Knicks fan here. How's T-Mac when healthy?

[Naan]

Who knows how determined he is at this point to revitalize his career. When he's healthy, is he able to make the players around him better? Is he a good playmaker or strictly a guy you want scoring? Can he carry a team down the stretch of a game (playoffs withstanding)? Any off-the-court issues?

[Guy986]

The last time he was "healthy" was in 2007. So nobody really knows at this point.

But if you ask me, personally i believe he can play. Given enough minutes(30ish) i'm guessing 15-18ppg, 5 assists, 4 rebounds on 41-43% shooting.

Tmac doesn't really have any known off court issues. He's just a complainer that is all. And he doesn't always play hard but that could change in his contract year.

[SirHuey]

When healthy? Top 10 players in the league..he was in Race to MVP just two years ago, and even then, he wasn't fully healthy. He's one of the best passing forwards in NBA history, and a great scorer..He's clutch and has bunch of game winners and stats to prove so. Don't expect him to have immediate impact though, he hasn't played for a long time..I just hope he can stay healthy, or else his career is done...I wonder if he's gonna play on Saturday, i'm def gonna watch that game if he is..

[Munchlaxatives]

I think he'll be the Knicks' top scorer. I doubt he'll do much on defense though.

[rocketsballin]

he was arguably better than kobe when healthy . if he can play healthy now he'll def play like an all star. anywhere from 15/3/3 - 25/5/5

[tha_rock220]

Who knows how determined he is at this point to revitalize his career. When he's healthy, is he able to make the players around him better? Is he a good playmaker or strictly a guy you want scoring? Can he carry a team down the stretch of a game (playoffs withstanding)? Any off-the-court issues?

Houston fans are actually curious about this themselves.

[Mr. E]

Don't expect "T-Mac" from a few years ago and I think that you'll be satisfied.

I do think that he has something left in the tank, and that he has something to prove. That could lend to some entertaining performances. I think that if he alters his mentality from "the guy" to "one of the guys" then he could play several more years as a top-tier role player. If you place unrealistic expectations on him, like being Tmac from 2004-07, then you'll be disappointed.

One thing to keep in mind is that he is coming off of major surgery, and that some ring rust should be expected. You can only prepare so much in the trainers office - he needs on-court time to see what's left.

My only worry about him in NYC is the media and how he handles it. NYC media is brutal, especially compared to what he's encountered in Orlando & Houston. Our media here is very close to the athletes and still protects them. Some of the stories involving Artest last year in Houston would have been NY Post Front Page Fodder, but they were essentially "ignored" here. Tracy won't get that in New York. How he reacts once the honeymoon is over will indicate how he will do there.

[TMACFORMVP]

I did this in the off-season in deciphering how McGrady would play this season, and just added some thoughts at the end about the six games he "played," in this season. Take it for what its worth.

He wasn't really healthy last season, at any point, but when he was generally feeling better, it directly correlated with an increase in minutes. Last year, he played 15 games in which he received 35 or more minutes (accounts for 42% of his total games played). His stats were as follows:

Code: Select all

November 4th - Boston --> 26 / 2 / 6 on 9-18 and 1-4 from three.
November 6th - Portland --> 30 / 7 / 8 on 11-23 and 0-2 from three.
November 12th - Phoenix --> 27 / 5 / 2 on 11-18 and 4-5 from three.
November 14th - San Antonio --> 7 / 3 / 5 on 2-12 and 0-0 from three.
November 15th - New Orleans --> 18 / 9 /4 on 5-12 and 1-3 from three.
December 12th - Golden State --> 24/ 10 / 9 on 6-15 and 2-4 from three.
December 13th - LA Clippers --> 19 / 5 / 3 on 5-17 and 2-5 from three.
December 16th - Denver --> 20 / 14 / 10 on 8-17 and 3-5 from three.
December 31st - Milwaukee --> 7 / 2 / 10 on 3-10 and 1-3 from three.
January 6th - Philadelphia --> 14 / 4 / 9 on 5-15 and 0-5 from three.
January 9th - Oklahoma City --> 26 / 4 / 3 on 8-20 and 1-3 from three.
January 25th - Detroit --> 15 / 4 / 4 on 6-14 and 1-2 from three.
January 28th - Philadelphia --> 24 / 5 / 6 on 8-20 and 3-4 from three.
February 4th - Memphis --> 21 / 5 / 5 on 9-21 and 0-5 from three.
February 7th - Minnesota --> 15 / 3 / 2 on 6-16 and 3-4 from three.

