Keys To the Loss vs. Miami Heat @MSG
Posted: Sun Apr 15, 2012 7:33 pm
This was a loss but a loss I can live with. The team will be better off for it. We proved we can play with these guys, or anybody. At full strength — and even shorthanded — we are a dangerous team that nobody wants to see in the first round.
Baron Davis
Davis is trying to gut it out and be a warrior for us being that he's the sole true point guard on the active roster, yet he just doesn't have the legs or the discipline to play big minutes while being productive consistently.
For every homerun there are three strikeouts. He is a 1-4 at bat guy right now. Defensively, when he is feeling fresh he does a solid job but as the minutes add up during each game he slows down fast in that department and when he gets beat it forces us to rotate and bring the help. If the timing isn't perfect with someone helping the helper we get killed either by teams making the extra pass, or even if we force them to miss the initial shot, the helper being out of position is leading to way too many offensive rebounds to the opposition.
Iman Shumpert
I love this kid's defense and intensity. He really likes to step up to the challenge and he's doing this as a rookie. The 2 steals in a row on Dwyane Wade was electrifying and he almost got himself a third. However, his intensity often leads to over-excitable miscues like when he got too hyped and tried to rise for a transition dunk that wasn't there and lost the ball. Again, these are learning experiences. We have ourselves a warrior at guard for years to come. This guy will develop into a force on both sides of the ball. He's also a very under-rated passer.
Landry Fields
If you know me as a poster, then you know I am NOT a Fields fan. I feel like he cost us the game from a momentum standpoint. The 3rd quarter he absolutely killed us. The game was there for the taking and this clown forced several bad shots trying to do things he is incapable of by going one-on-one. He also got beat a few times when he switched off guarding Wade.
Lastly, the few times he fell back and let the team's playmakers set him up, he bricked a 3, clanked a baseline jumper with that dart-board throw set-shot of his. He also got his shot rubbed on what should have been a lay-in or at worst drawing a foul.
I don't like this guys game and I am amazed at how he is still starting. I'd start Novak over him in a heartbeat, and that's just about the only thing about Woodson I ever criticize. Hopefully someone offers him a large enough deal as a restricted free agent that we choose not to match to re-sign this dude.
Carmelo Anthony
Huge all-around game from Melo. He is a gamer and he wants the pressure and has accepted the challenge of hoisting this team on his shoulders. I think he played a great game today but just forgot to gas up and the car died on the highway in the 4th quarter. He was last spotted walking on the I-95 shoulder with a plastic gas container.
Coach Woody instructed the team to take it to the bucket and beat the Heat to the penalty but he just didn't have the legs to continue going to the hole, which is why he started settling for late-game long 3-pointers. I have no doubts this cat will show up in the playoffs. This is why you gave up what you did to get a guy who embraces the big moments against the big teams. He'll be ok once we get Amar'e Stoudemire back and can afford to give him some more rest without the offense slipping.
Tyson Chandler
I will never talk bad about Chandler. Dude's heart is always in the right place and he always plays hard, unselfishly, and like a warrior. He will show up in the playoffs on his A-game — I'm not even worried about it. But he didn't have his best game today. Mainly for two reasons:
1). He struggles against mobile, offensively skilled, finesse bigs. He's a much better defender against bruisers, despite his frame making it appear as if he's more built to guard the finesse stretch fours
2). After he hurt his knee he just didn't have any pop and was reluctant to contest with the ferocity we normally see from him defensively. He was a bit tentative when he returned to the game after icing his knee down. He also didn't secure rebounds he normally corrals which lead to way too many crucial 2nd-chance Heat points. They killed us on the boards.
One last thing, what happened to his free-throw shooting? He was much improved at the FT-line early on. He's been struggling for a while. At first I thought it was due to the wrist injuries but he's said his wrists are close to 100% now, yet his FT shooting is still off.
JR Smith
JR is an enigma. He is an extremely erratic player. JR giveth and JR taketh away. He energized us offensively tonight with his 3pt shooting, hustle, a couple of strips/steals on Lebron and Wade. He also provided a jolt and the Garden exploded after his breakaway dunk. However, his celebrating immediately after, while a smart player with pride — D-Wade — immediately hustled back and retaliated for the score, showing how far BBIQ, smarts, and being an ultimate competitor will take you. Smith robbed us of our momentum when we should have been taking control of the game.
Steve Novak
Novak did what he does. He is arguably our most consistent contributor on the team who sticks to what he does best and knows his role. He hit a couple of big 3's and he defended pretty-well. Where he didn't show up today where he normally does was on the box-outs. He is usually one of our few fundamental box-out guys but he fell asleep too many times today leading to some devastating Heat offensive boards for 2nd-chance buckets.
Jared Jeffries
JJ is another guy who I never worry about anymore. He will prove his worth come playoff time, defending in halfcourt sets and drawing charges. He had a nice pick and roll finish at the rim for dunk. However, he hasn't been playing too many minutes as we're just trying to get to the playoffs without any more hiccups from his knee. I only wish he was a bit better on the defensive boards to keep the offense off the glass. This summer we will likely retain him but I'd also like to see a goon who is solely a defensive rebounder to pair with him off the bench. Maybe we already have one in Josh Harrelson. I wouldn't mind seeing those two on the court together at times. Jeffries is more of a tip-out guy where Harrelson has the body, girth and the hands to actually pull the rebound in, in traffic.
