The lesson to learn from Monday night’s game (Jan. 2) is that if you live by the three-pointer, you also die by the three-pointer. The New York Knicks attempted 35 three-pointers against the Toronto Raptors, making just 10 of them to finish 28.6 percent from beyond the arc. Overall, the team went just 28-for-78 from the field (35.9 percent) in a game that simply got away from them at the end.

This 90-85 loss to the Raptors is extremely frustrating; especially with how good the Knicks looked against the Sacramento Kings back on Saturday (Dec. 31). The team had to play without All-Star power forward Amare Stoudemire again, and at first it didn’t seem like it would hurt the team. The Knicks took a nice 23-22 lead at the end of the first quarter and it looked like a great game was brewing. The second quarter got out of control though, as Toronto out-scored the Knicks 29-11 in those 12 minutes alone.

Heading into halftime with a 17-point deficit to a team that won 22 games last year is not what Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni wanted to see, and at least the team put in more effort in the second half. The Knicks fought back to within one point with just 35 second left but couldn’t stop the Raptors when it mattered most. In the early Atlantic division standings, New York now falls behind Toronto by means of the head-to-head tie-breaker. This is definitely not where the team wanted to sit after five games in a shortened season.

Carmelo Anthony finished the game 13-for-31 from the field, often taking shots he wasn’t comfortable with just to get the offense going. Far too many times there were other players passing up shot opportunities and it seemed like Bill Walker was afraid to even take shots on Monday night (Jan. 2). I don’t blame Anthony at all for attempting 31 shots, but I would have liked him to make a couple more. He did finish with 35 points, 11 rebounds and 4 assists though, so fantasy basketball owners that have him had to come away happy from this game.

Next up for the 2-3 Knicks are the Charlotte Bobcats, who come to town on Wednesday (Jan. 4) for a 7:30 p.m. ET game.

More From YCN :

Knicks Beat Kings Without Stoudemire

Stoudemire Injures Ankle

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Sources:

Full Knicks Schedule

New York Knicks Website

*Ryan Christopher DeVault is a fan of the New York Knicks that has followed the team since the days John Starks, Charles Oakley, and Anthony Mason instilled their defensive will on the rest of the league.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

Not much else going on in the NBA world today.

The New York Knicks really took it to the Sacramento Kings on Saturday night (Dec. 31), and in the process proved that the team has weapons other than Amare Stoudemire. Forced to play without the power forward, the Knicks still cruised to a nice 114-92 victory.

Every starter for the Knicks scored in double-figures against the Kings, including rookie Josh Harrelson going for 14 points and 12 rebounds in his first career start. The Knicks have a real asset in Harrelson, and it is clear that he could add a lot to the team this year. This is what I was talking about when I wrote about how the Knicks could benefit from having Stoudemire sit out a game.

Carmelo Anthony led the team in scoring with 23 points, but he struggled from the field (6-for-15). Anthony made up for it by going 11-for-13 from the free throw line, grabbing 7 rebounds and dishing out 5 assists. Down low, Tyson Chandler was an absolute beat, going 6-for-8 from the center position and hitting all 10 of his free throws. For a guy that took only 6 shots total in the first three games, this was a huge outing. Chandler’s 22 points were more than any Kings player had.

Helping with the additional scoring was Landry Fields with 21, Toney Douglas with 17 and Bill Walker with 11 points off the bench. The Knicks made 88.9 percent of their free throws, going 24-for-27 from the line to really put this game out of reach. It also didn’t hurt that the defense held the Kings to just 34.9 percent shooting from the field and just 27.3 percent from three-point range.

After losing two games on the West Coast to the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers, this was a great way to bounce back. The Knicks improved to 2-2 on the season and kept pace with the 2-2 Philadelphia 76ers in a tie for first place in the Atlantic division. For a team still trying to find itself, Knicks fans have to come away from this win with a big smile. The team got forced to find offensive weapons other than Stoudemire and passed that test will flying colors. If the team can keep this up when he returns, it could become tough for any of the Eastern Conference teams to stop them.

The next game for New York is on Monday, Jan. 2 against the Toronto Raptors in the first of several games at Madison Square Garden.

More From YCN :

Stoudemire Injures Ankle

Knicks Crushed By Warriors

No_Garnett_Suspension

New_York_Wins_Opener_Against_Boston

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Sources:

Full Knicks Schedule

New York Knicks Website

*Ryan Christopher DeVault is a fan of the New York Knicks that has followed the team since the days John Starks, Charles Oakley, and Anthony Mason instilled their defensive will on the rest of the league.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

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Jeremy Lin is headed to the New York Knicks.