19.5 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 5.7 APG on .411 FG% and .407 from three.

Highlights (if you want to call it that, he was rather slow in some of these games):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDb_FrG_8Ow - 26 points against Thunder
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bnj_nriL1ok - 17 points against Magic
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FbGlrKiO2Q - 20 points against Knicks
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DB5VFCu02H4 - 15 points against Pistons
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJyOAzmeTzE - 16 points against Mavericks
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-Obvf1jOUo - 15 points against Wizards
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZx2eIuS2js - 20 points against Wizards (14 point fourth)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ia-I07B0ZGk - 18 points against New Orleans
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZOn8_y2Q2A - 19 points against Clippers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5uKrCzitBc - 20 point triple double against Nuggets
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TI4calyS54o - 24 points against Warriors
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtWGYn7MfzA - 18 points against Kings
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n01f-hgKaEM - 24 points against 76ers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LR4uOnokVSk - 23 points against Minnesota
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zn8mZZicJQA - Dunk on Tyrus

Here are some more splits:

2-Days of Rest

19.0 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 5.4 APG on .426 from the field, and .484 from three.

3-Days of Rest

17.0 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 6.6 APG on .408 from the field and .313 from three.

He didn't look good at all last season, but it's interesting to see how his stats reflect when he receives more minutes, or gets more days of rest. Watching nearly every game, he was a step slow both offensively and defensively, and that missed dunk attempt against the Bucks was the last straw for himself, in which he basically decided he need microfracture knee surgery. But he did have his moments in which he looked good, all while on one leg. It'd be interesting to think, if all the hard work, and PR by McGrady's camp and Grover would really make him more explosive (honestly, I'm not all sure it can be ANY worse than last season), then he'd at least return to that level 07-08, in which he was an All-NBA Third team player.

- Added

This season, he's only played 6 games. My personal view on those games were that he looked lost defensively in terms of when to double, or when to rotate (his man defense, when on the ball looked adequate), and he was moving much better than he did all of last season. The game against the Clippers was the real game he came out aggressively to score, and obviously enough, that was his best game as well. He's a big "in the flow," type player, so it wouldn't be wise to judge if he can return to a productive level, or if he's done. Ultimately, it's too little a sample size, and sporadically not enough time to get any sort of groove. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVGqymgMj04

You can find the rest of his games under the same man who uploaded that video.

To answer the question, I agree with everyone that's posted in here. We don't know either what a "healthy," Tracy McGrady can bring to the floor. But I do still think he has game, and will takeover as the Knicks primary sort of guy for the final stretch of the season. He's still able to impact the game in other ways when he's not shooting the ball with his pick and roll game, but really it's too tough to tell. If McGrady is moving well, he'll have a positive affect on the game, if he's moving slowly and not trusting in his knee, then you'll see a reluctance to create and camp out on the perimeter.

He was just not in our plans, but he's motivated, and hungry to prove he can still ball. I think he'll play well for the Knicks. Not at the level he was, a perennial 25/6/5 guy, but a guy that can still get you 18-20 points, 4-5 rebounds, and 5-6 assists every night. I think I'm more optimistic than most though - the big thing is his efficiency, that's key.

I'm very interested to see how he would play under D'Antoni, a system known to inflate stats, but McGrady known to be a more cerebral half court type of player.

[Jaykoolzboy]

I think he's still a capable 18ppg 5rebs 4asts guy, just that if he tries too hard, he is going to be hurt again

[Iggyemu]

He'll be fine in D'Antoni's offense. Lots of pick and roll...he'll have to get use to running a lot of the time though. He'll be the Knicks best playmaker and make life a lot easier for Lee on the inside and the shooters on the outside. He is definitely one of the smartest players in the NBA..he'll fit right into a team that lacks the type of playmaking he will bring.

This is his contract year and he has a few months to prove that he is worth a decent contract so I think he'll play hard and play well.

[grumpysaddle]

[Moreyball]

well played, sir