think the IQ thing is racist with the Knicks

Lin and Fields went to better schools and play smarter, for the most part. Amar’e didn’t go to college and continually says that no one taught him defense. I’m sure people have tried…

NBA Gauntlet- Home of the Clyde Frazier Dictionary

by mindfeck on Feb 28, 2012 2:01 PM EST up reply actions

In the context that they are mainly black players and no one has said they

have high IQ or high basketball IQ. But Lin does have a high basketball IQ and that was determined after just 11-12 games and doesn’t get credit for having great athleticism to bail him out of jams, it is his IQ. The point is not to say the current Knicks group is experiencing racism. I’m just pointing out how fans and commentators describe certain players based on their looks and backgrounds and not necessarily the facts. Just because Amar’e didn’t go to college doesn’t mean he doesn’t have the aptitude. Perhaps he wasn’t taught defense on the NBA level. Kevin Garnett came out of HS does that mean he didn’t have the aptitude for defense? Or did he simply have better coaching than Stat?

Freedom is a road seldom traveled by the multitudes...

by Major on Feb 28, 2012 2:45 PM EST up reply actions

Amare was recruited to go to Duke

George Raveling and his Momma however put the brakes on that with their little monkey business. Amare is doing quite well for himself considering the guy actually wanted to go to college and not turn pro, but after good ol’ George made sure that Amare would be declared ineligible by slipping his momma cash as frequently as possible and according to George slipping her something else if you get the drift. Amare was persona non Grata on college campuses. He couldn’t even go to junior college.

by Robert Curre on Feb 28, 2012 4:53 PM EST up reply actions

you mean Garnett couldn't go to junior college?

I’m not saying I agree with determining a player’s intelligence by their education, but I think that’s what the media does. They love to think that the college matters for athletes. I read that Lin didn’t even get accepted to UCLA. Do you really think he got into Harvard for his smarts? You think Amar’e would have made Duke if he didn’t play basketball?

In terms of B-Ball IQ, I do think Amar’e’s is quite low, and doesn’t have the dedication to the sport that Garnett does. That’s fairly obvious. Jeffries is considered a high IQ guy, no?

NBA Gauntlet- Home of the Clyde Frazier Dictionary

by mindfeck on Feb 28, 2012 5:22 PM EST up reply actions

Ummmm

Jeremy had a 4.2 GPA at Palo Alto HS.

- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palo_Alto_High_School#Academic_Achievements
- Read somewhere he got an 800 on the SAT II Math IIC exam as a 9th grader.

I’m preeeeeetty sure he was smart enough to get into Harvard academically.

by Dirtybirdz04 on Feb 28, 2012 11:45 PM EST up reply actions

i read he had a 2140 on the SAT

They reject people with 2400. Most of my HS did better than him.

4.2 GPA is meaningless. Was he #1 in his class?

NBA Gauntlet- Home of the Clyde Frazier Dictionary

by mindfeck on Feb 29, 2012 11:44 AM EST up reply actions

I have zero Idea whether or not Amare would have made Duke or not

Don’t know the man personally and therefore wouldn’t begin to make assumptions about his intelligence or qulifications for admission. But It is public record that Duke recruited him and he declared for Duke and that the scholarship was rescinded when the NCAA declared him ineligible.

by Robert Curre on Feb 29, 2012 2:58 PM EST up reply actions

Duke would've been a great experience for Amar'e

He probably could be a better player than he is now. I don’t know if that translates to a better defensive player but certainly a better overall player.

Freedom is a road seldom traveled by the multitudes...

by Major on Feb 28, 2012 5:24 PM EST up reply actions