Tag: Basketball

In Case You missed It

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

While everyone has been gearing up for the most exciting tournament of the year, there have been some other sporting events that you may have missed. I missed them as well, for good reason, but let me fill you in just in case you haven’t heard about them. Let me start with the most insignificant of them all. Did you guys really just storm the court for an NIT victory? I get it, Robert Morris probably isn’t supposed to beat anybody so beating Kentucky is a big deal, but it is the NIT. Who wants to watch the leftover scraps play basketball? This tournament isn’t meaningful, and I don’t know why we even have it. Most teams, like Kentucky, are so disappointed that they didn’t make it into the real tournament that they mail in an effort in the NIT. Congratulations Robert Morris, you beat a team that didn’t even want to be there.

Something else you definitely missed was the finals of the World Baseball Classic. Man is this tournament a bad idea. ALL PLAYERS should be with their respective REAL teams in March. You know, since they are holding this little thing called spring training right now. If you wanted to watch baseball’s watered down version of the ‘World Cup’, then I guess you were 1 of the 14 people who watched the World Baseball Classic. The Dominican Republic dominated the World Baseball Classic going 8-0 in the tournament. They capped off their run though the Classic with a 3-0 victory over Puerto Rico.

Also, over the past week we have seen a handful of free agent signings in the NFL. Steven Jackson signed with the Atlanta Falcons, bringing the size and strength their running game has been missing. Sure you can say, well what about Michael Turner wasn’t he a good strong back? No, no he wasn’t. The guy looked like he was running in quicksand. Jackson entering his 10th NFL season will be a better fit for the Falcons then Turner ever was. Greg Jennings has signed with the enemy; the Minnesota Vikings. There used to be a day when people would cringe when players signed with their rival, but the game has changed. In today’s NFL, there is no such thing is loyalty. It’s all about the Benjamin’s baby! Jennings should be a nice addition for the Vikings who traded Percy Harvin to the Seattle Seahawks prior to free agency. The New York Jets are still holding Darrelle Revis in limbo with his playing career. The Jets obviously aren’t pleased with the offers they are getting for Revis, or else he’d be gone by now. This begs the question, will Darrelle Revis be traded before this season or will the Jets get stuck with him? Ed Reed is a big name that has yet to sign on a dotted line, however Baltimore is showing interest in re-signing him and the Houston Texans have shown some interest as well. Lastly, you had one of the weirdest situations in the history of the NFL happen last week. Elvis Dumervil, the outstanding defender for the Denver Broncos, had until 4 p.m. on March 15th to decide whether he would restructure his contract or be released by the Broncos. He had decided to restructure, however his decision which was sent via fax was received by the Broncos just minutes after the deadline. This snafu could cost either Dumervil millions of dollars or the Broncos one of their best players. Either way it is definitely one of the most interesting situations in NFL history.

In basketball news, the Miami Heat still haven’t lost a basketball game in a little over 23 years. Oh my bad, I meant 23 games, they’ve extended their streak to 23 straight wins and they haven’t lost since January. Also flying under the radar are the Denver Nuggets. They beat the Oklahoma City Thunder Tuesday night to extend their winning streak to 13 games. In other mega-important news Tiger Woods is dating….ah who cares, just win golf tournaments buddy. And that about raps this past week in sports. It has been mostly irrelevant, but it was enough to hold us over until the main course; the NCAA tournament.

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook athttp://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

