N.Y. Knicks: Nine is Just Fine

From the desk: KICKING CANS DOWN 33RD STREET WITH JIMMY

Saturday Afternoon Live!

Knicks defeat Raptors; 2-1

I - TOR 100; NYK 83

II - NYK 102; TOR 96

Raptors 103

Knicks  120

FINAL

OLD SCHOOL IS IN THE HOUSE!

It goes without saying the Knicks are far exceeding pre-season expectations.  In fact, outside of Tom Thibodeau's arrival, there were no expectations, making what they're accomplishing a pure delight.

Only eight teams presently have more victories than the Knicks, who are now seven games above .500 and winners of nine in a row.  If that isn't enough, only five teams have more home wins than the Knicks. 

While the excitement level is being compared to eight years ago and winning the Atlantic Division title, this season brings me back to 1983-1984 when coach Hubie Brown demanded defensive effort from Bernard King and a similarly populated roster.  That team finished the season at 47-35 (.573), but after 61 games, they owned a 36-25 record, just two games ahead of the Knicks' present pace.  

At 27-years of age, Bernard King led the Knicks with 26.3 points per game, and Bill Cartwright was number two with 17.0 points per game.  Today, 26-year old Julius Randle leads the Knicks with 24.0 points per game, followed by RJ Barrett averaging 17.6 points per game.

That Knicks team upset the Bad Boy Detroit Pistons in the first round of playoffs, then pushed Larry Bird and Team Green to a game seven in round two.

What this team is capable of accomplishing remains to be seen.

While Julius Randle continues flourishing in the limelight, Derrick Rose remains the underlying force quietly fueling these Knicks.  The former league MVP on Saturday led the floor with a plus-26 in 33 minutes off the bench.  He was an efficient 7/10 from the field and 5/6 from the line for 19 points and a team-high seven assists and two steals.

Nine games ago, the Knicks took Memphis into overtime and won by four; Rose scored 19 points in 26 minutes.  Last Sunday, the Knicks took New Orleans into overtime and won by ten; Rose scored 23 points, his most since joining the Knicks.  Last Wednesday, he calmly helped gear up his mates for yet another extra session victory over Atlanta finishing with 20 points and a plus-14 in 30 minutes off the bench.  Over his last four games, Derrick is averaging 19.7 points and five assists in 30.7 minutes.

Julius Randle led all scorers with 31 points in 39 minutes.  With ten defensive rebounds, he notched his 36th double-double.  In fact, Julius is one of only 14 NBA players averaging a double-double for the season.  He is averaging 24.0 points for the season but is averaging 27.3 points in April and 30.1 points during this nine-game win streak.

RJ Barrett was plus-23 in 38 minutes.  He was an efficient 8/16 from the field and 6/7 from the line for 25 points.  It marks the sixth time in 13 games this month that he's topped 20 points.  Barrett also secured a season-high twelve rebounds for his first double-double since Mar. 25 against Washington.  It's his fifth double-double of the season and the sixth time he's secured double-digit rebounds.

Together, Nerlens Noel and Taj Gibson are not the equals of Bill Cartwright, but they nonetheless joined for ten points and ten rebounds at the center.

For the moment, the NBA stingiest defensive team owns the fourth place in the Eastern Conference all to themselves.  It's just such a shame packed houses at the church of DEE-FENSE aren't being allowed to witness and enjoy this.

• Next up: Phoenix Suns on Monday.

BK Nets: How Darryl Dawkins planted his flag in Bernard King's house

From the desk of:  

THE HOOPS OF FLATBUSH  and  DUTCH PANTS CAN'T JUMP

DARRYL DAWKINS

1957 - 2015
*

New Jersey Nets

1982 - 1987

BROOKLYN NETS: Darryl Dawkins planted his flag on Flatbush Avenue long before the team arrived, back during the wildly popular Bernard King's County era.

The Nets enterprise obviously enjoyed its greatest success when they played on Long Island. Spanning three years between 1973-1976, the New York Nets averaged 56 wins per season and captured 2 ABA championships.

Julius Erving was then infamously sold to the Philadelphia 76ers, while the team itself moved to New Jersey after the 1976-1977 season.  After which, the transplanted Nets unavoidably posted four consecutive sub-par seasons.

