Knicks · "... this is the identity that we should have had all year.” (page 1)

- Tyson Chandler

is it sustainable?

"... everyone assumed that the story of a successful Knicks team would feature tales of the derring-do by ‘Melo and Amare. However, Woodson’s squad is a surprising team. This very good Knicks team over the last three games has really been the story of Chandler and the bench."

While all the gnashing of teeth over bad apple Carmelo was occupying the opinion merchants, something crazy happened. The players ignored the experts and the doubters, and continued the process of defining themselves, with a HUGE assist from Mike Woodson.

“I expected to anchor this team, honestly, especially defensively,... We have to use our horses. We have to use Carmelo. We have to use Amare, but we can’t allow teams to just know where we’re going every night. We have to have contributors like J.R. (Smith), myself, (Steve) Novak.”

And what about the "soon-to-be-ignored"/ overlooked/ rookie/ discarded Jeremy Lin?

Even Howard Beck had it wrong when he wrote, "Linsanity Has Left The Building"

It’s the end of Linsanity as we know it.

The sudden and surprising change in head coaches almost ensures it.

Lin blossomed because he played in a system that perfectly suited him, for a coach who believed in him and needed him. Lin restored the aesthetics and the excitement to Mike D’Antoni’s frenetic offense and restored faith at Madison Square Garden.

But D’Antoni left the building Wednesday, taking his speedy, free-flowing offense with him. His replacement, Mike Woodson, is an old-school coach and Larry Brown disciple who emphasizes defense, ball control and isolation play. He does not push the tempo, or rely heavily on the pick-and-roll. He holds a tight leash on his point guards.

None of this bodes well for Lin.

Think again.

“I’m learning to play in a less spread offense, ... A lot of stuff is still the same. But there are times when I won’t have as many opportunities. I just need to be select about when to go. I think tonight was a big step."

Can you say discipline?

This is the way we should have been playing all year..Slowing the ball down, featuring our front line...No point in having "the best front line" in the league and not feature them...Defense first, Im loving it, we get easy baskets off good defense..This is playoff style basketball that I have been begging for all year...

We still not clicking offensively, Lin is still holding onto the ball to long...In MDA system, the PG dominates the ball and holds it too long, this killed TD...We will get there tho, So far so good, baby steps..

It's looking more and more like what was holding back the Knicks was Dantoni and the almost religious fervor for running his system, and his inability to have the team make adjustments and play according to obvious strengths and weaknesses. This ain't college, you don't just slap a system on the team and expect it all to come out as you planned. It's the NBA, proceed accordingly.

Eventually, the players get tired of the lack of success and the coach loses the team. That is a fundamental coaching fail--inability to motivate. Doesn't matter if your system is the greatest thing since sliced bread (his ain't), you have to get the players on board. If they see that you are not acknowledging who they are as a club (who can do what, what best suits them and will result in winning) you will lose them.

Gotta say, I really like what Im seeing from Woodson. He is making commonsense moves that make team play better, as well as establishing clear respobsibilities and expectations for the players. As misterearl points out, all the player haters are being proven wrong as Melo has played great team ball, and Amare and others are now working harder on D. Knicks look awesome, especially on D, in the last three games. Very enjoyable to watch.

I'll give Dantoni credit for not being in denial and stepping away sooner rather than later. This helped the Knicks. Thanks for the memories and have a nice life Pringles.

No point in having "the best front line" in the league and not feature them

Exactly

holfresh - you, also, are indeed jedi. Last night was NOT an exceptional shooting night. The Knicks only went 41 percent from the field as a team. It is our defense that will be the constant. The home crowd is wise to pick up our trademark chant (that originated in the blue seats) early and often.

As Lin continues to gain experience with more disciplined play, and the frontline learns the joy of the assist...

The best is yet to come.

Baby steps indeed.

Post Of The Day

nychamp wrote:It's looking more and more like what was holding back the Knicks was Dantoni and the almost religious fervor for running his system, and his inability to have the team make adjustments and play according to obvious strengths and weaknesses. This ain't college, you don't just slap a system on the team and expect it all to come out as you planned. It's the NBA, proceed accordingly.

Eventually, the players get tired of the lack of success and the coach loses the team. That is a fundamental coaching fail--inability to motivate. Doesn't matter if your system is the greatest thing since sliced bread (his ain't), you have to get the players on board. If they see that you are not acknowledging who they are as a club (who can do what, what best suits them and will result in winning) you will lose them.

Gotta say, I really like what Im seeing from Woodson. He is making commonsense moves that make team play better, as well as establishing clear respobsibilities and expectations for the players. As misterearl points out, all the player haters are being proven wrong as Melo has played great team ball, and Amare and others are now working harder on D. Knicks look awesome, especially on D, in the last three games. Very enjoyable to watch.

I'll give Dantoni credit for not being in denial and stepping away sooner rather than later. This helped the Knicks. Thanks for the memories and have a nice life Pringles.