It’s About Damn Time

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

All I have to say is thank god the Utah Jazz are terrible. It is also nice that Raymond Felton decided to take charge again out there on the court. In a hefty 42 minutes, Felton played a very effective basketball game. He had 19 points on 8 of 12 shooting from the field. To add to his offensive efficiency, he added 4 assists and 3 steals. With Felton, as it often is, his success goes beyond the numbers. He needs to be a leader on his team. The offense needs to run through him not in spite of him. Even when Carmelo Anthony returns, Felton needs to continue to be the orchestrator for the Knicks offense. When Felton turns up the intensity and starts attacking the basket it opens up the court for everyone else. As I pointed out in the 2nd half of their game against the Los Angeles Clippers, Felton seemed to turn his game up a notch (nice to see but too little too late). He did carry that same energy over to Utah with him, and the Knicks got a HUGE victory. While Felton had a solid game (did I mention Raymond Felton played well last night?), the Knicks showed a nice balance throughout the entire game. J.R Smith added 20 points, and Chris Copeland, in his 9th start of the season, added 14 crucial points. Now that the Knicks finally won a game, they also get the added bonus of coming home. The rundown short-handed Knicks went 1-4 on this brutal 5 game road trip. They have been riddled with injuries and inconsistent play for weeks now and nothing can cure their symptoms better than a home cooked meal. Knicks fans are hopeful that Carmelo Anthony will return to action soon, and we are still awaiting an official report on Tyson Chandler’s status. The word on the street is that Chandler has a slight bulging disc in his spine, and should be fine in a weeks time. My advice would be to hold Anthony and Chandler out for as long as they have to in order for them to be ready for the playoffs. I know that winning the Atlantic Division is a big deal, but they will need their two best players at full strength to make a run in the playoffs (no matter their seed). As I mentioned earlier, the Knicks will head home for a much needed night off and will enjoy a good night sleep in their own beds. They jump back into action Wednesday night at 7:30 P.M. against the Orlando Magic. Even without their three best players, I’m predicting another win by the Manhattan Nursing Home All-Stars. I mean another win by the New York Knicks, sorry sorry. Enjoy the game everybody!

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook athttp://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

I Wanna Go Home!!!!

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

Well, they did it again!  They blew another one.  After playing a really solid 1st quarter, the New York Knicks found themselves with an 8 point lead.  At one point in the 2nd quarter they were up 13 (41-28).  The New York Knicks, like I’ve been saying all season, don’t have that killer instinct that you need to close out games.  I know I know it was only the 2nd quarter, but if they keep the pressure on the Trailblazers and sustain their lead going into halftime this game would have played out very differently.  Over a span of 2 minutes and 43 seconds at the end of the first half, the Knicks went from up 10 points to down 3 points.  It’s amazing how a team can play so well for 21+ minutes and in a blink of an eye watch all of their hard work wash away.  It’s almost like high tide coming up the beach, you know it’s coming there’s just nothing you can do about it.  If there was any doubt that the Knicks were going to lose this game when they went to halftime, they erased all doubt with their lackluster 3rd quarter.  The came out of the locker room as flat as they went in and they found themselves down 16 points at the end of the 3rd quarter.  The New York Knicks lost to the Portland Trailblazers by a score of 105-90.

I could write for days and days and days about the Knicks problems and why they are playing so poorly, but I’ll try to keep it simple.  The Knicks don’t play any defense.  I’m not going to sit here and make excuses about their injuries because they don’t play defense when their entire roster is 100% either.  They play defense for 8 minute stretches, but they don’t consistently shut teams down for 48 minutes.  They also are a jump shooting team that relies heavily on the 3-pointer.  When that is your teams strategy you go through ups and downs.  Right now they are clearly trending down.  On the Trailblazers side of things, they may not make any noise in the league this year, but they have a good young team with a lot of potential for years to come.  Damian Lillard is really really good (enough said).  If you don’t know who he is, he is going to be hoisting the Rookie of the Year trophy at the end of the year.  Let me get back to the hopeless Knicks.

The Knicks have played 3 out of 5 games on this tough road trip.  They must be more homesick than a child going to sleepaway summer camp for the first time.  Their road trip is not going to get an easier either.  They will have to head over to Los Angeles next to play the Clippers, and then they’ll finish up this dreadful road trip against the Utah Jazz (good, at least they’ll win 1 game on this road trip).  Side note:  what’s the deal with fans booing former players for literally no reason?  Last night the Trailblazers’ fans made it very clear how they felt about Raymond Felton.  However, just like Carmelo Anthony’s return to Denver, this unruly behavior was uncalled for.  Fans are not smart.  They boo players just because they used to play for “their” team, and now they don’t play there anymore.  They don’t have a valid reason to boo said player, they just do it because, well it seemed like the right thing to do at the time.  Well, once again these uninformed fans are 100% in the wrong to boo Raymond Felton.  Let me just state that I’m not defending these players just because they are on the Knicks, I would feel this way about any player that was treated this way.  Anyway, if you want to boo someone because they played poorly that’s fine but do it while they are on the team.  If someone plays that poorly for your team, you should be relieved that they were traded, no?  Plus, he was TRADED.  He didn’t leave under his own power because he wanted out of Portland.  I think fans should reserve booing for the players who actually caused problems or drama when they were part of your favorite team.  Other than that, get over it.

