Post by New York Knicks on Mar 27, 2023 22:49:10 GMT -6
Who's Hot
I did not think I would be mentioning this team at this point of the season. They were 11-25 through their first 36 games. That's a guaranteed lottery season. Probably even a top 5 pick. That's what this team was destined for. But not anymore, because the DALLAS MAVERICKS have experienced a 180 degree turnaround. From 11-25, they're now 26-16 in the last 42 games. Who the hell saw that coming? Who saw them ripping off 6 consecutive wins? Who saw them making the PLAYOFFS? That's exactly where the Mavs find themselves. With a 37-41 record, the Mavs have pushed ahead of the Minnesota Timberwolves (36-40) for the 8 seed. And they have 3 or their final 4 games at home, where Dallas is 23-15. Two of those three home games are against the Charlotte Hornets (13-62) and Golden State Warriors (29-45). While Minnesota has to play 5 of their final 6 games on the road (14-22 road record this season). So the odds favor Dallas if they keep up their recent surge. But they're gonna need their superstar Mickey Johnson, who just won the Player of the Week Award, to keep putting up big numbers, like he just did in that 104-90 victory vs the Wolves. Mickey had 34 points and 18 rebounds. He's now at 26.6 PPG 10.9 RPG on the season. But can the rest of these guys step up? Like the young euro Double Ds Deni Avdija and Dejan Bodiroga. They have both been lighting it up from three point land. Avidja is at 44.5 %, and and Bodiroga is at 39.3 %. If they make their shots, and Mickey keeps playing at an all-ITP level, the Mavs WILL make the playoffs. From losing 12 games in a row, and being 14 games under 500. To making the playoffs. That would be a remarkable comeback story.
Who's Not
Things arent going as well for the Memphis Grizzlies. Their star player Pistol Pete Maravich recorded himself waving a gun near his head in a viral video. In addition to their off the court problems, theyre struggling on the court as well losing 8 of their last 11 games. They lost to Minnesota, who shot nearly 52 % from the field. They lost to Seattle, who held the Grizz to 36.8 % shooting from the field. They lost to the Wizards while shooting 40.7 %. The tanking Rockets, who have 2 wins in their last 13 games, beat the Grizz too. But worst of all, they lost to the Charlotte Hornets AT HOME. It's been an ugly stretch for Memphis. The good news is they're still locked into that 7 seed in the Western Conference. Maravich (19.9 PPG 48.2 FG %) and Bob Lanier (23.8 PPG 47.2 FG %) are still a great 1-2 punch. But what is this teams long term outlook? Pete and Bob are both 30 year old pending free agents. Curtis Perry is a pretty good player, but is it worth 5 years and 85 million? Probably not. Their #18 pick, which turned into Rookie of the year candidate Jabari Parker, was traded to Washington for $250, the price of a focus camp. Parker could've been a real useful piece for this aging core group of players. But I guess they didn't need him. Anyways Grizz are 43-33, and they're heading to the playoffs once again. But they got some issues they gotta work on.
Injury News
Theo Ratliff - We're gonna talk about Ratliff a little more later. But right now the important thing with him is his dislocated knee injury, which will sideline him for 20 days. There's only 8 days left in the regular season. Meaning as of right now Ratliff is projected to miss the remainder of the regular season AND the first round of the playoffs. Raptors General Manager Beatonz has an interesting decision to make in terms of using the team doctor camp, which would lower Ratliffs injury duration from 20 days to 10. But it comes at a $600 cost. Will the Raptors bite the bullet?
Bob McAdoo - Bobby Mac has a broken nose, and that's listed as a 7 day injury. He will miss the next 4 games for Utah, and then comeback in the season finale vs Memphis. The good news is those 4 games will be against Indiana, Phoenix, Sacramento, and Houston. I think the Jazz could beat all 4 of these lottery teams. Even without McAdoo.
Walt Frazier - The Knicks have been very fortunate when it's come to health. They've only had a total of 5 games missed from their entire starting lineup. Kim Hughes missed 4 games, and now Frazier just missed his first game of the season. He's expected to be out 5 days (3 games) for the Knicks. In the game he missed, rookie guard Bogdan Bogdanovic scored a career high 14 points in 21 minutes. Look for him to continue to get more minutes in Sim #17.
News Around The League
- We mentioned earlier that the Rockets are officially in tank mode, losing 11 of their last 13 games. They got a nice little lottery pick coming their way in the off-season. Oh wait the pick belongs to the Lakers. Congratulations Klomper.
