Knicks are over .500

[More Cowbell]

1 minute ago, RutgersJetFan said:

It’s going to be Nets or Sixers from the East. Best Knicks fans can hope for is getting out of the first round. Nets have an insane roster and the Knicks offense is still wildly inconsistent and inexperienced. When the court shrinks come postseason time that is going to matter a whole lot more than it does now. 

Key for the Knicks is Derrick  Rose staying healthy and playing at the level he has been. They probably wouldn't  be able to overcome losing Rose at this point. I would bet the Nets big 3 are not all healthy for the playoffs and one is possibly on the shelf at some point. 

[slimjasi]

On 4/28/2021 at 9:01 PM, #27TheDominator said:

They should.  

The Knicks are a fun team and I like the coach, but man people are getting ahead of themselves.

Yeah, the Nets and Knicks are at different places right now. 

The Knicks are on the rise and will be a team to attract key free agents the way the Nets did a couple of summers ago. 

The Nets are a legit title contender and the favorites to come out of the east. 

[RutgersJetFan]

Tomorrow night is a must win IMO. sh*t gets real after tomorrow. Really real. 

I grabbed tickets for them @Clippers next Sunday. First time in ages I've been ecstatic to splurge on good seats for a Knick game. Last thing I ever expected to happen this year. 

[32EBoozer]

On 4/28/2021 at 10:09 PM, RutgersJetFan said:

It’s going to be Nets or Sixers from the East. Best Knicks fans can hope for is getting out of the first round. Nets have an insane roster and the Knicks offense is still wildly inconsistent and inexperienced. When the court shrinks come postseason time that is going to matter a whole lot more than it does now. 

Kyrie, KD & Harden can all find their shot. All 3 defensive studs, all 3 break ankles and KD is unstoppable. I’m happy getting to 2nd round 

[EM31]

11 hours ago, 32EBoozer said:

Kyrie, KD & Harden can all find their shot. All 3 defensive studs, all 3 break ankles and KD is unstoppable. I’m happy getting to 2nd round 

LOL... Buddy, buddy, buddy.... I would be happy to be winning the games that we "should win" like the one against the Rockets last night but even that is skipping over several milestones.  I am ecstatic that the Knicks have reached a point where the general consensus is that there even exist teams, any teams that the Knicks "should" beat.  This fact in and of itself that is a huge lift from the last 10 years when more often than not we were at the very bottom of the bottom. 

And yes, this team is getting pretty automatic against the group of bottom feeders and I like that too.  I also like the fact that we set up to be a giant pain in the ass for opponents no matter who gets to play us.  House money baby!

[RutgersJetFan]

Crazy watching Rose fly around like that again. Father Time is undefeated but you always gotta love a guy that's fighting against it with everything he's got. 

[Defense Wins Championships]

41 minutes ago, RutgersJetFan said:

Crazy watching Rose fly around like that again. Father Time is undefeated but you always gotta love a guy that's fighting against it with everything he's got. 

He's pouring out his heart and soul for his old coach. 

I loved our early 90s with Harper/Starks/Charles Smith/Mason/Oakley and prime Ewing (Riley) and also fell in love with the next era of Ward/Childs/H2O/Spree/LJ/Camby/aging Ewing (JVG) but...

This group of Rose/Quickley/RJ Barrett/Noel/Robinson/Randle (Thibs) has already captured my heart all these years later. 

2012-2013 under Melo was fun but 2020/2021 has been amazing. 

This team can eliminate Brooklyn, Philadelphia and Milwaukee; because our defense is absolutely relentless. 

 

[EM31]

Bandwagon is filling up.  ESPN power ranking put us in the 8th spot which is the highest all year and a long way removed from the Week-1 ranking of 29th (out of 30).

If the rest of the road trip is decent the people who are thinking this is just an anomaly will be running towards the bandwagon.

Payton even played pretty well last night,  It is amazing how the next man up (Pell?) mantra continues to work so well given the number of injuries we are currently carrying.

[Bronx]

3 hours ago, EM31 said:

Bandwagon is filling up.  ESPN power ranking put us in the 8th spot which is the highest all year and a long way removed from the Week-1 ranking of 29th (out of 30).

