Robinson Wasn’t Benched for Shooting at Wrong Basket

Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni said that he didn’t bench guard Nate Robinson for shooting at the wrong basket during the Knicks’ game with the Nets this weekend.

Robinson received an inbound pass with 0.5 seconds left in the first quarter, turned, and shot the ball towards his own basket. The shot went in, but Robinson had shot it after the buzzer went off, meaning that the Nets would not be credited with the three points.

“When you’re 2-9, which we were at the time, I think any distractions are bad,” D’Antoni said Sunday. “If our whole focus is not on trying to win and turn this thing around, then it’s not right and it’s not something we want to do, and it’s just one incident and we’ll go on and we’ll see what happens today.”

Robinson did not re-enter the game after making the near-folly, with D’Antoni leaning on the rest of his backcourt to anchor them against the winless Nets. He only played six minutes all game.

D’Antoni has reportedly been miffed by Robinson’s perceived immaturity this season. Robinson joked and Tweeted about being pulled over at a traffic stop earlier this summer, which frustrated the organization, but D’Antoni said that he and Robinson were still “cool” after Saturday.

“That’s something that Nate will work on and we talked about it and keep talking about it, but that doesn’t affect his playing time,” D’Antoni said.

Monday, November 23, 2009 at 6:49 pm by bryan

Knicks Decide to Pass on Iverson

With rumors abound about Allen Iverson, New York Knicks president Donnie Walsh spoke out on Friday, saying that the Knicks would not pursue A.I., despite his availability.

Walsh, coach Mike D’Antoni, and Knicks owner James Dolan met late Thursday night to discuss the possibility of bringing “The Answer” to New York.

“It did get interesting for a while because Allen’s a great player and has always been a great player,” Walsh said Friday. “You’re 1-9 and you’re thinking, ‘We’ve got to get some help in here.’ But when we rethought it and I talked to Mike and he talked to me, we feel that could hurt our development of the future, and so we want to go the way we’re going.

With young guards Toney Douglas and Nate Robinson, along with starting guards Chris Duhon and Larry Hughes, the Knicks felt that Iverson could cramp the minutes in the backcourt and limit the development of their younger players.

“In the beginning I didn’t think it fit,” Walsh said. “Then I started thinking about it, and it’s enticing to think that you can get a guy that can score the ball that way. But as I went on, I started to think that he’s going to take time from some of the players that we want to develop, he’s probably not going to be there when the team is at its full strength down the road, and so we’re better off sticking with what we’ve got.”

One thing that wasn’t limiting their decision – the possibility of Iverson replacing Duhon. Duhon has fallen out of favor with D’Antoni, and is also not part of the Knicks’ long-term plans for the future.

Walsh admitted that Knicks fans may be disappointed by the management’s decision, but believes that the Knicks must focus on the players that they have.

“Yeah, I’m always concerned about that, but I don’t think you can build a basketball team based on polls,” Walsh said. “I hope we do the right thing, I hope the fans eventually see why we did what we did. There’s always a second stage to this, and I hope it’s favorable to us. In other words, ‘Well, they were smart not to do that then, because now this guy’s good.’ So we’ll see. But I did my best in trying to analyze this.”

Friday, November 20, 2009 at 8:35 pm by bryan

Knicks Stop Short of Ruling Out Iverson

Have the Knicks found their “Answer” for the 2009-10 season?

With their up-tempo offense not generating the points expected from a Mike D’Antoni-coached team, and their defense in shambles, Knicks management have begun looking at ways to improve the team this year, with the free agent summer of 2010 just around the corner. The Knicks are now weighing the possibility of welcoming Allen Iverson to New York for a season.

Knicks team president Donnie Walsh alluded to the possibility after practice on Monday, but he wouldn’t elaborate (as Iverson hadn’t even been officially waived by the time the Knicks wrapped up practice).

“I’ve always had a lot of admiration for him because I had to play against him every year when I was in Indiana and I have a lot of respect for his career,” Walsh said. “He’s a small man who did everything he could to win games and took a lot of hard knocks and always got up.”

The Knicks threw around the idea of acquiring A.I. in the offseason, but ultimately opted to go in a different, younger direction, assuming that A.I. was not part of the long-term future in NY.

“We had our little group from last year we wanted to keep together and that was the decision in the summertime, not to disrupt what we had,” coach D’Antoni said Tuesday. “Now, basketball’s fluid and things change every second.”

Now, with the Knicks to a 1-9 start (the worst 10-game start in franchise history), it sounds like the Knicks might go back to the drawing board… and A.I.’s name could be there.