D'Antoni brought the "big name" hire the franchise needed at the time. He was dealt high expectations and a revolving door roster that changed week to week. It was not fair, but who said New York was fair?

A coach's prime responsibility (especially with premium talent) is to maximize the skill sets, understand personalities, and convince them he is listening nearly as much as he is demanding.

Players only tune out a coach when they feel he has tuned them out. That is how it works.

Uncle Phil demands, but he also is sensitive to the nuance of the modern athlete. He is a teacher, an artist and a disciplinarian. That is a rare combination.

Release the hounds!

MDA took the ball out of the stars hands and expected all out effort...This never happens in life..People are wondering about the defensive effort...You play harder when you have a stake in it...You won't get defensive effort if you are not getting the ball on the offensive end, especially when u are used to having the ball..

You wont be happy if your wife ain't happy...Believe that..

"You wont be happy if your wife ain't happy...Believe that.."

That's exactly right, because Carmelo acted like a woman.

MarburyAnd1Crossover wrote:"You wont be happy if your wife ain't happy...Believe that.."

That's exactly right, because Carmelo acted like a woman.

If one says the same thing over and over and over and over again....it doesn't make them any more right or wrong. Just makes them boring.

MarburyAnd1Crossover wrote:"You wont be happy if your wife ain't happy...Believe that.."

That's exactly right, because Carmelo acted like a woman.

He acted like Kobe or any other star would act.

"If Momma ain't happy, nobody's happy"

It Ain't That Deep

holfresh - It is amazing that D'Antoni did not understand a fundamental principle of the rich and famous. You don't give them less responsibility, you challenge them with as much as they can handle. You don't give them meaningless titles as "Captain" and then stubbornly disregard what your captains are thinking. That is just window dressing and it is dishonest. It is lip service and lip service only works in certain professions.

The coach's job is to analyze his assets, adjust his knowledge base to suit those assets so they can be put in the best position to win.

Stoudemire and Anthony struggled to get on the same page for a reason. It required more than a superficial (or imported) solution. It requires something more than X's and O's.

Carmelo is just a man who wants desperately to win. Same with Stoudemire. Two different sets of experiences. Two different temperments. Add Tyson Chandler and the mix is unpredictable, on both ends. They require discipline. More responsibility, not less. And accountability.

Carmelo as the villain only plays into the pre conceived stereotype of the surly, recalcitrant and unlikable brat. "Nobody roots for Goliath." This ain't a popularity contest. Nobody like Kobe either. People admire his rings.

Just win baby.

It ain't that deep.

foosballnick wrote:

MarburyAnd1Crossover wrote:"You wont be happy if your wife ain't happy...Believe that.."

That's exactly right, because Carmelo acted like a woman.

If one says the same thing over and over and over and over again....it doesn't make them any more right or wrong. Just makes them boring.

Same can be said for all the posts hyping the 3-game streak up.

If you look around the bloguniverse and the newspaper sports sections, this is what the talk is. The bloguniverse is still talking about D'Antoni's resignation and Carmelo's petulance.

You can't end arguments by saying "oh that's stupid". That's what children do.

MarburyAnd1Crossover wrote:"You wont be happy if your wife ain't happy...Believe that.."

That's exactly right, because Carmelo acted like a woman.

Getting real tired of your repetative one track mind posting in threads.

MarburyAnd1Crossover wrote:If you look around the bloguniverse and the newspaper sports sections, this is what the talk is. The bloguniverse is still talking about D'Antoni's resignation and Carmelo's petulance.

The bloguniverse don't know nothing. It is simply one persons opinion.

Watch the games.

MarburyAnd1Crossover wrote:
Same can be said for all the posts hyping the 3-game streak up.

If you look around the bloguniverse and the newspaper sports sections, this is what the talk is. The bloguniverse is still talking about D'Antoni's resignation and Carmelo's petulance.

This is an idiotic argument to prove the validity of your claim. The "media buzz" says it. The media just wants to see who can yell the loudest and call attention to themselves. In my opinion, most of these people arent particularly insightful or, frankly, correct in how they analyze things.

Not to mention the holier than thou attitude, especially towards highly paid players, that prevails in the sports talk world. The good behavior police who are there to wail against "spoiled" millionaire athletes, without whom they would be sizing you up for a new pair of Nikes at Modells.

To me MDA may be the Wade Phillips of the NBA. Wade has a great defensive mind and was always a good DC and had success as a head coach but over time at each stop his players stop responding as a head coach. He also could not reach the other side of his team, the offense, so he left that to others. Now I know it is a different concept in football but if you do not put D and rebounding first your team will suffer. To me true team work starts on the Defensive side. That is how you create togetherness because your teammates know that you have their back.

When asked whats been different since Woodson took over, Chandler said, "He stays on us. During practice, during warmups and is constantly on us during the games (barking instructions) and during timeouts. He keeps us on our toes." Dare I say that word 'Accountability'. Woodson is constantly coaching and paying attention to the details.