The 23-year-old point guard was claimed off waivers and will fill a starting position that will eventually go to Baron Davis, the recently-signed point guard whose currently back injury is preventing him from playing, ESPN reported Tuesday.

Thanks for visiting our blog =).

The New York Knicks beat the Boston Celtics on opening night, stealing first place in the Atlantic division over an aging team playing without Paul Pierce. The loss left Celtics power forward Kevin Garnett pretty upset, and he went at the throat of Knicks forward Bill Walker. Garnett grabbed Walker by the throat with one hand and pushed him backwards, creating a situation that should have been pretty embarrassing to the league. Apparently the league doesn’t care though.

A source from the NBA leaked information that Garnett would not get punished for this incident, basically sweeping it under the rug. This is an unacceptable decision by the league and it really reeks of favoritism for a player that is likely heading to the Basketball Hall of Fame. What Garnett did was basically assault Walker after the game, something that it would seem that the league would try to stop from happening. If it happened during, a player could get ejected, fined and then suspended for the action.

Walker was the mature one in this situation, approaching Garnett later that afternoon when the Celtics were heading to the team bus to leave. If we believe what Walker has to say, the situation looks closed and is unlikely to re-surface when the teams face off again this season. As for the fan opinion of what took place after that final whistle and just how ridiculous what Garnett did is another debate entirely. For a player that already has a negative reputation for playing dirty, this is not sitting well with Knicks fans that watched the aftermath.

The league needed to make a statement here, if for no other reason than t stay consistent with policy. Players get suspended in the NBA for simply leaving the bench during a game, but assaulting an opponent after the game has ended seems so much worse. Apparently not.

Celtics fans are quick to excuse Garnett’s actions on articles about the game, most likely because they have become used to this behavior. It’s not something that flies off the court, so why should it get considered proper behavior after the game. I am curious about one thing though; where are the NBA fans that were attacking LeBron James for not shaking hands after a loss back in 2010? Is trying to choke someone not worse than skipping a handshake?

More From YCN :

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Sources:

Full Knicks Schedule

New York Knicks Website

*Ryan Christopher DeVault is a fan of the New York Knicks that has followed the team since the days John Starks, Charles Oakley, and Anthony Mason instilled their defensive will on the rest of the league.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

There is the quick update of the day.

Read More: Carmelo Anthony (F – NYK), Tyson Chandler (C – NYK), Jason Terry (G – DAL), Dirk Nowitzki (F – DAL), Amare Stoudemire (F – NYK), Toney Douglas (G – NYK), Mike Woodson (H – ATL), Landry Fields (G – NYK), Dallas Mavericks, New York Knicks

SB Nation New York will be running a five-part season preview of the 2011-12 New York Knicks, culminating right before the start of the season on Christmas Day.

Part I: The Stars

Part II: The Non-Stars

Part III: The Coach

Part IV: The X Factor

In the first two parts of our 2011-12 Knicks Season Preview, we broke down the Knicks’ roster into two factions: The Stars and the Non-Stars. Those who belong to the first group are Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudemire and the newly acquired center Tyson Chandler. I made the distinction because its clear who the most important players on the Knicks are, but also because we know what we’re getting with The Stars. Carmelo and Amare will score, a lot, and won’t play tons of defense. Chandler will do the opposite. You know what you’re getting from them, and if they don’t play well, the Knicks are doomed. We’re going to sort of assume that they’ll be themselves.

That leaves us with the rest of the roster. On any winning NBA team, the ancillary players make a huge difference. When you get to the finals and late playoff rounds, every team has stars. Often the better and bigger stars prevail, but there hasn’t been a championship team that didn’t get major contributions from its role players. Last year the Dallas Mavericks rode Dirk Nowitzki to a title, but they don’t get there without the play of JJ Barea, Jason Terry and Chandler, now a Knick. The team they defeated, the Miami Heat? Sure, LeBron James wasn’t as great as everyone would expect of him, but they were giving huge minutes to the likes of Joel Anthony and Eddie House.

For this Knicks team, there are a few candidates for the team’s X Factor, the guy who could help the team immensely with good play and slog them down with poor play. There’s Baron Davis, who is a huge unknown at this point. How healthy will he be when he finally comes back? Will he be in shape? Will he be motivated? There’s Landry Fields, who was an All-Rookie selection last season but only based on his play pre-Carmelo Anthony trade. If Fields can find his form from the beginning of last season — knocking down open threes, playing sold defense, getting out in transition — he’s the type of role player that many successful teams have. Does iman Shumpert improve on his shot selection and become a better offensive player?