Then led by notables such as Otis Birdsong and Buck Williams, and coached by Larry Brown, the 1981-1982 the Nets finally emerged from the second division to join the ranks of Eastern Conference contenders.  Their 44-38 record was the team's first winning campaign since fleeing Long Island, and also earned them their first ever NBA playoff appearance.

For the 1982-1983 season, Birdsong and Williams, Mike Gminski, Sleepy Floyd, Len Elmore, Albert King, and the troubled Michael Ray Richardson, welcomed Darryl Dawkins into the fold.

Dawkins, affectionately known as Chocolate Thunder, was a center by trade, and was acquired from the 76ers to clog up the paint.  He did just that, and in fact led the league in personal fouls for two straight seasons upon his arrival.

His first two seasons with the Nets were by far his healthiest.  He played 81 games each year, and provided the Nets with double-digit scoring and 6 rebounds per game.

Overall, and despite injuries, I remember Dawkins playing an integral role in helping put a New Jersey team on the map.  With him, the Nets continued a run of 5 straight playoff appearances - without him, I'm not so sure.

He along with Dominique Wilkins, Dr. J of course, along with a few others, were the original highlight films before the spread of cable TV and prominence of ESPN.

Darryl was famously known for naming his dunks, and long before Bo Jackson arrived snapping baseball bats across his knee, Chocolate Thunder became notorious for shattering NBA backboards and making them rain glass.  The George Michaels' Sports Machine never failed in featuring a big Double-D Dunk of the Week.

That was cool back then...

He played for New Jersey during my mid-teens, obviously very impressionable years during one's life.

I've always been the type that when my favorite teams are idle, or even between commercials, I watch the other locals as intently.  To me, that's the beauty and benefit of being a sports fan in New York - or the symptoms of being a sports junkie.  Your choice.

The Nets (Devils and Jets) never inspired that Rangers/Islanders or Mets/Yankees "sports hatred" situation for me.  Yours truly found the New Jersey Nets of the 1980's an entertaining watch for as long as they weren't beating the Knicks.

The Knicks were the second team I ever came to know and root for as a young child after the Mets.

As a charter member of the NBA, the Knicks have long reigned over all of Empire City.

Yet, on any given city playground or cleverly devised and improvised basketball court during the 1980's - even deep within local hero Bernard King's own home turf - many a Brooklyn kid could be heard invoking the name of Chocolate Thunder! in assault of their playground rim.

I did...  In the 1980's, you did too!

When kids (then or now) invoke a player's name during local pick-up games, you know that player is somebody.  As Reggie Jackson once declared, "Fans don't boo nobodys."

In those days, going Chocolate Thunder on someone was the only credible response to having someone gone Bernard King all up in your face first.  Trust me, no one was getting Rory Sparrow on each other, nor were they flexing their inner Darwin Cook.  Lets face it, trying to go Otis or Buck on someone would have been weak as well.  You know the deal.

All I know is here in Brooklyn, for both Knicks and whatever Nets fans alike, Darryl Dawkins was the only answer if someone got all Bernard King on you in the park.

For my humble experience, we played with a friend whom we permanently renamed Chuck over his obscene proclivity for launching bricks.  But every time he did go BerNARD! on me, I resorted to Chocolate Thunder every time.

Around here, he somehow became a playground legend in defiance of a King.

Both on and off the court, he was one of the most gregarious persons on the planet.  I didn't understand that about him prior to his arrival from Philadelphia.  But I grew to know it well.

Darryl Dawkins passed away in August, and will be missed.

N.Y. Knicks: London Braces For A Royally Bad Show

From the desk of:  DUTCH PANTS CAN'T JUMP

The Knickerbockers are well on their way 

towards the franchise's first ever 60-loss season.

If they keep up this rate of futility, 70 losses is not out of the question.

NEW YORK KNICKS: Team Half Way Through Historically Inept Season; Phil of the Future Said, Blame Me.

...Okay, Phil.  Consider it done.

He nailed it when he spoke of this team's loser mentality though.

I became a fan of this team just after the championship years; right around 1974-75.

That year, they posted their first losing season after eight winning campaigns, and a pair of NBA titles.

Just my luck, right?

I watched that team either retire, or get dismantled.  I caught the back end of the careers of Earl the Pearl Monroe, Bob McAdoo, Dave DeBusschere, and agonized over the trading of Clyde Frazier.