Loved the timely timeout to try and stop the momentum of the Pacers run. Two plays later, he called another one when Feilds missed a defensive assignment. He let Feild no about it immediately. After the second timeout, the run was over and the ship was righted.

I remember when MDA had Melo paying point forward and he along with Stat were struggling to connect. Melo said he would get with Stat and figure it out. Why? Isn't that the coaches job? Woodson would have pulled Melo aside and said, "Pass the F*&%*^#@ ball!" Problem fixed. I love that the players no longer have to police themselves.

Uptown wrote:When asked whats been different since Woodson took over, Chandler said, "He stays on us. During practice, during warmups and is constantly on us during the games (barking instructions) and during timeouts. He keeps us on our toes." Dare I say that word 'Accountability'. Woodson is constantly coaching and paying attention to the details.

Loved the timely timeout to try and stop the momentum of the Pacers run. Two plays later, he called another one when Feilds missed a defensive assignment. He let Feild no about it immediately. After the second timeout, the run was over and the ship was righted.

I remember when MDA had Melo paying point forward and he along with Stat were struggling to connect. Melo said he would get with Stat and figure it out. Why? Isn't that the coaches job? Woodson would have pulled Melo aside and said, "Pass the F*&%*^#@ ball!" Problem fixed. I love that the players no longer have to police themselves.

Mr Uptown, a question for you: why is expecting players to be responsible for their actions a bad approach?

MarburyAnd1Crossover wrote:

Uptown wrote:When asked whats been different since Woodson took over, Chandler said, "He stays on us. During practice, during warmups and is constantly on us during the games (barking instructions) and during timeouts. He keeps us on our toes." Dare I say that word 'Accountability'. Woodson is constantly coaching and paying attention to the details.

Loved the timely timeout to try and stop the momentum of the Pacers run. Two plays later, he called another one when Feilds missed a defensive assignment. He let Feild no about it immediately. After the second timeout, the run was over and the ship was righted.

I remember when MDA had Melo paying point forward and he along with Stat were struggling to connect. Melo said he would get with Stat and figure it out. Why? Isn't that the coaches job? Woodson would have pulled Melo aside and said, "Pass the F*&%*^#@ ball!" Problem fixed. I love that the players no longer have to police themselves.

Mr Uptown, a question for you: why is expecting players to be responsible for their actions a bad approach?

i don't think it's necessarily a BAD approach, but it's becoming clear it wasn't the right approach for this team.

and i agree with those who say that MDA stubbornly stuck to his system. he almost seemed to be more concerned with proving it worked that actually winning games. and more importantly - trying to prove it worked rather than adapt the game plan to the very obvious talents he had here.

i keep harping on it, but it really does remind me of don nelson as knicks coach. hoping woodson can be as successful as JVG.

Team is looking like I envisioned. I expect Woodson to implement some more post play though if he is here next year.

More penetration and less rushing to get a shot off. Now all we need is Amare and Melo to come in conditioned at the start of the season next year. Also need to figure out how we are going to replace JR Smith.

MarburyAnd1Crossover wrote:

Uptown wrote:When asked whats been different since Woodson took over, Chandler said, "He stays on us. During practice, during warmups and is constantly on us during the games (barking instructions) and during timeouts. He keeps us on our toes." Dare I say that word 'Accountability'. Woodson is constantly coaching and paying attention to the details.

Loved the timely timeout to try and stop the momentum of the Pacers run. Two plays later, he called another one when Feilds missed a defensive assignment. He let Feild no about it immediately. After the second timeout, the run was over and the ship was righted.

I remember when MDA had Melo paying point forward and he along with Stat were struggling to connect. Melo said he would get with Stat and figure it out. Why? Isn't that the coaches job? Woodson would have pulled Melo aside and said, "Pass the F*&%*^#@ ball!" Problem fixed. I love that the players no longer have to police themselves.

Mr Uptown, a question for you: why is expecting players to be responsible for their actions a bad approach?

It's bad when its not working and you do nothing to fix it. Rightly or wrongly, part of a coaches job is to motivate. If your team constantly comes out flat and loses to teams with inferior talent, the coach is going to take the hit.

Take a look at the team we just swept. Is young Vogel, really a better coach than Jim O'Brien? Probably not, but when O'Brien was at the helm, the Pacers were playing listless, underaceiving and losing way more than they were winning. Vogel, who was apart of the coaching staff, took over the same exact team and the Pacers took off. They played more inspired, and Vogel slowed the game down just a bit because he recognized that they had a big man (Hibbert) who needed more touches on offense.

You can expect all you want, but if you dont put in the work, you are not going to get it.

I respect everyone's opinion on MDA and the relationship with Melo issue. But it does indeed look like all the complaints about MDA look like they were valid during this small but very positive sample size. Defensive intensity, communicating with players, set plays, proper use of timeouts, longer practices, etc.

Who knows if Woody will have them motivated like this the rest of the season, but if he does it won't be an indictment on MDA's system, it'll be an indictment on his ability to coach a roster diverse in talents and personalities.