Knicks a laughingstock once again after Amar’e Stoudemire punches glass case

By: Kels Dayton

There’s no more Isiah, no more Starbury, and no more $30 million forwards who never take off their sweatpants.

Stoudemire left American Airlines Arena with his left hand in a sling. (AP Photo)

But the Knicks have once again become the laughingstock of the NBA.

That title could officially be conferred upon them once again when Amar’e Stoudemire picked a fight with a fire extinguisher case after New York’s 104-94 loss in Game 2 of their playoff series with the Heat on Monday night.

Stoudemire was so upset after the Knicks’ ugly performance in Miami (and possibly because he put up just 7 and 9 shots in two games respectively), that he lost all control and smashed his left hand into the glass case, leaving a pool of blood on the locker room floor. He required immediate attention from paramedics, and left the arena with his hand in a sling.

New York will now likely be without Amar’e for the rest of the series.

This could only happen to the Knicks.

Whether it’s the unrelenting pressure from the long-suffering fans, the scalding-hot media climate or both, New York has been the go-to place for ridiculousness over the past decade.

Things had been looking up, with the addition of Carmelo Anthony last season giving the Garden an energy it hadn’t seen since the Ewing days and Jeremy Lin providing Knicks fans  two-plus weeks of basketball bliss in mid-February.

The team looked at times like it might become a dark-horse contender in the East in 2012, but it hasn’t happened; in part due to injuries, in part due to playing style, and in part because the Miami Heat are ripping them to shreds.

Indeed, Linsanity has given way to the insanity that Knicks fans have become accustomed to. And this year has been anything but ordinary for a franchise that has been searching for stability ever since Isiah had to be dragged out of the building with a show cane.

Maybe things would have been different if the Knicks had lost a few more games in the regular season and drawn the Chicago Bulls, a team that is playing without its best player and one that they match up much better with.

Instead, New York will have to win in Game 3 to avoid earning the distinction of becoming the first team in NBA history to lose 13 consecutive playoff games.

Even if Amar’e hadn’t put his fist through the fire extinguisher glass, the Knicks were going to be embarrassed in this series. The 100-67 debacle in Game 1 pretty well sealed that.

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