And that brings us to Toney Douglas, who I choose as the X Factor for this Knicks squad. Douglas will begin the year as the starting point guard, but will he end it there? Douglas will have to get off to a fast start to keep his job, with Davis entering the fray in a few weeks. The way Mike D’Antoni seems to have shaped the offense will help Douglas, as it calls for Anthony to handle the ball the most and play as a point forward. With that being the case, Douglas will be relied upon to provide secondary scoring by hitting perimeter shots. Douglas hit 37% of his three pointers last year, down from 39% in his rookie year (he did attempt many more as he played more minutes). He’s going to get a lot of open looks from deep. If he can hit nearly 40% as he did as a rookie, the Knicks will put up a ton of points.

Defensively, Douglas is one of the Knicks’ more aggressive players. Aggressiveness doesn’t always lead to being a good defensive player, but Douglas does cause a lot of turnovers with his speed and relentlessness. It will be interesting to see the effect assistant coach Mike Woodson has on the whole team, and specifically Douglas. Woodson likes to pressure the ball right as it crosses half court, and Douglas will often be the guy given that task. If Douglas can turn into a very good defender he’ll get a lot of minutes, and the Knicks will be better for it.

The season begins soon, and all eyes will be on the Anthony, Stoudemire and Chandler. But if the Knicks want to be playing deep into June, the others on the team will play a big role — perhaps none bigger than Douglas.

Leave your comments on the news below.

Read More: Carmelo Anthony (F – NYK), Raymond Felton (G – POR), Mike Bibby (G – NYK), Tyson Chandler (C – NYK), Chauncey Billups (G – LAC), Jamal Crawford (G – POR), Jared Jeffries (F – NYK), Renaldo Balkman (F – NYK), Amare Stoudemire (F – NYK), Devin Green (G – NYK), Danilo Gallinari (F – DEN), Bill Walker (G – NYK), Chris Hunter (C – NYK), Toney Douglas (G – NYK), Jerome Jordan (C – NYK), Landry Fields (G – NYK), Josh Harrellson (C – NYK), Iman Shumpert (G – NYK), New York Knicks

SB Nation New York will be running a five-part season preview of the 2011-12 New York Knicks, culminating right before the start of the season on Christmas Day.

Part I: The Stars

Part II: The Non-Stars

I was originally going to devote a section of this five-part preview as “The Bench”, but I opted to go with “The Non-Stars”. The reasoning behind that is fairly simple: outside of Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudemire and Tyson Chandler (who we discussed in Part I), what’s the difference between who’s on the bench and who starts at the guard positions – likely Landry Fields and Toney Douglas? I’m not going to make a mistake and say that the rest of the Knicks roster isn’t important, because it is. It’s actually very important, and one of the players were look at in this Part II we’ll discuss in-depth in another section of the preview, The X Factor (oh, the anticipation!). But the three most important Knicks are the stars. What everyone else does will go a long way towards where the Knicks eventually end up this season, but those three should be looked at separately. That’s what we’ll do in this section as we zero in on the rest of the Knicks’ roster. 

Toney Douglas

Douglas is going to battle rookie Iman Shumpert and dinosaur veteran Mike Bibby at point guard. Mike D’Antoni has pretty much said it’s his job to lose, but with the way Douglas played in the playoffs in Chauncey Billups’ absence last year, it’s not a given that he won’t lose the job. Douglas is way more of a combo guard than a true point. D’Antoni has insinuated that he’ll look to run the offense more through Anthony, using him as a point-forward.. If that is indeed the case, the most important thing Douglas can do is knock down shots from distance. Right now, the Knicks lack a bit of outside shooting (further explained by their pursuit of Jamal Crawford), and Douglas will need to pick up that slack.

Landry Fields

What a strange season last year was for Landry Fields. It pretty much boiled down to pre-trade Fields and post-trade Fields, and post-trade Fields wasn’t very good. In the Knicks’ final 17 games last year, Fields hit double digits in points just five times. It’s strange because Fields isn’t a player that demands the ball or needs it to be valuable. He’s a good rebounder for a guard and a solid defender. Maybe the trade coincided with Fields hitting the rookie wall towards the end of the season. Maybe he just meshed better with Danilo Gallinari, Raymond Felton, etc. It could probably go either way for Fields this year. Like Douglas, Fields will need to knock down shots from the perimeter, which he did quite well last year (to a very solid Effective Field Goal Percentage of .568). Fields has to find his niche on this team soon or three years from now we might be having the “What the hell ever happened to Landry Fields?” conversation.

