RG's NY Knicks Monthly Recap-January 2K8

RG's NY Knicks Monthly Recap-January 2K8

Team record: 6-10
MSG: 3-4; Road: 3-6

(H) Wed 1/2 vs Kings, L-->107-97
(A) Fri 1/4 vs Spurs, L-->97-93
(A) Sat 1/5 vs Rockets, L-->103-91
(A) Tues 1/8 vs Bulls, W-->105-100
(H) Wed 1/9 vs Rockets, L-->101-92
(H) Fri 1/11 vs Raptors, L-->99-90
(H) Sun 1/13 vs Pistons, W-->89-65
(H) Tues 1/15 vs Wizards, W-->105-93
(A) Wed 1/16 vs Nets, W-->111-105
(A) Fri 1/18 vs Wizards, L-->111-98
(A) Sat 1/19 vs Heat, W-->88-84
(H) Mon 1/21 vs Celtics, L-->109-93
(H) Fri 1/25 vs 76ers, W-->89-81
(A) Sun 1/27 vs Warriors, L-->106-104
(A) Tues 1/29 vs Lakers, L-->120-109
(A) Wed 1/30 vs Jazz, L-->100-89
*(H)-MSG, (A)-Road

*January 2K8 Stats

Offense: 96ppg; 45%FG; 75%FT; 41rpg; 21apg
Defense: 99ppg; 46%FG; 75%FT; 42rpg; 20apg

*The Knicks Top Dawgs

SG Jamal Crawford.....Grade: A-
16 games played...Averaged a little over 21ppg & slightly over 5apg in
43mpg...Shot 44% from the field & 89% from the foul line...Best outing
came in a win over the Nets when he scored 35pts on 11-20 shooting (6-10
from downtown) & 8 assists...Was the team's leading scorer in 8 of the
16 games played.

PF Zach Randolph.....Grade: B-
15 games played...Averaged his usual dub-dub, 15ppg & 10rpg in
33mpg...Shot 46% from the field & a nice 83% from the line...Was
suspended by the NBA for 1 game for throwing his headband at an official
while arguing a foul call during game vs the Kings...Sat out game vs the
Spurs to serve suspension...Best game I would say came in a win against
the Nets when he scored 24pts on 8-15 shooting, grabbed 11 rebounds,
dished out 4 assists & only turned the ball over twice in 37
minutes...Grabbed a season high 22 boards in a loss to the Rockets in
H-Town...Had a dub-dub (pts & rebounds) in 8 of the 15 games he played
in.

C Eddy Curry.....Grade: C-
16 games played...Averaged 14ppg & 5rpg in 25mpg...Shot 57% from the
floor & 62% from the charity stripe...EC is still not earning big time
minutes from Isiah primarily due to his stretches of poor defensive play
& also getting into early foul trouble...Best game came in a win over
the Bulls when he scored 29pts on 11-14 shooting, grabbed 8 boards &
blocked 4 shots in 37 minutes...Had 25pts & 12 rebounds in over 38
minutes against the Spurs...Played only 4 minutes in 1st quarter against
Utah & did not return due to flu symptoms.

G Nate Robinson.....Grade: B
16 games played...Averaged 16ppg & 5apg in 30mpg...Shot 47% from the
field & 81% from the line...Nate's playing time has increased due to the
ankle injury to Stephon Marbury & has played pretty well in his
absence...Best game? There's 2 games that really stood out for me in my
opinion: 22pts on 7-15 shooting (4-7 3p), 9 assists & turned the ball
over only once in 36 minutes in a loss to the Lakers...19pts, 7 assists,
6 rebounds with just 2 turnovers in 34 minutes in a win over
Miami...Grabbed 9 boards against the Wizards in DC...Lil big man Nate!

F David Lee.....Grade: B
16 games played...Averaged 9ppg & 8rpg in 27 mpg...Shot 57% from the
floor & 83% from the line...Best game for D. Lee came in a loss against
the Lakers, scoring 21pts on 8-13 shooting, grabbed 12 boards, 3
assists, 1 block & just 2 turnovers in 37 minutes off the bench...Had 3
dub-dub games (pts & rebounds) coming off the bench.

SF Quentin Richardson.....Grade: C
16 games played...Averaged just 6ppg & 3rpg in 22.5mpg...Shot 38% from
the field & 90% from the line (9-10)...Q continues to struggle, but has
showed some signs of breaking out of his season long slump towards the
end of the month...Best game came against in a loss against the Wizards
in DC when he scored 21pts on 8-16 shooting (5-10 from 3), 6 rebounds, 2
steals & zero turnovers in over 38 minutes played...Was ejected late in
3rd quarter of Knicks matchup against Boston after getting T'ed up twice
getting into war of words with the Celtics Paul Pierce, who was also
ejected from the game...Played just 6.5 minutes of 1st quarter against
Utah & did not return due to flu symptoms.

*High Lights:

-The 3 game winning streak, beating the Pistons, Wizards & Nets
-Despite the sub .500 record in January, the team seems to be playing
better team ball since Stephon Marbury went down with ankle injury.
(Where have we heard that before?)
-Jamal Crawford carrying the team offensively & assuming leadership role
quietly.


*LowLight:

-The bad loss against an injury depleted Sacramento Kings squad at home
to kick off the new year, 107-97. The Kings were without their stars
Mike Bibby, Kevin Martin & Ron Artest & beat the Knicks convincingly.
The Kings were up by as much as 24 points late in 3rd quarter & it was
pretty ugly at the Garden with the fans chanting both "FIRE ISIAH!!!" &
"DOLAN SUCKS!!!"

Knicks record as of Wed. 1/30/08: 14-31

Ross Guity
Contributing writer, GAME magazine
www.gamesportsmag.com
www.myspace.com/gamesportsmagazine