Amare to teammates: "You gotta start using your brain".

[bklynstoops]

Finally had a chance to watch the video, talk about taking things out of context & blowing them up.

He's talking about what one has to do in their situation given the shortened season & shortened practice times & back-to-backs, most specifically the fewer practices. "You gotta be come students, using your brain & getting your IQ involved"... simple as.

true. but it was worth it to get a glimpse into what's going on in Russia.

[DocZaius]

I'm moving to Russia

[SelbyCobra]

not exactly...he means everyone on the team collectively, he followed that up by using "we" a lot.

Amare likes to say "we" a lot but everyone knows he's not including himself. He doesn't take responsibility for not doing what he wants other to do on the court.

Why is he demanding they do things he doesn't? He doesn't use his brain on the court. He's a pretty low IQ player on the court. Insulting his teammates when he is probably worse will not win him many points or inspire confidence.

We need a better leader for this team.

Totally agree. The guy has zero legitimate accountability for periods that he plays like a complete jackass on the court.

After the Orlando game he comes out and says:

“I was telling myself they can’t keep a good man down,’’ Stoudemire said. “I was amped up and ready to go in the fourth. I was ready to dominate. Again it’s my fault. We lost the game because I got into foul trouble. It won’t happen again.’’

This is a perfect example of his fake accountability. He throws his teammates under the bus for not getting him the ball in the 4th quarter (even though there was zero reason for him to be given the ball, as he had been playing his usual, completely uncoordinated and reckless brand of buffoonary in the time he wasn't on the bench), and then he gives the ultimate transparent statement of fake accountability by saying they lost because he got in foul trouble.

Translation: "I'm awesome, and we lost because my teammates didn't give me the ball in the 4th quarter. Oh, and you see what happens when I put in effort on the defensive end? I told you it was a bad idea. I'm too important offensively to be getting mixed up on the defensive end. Matador D all day long going forward!"

He'll get better - much better - but the same personality quality that made him the one to boldly take the weight of expectations and media pressure on his shoulders is now wearing really thin with me as a fan.

[NYKat]

This is a perfect example of his fake accountability. He throws his teammates under the bus for not getting him the ball in the 4th quarter (even though there was zero reason for him to be given the ball, as he had been playing his usual, completely uncoordinated and reckless brand of buffoonary in the time he wasn't on the bench), and then he gives the ultimate transparent statement of fake accountability by saying they lost because he got in foul trouble.

Translation: "I'm awesome, and we lost because my teammates didn't give me the ball in the 4th quarter. Oh, and you see what happens when I put in effort on the defensive end? I told you it was a bad idea. I'm too important offensively to be getting mixed up on the defensive end. Matador D all day long going forward!".

I'm glad someone pointed this out, I can totally see Amare using his foul trouble as justification for giving less of an effort on the defensive end for fear of foul trouble. I suspected this before, but comments like this make me really believe that.

[knicksosmoove]

yes ,i am not in love with stoudemire's attitude. this is a sport where self-reflection and self improvement are imperative, and i don't see that out of him (although, to be fair, he has improved certain aspects of his game over the years, particularly his jumper). look at dirk nowitzki. developed a post game in the latter half of his career. after he lost in 2007 he went to the australian outback for a month with his coach to ponder basketball lol.

[NYKat]

Where I will credit Amare is he has identified the problem with the team on offense. The ball movement is non-existant and the blame for that falls primarily on Carmelo.

Amare's message to "Let's move the ball" is or should be directed at Melo.

Great as he is in isolation and one-on-one, he hurts the rest of the team when he stops the ball and goes for his own shot, Melo has not yet figured when to look for his shot and when to keep the ball moving. Which is a shame because he is one of the better passers on this team.

Dantoni, Amare or Chandler need to tell him straight up, that he needs to run the offense first, look for his shot second, and trust in the system. This is where is leadership is needed most.

[SelbyCobra]

Where I will credit Amare is he has identified the problem with the team on offense. The ball movement is non-existant and the blame for that falls primarily on Carmelo.

Amare's message to "Let's move the ball" is or should be directed at Melo.

At the same time, after posting the best Assist Rate of his career last year at 13.8%, Amar'e this year has fallen off by nearly 40% to 8.6%.

Melo, meanwhile, is at 27.4%, or nearly double what he posted in his Knicks time last year (15.3%) and 30% higher than the best season he ever posted in his career (19.2% in 2006-2007)

Melo is definitely hogging the ball, but he's also moving it better than anyone could have expected. Stat is hogging the ball, too, but he's not moving it nearly as well as he was last year.