If the rest of the road trip is decent the people who are thinking this is just an anomaly will be running towards the bandwagon.

Payton even played pretty well last night,  It is amazing how the next man up (Pell?) mantra continues to work so well given the number of injuries we are currently carrying.

Annoying Steven Ahole is at least a true fan.

[RutgersJetFan]

Randle just got EC Player of the Month. Holy crap. Is this real life?

Also this dropped today and I'm gonna need that cover on a t-shirt stat

https://www.slamonline.com/the-magazine/julius-randle-rj-barrett-are-bringing-toughness-back-to-msg/

[EM31]

6 hours ago, RutgersJetFan said:

Randle just got EC Player of the Month. Holy crap. Is this real life?

Also this dropped today and I'm gonna need that cover on a t-shirt stat

https://www.slamonline.com/the-magazine/julius-randle-rj-barrett-are-bringing-toughness-back-to-msg/

It feels a bit like the magical ride we went on with Jeremy Lin for about 10 minutes one time.  I hope/think that this magical ride may be more durable and lead somewhere interesting.

I know Brooklyn are all wall to wall superstars and good for them but assembling a team this way feels more satisfying somehow.

[RutgersJetFan]

That was a great game until it wasn’t. 

Suns are really something else man. Probably still a little green to go all the way but Ayton is going to be the man in that conference way sooner than later.

We’ll see what happens but it sure does seem like this year the torch is being passed on to the next generation. Playoffs are going to be fun to watch. 

[RutgersJetFan]

That was a crazy game to be at, a few things worth noting for the rest of the year and the playoffs:

- Rose/Barrett/Bullock/Randle/Noel is the best overall lineup they have. It's not even close. Though when Gibson is in instead of Noel they are almost as tough. 

- The efficiency on offense when Rose is in vs when he's not is astonishing. Come playoff time he cannot start Payton.

- Barrett is a blast to watch. Never stops grinding. Even when he's not around the ball on either side he's always searching for something to do. No ego whatsoever, for now at least. 

- Frank Ntilkina is by far the worst offensive player I have ever seen put on a Knicks uniform. There's a case to be made for him not belonging at the NBA level with how bad he is offensively. 

- Rose and Gibson vibe off of each other and watching them run the pick and roll so naturally is great. Such an unspoken comfort and rhythm between those two and Thibs. IMO Thibs is gearing up to lean heavily on the both of them in the playoffs. Gibson in particular makes getting Noel or Randle rest stress-free.

- Last and most important thing was finally getting to see Randle live. Even in a game where he struggled for 3 and 1/2 quarters to find his shot you can clearly see his impact up and down the court all the time. Forget crashing the boards at the level he displayed, it's all the little things. Getting up in the faces of the young guys and keeping everyone together, always on the refs, even during warmups you can see the entire team takes all their cues from him. Gives off a very Tim Duncan-esque vibe from start to finish. Whoever they decide to bring in going forward has to accept that it's Randle's team from here on out because it clearly is. 

[RutgersJetFan]

What a complete collapse at the end there. Barrett looked lost tonight. The good news is the Knicks lock up a top 6 seed with 1 more victory and it's probably for the best that they avoid playing Miami in the first round because they are a horrible matchup for NY.

Rose, Gibson, and Randle are going to be the key to if they can make it out of the first round. Hard to ignore how shaky the younger guys look in some of these pressure situations lately.

[slimjasi]

Congrats New York Knicks!

I agree with the consensus that we probably want to play Atlanta in the first round. Miami would be a tough matchup, although all 3 regular season losses to them were close and I think we would have our moments in that series.

We would have no chance against the Bucks. 

[slimjasi]

The Knicks with a big win tonight. It would be so nice to get the 4th or 5th seed. 

Nice bounce back game for RJ Barrett. 

[RutgersJetFan]

6 hours ago, slimjasi said:

The Knicks with a big win tonight. It would be so nice to get the 4th or 5th seed. 

Nice bounce back game for RJ Barrett. 