Like I said earlier you can find the Knicks in action again this coming Sunday at 3:30 P.M. against the Clippers.  They are going to need a miracle if they plan on winning that game.  They will be without Carmelo Anthony once again after having his knee drained Thursday.  Tyson Chandler’s status will also be in question come Sunday.  For the Knicks sake I hope Chandler is ready to go because if he’s not you can expect Blake Griffin and lob city to fill the top ten on SportsCenter come Monday morning.

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook athttp://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

Carmelo’s Return Spoiled

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

Wednesday night marked the first game for Carmelo Anthony in Denver since being traded from the Nuggets.  The Denver Nuggets traded Anthony for a host of players and draft picks to the New York Knicks back in 2011.  When it comes to players being traded, sometimes you have players that become a cancer in a locker room or bring more drama to a team than a daytime soap opera.  However in Melo’s case, he and the Nuggets were in mutual agreement that it was time to move on.  Carmelo had always wanted to come back home and play in the city where he grew up, the one, the only, New York City.  At the same time, the Denver Nuggets found a way to get numerous promising young players and future draft picks in return for Anthony.  The trade turned out to be a win-win situation.  With that being said, I have never been more embarrassed for an entire fan base than I was for the IGNORANT Denver Nuggets fans that were in attendance Wednesday night.  From the second they introduced Carmelo Anthony to the starting lineup, they booed him.  As if that wasn’t bad enough, they booed him every single time he touched the ball.  To that I say, ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?!?  And to make matters even worse, when Melo left the game in the 3rd quarter due to a banged up knee, the fans felt it was necessary to chant, “Where is Melo?”  Really?  Does that make you feel better?  This is not like Lebron James’ situation, where he left his team high and dry and they reverted back to the horrible team they were prior to his arrival.  It is not like Melo left the city he grew up in to chase the money.  NO, he wanted to come home and play basketball in the greatest arena on earth.  Now I know that fans aren’t always as smart as they let on, but I thought they were going to get this one right.  While everyone was wondering what kind of reception Melo would get from the crowd, I kept saying they have to cheer him.  For all he did for this team, they’d be the dumbest fans in all the world to boo him.  Well, if the shoe fits…….  So clearly, the fans that filled the Nuggets arena are classless and don’t understand anything about the NBA.  They clearly can’t look at Carmelo’s career as a Denver Nugget objectively and say, man he was great, he took us to the playoffs literally every year he played here (including his rookie season).  Say what you want about Carmelo Anthony’s game.  Tell me he’s not good enough to win a championship.  Tell me his style of play is not conducive to the “team” mentality.  You can even tell me he doesn’t have the work ethic of a Lebron James or a Michael Jordan.  But don’t tell me he didn’t give the Denver Nuggets everything he had for 7+ seasons.  Don’t tell me the Nuggets would have been a playoff team 7 years in a row without him.  And, you definitely can’t tell me that he wasn’t the reason you came out to the arena to watch the team every night.  So to all the Denver Nuggets fans who booed and heckled Carmelo Anthony, I say go back to school because you obviously don’t have any class.

As for the game, it was pathetic.  Man I get tired of using that word.  As I stated earlier, Carmelo Anthony left the game in the 3rd quarter due to his knee acting up again.  Carmelo Anthony is clearly not 100%, and they need to rest him so he’s healthy for the playoffs.  If a player is going to suit up, they need to be able to give it their all, every night.  And right now, he can’t do that.  Will having his knee drained solve all of his problems?  I don’t know, but I sure hope it does.  A very scary moment came in the 2nd quarter when Tyson Chandler went down after banging knees with Corey Brewer.  As of now the Knicks are calling it a knee contusion.  When asked about it after the game, Chandler said it shouldn’t be a problem and hopefully we’ll see him in uniform Thursday night.  Thursday night they continue their tough road trip against the Portland Trailblazers, and it would serve the Knicks well to have Chandler in there to slow down LaMarcus Aldridge (he’s pretty good).  If you haven’t figured it out by now the Knicks got blown out for the second straight game.  They lost the game 117-94.  While Melo and Chandler left the game and Raymond Felton’s woes continued, there was one positive to be taken away from Wednesday nights shellacking.  Iman Shumpert showed us that he can actually score the basketball.  Since always, I’ve been preaching that he is wildly underrated on the offensive end and once his knee is back to 100%, he will show the world that he can shoot.  Last night was a prime example of that.  Shumpert scored 20 points on 8 of 10 shooting from the field (which included going 4 for 5 from 3-point range).  So being the glass half full guy that I am (haha), let us take away only the positive (yes that’s positive in the singular form because there was only one) from last night’s game.  Other than that last night’s game was a complete and total disaster, and I’m not sure it can get any worse for the New York Knicks.  They need to pick off 1 or 2 of the 3 games remaining on this road trip and crawl their way back to New York with some confidence.  Luckily for them, the Utah Jazz are playing like the worst team in the galaxy right now, and that is where they finish their road trip.  But first, they will be in Portland Thursday night to take on the Blazers.  You can find that game on TNT at 10:30 P.M.  Personally, I can’t wait for them to finish this road trip so I can start going to bed at a reasonable time.  But hey, it’s not all about me now is it?