[NOOB77]

I am so sick of hearing about the ball movement. Blah Blah Blah the problem isn't the ball movement. THE PROBLEM IS PLAYER MOVEMENT. The ball STOPS because the other players STOP moving. If it is in Amares hands or Melos hands it is the same thing. When the players move the ball moves. When players stop the ball stop.

That is on the team not just Melo or Amare that is on everyone. Watch the game when you call someone a ball stopper just look at the players who are just standing and watching.

Have you ever seen someone cut baseline or cut down the middle wide open and not get the ball? Players need to take it upon themselves to get open and move without the ball. Not just wait for Amare or Melo to "make a play".

[albert]

Adding snippets from this thread to the #TRADESTAT hub. viewtopic.php?f=24&t=1150185

[NYKat]

I am so sick of hearing about the ball movement. Blah Blah Blah the problem isn't the ball movement. THE PROBLEM IS PLAYER MOVEMENT. The ball STOPS because the other players STOP moving. If it is in Amares hands or Melos hands it is the same thing. When the players move the ball moves. When players stop the ball stop.

That is on the team not just Melo or Amare that is on everyone. Watch the game when you call someone a ball stopper just look at the players who are just standing and watching.

Have you ever seen someone cut baseline or cut down the middle wide open and not get the ball? Players need to take it upon themselves to get open and move without the ball. Not just wait for Amare or Melo to "make a play".

Which came first the chicken or the egg?

I know what your getting at but you can't gloss over the fact that lack of ball movement is the primary issue with the offense.

If Melo goes into Iso-mode, the players have to spread the floor and can't be cutting across the court cause that will make it easier for their defender to help on Melo.

[NOOB77]

If a defender leaves a cutter to help on Melo then that person would be wide open. If everyone didn't move and just passed the ball around what would that do? People need to work to get open. How about some back door cuts by Fields instead of standing at the 3 point line? How about an off the ball screen by chandler on Amare's guy with Amare cutting to the basket? How about a cut by Douglas when his defender turns his head to look at Melo?

There are a lot of things you can do "OFF THE BALL" to have an impact even if it is an "ISO" play. If you just stand around the ball will stop and the defense will stay in one place. ISO ball doesn't mean you have to stand there like a statue.

A person just standing still is the easiest person to guard.

[mildred]

If a defender leaves a cutter to help on Melo then that person would be wide open. If everyone didn't move and just passed the ball around what would that do? People need to work to get open. How about some back door cuts by Fields instead of standing at the 3 point line? How about an off the ball screen by chandler on Amare's guy with Amare cutting to the basket? How about a cut by Douglas when his defender turns his head to look at Melo?

There are a lot of things you can do "OFF THE BALL" to have an impact even if it is an "ISO" play. If you just stand around the ball will stop and the defense will stay in one place. ISO ball doesn't mean you have to stand there like a statue.

A person just standing still is the easiest person to guard.

Agree 100% and you have to blame MD for not getting his players moving which in turn leads to ball movement.

MD's got this bug up his azz about spacing. Spacing spacing spacing spacing. It's all about spacing, spreading the floor so payers can operate the P&R or shoot the 3 or drive to the bucket. But the crazy thing is we have no one to shoot the 3, no one to drive and no one to run the P&R with. To adjust to our personnel, MD must do the exact thing you mention yet he continues the spacing thingy as though it will finally click after 4 futile years.

[NYKat]

If a defender leaves a cutter to help on Melo then that person would be wide open.

But it's easier for the defense to rotate to the open man if the floor isn't spaced and everyone is bunched up together. This is basketball 101

If everyone didn't move and just passed the ball around what would that do? People need to work to get open. How about some back door cuts by Fields instead of standing at the 3 point line? How about an off the ball screen by chandler on Amare's guy with Amare cutting to the basket? How about a cut by Douglas when his defender turns his head to look at Melo?

There are a lot of things you can do "OFF THE BALL" to have an impact even if it is an "ISO" play. If you just stand around the ball will stop and the defense will stay in one place. ISO ball doesn't mean you have to stand there like a statue.

A person just standing still is the easiest person to guard.

I do agree that player and ball movement are both integral, so i don't have that much of an issue with your point except for when you downplay the importance of ball movement...

EVERY good offense knows that moving the ball is priority number one, it can't be emphasized enough

[DuckTales]

Forget a PG, this team lacks effort. you don't need a PG to play with effort.

This team is pathetic.