- Speaking of congratulations, there's gonna be a bunch of guys winning awards after tommorow final regular season sim. So lets try to guess who's gonna win some of these awards. We're gonna do the DPOTY, Rookie of the year, Sixth Man, And of course the MVP. Let's begin...
- Defensive Player Of The Year
George Johnson
RPG: 11.3
BPG: 3.4
SPG: 1.0
Observation: He's the reigning TWO TIME defensive player of the year. So I'm thinking there's gonna be some voting fatigue in the case of George. He's also on a horrible Indiana Pacers team (22-53 record). Can you reward that level of losing? I don't think so. Let's move on to the next candidate.
Theo Ratliff
RPG: 11.6
BPG: 3.5
SPG: 0.9
Observation: Theo is dealing with some health issues right now, but he's had an amazing defensive season. He's fourth in the league in rebounding and second in shot blocking. The Raptors defense is also top 5 in the league in opponent field goal percentage. And it all starts with Ratliff protecting the basket, and forcing the opposition to take more difficult shots. Ratliff is very deserving. But I gotta give it to someone.
Greg Ostertag
RPG: 11.8
BPG: 3.7
SPG: 0.8
Observation: He's number two in the league in rebounding. He's leading the ITP in blocks. And he's got my vote. Greg Ostertag is your 2002 Defensive Player Of The Year.
- Rookie Of The Year
Jabari Parker
PPG: 18.7
RPG: 7.2
APG: 3.0
Observation: Parker could be a debatable pick to win the award. He's the second leading scorer on a surprising Wizards playoff team. He's averaging nearly 19 per game with efficient shooting splits (45.3/78.7/38.1). And unlike some of these other rookies, he's not turning the ball over every single time. You could pick Parker to win it. Me personally, I'm going elsewhere.
Nikola Jokic
PPG: 16.3
RPG: 8.7
APG: 4.1
Observation: The Bulls kinda suck (25-53 record). But Jokic is the least of their problems. He's 2nd on the team in scoring, 2nd in assists, and 1st in rebounds. While making over 41 % of his three point attempts. He's doing everything he possibly can for Chicago. But he's not doing enough to win rookie of the year.
Joel Embiid
PPG: 16.2
RPG: 10.1
APG: 2.9
Observation: Because unlike Jokic, Joel Embiid plays both ends of the court. He's way more advanced on the defensive end than the joker. He's averaging double digit rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game. And he's actually more efficient on the offensive end as well. He's shooting 47 % from the field and 46 % from threes. Embiid is well on his way to becoming one of the best bigs in this game. And it starts with him winning the 2002 Rookie of the Year award this season.
- Sixth Man Of The Year
Lonnie Shelton
PPG: 13.9
RPG: 8.3
APG: 2.8
Observation: Its a crowded front court in Denver with Parish, Caldwell Jones, and Jamal Wilkes. But Lonnie Shelton is making the most of his sixth man role this season with Career Highs in minutes, points, rebounds, and assists. He's having a nice season. But there's two guys that triumph over him for the award.
George Gervin
PPG: 18.0
RPG: 5.1
APG: 2.8
Observation: He's the second leading scorer for the best team in the league. And he's coming off the bench. Have you ever seen that before? I haven't. And that's why I had George Gervin as my Sixth Man of the Year winner for most of the season. But missing 15 consecutive games due to injury made me reconsider. And I decided I'm going elsewhere with my pick.
Dan Issel
PPG: 16.7
RPG: 8.2
APG: 2.1
Observation: I'm going to Portland Oregon, and I'm picking Dan The Man Issel for the 2002 6th man of the year. He's averaging nearly 17/8 coming off the bench. He was a 23 PPG all-star just 2 years ago. But he's made the selfless sacrifice to be the teams 6th man this season, and he's done a phenomonial job in his role.
- Most Valuable Player
Brian Winters
PPG: 26.4
APG: 9.2
RPG: 4.0
Observation: They say the game favors the point guards when it comes to the MVP award. So you gotta like Brian Winters chances. He's 6th in
the league in scoring, and 3rd in the league in assists. That's usually an excellent combination to win MVP. Especially if you don't turn the ball over either (Only 1.8 TPG). Winters checks all the MVP Boxes. But He's not checking this box. He will NOT be my choice for MVP. Moving on to the next choice.