Mike Bibby

I’m directly on the fence with this signing by the Knicks. Bibby can still hit form behind the arc, which the Knicks desperately need, especially off the bench. To me, the effectiveness of Bibby for the Knicks rests with D’Antoni and how he uses him. With the crazy schedule this year, Bibby can’t be playing a ton of minutes, almost ever. Why can I see D’Antoni forgetting this, falling in love with Bibby’s range, and having nights where he plays 30 minutes? I’m having nightmares of Tyson Chandler getting in foul trouble and D’Antoni putting out a lineup of Bibby-Douglas-Bill Walker-Anthony-Stoudemire (a team that would struggle to defend five traffic cones) for an extended period of time. If D’Antoni uses Bibby effectively — 15-20 minutes a night in the right situations — I think he can be a valuable piece. He fits the “cheap veteran who still does one thing very well” mold that a lot of winning teams have. Let’s hope he doesn’t wear down before the playoffs.

Iman Shumpert

Shumpert seems like the absolute anti-D’Antoni player. Every scouting report I’ve read talks about his athleticism first, and his offensive ability second. Which is completely fine, by the way. I just wonder if D’Antoni will find enough minutes for a guy who doesn’t give the team much offensively. If so, I think Knicks fans could fall in love with Shumpert, who from all accounts is an athletic freak and a great defender.

Bill Walker

Is Billy Walker really still on the Knicks? Jeez. He’s going to get minutes too, given the crazy schedule. He’ll hit his share of threes and that’s about it.

Jared Jeffries

Jeffries is a solid rotation forward who knows the system and the coach loves. He was always coming back to the Knicks, so deal with it. And really, as long as he’s not the intended receiver during a crucial last possession in a playoff game with a one score deficit, then everything will be okay. With Tyson Chandler and Jerome Jordan in tow, Jeffries slots in as the backup to Stoudemire. He won’t play nearly as much as he has in the past under D’Antoni, so he’ll solely be in there to take charges, grab some rebounds and use up fouls. Which is about all he can do anyway, so this is a good thing.

Jerome Jordan

The Knicks have brought Jordan over from Slovenia, as he’s been based in Europe  since the Knicks acquired his right on Draft Day 2010. Comparisons have been drawn to last year’s 7-foot project Timofey Mozgov. This is going to sound strange, but if Jordan can give the Knicks what Mozgov showed towards the middle of the season (enough for some really strange people to complain about his inclusion in the Carmelo trade), the Knicks would sign up for that in a heartbeat. When was the last time the Knicks had two legitimate 7-footers at center? What other team in the NBA has that? We don’t have any reason to believe Jordan has supreme talent or will be a huge difference maker, but for a team that used Jared Jeffries at center a lot over the past few years, having more legit size cannot be looked at as a bad thing.

Renaldo Balkman

I guess it’s actually possible given the schedule we’re going to see this year that Balkman may actually get some minutes. It won’t be a lot though, and that’s positive, since Renaldo Balkman lacks all the requisite skills that a real NBA player possesses.

Josh Harrellson

New York Knicks fans, meet your version of Brian Scalabrine. The Garden will go NUTS when Harrellson comes into blowout games.

Chris Hunter and Devin Green

The Knicks simply signed these guys to fill out their roster so that they could meet league guidelines and take part in the season.

So as you can see, the play of the Knicks’ stars is going to be extremely important. The few cogs outside of Anthony, Stoudemire and Chandler are Douglas, Fields, Shumpert and Bibby. Each have question marks heading into the season. There have been rumors floating around that the Knicks are interested in Michael Redd. If Redd has anything left in the tank, it’s a low-risk move that’s worth making. You can never have too many shot-makers, and the Knicks still do need some. I’d expect the Knicks’ roster towards the middle of the season to look a bit different, as they’ll continue to try and acquire some much-needed depth. But with the regular season fast-approaching, these are the guys they’ll go to work with.

Gotta run!.

The New York Knicks took a huge step towards helping Amare Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony pursue an NBA title this year. On Saturday, the team completed a trade to acquire center Tyson Chandler from the Dallas Mavericks. The sign-and-trade deal nets Chandler a four-year $56 million contract, making him one of the highest paid centers in the league.

