Is it just me? Am i crazy?

[Knicksfan20]

Or are we a much better team with Balkman on the floor? Am i crazy? I know some of you are probably getting tired of all my Balkman posts lately, but to me he should definatly be playing more. I just dont get it...Why doesnt Dantoni see this? He is clearly a better option at this point then Walker or Fields. Who niether of them are providing much offense and both of there defense is horrendous.

Last night although he didnt score (only played 10 misn...) he had 3 blocks, a rebound, kept some balls alive, played good defense and got his hands on some passes.


He needs to play more. We need somone like him who knows their role, who will hustle and defend and provide a spark off the bench. He may not put up 10 ppg liek Dantoni may like... But he is an energizer. He will get the crowd into the game and do the dirty work. Things a winning team needs.

IDK...Maybe im wrong, but i really dont think so. I have been playing close attention to him and for the short amount of time he has been in the game, he has done good things.

And its not like he cant shoot. You can obviously tell he has worked on his shot. Although he has yet to make a 3...he had a few rim out and hasnt "bricked" any. His FT shot is much improved too and he looks like he hit the weights as well. I think Dantoni is making a huge mistake by not playing him. He would help this team out much more then Landry or Walker will. I love Landry, but he just isnt making an impact right now. He needs to go back to Hustle Landry, because he currently is useless and is having a negative impact on the court.

[Im Coming Home]

Or are we a much better team with Balkman on the floor? Am i crazy? I know some of you are probably getting tired of all my Balkman posts lately, but to me he should definatly be playing more. I just dont get it...Why doesnt Dantoni see this? He is clearly a better option at this point then Walker or Fields. Who niether of them are providing much offense and both of there defense is horrendous.

Last night although he didnt score (only played 10 misn...) he had 3 blocks, a rebound, kept some balls alive, played good defense and got his hands on some passes.


He needs to play more. We need somone like him who knows their role, who will hustle and defend and provide a spark off the bench. He may not put up 10 ppg liek Dantoni may like... But he is an energizer. He will get the crowd into the game and do the dirty work. Things a winning team needs.

IDK...Maybe im wrong, but i really dont think so. I have been playing close attention to him and for the short amount of time he has been in the game, he has done good things.

And its not like he cant shoot. You can obviously tell he has worked on his shot. Although he has yet to make a 3...he had a few rim out and hasnt "bricked" any. His FT shot is much improved too and he looks like he hit the weights as well. I think Dantoni is making a huge mistake by not playing him. He would help this team out much more then Landry or Walker will. I love Landry, but he just isnt making an impact right now. He needs to go back to Hustle Landry, because he currently is useless and is having a negative impact on the court.

I agree, and I can't really add much to what you said because it is basically all true and all good points were made.

[MaseInYourFace]

I do think he should play a bit more. He helps on the boards and defensively. I don't like that D'antoni has encouraged him to take three-pointers. He should just take open mid-range jumpers and get the rest of his points on put-backs, hustle points, etc. I'm old school in that sense. Too many players take three's now. I believe that is a privilege you have to earn. Show your a good shooter first before you have the gall to take threes!

[Fat Kat]

You're right. I've always been a Balkman fan. Players like him energize the entire team.

[Stannis]

Balkman is a great player and never has gotten his fair chance. It is a shame. He plays well with the Knicks.

On the offense, he is pretty decent at cutting to the basket. Of course, Mike D does not like that. Better take the open 3 that you never taken your whole career, right?

They should let Balkman play defense and Amar'e play offense.

[Mr Knick]

I perfer to see Balkman play also, all for any type of defense at this point.

[Knicksfan20]

Glad im not the only one who thinks so. Im acually ok with him taking the 3 if he is wide wide open. Like i said, i think he workedo n his shot alot. Im acually confident he can make them even though he hasnt hit one in the reg season yet. Crazy as that sounds.

[HighRyzer83]

I agree. balkman brings the intangibles that winning teams must have. Hey may appear passive and inarticulate but he has a great motor and high bball IQ. Rarely does he make bad decisions. I dont get why people claim he's a scrub

[Knicksfan20]

I agree. balkman brings the intangibles that winning teams must have. Hey may appear passive and inarticulate but he has a great motor and high bball IQ. Rarely does he make bad decisions. I dont get why people claim he's a scrub

I'm not quite sure if i would go ahead and say he has a high bbiq...but he definatly has great insticts out on the court. Even on the offensive side.

[Knicked_Up]

You are not crazy at all. Balkman deserves 15 or so minutes a night. He provides hustle and solid defense, something we desperately need.

[Knicksfan20]

I think there needs to be "we want balkman" chants at the Garden. Im dead ass.

Is he a star? No...but we need a player like him to play soooo badly. And he seems like he has his priorities straight. He provided us with alot of great moments his rookie year.

[KnicksScholar24]

I agree with the original poster. I think Balkman needs to play more. I also think he needs to shoot less. I also think when Jeffries is healthy, he needs to play more.

I think Balkam is the 3rd best defender on the roster behind Shumpert and Chandler, and Jeffries is the 4th best. Douglas is a distant 5th.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vnL0CkKlY8&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]

If you look at 2:19 in the above video, you can see how Balkman shows on the PG and then QUICKLY rotates back to his man. The majority of the players of the Knicks can't even do THAT simple thing correctly, which is why there are so many weak-links and defensive lapses with this team. There are way too many switches, confusion before, during, and after the switches, and too much not paying attention to your own man (too much on the ball itself) when playing off-the-ball defense. Balkman was pretty good defenisvely man-to-man on Kobe Bryant as well (except that stupid foul on his 35 ft 3point attempt). Renaldo needs to stop shooting 3s, just like Harrellson needs to stop, and like Jeffries tried last year. F**king _'Antoni is ruining our players.