Larry Kenon
PPG: 26.4
RPG: 10.4
APG: 3.4
Observation: Even though the PGs are supposed to win the MVP, that wasn't the case last season as SMALL FORWARD Larry Kenon was named the 2001 league MVP. And this year he's been just as great. He's 7th in the league in scoring. He second in steals (2.1 SPG). He never turns the ball over. He's shooting over 50 % from the field and 86 % from the free throw line. And his team has a 61-16 record. Larry Kenon deserves the MVP. But just like Snoop from The Wire said "Deserve got nuttin to do with it". Clint Eastwood said some Shit like that too. Sorry Kenon
Damon Stoudamire
PPG: 28.7
APG: 7.7
RPG: 4.9
Observation: Yeah that's right I'm gonna be bias on this one. The league wont even put him in the all-star game, so I'm giving him the MVP instead. He's leading the ITP in scoring. The Knicks got a shot at the #1 seed in the East. Damon has hit more three pointers (224) than anybody else in the league. He's consistently come up big in big games. He's averaging 47.0 PPG in 2 games vs the Clippers this season. Big game player. Big shot taker. Damon is the little guy with the big balls. And he's your 2002 ITP Most Valuable Player of the year.
I did not think I would be mentioning this team at this point of the season. They were 11-25 through their first 36 games. That's a guaranteed lottery season. Probably even a top 5 pick. That's what this team was destined for. But not anymore, because the DALLAS MAVERICKS have experienced a 180 degree turnaround. From 11-25, they're now 26-16 in the last 42 games. Who the hell saw that coming? Who saw them ripping off 6 consecutive wins? Who saw them making the PLAYOFFS? That's exactly where the Mavs find themselves. With a 37-41 record, the Mavs have pushed ahead of the Minnesota Timberwolves (36-40) for the 8 seed. And they have 3 or their final 4 games at home, where Dallas is 23-15. Two of those three home games are against the Charlotte Hornets (13-62) and Golden State Warriors (29-45). While Minnesota has to play 5 of their final 6 games on the road (14-22 road record this season). So the odds favor Dallas if they keep up their recent surge. But they're gonna need their superstar Mickey Johnson, who just won the Player of the Week Award, to keep putting up big numbers, like he just did in that 104-90 victory vs the Wolves. Mickey had 34 points and 18 rebounds. He's now at 26.6 PPG 10.9 RPG on the season. But can the rest of these guys step up? Like the young euro Double Ds Deni Avdija and Dejan Bodiroga. They have both been lighting it up from three point land. Avidja is at 44.5 %, and and Bodiroga is at 39.3 %. If they make their shots, and Mickey keeps playing at an all-ITP level, the Mavs WILL make the playoffs. From losing 12 games in a row, and being 14 games under 500. To making the playoffs. That would be a remarkable comeback story.
Who's Not
Things arent going as well for the Memphis Grizzlies. Their star player Pistol Pete Maravich recorded himself waving a gun near his head in a viral video. In addition to their off the court problems, theyre struggling on the court as well losing 8 of their last 11 games. They lost to Minnesota, who shot nearly 52 % from the field. They lost to Seattle, who held the Grizz to 36.8 % shooting from the field. They lost to the Wizards while shooting 40.7 %. The tanking Rockets, who have 2 wins in their last 13 games, beat the Grizz too. But worst of all, they lost to the Charlotte Hornets AT HOME. It's been an ugly stretch for Memphis. The good news is they're still locked into that 7 seed in the Western Conference. Maravich (19.9 PPG 48.2 FG %) and Bob Lanier (23.8 PPG 47.2 FG %) are still a great 1-2 punch. But what is this teams long term outlook? Pete and Bob are both 30 year old pending free agents. Curtis Perry is a pretty good player, but is it worth 5 years and 85 million? Probably not. Their #18 pick, which turned into Rookie of the year candidate Jabari Parker, was traded to Washington for $250, the price of a focus camp. Parker could've been a real useful piece for this aging core group of players. But I guess they didn't need him. Anyways Grizz are 43-33, and they're heading to the playoffs once again. But they got some issues they gotta work on.
Injury News
Theo Ratliff - We're gonna talk about Ratliff a little more later. But right now the important thing with him is his dislocated knee injury, which will sideline him for 20 days. There's only 8 days left in the regular season. Meaning as of right now Ratliff is projected to miss the remainder of the regular season AND the first round of the playoffs. Raptors General Manager Beatonz has an interesting decision to make in terms of using the team doctor camp, which would lower Ratliffs injury duration from 20 days to 10. But it comes at a $600 cost. Will the Raptors bite the bullet?