I also watched their team mate, Knicks president Phil Jackson's playing career fade into the sunset.

I caught Red Holzman as coach, when Willis Reed took over, and when Red Holzman came back.

I dealt with the disappointment of Michael Sugar Ray Richardson, lived through the Hubie Brown days, and felt a sharp pain when Bernard King went down.

I was also one of the fans chanting - Fire Al Bianchi - and of course, endured the tenure of Isiah Thomas.

Who could envision this organization getting even worse, and making those seem like the good old days?

The present day Knicks have lost their last 15 in a row, and 25 of their last 26 games.  So far, they own an overall 5-35 (.125) record this season.

They need to post a 15-27 record the rest of the way just to avoid becoming the first ever Knicks team that failed to win at least 20 games in a season.  With Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith already gone; Jose Calderon, Andrea Bargnani, and anyone else not named Melo on the endangered list; not to mention knee surgery looming for Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire struggling with his own knee problems; there are few who believe they can pull it off.

Another way of putting this into perspective: this franchise has never suffered the indignity of a 60-loss season, although they came close several times.

Before my time on this planet, the Knicks of the early 1960s were terrible (and only played 80 games a season):

• 1960-61; 21-58 (.266)
• 1961-62; 29-51 (.363)
• 1962-63; 21-59 (.263)* All-Time Franchise Worst
• 1963-64; 22-58 (.275)

The good times didn't roll in until the late 1960s and early '70s, when they moved into present day Madison Square Garden.

Then I came onto the scene as a young fan, and watched the 1970s close out with some pretty funky basketball.

After Red Holzman's last hurrah in 1980-81, Hubie Brown rode Bill Cartwright and Bernard King to a pair of playoff appearances before the franchise tanked again (after Bernard King's knee injury).

• 1984-85; 24-58 (.293)
• 1985-86; 23-59 (.280)
• 1986-87; 24-58 (.293)

Then, with Patrick Ewing, Mark Jackson, and Charles Oakley, coached by Rick Pitino, things started getting markedly better.  The Knicks made the playoffs every season from 1988 through 2001.  Pat Riley and Jeff Van Gundy led them to respective NBA Finals, but each fell short of a title.

Then came the Isiah Thomas era.  I'll say this in his defense: I was agreeable with his initial appointment, and at the time, totally on board with rebuilding the Knicks (which knowingly required patience).  However, his time here requires an entirely different conversation.  His relationship with James Dolan was a sad and destructive time in Knicks history.

What we need to know for this post, is that under Zeke, the Knicks twice matched Hubie Brown's mark for team futility:

• 2005-06; 23-59 (.280)
• 2006-07; 33-49 (.402)
• 2007-08; 23-59 (.280)

The funny thing is, a team composed of Zach Randolph, David Lee, Nazr Mohammed, Trevor Ariza, Jamal Crawford, and even Nate Robinson, would destroy this year's Knicks, even with a healthy Melo and Amare on the floor.

I digress....

Of course, then came the sacrificial season under Donnie Walsh and Mike D'Antoni.  But, not even that season stood to be as bad as this unfolding one seems to be headed.  If you remember, at one point Donnie Walsh stripped the roster down to just 8 or 9 bodies, while he and D'Antoni pulled the plug on Stephon Marbury's playing time, and even reduced him to civilian clothes.

• 2009-10; 29-53 (.354)

Thursday's game is the official mid-point of the Knicks season, and they'll mark the occasion with a game in London, England, against Jason Kidd's Milwaukee Bucks.

Since when is trying to avoid a 16th consecutive loss considered exportable, much less prime, entertainment?

What on earth did the Brits ever do to the NBA to deserve this match-up?  We screw them the same way with NFL games.

Blimey!

...Cause in sleepy London town there's just no place for........the New York Knicks.  No.  Get down! - stuff Mick Jagger might say.

Mike

N.Y. Knicks: Melo Sets Team Record With 62 Points

From the desk of:   DUTCH PANTS CAN'T JUMP

NEW YORK KNICKS: Move Over Bernard King, And So Long Kobe Bryant!  Carmelo Anthony Scored 62 Points Friday Night Against The Charlotte Bobcats.