In exchange for Chandler, the Knicks sent center Ronny Turiaf to the Washington Wizards and guard Andy Rautins to the Mavericks. The Mavericks were doing this deal with the intent to get something out of losing Chandler, and they also gain a 2013 protected second-round pick from the Knicks .

In order to clear room on the roster, the Knicks had to pay the salary of Turiaf , making it a really enticing deal for the Wizards. The Knicks also had to use the new amnesty clause on point guard Chauncey Billups to free up the $14.2 million he is owed for this year. Now Billups will get a chance to sign with any other team in the league. Possibly with a grudge that will show itself when he plays against New York this year.

It’s too bad that the team had to part ways with Turiaf , as he was probably the hardest working player on the team last season. It was just another price to make sure they got Chandler though, which in itself raises expectations for the center this year. There are certainly many more moves needed this offseason because the Knicks are very short on roster players.

As it stands, the starting lineup for the 2011-12 season is Chandler at center, Stoudemire at power forward, Anthony at small forward, Landry Fields at shooting guard and Toney Douglas at point guard. Not exactly mind-blowing depth for the Knicks, but there were rumors that Mike Bibby was also set to join the team as another point guard. The rest of the bench consists of Renaldo Balkman and Bill Walker for now.

Getting Chandler is a big step towards fixing the defense for New York, and this is a team that definitely is ready to compete in the Eastern Conference again. The roster has got to stay healthy though, because there are no good back-ups to move into the starting lineup if any injuries befall the Knicks.

More From YCN :

A Look at Knicks Roster

Salary Cap Impact on Knicks

Chris Paul to New York

Source:

Full Knicks Schedule

New York Knicks Website

*Ryan Christopher DeVault is a fan of the New York Knicks that has followed the team since the days John Starks, Charles Oakley, and Anthony Mason instilled their defensive will on the rest of the league.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

Comment Below!.

With rumors swirling again about his desire to play for the New York Knicks, Chris Paul appears to be bracing for a season unlike any of his other six seasons with the New Orleans Hornets. On the same day Paul participated in his first volunteer workout at the Alario Center since the 149-day lockout ended, a report came out in Yahoo! Sports on Thursday saying his agent told the Hornets the All-Star point guard would not sign a contract extension and wants to be traded to the Knicks.

But two league sources confirmed after the story broke that Paul’s agent, Leon Rose, never made the request to the Hornets.

“It is just rumors; you can’t control it,’’ Paul said. “It’s always going to happen, and it’s part of the game. I’m just happy to be back with my team.’’

Whether the Hornets trade Paul or he opts out after this season remains unknown. Paul has yet to disclose his plans, and Hornets General Manager Dell Demps was not available the past two days to address the situation.

But sources indicate the Hornets still aim to sign Paul to a long-term extension. However, the Hornets have listened to several trade offers from teams interested in acquiring Paul.

Publicly, though, Paul appears as if he expects to remain with the Hornets. Earlier this week at a charity event in New York, Paul said his heart remains in New Orleans.

“Right now, we only have five people on the roster,’’ Paul said. “I think our most important thing right now is trying to figure out what guys like D. West are doing, too. He’s like a brother to me. I’ve never played a season without him, so (I’m) trying to communicate with him as much as possible.’’

Paul said Thursday he’s had conversations with Hornets forward Trevor Ariza on how they can get their team better, and that’s important right now.

Yet, if Paul indicates he is not interested in a long-term deal to remain in New Orleans, Demps is likely to pursue the best trade offer available that would give the team maximum value in return to keep the franchise from having to rebuild as Cleveland was forced to do when LeBron James left in free agency to join the Miami Heat. The Cavaliers finished 19-63 last season under former Hornets coach Byron Scott.

Desiring talent to make another playoff run, it does not appear beneficial for the Hornets to trade Paul to the Knicks. The Knicks gave away most of their assets to obtain Carmelo Anthony in an extend-and-trade deal last season.

The Knicks are not likely to part ways with forward Amare Stoudemire or Anthony. After those two, the Knicks’ next best player is 35-year-old point guard Chauncey Billups, who likely doesn’t fit in the long-term plans Demps and Coach Monty Williams would have if Paul is no longer around.

If Paul opts out at the end of the season and goes to the Knicks, he would earn $4 million less than the $17.7 million left on his deal for the final year with New Orleans.

