After Chauncey Billups was waived under the amnesty clause to make financial room for Tyson Chandler, the biggest concern turned to re-filling that very point guard spot. After all, there's still doubt about whether or not Toney Douglas can run an offense and Iman Shumpert is cut from the same impure point guard mold.

Mike D'Antoni cleared up some of those concerns, saying that the offense would run through Carmelo Anthony, doing that whole point forward thing. That isn't ideal, nor is it particularly reassuring, but that's perhaps the biggest misconception about D'Antoni's offense. It doesn't require point guards so much as it requires playmakers. Whether said playmaker is 6'2 or 6'8 makes little difference. But with Douglas as the starter, in the first preseason game we saw the difference between Douglas' position and Melo's role.

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It's difficult to overstate just how incredible Ray Allen has been through the first three games of the series. While the Knicks slowed him down for stretches early in Game 1, he's all but run amok since, making 15 threes and shooting an absurd eFG% of 84%. As the Celtics carpet bombed the Knicks from three-point territory in Game 3, Jeff Van Gundy was repeatedly befuddled by the amount of times Ray Allen got open looks. He and Paul Pierce seemingly hit every spot up opportunity that came their way and a quick look at the stats reveals just how accurate the bombings were. The Celtics had 28 spot up plays scoring 1.32 points per possession (PPP) while hitting 7 of 12 three-point attempts. They also took 12 shots off screens scoring 1.67 PPP and hitting 3 of 4 threes. I think we can guess who caused the damage considering Allen and Pierce were the only guys in green to make any shots from downtown that game. But it all starts with getting open and for that we go to the tape.

The Knicks aren't going to figure this Ray Allen problem out by this afternoon. The rest of the league hasn't got it down yet and it's been 14 years already. Let's just pray that he's drained cause getting up for a 3:30 tip should feel like waking up from the dead for Mr. Shuttlesworth.

Jared Jeffries is perhaps second to Carmelo Anthony as the most polarizing player on the Knicks' roster. He's the team's most versatile and (since Ronny Turiaf is forever injured) best defender but his box scores are generally empty and he has the hand strength of Hanson. His purpose is often misunderstood and, on nights like Game 2 when he flubs the final possession, it's easy to make him the scapegoat.

That makes for good, angry radio talk but truth is the game wouldn't have been competitive without his defensive contributions. For the series, with Jeffries on the floor, the Celtics' offensive rating (points per 100 possessions) is 97.8. That's a full 8.4 points less than their season average. For comparison's sake, they only score 0.5 points less when Turiaf's in the game. And during the regular season the C's were 15 points off their average with Jeffries on the floor. That is an astronomical number that translates to game tape.

Two years ago at the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference one of the hot topic essays was on the value of the block. I've forgotten the specifics at this point but Jermaine O'Neal ranked first in blocks at the rim. That's all that happened. That's the end of the story. Now, I know that's not amazing to some of you but you ask one of these stat fellas and that stuff is flippin' incredible isn't it?

In Game 1, JO dominated the third quarter on the defensive end and was the factor in the Knicks' 13 point output. It wasn't just with his four blocks (two of which came in said quarter). Jermaine O'mnipresent made sure all lanes were rerouted and all interior shots contested.

The Knicks have a personnel issue at the non-Amar'e Stoudemire-big position, this we know. Do they roll with defensive-minded Ronny Turiaf or space-'em-out Shawne Williams? Mike D'Antoni opts for the extra offensive weapon traditionally but Game 1 was an exception as Extra E played less than 10 minutes. The result was frequent problems with spacing. Strange as it was to see, D'Antoni sacrificed his offense to match up better with the Celtics' front line. Game 2 should be an eyeopener if he elects to do it again.

One frustration we all shared after the Knicks dropped Game 1 to the Celtics was that the offense shied away from Amar'e Stoudemire in the final possessions. It was inexplicable given that he shot 6-7 en route to 12 fourth quarter points. He scored them in a variety of ways whether through aerial pirouettes disguised as layups, monstrously graceful dunks, or simple catch and shoots that wouldn't dare touch anything but net. All of them came through familiar sets with Amar'e curling around the elbow, catching the ball in motion, and working as he saw fit. Here's an example.

Around the time of The Trade, the questions surrounding Chauncey Billups were about his ability to push the ball in Mike D'Antoni's offense given his age and his ability to execute the pick-and-roll effectively. Considering Denver played at one of the fastest paces in the league, it was easy to dismiss the issue of speed. The pick-and-roll was still an uncertainty, though. Was he more of a post-up player? An isolation scorer?

A look at the splits in Synergy shows Billups' production on the PnR taking a nosedive since the trade. Two things jump out immediately. First is that he's doubled the number of PnR he runs under D'Antoni. Even with all the generalities we make about the offense - about its bread and butter high PnR - this is still a bit of a shock. Now imagine Billups' reaction to being placed in completely different scoring situations. Second, the drop in points per possession is an obscene 30%. He went from ranking 6th in the league in Denver to 132nd in New York. In fact, it's Billups' lowest point production of any other scoring scenario. Think about that. Billups spends nearly 40% of his possessions scoring at his worst rate.

Sebastian Pruiti explored the best PnR ball handlers in the league in the offseason looking at shooting percentages and individual points per possession (PPP). He found that Billups had the second highest PPP despite ranking only 15th in shooting percentage from 10-23 feet, concluding that he gets his points by attacking the rim. One problem since the trade is that he can't find lanes to get there. Last night against the Celtics proved to be a prime example.

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Mike D'Antoni likes to cook soup, probably. The second he had a fresh batch of ingredients, he started jackpotting around with some new recipes. I already touched on one of the recipes he unveiled against the Magic, but he's been serving up a heartier, more tasty one over the last few games. I think he calls the play Ossobuco. Like the former, its focus is to get Amare Stoudemire the ball off a curl because through motion is one of the best ways to feed him. So, think of a mobile Amar'e as the base of the offense - the mise en place, if you will.

It begins with the ball on the left wing. Amar'e (or in this case, Shawne Williams) sets a screen for Carmelo Anthony who cuts across the lane and into the left post. As Melo cuts across, the point guard and center set staggering screens for Amar'e.

If the defense behaves, Amar'e is free for his soaking wet midrange jumper off the curl.

Now, Shawne WIlliams' midrange jumper is pretty arid but the play is ran to perfection.

Here's another example with Amar'e's jumper.

Of course, the play isn't always this crisp against teams more enthused than the Utah Jazz this particular evening, so let's have a look at a few variations that come from this set.

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There's been work done recently highlighting the Knicks' improved defense with Jared Jeffries back playing free safety. More of it was on display last night against the Grizzlies as the Knicks started the third quarter in their patented Box-and-Jared which held the opposition to five points in eight possessions. Coupled with an eruption of buckets on the other end, the team pushed ahead to a double-digit lead and a fitted swag. As with all facets of their game, though, sustained defensive prowess continues to be a work in progress and it suffered some lapses late. Here's the good and the bad.

The Grizzlies love to run high-low plays between Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph. It's great because Randolph is a jerk on the block and Gasol's height and passing ability make entry passes all too easy. Last night, the Knicks were able to eliminate it with the zone by surrounding Gasol around the free throw line and fronting Randolph in the post.

Here Landry Fields covers Gasol on the catch and Jeffries fronts Randolph while remaining in position to rotate onto Gasol.

Gasol opts to drive and Jeffries gives his body up for Lent.

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