Friday Night Final

Charlotte   96

Knicks     125

The new king of points at Madison Square Garden is once again a Knick.  Carmelo Anthony surpassed Bernard King's long held club record of 60 points in a game, and eclipsed Kobe Bryant's MSG record of 61 points.  Kobe Bryant achieved his mark five seasons ago, while Bernard King set the former club record of 60 points back in 1984 on Christmas Day.

Melo was off to a hot start with 20 points in the 1st quarter.  But, you knew something was brewing when Carmelo nailed a shot from mid-court as the buzzer sounded to end the first half.  That unlikely bucket gave him 37 points.  Then after three quarters, Melo had 56 points.  The rest is, as they say, history.

Anthony could have scored more, lots more, but opted out of the game after 39 minutes, and with the Knicks ahead by 30 points.  When he reached 62 points for the night, there were still over seven minutes left in the 4th quarter.

The man was also a model of efficiency Friday night, shooting 66% from the field.  He was 23/35 from the floor, including 6/11 from beyond the arch, and a perfect 10/10 from the line.

He led all players in minutes, which has become his custom this season, and for good measure, led all players with 13 rebounds, which made his effort even more unique.  ESPN Stats says Anthony is only the 6th player in the last 25 years to register at least 60 points and 10 rebounds in a game.  In fact, Friday night he was only player to pull down double-digit boards.

Loathe him or love him, but give the man his due respect.  Carmelo Anthony can now add this game to his Knicks resume, along with the NBA scoring title he won last season.

Friday's victory also snapped the Knicks five game losing streak, and for a night, made fans forget about injuries, a losing record, and the coach's job security.

Lastly, naysayers sniveled that Melo did not register a single assist.  I'm one of his naysayers, but on a night such as this, he shouldn't have any assist.  The idea was to get him the ball.  Instead, look around, as five other Knicks registered at least three assists.  And to put it plainly, it's not like the Bobcats forced the 'Bockers into making extra passes with good defense.

This game doesn't erase all the Knicks problems, but on this night, Carmelo Anthony was great.  I watched Bernard King post his 60 points in a losing effort.  This time around, Carmelo was the victorious king of Madison Square Garden.




Mike.BTB

N.Y. Knicks - Bernard King Gets Call To The Hall

From the desk of:   DUTCH PANTS CAN'T JUMP

 

#30

Bernard King

 

Elected To Basketball Hall Of Fame

 

NEW YORK KNICKS: BER-NARD!

His Name Resonated Through Every Playground

in New York City.

I do not remember the 1973 championship season - too young.  I became a serious fan during Clyde Frazier's and Dave Debusschere's last seasons.  I remember when Red Holzman, then Willis Reed, then Red Holzman (again) ran things here.  I was a Knicks fan when Mr. Bill Cartwright was drafted, and Sugar Ray Richardson played.  That leads us into Hubie Brown and Bernard King.


I was like most teenage boys in Brooklyn during summer.  When not engaged in baseball, I was in the park playing basketball.  You played three-on-three on the side, until "Next" for your five guys came up on the full court.  Winner stayed on the court - losers strayed back into three-on-three, or got angry and assembled another five.


Bernard King was part of all of it.  Born in Brooklyn, he became the measure of all things basketball in Gotham.  No playground was replete without the local version of BER-NARD!  Every team had at least three.  Every shot was patterned after his.  In my day, every shot was - In Your Face!  Swishhh!  Or just accompanied by a BER-NARD!


For a guy who's last name lent itself to mundane media metaphors, King was always BER-NARD to us.  I have followed the Knicks for nearly forty years now, and have either found favor or disgust with many players over that time.  Bernard King is without a doubt my favorite Knicks player of all-time, with Patrick Ewing coming in a considerable second.  Throughout the Knicks long playoff run of the 1990's, no player surpassed what Bernard King did to the Detroit Pistons and Boston Celtics during the 1984 playoffs.  I only wish, like many Knicks fans of the time, Bernard King and Patrick Ewing could have played together.  A debilitating knee injury, and former GM Al Bianci's gross mismanagement of the team prevented that from happening.  I also pondered many times what Bernard King, Patrick Ewing, and Mark Jackson could have done together.  If only...


You can save your arguments opposing his election into the Hall of Fame.  When I think of Bernard King, one thing and one thing only pops into my mind - greatness.  He was a true King of the city.


He was....BER-NARD!





Mike.BTB