Paul has made frequent trips to New York the past several months because he was a member of the players association’s executive committee that took part in labor negotiations with the league.

“I’ve been back and forth to New York 18 times this summer, and I was engulfed in all that,’’ Paul said. “I just now had time to actually see my family and actually take a deep breath and realize I’m finally getting a chance to play basketball.’’

The Paul-to-the-Knicks speculation has been swirling since he suggested at a toast during Anthony’s wedding in 2010 that he and his close friend should team with Stoudemire to formulate a Big Apple trio that’s similar to the Miami Heat’s trio of James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, who made it to last season’s NBA Finals but lost to the Dallas Mavericks.

Since the first day he joined the Hornets in 2005, Paul has aimed to win. He has suggested in the past that he wants to win now instead of having to wait.

Paul has leverage to scare off some teams the Hornets could pursue trading him to because of the threat of not signing an extension. If he’s traded to a team and decides not to sign an extension, that franchise would have him for this season before he could opt out.

There was an ESPN report Wednesday saying Paul would not sign an extension with the Celtics if he was traded to Boston.

John Reid can be reached at jreid@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3407.

Running low on time today, i’ll be back tomorrow hopefully with some more news.

The New York Knicks should work hard to bring back guard Roger Mason(notes) for the 2011-12 NBA season. Mason is one of the free agents that could leave the team, but the front office should try hard to bring him back for the veteran’s minimum. He is the type of role player that could play a lot of minutes off of the bench, and with the salary cap restrictions that the Knicks might face this year, it is important to get talented players who want to play for the team.

Mason played in limited action for the Knicks during the 2010-11 season, but that was because coach Mike D’Antoni simply didn’t give him enough minutes. Those minutes increased in the playoffs though, as Mason would average 18.3 minutes per game in three games against the Boston Celtics. He averaged 6.3 points and 1.3 rebounds per game, and helped eat up some of the minutes at the guard positions for the team.

Mason isn’t going to get called a superstar player, but that shouldn’t stop fans from wanting to see him in a Knicks uniform again. He is a big threat from three-point range, hitting on 38 percent of his shots from behind the arc during his career. He made 5-of13 (39 percent) during the playoffs for the Knicks, and that could definitely serve as a nice weapon for the team to spread the floor this year.

If the Knicks can get Mason to come back at a cheap contract rate, then there is really no downside to keeping him on the roster. The Knicks only have nine players under contract as the offseason begins, and that should make it clear that the team needs to add a bit of depth. They will have players like Chauncey Billups(notes), Toney Douglas(notes) and Landry Fields(notes) eating up the guard minutes most of the time, but Mason can provide a spark off the bench and during practice that could aid the team if an injury or foul trouble occurs.

It’s time for the front office to make a smart move and get Mason back for at least one more season at the veteran’s minimum before another team starts showing an interest.

More From YCN :

Knicks Open on Dec. 25

A Look at Knicks Roster

Salary Cap Impact on Knicks

Chris Paul to New York

Source:

New York Knicks Website

*Ryan Christopher DeVault is a fan of the New York Knicks that has followed the team since the days John Starks, Charles Oakley, and Anthony Mason instilled their defensive will on the rest of the league.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

That’s all the news for today.

New York Knicks fans will get an early chance to enjoy the team this season. With the NBA lockout coming to an end, it looks like the season will begin on Dec. 25 (Christmas Day). There are three games on the current NBA schedule for that day, and one of them features the Knicks . If the league decides to keep the league schedule as it appears for that day, it will allow fans a very early (primetime) look at how the team stacks up this season.

If we believe indications from the league that the NBA is going to try for a 66-game schedule this year and that the lockout has come to an end, then it is finally time to get excited about the Knicks again. On Dec. 25, the Knicks are on the schedule to play the Boston Celtics at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks are in the early game for NBA coverage on Christmas Day, and could stay the first game in a pretty big tripleheader .

The Knicks made pretty big strides in the 2010-11 season thanks to the free agent signing of Amare Stoudemire(notes) and then the trade for Carmelo Anthony(notes). The team won seven of their last 10 games in the regular season, clinching the No. 6 seed in the 2011 Eastern Conference Playoffs. The Knicks fell short against the Celtics in the first round though, and it turned into an early offseason for the club. Injuries took a toll on the Knicks though, as Stoudemire was hurt and point guard Chauncey Billups(notes) missed time in the playoffs.