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook athttp://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

63 points?!?! What Is This Amateur Hour?

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

You know you have a problem when your leading scorer has 15 points, and his name is CHRIS COPELAND!!  The New York Knicks did not do anything well Monday night against the Golden State Warriors.  The Warriors, led by Stephen Curry, ran the Knicks off the floor.  From the opening tip-off, the Warriors simply looked like they wanted it more.  The Knicks looked sluggish.  They did not look like a team that was determined to win their opening game on a tough 5 game road trip.  Monday night was supposed to be a welcome back party for the Knicks superstar, Carmelo Anthony.  Unfortunately, it looked more like a retirement party.  Melo looked flat, and the rest of the team followed suit.  I’m done getting on Melo.  By now, I think we all know he needs to try harder and play better.  He needs to play better defense, and he needs to PASS THE DAMN BALL MORE!!  Other than that he’s having a great season.  Now it’s not all bad for Melo and the Knicks.  They have had a winning record in every month of the season, and they are still atop their division.  However, you’d have to be blind not to see that the Knicks have struggled mightily from time to time this season.  Was this their worst loss of the season?  It’s definitely up there.  I will make this short and unsweetened.  The Knicks need to try harder.  It starts with the coach and the superstar, and the rest trickles down hill.  If they don’t find a way to win 2 of their next 4 on the road, they could come back to New York with a tighter race in the Atlantic Division than they’d hoped.  For now, they are lucky that the Brooklyn Nets are bad too.  Otherwise, they could really be in a world of hurt.  Winning the Atlantic Division is very important for the Knicks, for it would keep them as one of the top 3 seeds in the Eastern Conference.  As for the Knicks moving forward, I would hope that Steve Novak, Jason Kidd, Pablo Prigioni, Kurt Thomas, and James White won’t go a combined 0 for 15 form the field again (like they did last night).  The Knicks as a team shot just 27.4% from the field, and an atrocious 18.5% from 3-point range.  The Knicks will look to rebound as they travel to Denver to take on the Nuggets Wednesday night at 10:30 P.M.  This is the first time Carmelo Anthony will play in Denver since leaving the team.  Logic would dictate that he would get up for this game and will his team to victory.  For his sake, I hope he remembers to show up Wednesday night.  I see the Knicks playing a much better game Wednesday night in Denver, however I think they will lose 99-97 to the Nuggets on the road.

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

No Superstars No Problem

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

On a night where the Knicks got some devastating news, they stood up against adversity together; as a group. For those of you who haven’t heard, Amar’e Stoudemire is having a procedure done on his knee that will cause him to miss at least 6 weeks. It is the same procedure he had done on his right knee, only this time it will be done on his left knee. This news comes at a time where Stoudemire’s game was finally in full swing. He was showcasing possibly the best stretch of offensive efficiency of his career, and he finally looked like he was “getting” it defensively. However, with Carmelo Anthony already sidelined with a bum knee, the Knicks would be without both of their stars Saturday night. To that they said, no problem. They went ahead and mopped the floor with the Utah Jazz. They beat them by a score of 113-84. As usual, the Knicks started out slowly finding themselves in an early hole, 11-4. Before you knew it the Knicks went on a 15-0 run, and the rest is history. It truly was a team effort as the Knicks had 5 players in double figures. Kenyon Martin filled in very nicely in Amare’s absence, and the Knicks could use more solid play from Martin the rest of the way. Steve Novak also added 5 3-pointers. The best part of this victory was the style of defense the Knicks played. Each and every member of the Knicks was swarming around the ball and forcing turnovers left and right. It is that style of play that the Knicks must continue in order to make some noise in the Eastern Conference (especially when Melo returns). With Carmelo out of the lineup it seems that the Knicks will have to turn to J.R. Smith as their leading scorer. As long as Smith can continue to attack the basket, he should be up for the task. The problem with Smith is when he becomes a ball handler or confuses himself with Steve Novak, he gets into trouble. For example, when he dribbles too much, he makes poor decisions. And when he decides to strictly be a shooter, we get to see the ugly side of Smith’s game. He is far too streaky to carry a team like the Knicks on his back while shooting 10 or more times from outside the arc. All in all it was an inspiring performance the Knicks put forth against the Jazz. Not only did they show the rest of the league they can win without their two stars, they showed that they can demolish a playoff contender. We shall see if the Knicks can continue their solid play Monday night at 10:30. The Knicks will be in Golden State to take on the Warriors. This is the first game on their treacherous 5 game road trip.