Mike Bibby
He's there but is he even there? Dude is like invisible to me out there on the court. The one thing he's supposed to bring to the table — shooting — he doesn't even seem to want to do. It's like when he does actually shoot a jumpshot it's as if he'd rather not actually take the shot.
Baron Davis
Davis is trying to gut it out and be a warrior for us being that he's the sole true point guard on the active roster, yet he just doesn't have the legs or the discipline to play big minutes while being productive consistently.
For every homerun there are three strikeouts. He is a 1-4 at bat guy right now. Defensively, when he is feeling fresh he does a solid job but as the minutes add up during each game he slows down fast in that department and when he gets beat it forces us to rotate and bring the help. If the timing isn't perfect with someone helping the helper we get killed either by teams making the extra pass, or even if we force them to miss the initial shot, the helper being out of position is leading to way too many offensive rebounds to the opposition.
Iman Shumpert
I love this kid's defense and intensity. He really likes to step up to the challenge and he's doing this as a rookie. The 2 steals in a row on Dwyane Wade was electrifying and he almost got himself a third. However, his intensity often leads to over-excitable miscues like when he got too hyped and tried to rise for a transition dunk that wasn't there and lost the ball. Again, these are learning experiences. We have ourselves a warrior at guard for years to come. This guy will develop into a force on both sides of the ball. He's also a very under-rated passer.
Landry Fields
If you know me as a poster, then you know I am NOT a Fields fan. I feel like he cost us the game from a momentum standpoint. The 3rd quarter he absolutely killed us. The game was there for the taking and this clown forced several bad shots trying to do things he is incapable of by going one-on-one. He also got beat a few times when he switched off guarding Wade.
Lastly, the few times he fell back and let the team's playmakers set him up, he bricked a 3, clanked a baseline jumper with that dart-board throw set-shot of his. He also got his shot rubbed on what should have been a lay-in or at worst drawing a foul.
I don't like this guys game and I am amazed at how he is still starting. I'd start Novak over him in a heartbeat, and that's just about the only thing about Woodson I ever criticize. Hopefully someone offers him a large enough deal as a restricted free agent that we choose not to match to re-sign this dude.
Carmelo Anthony
Huge all-around game from Melo. He is a gamer and he wants the pressure and has accepted the challenge of hoisting this team on his shoulders. I think he played a great game today but just forgot to gas up and the car died on the highway in the 4th quarter. He was last spotted walking on the I-95 shoulder with a plastic gas container.
Coach Woody instructed the team to take it to the bucket and beat the Heat to the penalty but he just didn't have the legs to continue going to the hole, which is why he started settling for late-game long 3-pointers. I have no doubts this cat will show up in the playoffs. This is why you gave up what you did to get a guy who embraces the big moments against the big teams. He'll be ok once we get Amar'e Stoudemire back and can afford to give him some more rest without the offense slipping.
Tyson Chandler
I will never talk bad about Chandler. Dude's heart is always in the right place and he always plays hard, unselfishly, and like a warrior. He will show up in the playoffs on his A-game — I'm not even worried about it. But he didn't have his best game today. Mainly for two reasons:
1). He struggles against mobile, offensively skilled, finesse bigs. He's a much better defender against bruisers, despite his frame making it appear as if he's more built to guard the finesse stretch fours
2). After he hurt his knee he just didn't have any pop and was reluctant to contest with the ferocity we normally see from him defensively. He was a bit tentative when he returned to the game after icing his knee down. He also didn't secure rebounds he normally corrals which lead to way too many crucial 2nd-chance Heat points. They killed us on the boards.
One last thing, what happened to his free-throw shooting? He was much improved at the FT-line early on. He's been struggling for a while. At first I thought it was due to the wrist injuries but he's said his wrists are close to 100% now, yet his FT shooting is still off.
JR Smith
JR is an enigma. He is an extremely erratic player. JR giveth and JR taketh away. He energized us offensively tonight with his 3pt shooting, hustle, a couple of strips/steals on Lebron and Wade. He also provided a jolt and the Garden exploded after his breakaway dunk. However, his celebrating immediately after, while a smart player with pride — D-Wade — immediately hustled back and retaliated for the score, showing how far BBIQ, smarts, and being an ultimate competitor will take you. Smith robbed us of our momentum when we should have been taking control of the game.
Steve Novak
Novak did what he does. He is arguably our most consistent contributor on the team who sticks to what he does best and knows his role. He hit a couple of big 3's and he defended pretty-well. Where he didn't show up today where he normally does was on the box-outs. He is usually one of our few fundamental box-out guys but he fell asleep too many times today leading to some devastating Heat offensive boards for 2nd-chance buckets.
Jared Jeffries
JJ is another guy who I never worry about anymore. He will prove his worth come playoff time, defending in halfcourt sets and drawing charges. He had a nice pick and roll finish at the rim for dunk. However, he hasn't been playing too many minutes as we're just trying to get to the playoffs without any more hiccups from his knee. I only wish he was a bit better on the defensive boards to keep the offense off the glass. This summer we will likely retain him but I'd also like to see a goon who is solely a defensive rebounder to pair with him off the bench. Maybe we already have one in Josh Harrelson. I wouldn't mind seeing those two on the court together at times. Jeffries is more of a tip-out guy where Harrelson has the body, girth and the hands to actually pull the rebound in, in traffic.
Mike Bibby
He's there but is he even there? Dude is like invisible to me out there on the court. The one thing he's supposed to bring to the table — shooting — he doesn't even seem to want to do. It's like when he does actually shoot a jumpshot it's as if he'd rather not actually take the shot.