Depends, if 4th or 5th seed gets NY the Heat then it’s not so nice. Probably an unpopular opinion but IMO Miami is a better team than the Bucks; more importantly styles make fights and the Knicks match up horribly with MIA. Butler is a ******* killer in the playoffs too and they got so close last year. No thanks to that. Milwaukee is an incredibly inconsistent 1 and 1/2 man show and the Knicks offensive problems won’t be such an issue against them. Things will shake out tomorrow so we’ll see how it goes.

[slimjasi]

29 minutes ago, RutgersJetFan said:

Depends, if 4th or 5th seed gets NY the Heat then it’s not so nice. Probably an unpopular opinion but IMO Miami is a better team than the Bucks; more importantly styles make fights and the Knicks match up horribly with MIA. Butler is a ******* killer in the playoffs too and they got so close last year. No thanks to that. Milwaukee is an incredibly inconsistent 1 and 1/2 man show and the Knicks offensive problems won’t be such an issue against them. Things will shake out tomorrow so we’ll see how it goes.

I don't agree about the Heat being a better team than the Bucks, but either is a bad matchup for the Knicks, IMO. Hopefully, we'll get Atlanta. 

[RutgersJetFan]

40 minutes ago, slimjasi said:

I don't agree about the Heat being a better team than the Bucks, but either is a bad matchup for the Knicks, IMO. Hopefully, we'll get Atlanta. 

They have the same record as the Bucks since the break and would be the 3-seed had they not had injury/covid problems the first 20 games, and also the same guys that spanked the Bucks last year in June. Gun to head you'd take your chances with Butler over Giannis? In the playoffs? Madness.

[slimjasi]

42 minutes ago, RutgersJetFan said:

They have the same record as the Bucks since the break and would be the 3-seed had they not had injury/covid problems the first 20 games, and also the same guys that spanked the Bucks last year in June. Gun to head you'd take your chances with Butler over Giannis? In the playoffs? Madness.

I think the Bucks underachieved in the playoffs last year, but I think they have one of the 5 best players in the world and are one of the NBA's best defensive teams when they are on their game. I think the Bucks defense is problematic for the Knicks. Both teams match up well with the Knicks. 

[slimjasi]

Bigger picture, I think Randle and Barrett is the start of a great young core. Have to upgrade starting PG this offseason. And this team is actually building a culture. It feels so nice. 

[RutgersJetFan]

1 hour ago, slimjasi said:

I think the Bucks underachieved in the playoffs last year, but I think they have one of the 5 best players in the world and are one of the NBA's best defensive teams when they are on their game. I think the Bucks defense is problematic for the Knicks. Both teams match up well with the Knicks. 

All evidence says the opposite: Butler is one of the five best players in the world and Miami is better defensively. They give up less points and have a higher rating, and that's on the entire year with Miami being plagued for the first 20 games. 

[RutgersJetFan]

Here's Butler on the year at Wins Per 48. It's really insane the season he's having, no idea how everyone manages to give Jokic this much praise and yet Butler falls by the wayside for yet another year. After what he did last year you would think the insanity on not putting him up with any of the top tier players would be over and done with:

https://www.boxscoregeeks.com/players?sort=per48_wins_produced&direction=desc 

[slimjasi]

18 minutes ago, RutgersJetFan said:

All evidence says the opposite: Butler is one of the five best players in the world and Miami is better defensively. They give up less points and have a higher rating, and that's on the entire year with Miami being plagued for the first 20 games. 

Butler is amazing, but I would easily take Giannis going forward over him. I don't think Giannis has peaked yet at 26. It's close.

[slimjasi]

18 minutes ago, RutgersJetFan said:

Here's Butler on the year at Wins Per 48. It's really insane the season he's having, no idea how everyone manages to give Jokic this much praise and yet Butler falls by the wayside for yet another year. After what he did last year you would think the insanity on not putting him up with any of the top tier players would be over and done with:

https://www.boxscoregeeks.com/players?sort=per48_wins_produced&direction=desc 

I agree that he is a top tier player. I just think Giannis has a higher ceiling and will ultimately have the better career. 

