Last Monday, the Knicks scored 67 points in a loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. Last night, they gave up 74 points in the first half to the Cavaliers. At the end of the third quarter, Cleveland was up 101–59. The Cavs were nice and let LeBron James take the fourth quarter off.
The problem for the Knicks right now, and the reason that the losses the rest of the way are gonna look a little uglier than the ones earlier this season, is that the Knicks have no semblance of a defense right now. That’s not because coach Mike D’Antoni cares more about offense, or any of the LeBron-baiting implications reporters put out last night. It’s just that there’s no center, David Lee (one of the worst big-man defenders in basketball) is the only meat underneath, and most players just met each other and are kind of running around in circles. Last night was batting practice for the Cavs, and why wouldn’t it be? The Knicks are playing out the string, sure, but they’re doing so with a wisp of a team, with gaping, massive deficiencies. This is what we knew was going to happen the rest of the way. Let’s not start blaming next year’s team on that.
But hey, Bill Walker scored 21 points.
By the way, LeBron officially filed papers with the league to change his number to 6, with whatever team he plays for next year. The Knicks do have that number available.