Now all three stars are back for the new season, and hopefully they have kept in good shape during the lengthy offseason. If there are only 66 games in the 2011-12 schedule, then it raises how important each game is. As such, the new players that New York is able to sign will play a very significant role on the team.

Making it to the NBA Playoffs was a good goal for last year, but with two superstar players on the roster now, it’s time to make it deeper into the postseason. The Miami Heat appears like the team to beat in the Eastern Conference, but the Chicago Bulls are also retaining a roster that won 62 games last year. It will remain tough among the elite teams in the East, but New York looks good enough to compete. Winning it all will depend on how much the roster can improve in the next month.

More From YCN :

A Look at Knicks Roster

Salary Cap Impact on Knicks

Chris Paul to New York

Source:

New York Knicks Website

*Ryan Christopher DeVault is a fan of the New York Knicks that has followed the team since the days John Starks, Charles Oakley, and Anthony Mason instilled their defensive will on the rest of the league.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

Gotta run!.

For as long as he’s been in the NBA, New York Knicks standout Amar’e Stoudemire(notes) has gone by the nickname “STAT,” an acronym for “Standing Tall And Talented.” The name is tattooed on his right arm and also happens to describe Amar’e pretty well. He’s proud, confident, and a positive role model. Not many professional athletes have enough of a sense of the world to get involved in the fashion industry and investigate family heritage in Israel.

In fact, Stoudemire has enough interests away from the court that he’s decided it’s time for a new nickname. He announced the change on Twitter this weekend:

I’ve been ordained the Renaissance Man. This is now my new nickname. Renaissance Man. You like it, I love it. Its not going to change @espn

So, did Amar’e just give himself a new nickname? Not quite, because chances are it came from Isiah Thomas. Here’s what Zeke told the New York Daily News at this last weekend’s FIU charity game (via PBT):

“I told (Stoudemire) the other day, the biggest thing he’s done for these kids down here is not spending two hours on the gym floor talking about jumpers and layups. He spent two hours in the classroom with them, then came back and spent another two hours in the classroom with them. He’s into learning more and being a true renaissance man.”

If you’re a Knicks fan, forget for a minute that Isiah is apparently chummy with one of the team’s marquee players. Instead, focus on how Stoudemire’s new nickname isn’t just a cute title, but a legitimate source of pride. In a league where most players are basketball obsessives, Amar’e's sense of the world is refreshing.

It’s also the kind of thing that might upset fans of the team he plays for. Both Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony(notes) seem to relish playing in New York for reasons not entirely related to basketball. (For instance, both are very into the fashion world.) Yet, as far as we’ve seen so far, they are both clearly committed to helping the Knicks work towards a championship, too. If they fail to reach that goal, it will likely have more to do with their deficiencies as basketball players (like playing defense) rather than a lack of focus.

Basketball weaknesses and disinterest sometimes look the same, depending on your point of view. But, for now, let’s celebrate Stoudemire instead of criticizing him for wanting to be a more complete person. Would we get mad at a tax attorney for learning to paint?

Related: Carmelo Anthony, Amar’e Stoudemire, New York Knicks

Comment Below!.

Celebrity Deathmatch: The Web Generation is our unanimated version of “Celebrity Deathmatch” with the exact same MO: to ridiculously and unnecessarily settle celebrity squabbles, pseudo-beefs and matchups chosen solely because two people share something in common.

They may deny it, but the New York Knicks and coming-in-2012 Brooklyn Nets will compete to become New York’s team. There are enough fans to go around for both, but a team carries a certain swagger when it captures the heartbeat of a sports city with two-plus teams. Ask Jets and Giants faithful.

Nets part-owner Jay-Z announced previously this week that one, the team would keep the Nets name, and two, he’d host a series of concerts at the team’s arena in Brooklyn to kick things off at the new digs. We’re hoping that bazillionaire majority owner Mikhail Prokhorov also throws a party with gold-plated ice luges and free ice cream. Jay, who previously vanquished the other half of The Throne, Kanye West, 71 percent to 29 percent, now takes on one of the faces of the new New York Knicks, Carmelo Anthony. Let’s hope there’s a 2011-2012 season, otherwise this may be the last action ‘Melo gets for a while.

Note: In last week’s booty versus boobies match, Nicki Minaj ruthlessly knocked off Christina Hendricks and her twins 69.71% to 30.29%.

