There's nothing worse than being right on the verge of a full fledged tank only to play the Suns and Nets back to back. The Knicks have looked great in these past two games but I have virtually no faith that we'll get the same level of effort when the going gets tough with actual NBA caliber teams. That's not to say this was a bad performance, it was the most entertaining the Knicks have been all month but there were spells of poor shot selection and rotations getting masked by inferior opposition. That said, this is about to be a lovefest for the performances because a lot of players showed out and they don't get to choose their opponents. I'm just saying not to drink the Kool-Aid yet; the next two road games in Boston and Milwaukee will tell us a lot more than these past two against such weak competition.
KP: The unicorn's three ball has been coming back and really arrived last night. 28 pts, 5 boards, 2 assists and 2 blocks with 6 three pointers knocked down out of 8 attempts. KP showed some face up offense that we haven't seen in a while, using cross overs to get his jumpers off. He was aggressive and it helped him get his shot off without being disrupted by double-teams. It also meant his shot selection got pretty Nick Young out there a few times though. Defensively, the Nets didn't have much to challenge him and he continued a shot block a game streak that really helps express how good his rim protection has been. The rebounding continues to be worrisome but Kanter is also a bit of a reverse RoLo. Lopez was great for rebounding because he cleared space, Kanter is great for rebounding because he takes the best position for himself (this isn't a complaint by any means).
Kanter: This was my favorite Kanter performance all season. 20 pts, 20 boards, 5 assists and 4 TO's just because nobody's perfect except maybe James Harden last night. The Nets didn't have any answers for Kanter. His low post game and rebounding are a damned given, they were both even better than usual. But the outliers were what made theis performance special. Multiple times he ate up a board, dribbled the course of the floor and made the right pass on a fast break. His halfcourt passing showed up too, at one point he hit a cutting player from the top of the arc in a manner that KOQ habitually does (just threw the pass a little too hard). He also played defense with more energy than he has since the Lebron showdown. He even took a couple of a jumpers. I really can't complain about this one.
Jack: 2 points and 4 assists over 20 minutes. I won't hate on the performance, Frank had it going and other starters did the heavy lifting so Jack was in a pretty good role for this one. The one issue I'm worried about is teams are respecting his range less and less which was especially visible whenever Dinwiddie guarded him off ball.
Lee: 12 pts, 2 assists in 31 minutes of play. He was 3/10 from the field and it wasn't his best but he was solid as usual. 31 minutes actually feels like lightwork considering how much Jeff usually leans on him. Not a bad game but forgettable in the scheme of things.
THJ: With Kanter and KP rolling, he took a backseat just like Jack and Lee. 15 pts, 1 board and 3 steals with 3 TO's in 25 minutes. In a third option role, he can be a killer but some of his utility was sapped because he didn't get opportunities to create that normally pop up from time to time. Like Lee, solid but forgettable performance.
Beasley: I'll be honest, I was a bit frustrated with his shot selection in this one. Less driving at guys and more settling for jumpers but he was still pretty good overall. 12 points, 13 boards, 23 minutes of play. When he's locked into the rebounding battle, he can make up for the random bouts of "Dude where's my car" type confusion and his scoring is undeniable even when he's in a complete malaise.
Doug: Came out with something to prove and jacked some rushed shots in the process early. But once he settled in a bit, he was his usual hard cutting option with some shooting threat to boot. 7 pts on 3/8 from the field with no other production in 19 minutes. He needs to do a bit more if he wants to capitalize on the minutes opening that Lance's hand injury has created...out-producing Lance shouldn't be so difficult but we'll see.
Lance: Has a bad hand, only played 6 minutes where it was obvious that his grip is shot from how he caught and threw passes. One block is all he put up and it was a nice play but overall this is a mulligan.
KOQ: Dominant Kanter meant less KOQ. 11 mins, 4 points and 5 boards from Kylo which is really nice production in a short span of time. It's just not enough time to make any big statements.
Willy: Speaking of not enough time. Willy played a minute, grabbed a board and got to the line but there's not much to say.
Burke: This was the first game where Burke's defensive limitations stood out some. Dinwiddie is an awful match-up for him, standing 6'6 and having strong offensive skills. That said, Burke had 2 points and 4 assists without a TO in 17 minutes. He wasn't bad by any means but tall PG's are gonna be a problem for him.
Baker: Got an ugly looking shoulder injury almost as soon as he started defending. Nothing to report really, get well soon Ron.
Frank: Two things stood out in Frank's quality performance last night. He was attacking off the dribble and got into the paint multiple times. On one baseline cut he pump faked two bigs into jumping into each other at the rim, then kicked it out for an open look from Beasley. The second aspect was his catching and shooting next to Burke. He expected the pass and was immediately in motion to release, knocking down 2/3 long range shots. 8 pts, 5 asts, 2 TO's and a steal over 26 minutes while shooting 3/7 from the field. His potential was really on display as he made some heady passes and kept his dribble in traffic. Those two aspects opened up the game for him. His defense was back after a two game disappearance as well. It was a performance so good, I saved him for last.
Hornacek: I can't complain. He stuck with the right guys and the Knicks took advantage of the three point line for a change. Their inability to put the game away and get extra rest is on the players in my book...they let up in the third. He really didn't have too many tough decisions but I'm glad to see him doubling up Frank and Trey. They pair together well and you could see them talking and plotting behind a free throw shooter at one point. There's chemistry and it looks like they could be a good tandem.
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