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

We’re Going Streaking!!!!

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

History is being made right before our eyes.  The Chicago Blackhawks and the Miami Heat continue to extend their impressive winning streaks.  The Blackhawks have now earned at least one point in 24 straight games.  During this streak they have now won 11 games in a row.  Not all of their games have been easy, but they keep finding a way to win night in and night out.  Last night the Blackhawks scored 2 goals in the 3rd period to earn a come from behind victory; 3-2.  The game winning goal came from Daniel Carcillo with just under 50 seconds left in the game.  The Blackhawks will continue to keep their points and winning streak alive on Friday night when they visit the Colorado Avalanche.  The Blackhawks should be able to win that game easily, as the Avalanche have one of the worst records in the league.

Another streak that continued Wednesday night was the Miami Heat’s winning streak.  A win against the Orlando Magic brought their streak to 16 games.  The Heat continue to pile up wins and are an amazing 27-3 at home this season, but they should be a little concerned that they nearly blew another big lead against a sub-par team.  They were up by 15 at halftime, and by the time they were heading to the 4th quarter they were only up by 3 points.  They did the same thing against the Sacremento Kings, blowing an 8 point lead with only 1:12 left in regulation.  It was also nice to see Lebron finally hit a game winning shot for the Miami Heat.  It was his first with the Heat, and by my recollection his second of his career (it’s about time buddy).  For his sake, hopefully he can add clutch to his resume in the near future.  As of now that’s just about the only thing missing from his resume.  The Miami Heat will look to keep their winning streak alive Friday night at 8:00 P.M. against the Philadelphia 76ers.

Both of these streaks are extremely impressive.  How far do you think each streak will go?  Which streak do you think is more impressive?  Leave me your feedback in the comment section below.  I look forward to hearing your reactions.

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well.  Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports.  Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

Sloppy Joes Anyone?

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

The New York Knicks can be described by a simple formula.  As long as the good outweighs the bad, it’s okay.  Wednesday night at the Detroit Pistons, there was plenty of bad but just enough good to win a basketball game.  On a night where Carmelo Anthony wasn’t able to suit up, the Knicks played a sloppy brand of basketball.  They had 20 TURNOVERS!!  For a team who only averages about 12 turnovers per game, that’s some pretty ugly stuff.  The majority of the turnovers were committed by Raymond Felton (he had 7).  Felton however, scored 26 points and was one of main reasons the Knicks beat the Pistons.  The final score was 87-77 as the Knicks were carried offensively by Felton, J.R. Smith, and Amar’e Stoudemire.  Collectively they scored 68 of the Knicks 87 points.  As you can tell by the turnover totals and the final score, this was a hard game to watch.  I think I actually fell asleep for 5 minutes or so in the middle of the game.  Hopefully tonight’s game will be a little more interesting and technically sound.  Tonight the New York Knickerbockers host Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder.  You can find this game on TNT at 8:00 P.M.  There are questions going around today about Carmelo’s health and whether or not he’ll play tonight.  I personally don’t think the Knicks have a chance to win this game either way, but Carmelo really needs to man up and get out there.  Everyone else can buy into his little “injury”, but I guarantee you he is not hurt.  He needs to grow up and start putting his team first.  Right now, the Knicks need to play every game like it’s their last, because seeding in the Eastern Conference is going to be crucial in the playoffs.  So Melo, even though I know you will never read this page, STOP BEING A BABY, RUB SOME DIRT ON YOUR KNEE AND GET OUT THERE!!  For those of you who are scratching your head as to why someone would rub some dirt on their knee, allow me to elaborate.  As a baseball player, when you get hit by a pitch, your teammates (whom are often road scholars) will tell you to rub some dirt on it and run to first base.  Anyway, Melo really needs to man up and take a page out of Kobe Bryant’s how to manual.  Kobe should clearly be Carmelo’s biggest role model.  Melo like Kobe is a shoot first All-Star.  The only difference (and by only I mean the 8 differences between Kobe and Melo) between Kobe and Melo is that Kobe has that life or death mentality ingrained inside of him.  Kobe is going to do anything and everything his team needs in order to win, including playing hurt, playing defense, and hustling from the opening tip until the final buzzer every night.  Carmelo needs to infuse those characteristics into his personality.  Then maybe other players, media, and fans won’t question his dedication when he misses a game with a questionable injury.

