(AP Photo/Elise Amendola)
Hey, that's a win in my book! The Knicks, against all odds, eked out an 8-point loss last night in Boston. Zach Randolph led the way with 20 and 13 in only 26 minutes as New York played its last game before the all-star break. Before you accuse me of being too positive, note that we managed FORTY-FOUR more points than we did last time. The Celtics only scored 7 more. That's a victory, baby. Get them W's. Game notes:
- Theory: Zach Randolph thinks everybody else is lefty like he is. He always seems to try and force guys to go right when they're heading to the basket. Except righties like Ray Allen (and most of the NBA), are more than happy to do so.
- If he isn't the King, then John Andariese is surely the Duke or the Earl of Obvious. Even so, he made a good point in this one. In the first quarter, the Knicks attacked on defense. They moved and played passing lanes, and had their season's average in steals (6) by like midway through the first quarter. For the rest of the game, they sorta sat back and waited for the C's to attack them.
- Also, when Andariese is really enthusiastic about something, he sounds like Emeril Lagasse: "Oooooh yah". All he needs is to start shouting "BAM" when guys hit threes.
- Do you think Glen Davis wears the number 11 because vertical stripes are slimming? I do. I also think Jared Jeffries should wear an equal sign.
- While Gus Johnson was congratulating someone in the MSG family on their newborn baby, I realized that we need him to do play-by-play on births. Sample:
"There's crowning, everybody...I see a head! Here comes some placenta and-AAAAAUWWWWWHHHHHHH! IT'S A BOY! IT'S A BOY! MEOWWWWWWW! MAZEL TOV!
- Glen Davis has rather chickenish legs for such a big body, and this came to the forefront when all of his weight awkwardly landed on one of those legs. The knee twisted around something awful and he had to leave the game. Inside, I laughed. Outside, I also laughed.
- James Posey really has a problem with whistles. After the Knicks got a shot-clock violation, he inexplicably heaved the (dead) ball the length of the court. When he was called for a travel, he casually spiked the ball off the front rim. Relax, James.
- Apparently, Trent Tucker was very good at tennis.
- Isiah Thomas had just about the quietest ejection I've ever seen. In a span of a couple minutes, without really yelling too much, he picked up two techs and had to peace. Since he wasn't being all that demonstrative, he probably said some very evil shit to Mark Lindsay.
- I've been watching basketball for my whole life, but I still manage to learn something new every day. Last night's lesson: if there is a double lane violation, the free throw doesn't count and the ball is jumped up at center court. So, essentially, if you're gonna box out early...bring a friend from the other team.
- The Knicks actually played an OK offensive game. By the end, it had degenerated into a one-on-one shooting extravaganza, but that's nothing unusual. It was the defense that ate severe dick. Like I said, the guys just sat back in the second half and waited for things to come to them. It just doesn't work that way when you're playing the best team in the NBA.
- The EZ Money tandem got a COMBINED 35 minutes, including only 9 for Curry. If Isiah really did wanna trade these guys, you'd think he'd showcase them a little. Z-Bo did foul out, so I'm wondering more about Eddy.