“He’s been a force in this league for God knows how long, so I’m not taking anything from him,” D’Antoni said. “But at the same time, there’s a lot of organizational stuff we’ll talk about and see if it makes sense.”

Wednesday, November 18, 2009 at 12:11 am by bryan

Knicks Subdued By Jazz, Lose 95-93

On Monday, the Knicks’ nightmarish start got even worse, as the Utah Jazz won at Madison Square Garden for the first time in five years when they beat the Knicks, 95-93.

The Jazz opened up a 21-point lead before the Knicks started fighting back, as their zone defense allowed them to lock down the Jazz, who were struggling with shooting from the outside.

F Wilson Chandler led the Knicks with 17 points, while G Larry Hughes and PF David Lee each contributed 12 points.

“We just tried to make them play a different game,” Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni said. “Kirilenko got hot and that’s something that hurt us. But I thought we tried. We had energy and we were active.”

The Knicks tied the game at 93, but a Mehmet Okur layup for Utah gave them the lead for good.

Utah will celebrate every Knicks loss this season, as they own the Knicks’ 2010 first round pick. The pick, which was originally shipped off to Phoenix for Stephon Marbury in 2004, ended up in Utah during a trade for Tom Gugliotta.

Wednesday, November 11, 2009 at 12:14 am by bryan

Knicks go cold, give Pacers first win of season

A night after earning their first win of the season, the New York Knicks returned to their losing ways, falling to the previously-winless Indiana Pacers, 101-89.

New York was held without a field goal for the final 9-plus minutes of the game. And to compound matters, it allowed Indiana point guard T.J. Ford to go off for eight points in the final 3:12 to seal the victory in game it played without top forward Troy Murphy, who sat out with an injury.

David Lee was ultra-productive yet again, tallying 20 points and 19 rebounds in defeat for the Knicks. Al Harrington added a game-high 22 points off the bench.

New York actually held a one-point advantage heading into the fourth quarter before going ice-cold to ensure its fate.

Wednesday, November 4, 2009 at 10:29 pm by Raj Sethi

Knicks Win First Game of Season

The Knicks scored their first win of the season on Monday night as they edged past a ridiculous night from Hornets PG Chris Paul in a 117-111 victory over New Orleans.

Knicks forward David Lee scored a season-high 28 points in the win, which featured four Knicks players in double digits. Forward Al Harrington, fresh off a career-high 42 off the bench against the Philadelphia 76ers, scored 13 of his 24 points in the fourth-quarter on Monday night against the Hornets.

With G Nate Robinson sidelined by a sprained ankle he suffered against the 76ers, Larry Hughes came into the starting lineup after not playing in the Knicks’ last two games and scored 20 points. And point guard Chris Duhon finished with 18 points and nine assists for the defensively-challenged Knicks, whose version of the Seven Seconds or Less offense hasn’t looked sharp yet.

“I thought they showed character. They battled back,” Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni said. “To get that first win, it gets a little hairy. I’m just encouraged as a whole, the whole game.”

The Hornets moved within two points – at 92-90 – on the heels of a three-pointer by PG Chris Paul, who had an absolutely absurd night of 32 points and 13 assists. But Harrington and Lee sparked a 10-2 run that put the game out of reach for the Hornets, and the Knicks were on their way to their first win in four tries.

The Knicks, who were outscored 72-38 in their past two first quarters, came out firing in this one, jumping to a 16-6 lead before settling at 31-24 by the end of the quarter.

“Our only plan was to come out and get out to a good start, whether that was doing it on the offensive end or defensive end,” Hughes said. “We had no real game plan as far as doing it on the offensive or doing it on the defense. We just wanted to get off to a good start.”

Tuesday, November 3, 2009 at 7:53 pm by bryan

Sprained Ankle Costs G Robinson Two Weeks

The smallest player on the NBA will be on the bench for the next two weeks.

Knicks guard Nate Robinson could miss up to two weeks with a sprained right ankle that he suffered during the Knicks’ overtime loss to Philadelphia.

X-rays taken after the loss were negative, although Robinson was still on crutches Monday night before the Knicks’ game against New Orleans.

Robinson has been one of the Knicks’ most valuable assets off the bench in the past couple years, typically providing a burst of energy and scoring unrivaled by most in the league. This season, his scoring hasn’t quite found its way yet, as he’s averaging only 8.7 points on 27 percent shooting.

Coach Mike D’Antoni will move guard Larry Hughes into the starting lineup, with rookie Toney Douglas from Florida State to fill most of Robinson’s lost minutes until he returns.

at 7:51 pm by bryan