As for the game tonight against the Thunder, the Knicks need to go on one of their 3-point shooting rampages to have a chance to win.  I personally want to see the Knicks shoot less 3-pointers, but in a game without Carmelo Anthony, they need to get a huge game out of Amar’e and Chandler down low to open up the court for the outside shooters.  This is the only chance the Knicks have to beat the Thunder tonight.  And for the love of god, can Coach Woodson please stop fighting common sense and put Amar’e Stoudemire in the starting lineup.  I understand that he wants to keep Jason Kidd out of the starting lineup (and I agree with him there) and with Carmelo Anthony hurt he needs to find another starter, but James White AND Kurt Thomas are the answers to those questions?!?!  Coach Woodson is obviously confused.  At the beginning of the season, I liked what Woodson was doing.  The Knicks were playing defense and he had Melo giving it his all, but now Woodson just looks like an average coach that doesn’t know how to handle his roster.  The Knicks should hang tough in this game tonight because it’s at home, but I see the Thunder pulling ahead in the middle of the 4th quarter and winning by 10 points, 108-98.

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well.  Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports.  Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

What is This Pillow Fight and Where Did the NBA Go??

~ Dave Ettinger ~ 2 Comments

If you haven’t seen it already, the Miami Heat and the Minnesota Timberwolves got into a little scuffle Monday night.  J.J. Barea and Ray Allen started getting physical early on in the 4th quarter.  Ray Allen had the ball and gave Barea a little incidental elbow out on the perimeter.  Then, as Allen drove toward the basket, J.J. Barea gave Allen a little bump that knocked him to the floor.  Allen hopped up immediately enraged over the foul.  Both teams quickly met face to face where the incident took place, but all players involved were separated without it escalating any further.  As a result of the play, J.J. Barea was given a Flagrant-2 foul and was ejected from the game.  You need to see the play with your own two eyes to understand just how ridiculous the flagrant foul and subsequent ejection was.  If you want to check out a video of the play then click here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUtYCXPW9fM  First of all, J.J. Barea is about 5’8″ and 160 pounds soaking wet (I don’t want to hear anything about the 6’0″ and 175 pounds that he’s listed at).  On a little side-note, I saw Barea play live in a college game once back in ’04-’05.  He played at Northeastern, and they were visiting my school; Umass.  When the game was over I walked past him as he was on his way to the locker room, and trust me he is not 6’0″ tall (I was towering over him and I’m only 5’11”).  Same goes with Allen Iverson, I stood next to him at a Knicks game once and was eye to eye with him.  I digress.  The fact of the matter is that J.J. Barea couldn’t toss Ray Allen and get a deserving Flagrant-2 foul if his life depended on it.  Ray Allen should have gotten up, dusted himself off, and walked to the free throw line like a man.  That would have been the end of it, and at most he could have whispered something to Barea next time they found themselves next to each other on the free throw line (something like, “try that again, and I’ll step on you little guy”).  Instead he got all flustered and created something out of nothing.  And that is the problem I have with today’s NBA.  Today’s NBA is soft.  Back in the day guys got knocked down way harder than that little bump Barea gave Allen.  Just ask Michael Jordan how hard the Pistons used to hit him in the ’80’s and ’90’s.  NBA players used to be as scared to drive to the basket as a wide receiver is coming across the middle of the field.  Unfortunately, that type of NBA has come and gone.  I understand that in this era everyone is more involved in player safety, and I’m okay with that.  I don’t want players getting injured unnecessarily, but we need to stop babying these players.  Flagrant fouls should be reserved for clearly intentional fouls that endanger the safety of a player.  You can’t watch that Flagrant Foul from Monday night and tell me that Ray Allen’s body was ever in danger.  That’s all I’m saying!  If you have something to say about the issue of flagrant fouls in the NBA, please leave me a comment or question.  Thank you.

