W2W4: Atlanta Hawks vs. New York Knicks

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By Kenneth Teape (@teapester725)

Wednesday, April 17^th, 2013

Pre-Game News and Notes

Atlanta Hawks vs. New York Knicks

Wednesday night will be the last regular season game for the Knicks and Hawks before heading into the playoffs, but will be taking different approaches into the finale.  The Knicks have literally nothing to play for, as their seed is locked in and are just looking to get to the playoffs without suffering anymore injuries.  As for the Hawks, they are playing for the fifth or sixth seed.  If they win tonight they will face off against the Nets in the first round, if they lose and the Bulls win they will face off against the Pacers. This will be third time that the Knicks and Hawks faceoff this season, with the Knicks winning the first two meetings.

-New Face, Same Place

Short-Handed Knicks Fall in Charlotte

AP Photo/Chuck Burton

By Kenneth Teape (@teapester725)

Monday, April 15^th, 2013

Post Game Recap

Final Score: New York Knicks: 95 Charlotte Bobcats: 106

The Knicks went into the game tonight with nothing to play for and it showed with who actually took the court tonight as the Knicks fell to the Bobcats to end the season 23-18 on the road, their best road record in 16 seasons.  Only six Knicks saw the court today, one of them being Rasheed Wallace who played for only four minutes and Jason Kidd who played only 21.  The starting lineup of Chris Copeland, Steve Novak, James White, Pablo Prigioni and Iman Shumpert all logging at least 41 minutes played.  Expect much of the same Wednesday night when the Knicks return home for the last regular game of the season before starting the playoffs this weekend.

-Positives

W2W4: New York Knicks vs. Charlotte Bobcats

Anthony Gruppuso/ USA TODAY Sports

By Kenneth Teape (@teapester725)

Monday, April 15^th, 2013

Pre-Game News and Notes

New York Knicks vs. Charlotte Bobcats

Coming off a big win in clinching the second seed in the Eastern Conference yesterday afternoon against the Pacers, the Knicks will get right back at it tonight against the lowly Bobcats and keep building on their momentum into the playoffs.  Tonight’s game could be a hard one to watch as many of the Knicks rotation players are expected to sit out as the Knicks can no longer accomplish anything in the regular season; they just hope to get through this game and Wednesday against the Hawks without any more injuries occurring.  Here are some things to watch for in the game tonight:

-Who Is Playing?

W2W4: New York Knicks vs. Chicago Bulls

USA TODAY Sports

By Kenneth Teape (@teapester725)

Thursday, April 11^th, 2013

Pre-Game News and Notes

New York Knicks vs. Chicago Bulls

The Knicks head into Chicago tonight looking to extend one streak, their 13 game winning streak, and end another, their losing streak to the Bulls.  The Knicks have yet to beat the Bulls this season, going 0-3 against them thus far this season and losing four games in a row overall.  This will be an extremely difficult game for the Knicks even if the Bulls do not have the services of Joakim Noah and Derrick Rose because of how physical they play.  Another reason will be because of the players that the Knicks have available to them tonight, one of the things to keep an eye on for the game tonight. 

-Lineup Changes

W2W4: Washington Wizards vs. New York Knicks April 9

Anthony Gruppuso/USA TODAY Sports

By Kenneth Teape (@teapester725)

Tuesday, April 9^th, 2013

Pre-Game News and Notes

Washington Wizards vs. New York Knicks

The Knicks will look to not only extend their 12-game winning streak tonight against the Wizards at Madison Square Garden, but also lock up the division title for the first time since 1993-1994.  The Knicks magic number sits at one currently, meaning their next win or Nets loss will give the Knicks the Atlantic Division title.  It has been so long since the Knicks won the Atlantic Division that two teams no longer residing in the division, the Miami Heat and Orlando Magic, have won it more times than the Knicks.  This will be the fourth and final meeting between the Knicks and Wizards this season, with the Knicks winning two of the first three matchups but the Wizards giving them some serious problems in the last two meetings.  Here are some things to look for the Knicks to continue their win streak and lock up the Atlantic Division.

Melo’s Big Scoring Night Carries Knicks

Scott Cunningham/Getty Images

Kenneth Teape (@teapester725)

Wednesday, April 3^rd, 2013

Post Game Recap

Final Score: New York Knicks: 95 Atlanta Hawks: 82

The Knicks once again handled business in the second half, specifically the fourth quarter, and extended their winning streak much like they did against the Heat last night.  With the win they ran their record in the second night of back-to-backs to 11-6 on the season and also clinched a winning record on the road, winning their 21^st game away from Madison Square Garden tonight.  The Knicks magic number is down to four now to win the Atlantic Division and they move a ½ game ahead of the Pacers for second place in the Eastern Conference.  They will look to make that number smaller and increase their lead over the Pacers Friday against the Bucks back at Madison Square Garden. 

-Positives

W2W4: Memphis Grizzlies vs. New York Knicks

Bleacher Report

Kenneth Teape (@teapester725)

Wednesday, March 27^th, 2013

Pre-Game News and Notes

Memphis Grizzlies vs. New York Knicks

With all of the attention being on the Heat currently and their 27-game winning streak it is understandable that people are not aware that the Knicks actually hold the second longest win streak in the NBA currently at five games.  The Knicks will look to run that streak to six games tonight with a win against the Grizzlies.  This is the second matchup between the teams this season with the Grizzlies taking the first meeting 105-95 all the way back in November.  Here are some things to look for in the game tonight.

-Can Knicks Compose Themselves?

The last time these two teams took the court together the game was very physical with little altercations taking place throughout the game.  The Knicks were unprepared for this and let it get the Grizzlies’ physicality and the referees get into their head and throw them off their game.

J.R. Smith got into it with Jerryd Bayless and picked up a technical foul and head coach Mike Woodson also picked up a technical for arguing calls.  The Knicks were unhappy with how physical the game had gotten and how the referees handled it and did not respond in a good manner.

Throughout the season the Knicks have been rattled by teams that play them physically and get under their skin.  Will that continue tonight?  Both teams will look different tonight on the court with plenty of roster moves and injuries changing the landscape of both teams.

Rasheed Wallace said it best after the first game, “They’ve still got to come to the Garden.”  The Knicks should respond differently tonight being home and prepared more for what to expect.

-Injury Concerns

For the second night in a row the Knicks will not be the only banged up team taking the court.  The Knicks will most likely be without All-Star center Tyson Chandler again as he told reporters earlier today that he was most likely sitting out with pain still lingering in his neck. 

Thankfully for the Knicks they will be going up against a team for the second straight night without their best big man as the Grizzlies’ starting center Marc Gasol will miss the game with an abdominal injury.  Gasol is a vocal point in the Grizzlies’ offense and he will be missed a lot on the court; but not by the Knicks.

The Knicks should let Chandler rest as much as he needs.  The playoffs are much more important than these games currently right now and they haven’t missed him too much on the court, going 5-2 without him with big contributions from his fill-in Kenyon Martin.

-Bench Brings It

The Knicks have fared quite well in the second games of back-to-backs, going 10-6 thus far this season.  One reason for this is a strong bench, something the Knicks have.  The Knicks bench averages 40.8 points per game, second best mark in the NBA.

Led by J.R. Smith the Knicks bench is capable of carrying the offensive load for long periods of time.  They will need Smith to have an efficient game again like he did last night against the Celtics as the Grizzlies are second in the NBA in defensive efficiency.  He will not able to do it alone and will need help from the likes of Steve Novak and Chris Copeland if the Knicks are to score enough to beat the Grizzlies.