[Knicksfan20]

Agree ks. I think its funny you bring up showing help and then quickling getting back to your man. The biggest coulprit of not doing that right is Toney Douglas. He helps out way tooo much. But its not like Balk is taking 4 3s a night. And he doesnt get playing time so how is he supposed to get into any kind of rythem? 0-1 could turn into a 1-2 50% shooting later on in the night.

Im not saying hes a great shooter, but he is shooting the ball with confidence. And his FT shooting is way better then it was. He definatly put a lot of work in the offseason, and you can see that. Anybody should be able to see that just from a small sample from this year compared to his other years.

Balkman needs to play. 15-20 mins a night. Cut Walker and Fields minutes down.

[2010]

Some excellent points throught this thread. Really the only person I disagree with is KnicksScholar24...who (as usual) doesn't know what the phacc he's takin' about. Balkman absolutely deserves to play but Jeffries DOES NOT. In fact, the main guy who's minutes Balk should be taking is Jeffries, who when healthy already gets way too many minutes as it is.

Balkman can do everything Jeffries can do along with being a better finisher, a better shooter, a better cutter, a better rebounder and a better passer. In fact, the only thing I dislike about Balkman is a toss-up between his nose and his locks LOL.

[NYKGrit78]

Or are we a much better team with Balkman on the floor? Am i crazy? I know some of you are probably getting tired of all my Balkman posts lately, but to me he should definatly be playing more. I just dont get it...Why doesnt Dantoni see this? He is clearly a better option at this point then Walker or Fields. Who niether of them are providing much offense and both of there defense is horrendous.

Last night although he didnt score (only played 10 misn...) he had 3 blocks, a rebound, kept some balls alive, played good defense and got his hands on some passes.


He needs to play more. We need somone like him who knows their role, who will hustle and defend and provide a spark off the bench. He may not put up 10 ppg liek Dantoni may like... But he is an energizer. He will get the crowd into the game and do the dirty work. Things a winning team needs.

IDK...Maybe im wrong, but i really dont think so. I have been playing close attention to him and for the short amount of time he has been in the game, he has done good things.

And its not like he cant shoot. You can obviously tell he has worked on his shot. Although he has yet to make a 3...he had a few rim out and hasnt "bricked" any. His FT shot is much improved too and he looks like he hit the weights as well. I think Dantoni is making a huge mistake by not playing him. He would help this team out much more then Landry or Walker will. I love Landry, but he just isnt making an impact right now. He needs to go back to Hustle Landry, because he currently is useless and is having a negative impact on the court.

+1000

I wanted to say more, but I think you covered everything...more or less. Should we start a Free Balkman chant?

[Deeeez Knicks]

Balkman should def play more.

The problem as usual is D'Antoni. Having Balkman camp out at the 3 point line and encouraging him to shoot 3's is idiotic!! Balkman is 9 for 58 for his career from 3! Thats just not his game....

Encourage him to cut to the basket, drive, even pull up from mid range. Balkman should be in constant motion on offense. At least in a position to grab offensive boards. Play to his strength and don't put him in a position to fail offensively. Same for Fields, TD, and a lot of other players too.

D'Antoni is like a fitted hat. No adjustment at all.

[Knicks D]

Balkman is a great player and never has gotten his fair chance. It is a shame. He plays well with the Knicks.

On the offense, he is pretty decent at cutting to the basket. Of course, Mike D does not like that. Better take the open 3 that you never taken your whole career, right?

They should let Balkman play defense and Amar'e play offense.

I think this is a little out there. Great player? What would you call Dwight Howard?

[Iamknicks]

better defensively with balkman on the floor yes

[Knicksfan20]

Or are we a much better team with Balkman on the floor? Am i crazy? I know some of you are probably getting tired of all my Balkman posts lately, but to me he should definatly be playing more. I just dont get it...Why doesnt Dantoni see this? He is clearly a better option at this point then Walker or Fields. Who niether of them are providing much offense and both of there defense is horrendous.

Last night although he didnt score (only played 10 misn...) he had 3 blocks, a rebound, kept some balls alive, played good defense and got his hands on some passes.


He needs to play more. We need somone like him who knows their role, who will hustle and defend and provide a spark off the bench. He may not put up 10 ppg liek Dantoni may like... But he is an energizer. He will get the crowd into the game and do the dirty work. Things a winning team needs.

IDK...Maybe im wrong, but i really dont think so. I have been playing close attention to him and for the short amount of time he has been in the game, he has done good things.

And its not like he cant shoot. You can obviously tell he has worked on his shot. Although he has yet to make a 3...he had a few rim out and hasnt "bricked" any. His FT shot is much improved too and he looks like he hit the weights as well. I think Dantoni is making a huge mistake by not playing him. He would help this team out much more then Landry or Walker will. I love Landry, but he just isnt making an impact right now. He needs to go back to Hustle Landry, because he currently is useless and is having a negative impact on the court.

+1000

I wanted to say more, but I think you covered everything...more or less. Should we start a Free Balkman chant?

We definatly should. I wish i had season tickets for the games because if i did i would hae already started those chants. We could really use him out there. And he should definatly be playing ahead of Jeffriest as well. I agree with who said that.

[thebuzzardman]

Is it me or is Balkman best "big" man on the Knicks at showing and recovering to his man on the Pick and Roll defense?

I know he's not perfect on D and gets caught napping and being best on this Knicks team on D is like world tallest midget, but I had noticed this and wondered if anyone else did too.

Ok, Chandler might be better, but Balkman is much better at it than Stat\Jorts\Fields\Walker\Jeffries