Strengths

Jay-Z: Absorbed Kanye’s powers after defeating him, namely, Ye’s ability to transform into a motherf****n’ monster; Since his last match, developed a devastating head butt move taught to him by a descendent of Pai Mei; Beyoncé in his corner

Carmelo: At 6-foot-8, has a much longer reach that Jay; takes a basketball to the ring that he uses to dizzy opponents with dart-like passes to their face; La La Vazquez in his corner

Weakness

Jay-Z: Drained by the stress of having to carry The Throne by himself after punishing Kanye

Carmelo: Doesn’t play much defense

WHO WINS?

<a href=”http://polldaddy.com/poll/5543516/” mce_href=”http://polldaddy.com/poll/5543516/”>Celebrity Deathmatch: Jay-Z vs. Carmelo Anthony</a>

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Celebrity Deathmatch: The Web Generation Pits Jay-Z Against Kanye West

Tags Basketball, Brooklyn Nets, Carmelo Anthony, celebrity deathmatch, Celebrity Deathmatch: The Web Generation, Jay Z, NBA, New York, New York Knicks

Not much else going on in the NBA world today.

by Marcel Mutoni / @marcel_mutoni

To the endless chagrin of New York Knicks fans (and some of the team’s employees), Isiah Thomas’ influence within MSG doesn’t appear to be shrinking.

If anything — even though he’s not allowed to officially work for the Knicks while he coaches college kids — Isiah appears to have more power within the organization than before.

Amar’e Stoudemire is one of several NBA players currently working out at FIU, and according to the NY Daily News, Isiah Thomas (and Knicks owner James Dolan) are hoping to use this opportunity and others to help lure Chris Paul to New York:

ESPN reported that Stoudemire was working out at FIU which happens to be the school Isiah coaches when he isn’t serving as a de facto GM of the Knicks. There were several NBA players working out at FIU, including Atlanta’s Joe Johnson. None of this is surprising since FIU is located in a favored city among NBA players: Miami. Plus, Isiah continues to share a close relationship with some of the league’s top players. That would including Carmelo Anthony, Amar’e and more importantly, Chris Paul.

This is the reason James Dolan continues to lean on Isiah for advice, even though Isiah doesn’t have an official position with the Knicks. (If he did, Isiah would be in violation of NBA bylaws for having contact with players during the lockout). Isiah played a role in the Knicks signing Amar’e two summer’s ago and he played a role in the Melo trade. He’s now working behind the scenes to help the Knicks land Chris Paul.

Knicks fans may rightfully hate that Zeke continues to be involved with their team in any capacity, but if his endless behind-the-scenes machinations help land Chris Paul, one gets the feeling that they’ll quickly forgive and forget his past sins.

What do you guys think about this.

He’s only played half a season and one playoff series as a member of the New York Knicks, but All-Star scoring forward Carmelo Anthony(notes) has already jutted to the top of the heap when it comes to team leadership. At least on record, assuming he follows through. Giddy after a strong showing at an exhibition game in his hometown of Baltimore on Tuesday night, Anthony told ESPN New York that he would attempt to wrangle in his Knick teammates for unofficial workouts, should the NBA’s lockout cost its teams an orthodox, team-run training camp.

Here’s Melo:

“Most likely I think as the month goes on, probably early October, well start getting guys together,” Anthony said. “I’ll make it my duty to get guys together whether it’s in LA, New York or a neutral place.”

[…]

“I’m trying to find Amare man,” Anthony said with a laugh. “If anybody’s seen Amare just tell him [I'm looking for him]. I don’t know where he’s at man. I heard he’s in China, I heard he’s back. Maybe I’ll see him in New York next week for Fashion Week.”

Somehow I don’t think Willis Reed knew which week Fashion Week was. And I really don’t think Willis Reed knew that Fashion Week was his best chance to locate Dave DeBusschere, following a long offseason.

That’s the modern NBA athlete, though. Events like Fashion Week are why Carmelo and Amar’e Stoudemire(notes) wanted to become Knicks, and we heartily applaud Anthony attempting to get his team together, especially with all the roster upheaval the Knicks have undergone over the last few years. With the team capped out (no matter what sort of salary structure the new collective bargaining agreement dictates) and no first-round picks coming down the pike due to the Anthony trade, New York’s best chance at improving has to come from internal development.

This is where Anthony, and his unofficial team workouts, come in. Of course, the best remedy is just to enjoy a training camp unfettered by labor vs. ownership disagreements, but we might be past that point as September rolls around.

Related: Carmelo Anthony, Amar’e Stoudemire, New York Knicks, NBA lockout

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