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well.  Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports.  Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

If you want to see what a real flagrant foul looks like then check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dabt_Kb2UmQ

Phantom Injury Sparks Comeback

~ Dave Ettinger ~ 2 Comments

Let us rewind to Monday evening at around 8:00 P.M.  The Knicks were getting BLOWN OUT by the Cleveland Cavaliers.  We were witnessing one of the most embarrassing performances of the year in the NBA.  The expletives that were flying around my head are words I would never dare say out loud.  The Knicks looked like they were running in quick sand.  They looked sluggish, and lazy, and they were playing uninspired basketball.  During the 1st quarter, you saw the Knicks go from up 2 points to down 10.  However, the 2nd quarter is where the flood gates opened.  The Cavaliers led by Marreese Speights, simply couldn’t miss.  Speights went a perfect 10 for 10 in the 1st half.  This is a Cavaliers team who is ranked dead last in field goal percentage.  Was it the Knicks poor defense that contributed to the Cavaliers offensive explosion, or was it simply a hot streak that couldn’t be stopped?  I’d like to think it was a combination of both, but the Cavaliers were shooting 81% from the field and found themselves with a 22 point lead less than four and a half minutes into the 2nd quarter.  Yes you read that right, the Cavaliers were beating the Knicks by 22 in the 2nd quarter.  Then, in a blink of an eye, everything changed.  With 6:48 left in the 1st half, Carmelo Anthony caught an outlet pass near half court.  As he caught the pass he tripped over his own two feet and fell down.  It looked awkward, it looked like it could have been slightly painful, but all in all it didn’t look too serious.  Carmelo Anthony picked himself up and walked (not limped) his way to the locker room.  Minutes later, we found out that he would not return to the game.  Amar’e Stoudemire took Anthony’s place in the game, and sparked an immediate comeback.  In just over one minute, the Knicks cut the lead from 22 to 15.  The Cavaliers quickly took a timeout and tried to regroup.  That did not help, as the Knicks cut the lead back to single digits.  The Knicks accomplished this by attacking the basket and cutting down on their three point attempts (other than J.R. Smith).  J.R. Smith added a much needed 18 points but went 1-7 from three-point range.  Smith is very athletic and can pretty much get to the basket at will.  He needs to concentrate more on that and spend less time jacking up countless three pointers.  With a combination of Amar’e Stoudemire’s effective post game and efficient outside shooting by the rest of the team, the Knicks staged an epic comeback.  The Knicks scratched and clawed their way back into this game and with four minutes left in the 3rd quarter, the score was knotted at 64.  The Knicks turned up the heat on defense and held the Cavaliers to just 13 points in the 3rd quarter.  These teams battled back and forth throughout the rest of the game, but in the end the Knicks proved to be too much for the Cavaliers to handle.  They pulled out a tough (much needed) victory, 102-97.

When Carmelo Anthony went down for the count in the 1st half, the Knicks found a way to pull together and storm their way back into this game.  It was truly a team effort led by Amar’e Stoudemire.  Amar’e scored 22 points on 10 of 15 shooting from the field.  Running the offense through Amar’e allowed the Knicks to play a nice inside out game.  If Amar’e wasn’t able to take the ball to the hoop aggressively, he kicked the ball out to an open man.  The Knicks found effective outside shooting from Jason Kidd and Steve Novak.  Novak made four timely three pointers, while Kidd added three of his own.  It’s nice to see Jason Kidd find his stroke, as he added 12 points off the bench.  Mike Woodson still seems to have a problem with Iman Shumpert though because he seemed to find his stroke as well in the 1st quarter.  He hit three of his first four shots but only racked up six total shots for the entire game (in 19 minutes).  I really hope that Woodson is just being cautious with Shumpert’s knee because the Knicks are going to need his production on both ends of the floor if they have any plans of making a run in the playoffs.  I find myself using the same expression over and over again, but ‘a win is a win’ no matter how it looks.  For now that might work against the Cavaliers and the Wizards, but come playoff time that is not going to cut it against the Miami Heat (if they get that far).  The Knicks have a much needed day off today, but will continue their road trip against the Detroit Pistons, Wednesday night at 7:30 P.M.

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well.  Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports.  Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!