Gallo and Wil come up big in meaningless win

By Donny Shabtai
Not surprising to any real Knicks fan, last night the Knickerbockers defeated the Atlanta Hawks 99-98. Anyone who watches the Knicks knows that can be competitive for a stretch. With the losses piling up, most recently to the WNBA team that plays in Jersey, the Knicks came out ready to prove they're not as bad as their record says they are. Gallo was hot from the start, dunking on the first play of the game. After what seemed like forever (21 straight games without hitting 20 points) the Rooster finally busted out of his hen for an enormous 27 points, on 9-14 shooting overall, going 4-5 from downtown and 5-6 from the charity stripe, two spots which should be layups for Danilo, though he's been struggling from there lately.
All season long Knicks commentators Mike Breen and Clyde (as well as everyone else in the five boroughs) that Gallo needs to be more aggressive and assert himself on the offensive end. All too often Gallo puts himself in a corner and waits for the ball. Monday against the Hawks, the Rooster was coming to the ball, putting himself in position to get off his gorgeous shot.

Toney "Money" Douglas has been seeing more time on the court and has been making it count. His defensive tenacity has proven to be valuable for the offensive minded Knicks. Although he had a great game, his turnover at the end of fourth quarter could have been disastrous had Wil-the-Thrill not been there to save his butt. Don't know what I'm talking about? Take a look.

Where is Lee going to be next year?

By: Donny Shabtai

Every Knicks fan is well aware about the big time free agents who will be available this summer. 'Bron. Wade. Bosh. Joe Johnson. Over two years ago with an enormous amount of foresight, Knicks president Donnie Walsh started cleaning house so that the Knicks can be players during this summers much anticipated free agency. The Knicks plan, which they completed with the Jeffries trade this past month, was to have enough cap space two offer two different players max contracts (17 million apiece). Bron and Wade. Bron and Bosh. Joe Johnson and Amare. The speculation is endless. However, with the recent rise in David Lee's game, one has to wonder if it's worth offering one player a max contract, and a modest contract (10 mil or so) to Lee. With the leftover money the Knicks can sign a decent center (think Brendan Haywood) which would allow Lee to move to power forward, his natural position. The money can be saved for the next summer, when Eddy Curry's fat contract comes off the books, and the Knicks will find themselves in position to offer another player a max contract (two summers free agency is almost as enticing as this years).
To Lee's credit, he has improved his game by leaps and bounds year after year. He started out as a rugged rebounder, then learned to finish with both hands around the rim, and ultimately became a reliable mid range shooter. In the last three years his scoring average went from 10.8 to 16.2 to 20.2. What makes you think he is going to stop improving his game? He runs the pick and roll as well as any big man in the league, and if he was able to run it with the new no. 6, would be an unstoppable force.
Yes, I know he is not as good as Chris Bosh. However, Lee has been here for five horrific years, and has hustled every play in that span. He is the captain of the team. When his grandfather died a few months ago, Lee rented his own private plan to make sure that he got to the game in time, all because he is the captain. This is a guy who wants to be here, and we should want him to stay.
What do you think? Is it worth signing one star and David Lee? What are your thoughts? Leave a comment!

King James Sweepstakes

Honesty I don't think that lebron James cares at all about the Knicks record this year when deciding if he wants to live in the New York State of Mind. The Knicks are an abomination on the cusp of either becoming huge or handicapping themselves for a few more years depending on the options available to them. What my question is... If Lebron James and his Cavs win a championship this year does that make him want to stay? Or will he be satisfied he brought his home a title and move on? I hope he moves on either way but only to New York.

Knicks end winning streak at one; Z-Bo gets his revenge

By: Donny Shabtai

One night after the Knicks ended their eight game losing streak with an unwatchable overtime win over Washington, the Knicks lost a very winnable game to the Memphis Grizzlies. The Knicks interior defense has been a weak spot all year, and became even weaker with the recent trades. Last night Memphis scored 62 points in the paint, most of the damage being done by former Knicks Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol. New York fans know that Z-Bo can play ball, but has changed his game this year to be more team-friendly, and in turn was chosen to his first All-Star Game. Z-Bo also out-hustled the Knicks for an astonishing 25 rebounds.

The Knicks, as always, had a furious comeback in the third quarter and even took the lead at one point. McGrady's minutes were limited last night (as they will be until he feels comfortable, probably next season) so the Knicks depended on Al Harrington to carry the load. Al actually shot the ball well last night (11-18 FG, 6-11 3PT FG), but as always he got carried away when it counted most. He is a great scorer who can help tie up any game, but after that he should be taken out. His decision making in clutch situations is not exactly his forte, and has proven to be detrimental to the team in the final minutes.

It seems as if Bill Walker will get some significant playing time in the Knicks height depleted roster. In his limited playing thus far, SkyWalker (Clydes nickname for him) has shown that he is definitely one of the more athletic players on the roster. His ferocious dunks have fired up the Garden and hopefully he'll continue to do so.

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