[RutgersJetFan]

17 minutes ago, slimjasi said:

Butler is amazing, but I would easily take Giannis going forward over him. I don't think Giannis has peaked yet at 26. It's close.

Giannis to me is where Durant was when he was in OKC. Elite but still green. Butler on the other hand is peaking right now and I think you have to also take into account guys who turn into assassins in the postseason. If you’re listing guys that you absolutely do not want to see in the playoffs because of how insane they can get when they flip the switch, in the East it’s Durant and Butler. 

[slimjasi]

Just now, RutgersJetFan said:

Giannis to me is where Durant was when he was in OKC. Butler on the other hand is peaking right now and I think you have to also take into account guys who turn into assassins in the postseason. If you’re listing guys that you absolutely do not want to see in the playoffs because of how insane they can get when they flip the switch, in the East it’s Durant and Butler. 

Yeah, I could see that. But I would also probably take OKC Durant over Butler, tbh. 

Like I said though, I'm not knocking Butler. Great player. And I do think the Heat can make the conference finals. Unfortunately, if the Nets are healthy, I think they will come out of the east, regardless. Hope I'm wrong. 

[RutgersJetFan]

8 minutes ago, slimjasi said:

Yeah, I could see that. But I would also probably take OKC Durant over Butler, tbh. 

Like I said though, I'm not knocking Butler. Great player. And I do think the Heat can make the conference finals. Unfortunately, if the Nets are healthy, I think they will come out of the east, regardless. Hope I'm wrong. 

Nets or Sixers for sure. Depends on who’s healthy IMO. Money on the table I’m taking the team that has a healthy and driven Durant but honestly if Oladipo hadn’t gotten hurt I would have put a stack on Miami.

Finals I think will be Nets Jazz. West this year is gonna be Mitchell’s coming out party. Maybe Lebron pulls a miracle out of his ass though. 

[Defense Wins Championships]

NY Knicks with an awesome overtime win against Charlotte today. 

One advantage we have over any team come playoff time? Defense. 

We're going to shock the world come playoff basketball. 

[RutgersJetFan]

If Milwaukee beats Miami tonight and NY beats Boston tomorrow that clinches Knicks/Hawks for round 1. Hawks are by far the best possible scenario for the Knicks in the first round, NY owned them all season and Randle hung 40 twice against them. Oh boy let's go Giannis.

[slimjasi]

3 hours ago, RutgersJetFan said:

If Milwaukee beats Miami tonight and NY beats Boston tomorrow that clinches Knicks/Hawks for round 1. Hawks are by far the best possible scenario for the Knicks in the first round, NY owned them all season and Randle hung 40 twice against them. Oh boy let's go Giannis.

One win away. 

[RutgersJetFan]

2 hours ago, slimjasi said:

One win away. 

Jimmy Butler’s lower back you da real MVP

[playtowinthegame]

Let's Go Knicks!!!

 

[RutgersJetFan]

A couple of silver linings to getting the 4-seed also:

- If the Knicks can make it out of the first round, they'll face BK or Philly and NY stands a far better chance against Philly than they do Brooklyn. The Nets handled the Knicks decently without Durant this year, but Philly escaped the last two times they played the Knicks by the skin of their teeth. On paper and historically the Sixers are a better matchup for NY and the nothing-to-lose underdog mentality still holds if they play Philly. Pressure is 100% on them and that makes a defensive team like the Knicks very dangerous. In a NY/BK matchup IMO that can't get exploited to the same degree and most importantly Durant is the last guy anyone wants to see in June or July.

- We'll see what happens with the play-in tournament but I would put my money on Charlotte and Washington. Obviously neither have a shot at everything but I think anyone that's been watching the East this year knows that those two teams are proper pains in the ass. If the Knicks can seal this up today, that means the 6-8 seed in the East are juuuuuuuust good enough to annoy the elite teams in the first round and tire them out a bit. I'm rooting hard against Boston, they are soft as hell and are going to get steamrolled in the first if they can sneak in. Does nobody any good.

[EM31]

OK then.  Play in tournament successfully avoided.

At least four more games this year