After a weekend that was as discouraging as a weekend of basketball could be without the players being chained to a radiator in a basement and forced to saw off their own feet, the Knicks played well ast night. When you lose by 50, it seems like you should have a handicap in your next game, like the other team having to play the first quarter wearing oven mitts or something. Alas, the Knicks played under normal rules, and they even won.
True, the Knicks beat the Timberwolves, which is more impressive than beating the Nets but less impressive than beating, say, Kentucky. But after a 50-point loss, with a six-game stretch coming that would decide whether or not we can bring back the playoff boomlet, a win was desperately needed. When you’re upset about a massive embarrassment, a 132–105 victory is a helpful, if temporary, balm.
As usual, David Lee was the star, scoring 28 points and notching ten rebounds. (He’s still highly unlikely to make the all-star team when the reserves are named tomorrow; the Knicks haven’t had an all-star since 2001.) Al Harrington contributed 26 as the fun guy off the bench. The game was such a blowout that Jonathan Bender played the whole fourth quarter.
The Knicks are 1–0 on the critical six-game stretch. Next up is Toronto, tomorrow at home. Playoff odds: 9.4 percent. The boomlet remains in storage.