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Last Night in the NBA: Melo on a Mission as Knicks reach 3-0
- Updated: November 6, 2012
By: Kels Dayton
My cousin Alex has been telling me all offseason that the Knicks are for real. I’ve ignored him, mainly because I didn’t believe that adding four guys who will be eligible for AARP in May was the answer for a team that embarrassed itself in last season’s playoffs. And also because I know more about basketball than him. Yeah, Dunn, I said it.
Carmelo has been nothing short of remarkable early this season. (Photo: MSG.com)
The Knicks were a mess at the end of last year–punching glass fire extinguisher cases, getting DUI’s, losing Jeremy Lin. Yet somehow, ever since Carmelo appeared on the cover of SLAM and told his coach and the rest of the basketball world that he was going to be a new man in 2013—well, he has been. Melo is averaging a ridiculous 28.5 points and 7.5 boards per game, and New York is 3-0, having wiped the floor with the Heat and swept the Sixers in a home-and-home series to start the season.
The Knicks won Monday in Philly, 110-88, behind 21 from Anthony, 16 and 8 from Raymond Felton, and 13 points and 10 boards from Ronnie Brewer. Seven different players scored in double figures. 35-year old rookie guard Pablo Prigioni put up 11 points and dished out 6 assists. Everything was clicking in the third quarter, when New York outscored Philly 33-20 and forced 7 turnovers.
It’s too early to say whether or not the Knicks are truly a threat to Miami in the Eastern Conference, but this is exactly the kind of start the team needed. Carmelo Anthony is slimmer and more elusive, and is playing more like the slashing, pure-scoring 3 he needs to be than the redundant 4 who might make Amar’e obsolete. Then again, Stoudemire hasn’t taken part in the team’s first 3-0 start since 1999.
Alexey Shved keyed a fourth quarter run by the Wolves. (Getty Images)
Brooklyn witnessed a massive meltdown in game two at the Barclays Center, as the Nets remarkably blew a 22-point lead to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night in a stunning 107-96 loss. The T’Wolves outscored the Nets 32-10 in the fourth quarter and ruined what was supposed to be an easy 2-0 start for BK’s new team. Russian Olympic sensation Alexey Shved was impressive in the fourth quarter, knocking down two straight threes and scoring 10 points in the final frame. Minnesota scored the last 11 points of the game, breaking a 99-99 tie and streaking to the finish. Chase Budinger finished with 16 points and an absurd +21 rating. It was a nice win for the young Wolves, who need to keep the ship afloat until all-world forward Kevin Love returns from injury. November is a huge month for Minnesota’s playoff hopes, so stealing a win on the road against an Eastern Conference contender was a very good sign. The Wolves are 2-1.
The Sacramento Kings may only be 1-3, but this team appears to be drastically improved on the defensive end. Sacramento allowed a league-worst 104.4 points per game last season, but have given up just 95.6 through four games this season. Chicago scored just 93 in the opener, Minnesota put up 92 points in game 2, and Indiana needed double overtime to score 103.
The Kings beat the Warriors by getting two defensive stops in the final ten seconds last night in a 94-93 win. Sacramento has plenty of talent offensively in DeMarcus Cousins and Tyreke Evans, but the defense was going to have to improve if they were going to have any hope of challenging for a playoff spot. So far, it has. It’s not a good sign for the Warriors to follow up an impressive win over the Clippers on Sunday with such a lethargic effort against the Kings. Same old Golden State? We’ll see.
We’d be remiss if we didn’t mention the passing of Jim Durham, the former voice of the Chicago Bulls and the lead man on ESPN Radio’s NBA coverage. His was one of the NBA’s most recognizable voices, and I’ll certainly miss that voice alongside analyst Dr. Jack Ramsay on late-night NBA radio broadcasts. Rest in peace, Jim.
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