Bob McAdoo - Bobby Mac has a broken nose, and that's listed as a 7 day injury. He will miss the next 4 games for Utah, and then comeback in the season finale vs Memphis. The good news is those 4 games will be against Indiana, Phoenix, Sacramento, and Houston. I think the Jazz could beat all 4 of these lottery teams. Even without McAdoo.
Walt Frazier - The Knicks have been very fortunate when it's come to health. They've only had a total of 5 games missed from their entire starting lineup. Kim Hughes missed 4 games, and now Frazier just missed his first game of the season. He's expected to be out 5 days (3 games) for the Knicks. In the game he missed, rookie guard Bogdan Bogdanovic scored a career high 14 points in 21 minutes. Look for him to continue to get more minutes in Sim #17.
News Around The League
- We mentioned earlier that the Rockets are officially in tank mode, losing 11 of their last 13 games. They got a nice little lottery pick coming their way in the off-season. Oh wait the pick belongs to the Lakers. Congratulations Klomper.
- Speaking of congratulations, there's gonna be a bunch of guys winning awards after tommorow final regular season sim. So lets try to guess who's gonna win some of these awards. We're gonna do the DPOTY, Rookie of the year, Sixth Man, And of course the MVP. Let's begin...
- Defensive Player Of The Year
George Johnson
RPG: 11.3
BPG: 3.4
SPG: 1.0
Observation: He's the reigning TWO TIME defensive player of the year. So I'm thinking there's gonna be some voting fatigue in the case of George. He's also on a horrible Indiana Pacers team (22-53 record). Can you reward that level of losing? I don't think so. Let's move on to the next candidate.
Theo Ratliff
RPG: 11.6
BPG: 3.5
SPG: 0.9
Observation: Theo is dealing with some health issues right now, but he's had an amazing defensive season. He's fourth in the league in rebounding and second in shot blocking. The Raptors defense is also top 5 in the league in opponent field goal percentage. And it all starts with Ratliff protecting the basket, and forcing the opposition to take more difficult shots. Ratliff is very deserving. But I gotta give it to someone.
Greg Ostertag
RPG: 11.8
BPG: 3.7
SPG: 0.8
Observation: He's number two in the league in rebounding. He's leading the ITP in blocks. And he's got my vote. Greg Ostertag is your 2002 Defensive Player Of The Year.
- Rookie Of The Year
Jabari Parker
PPG: 18.7
RPG: 7.2
APG: 3.0
Observation: Parker could be a debatable pick to win the award. He's the second leading scorer on a surprising Wizards playoff team. He's averaging nearly 19 per game with efficient shooting splits (45.3/78.7/38.1). And unlike some of these other rookies, he's not turning the ball over every single time. You could pick Parker to win it. Me personally, I'm going elsewhere.
Nikola Jokic
PPG: 16.3
RPG: 8.7
APG: 4.1
Observation: The Bulls kinda suck (25-53 record). But Jokic is the least of their problems. He's 2nd on the team in scoring, 2nd in assists, and 1st in rebounds. While making over 41 % of his three point attempts. He's doing everything he possibly can for Chicago. But he's not doing enough to win rookie of the year.
Joel Embiid
PPG: 16.2
RPG: 10.1
APG: 2.9
Observation: Because unlike Jokic, Joel Embiid plays both ends of the court. He's way more advanced on the defensive end than the joker. He's averaging double digit rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game. And he's actually more efficient on the offensive end as well. He's shooting 47 % from the field and 46 % from threes. Embiid is well on his way to becoming one of the best bigs in this game. And it starts with him winning the 2002 Rookie of the Year award this season.
- Sixth Man Of The Year
Lonnie Shelton
PPG: 13.9
RPG: 8.3
APG: 2.8
Observation: Its a crowded front court in Denver with Parish, Caldwell Jones, and Jamal Wilkes. But Lonnie Shelton is making the most of his sixth man role this season with Career Highs in minutes, points, rebounds, and assists. He's having a nice season. But there's two guys that triumph over him for the award.
George Gervin
PPG: 18.0
RPG: 5.1
APG: 2.8
Observation: He's the second leading scorer for the best team in the league. And he's coming off the bench. Have you ever seen that before? I haven't. And that's why I had George Gervin as my Sixth Man of the Year winner for most of the season. But missing 15 consecutive games due to injury made me reconsider. And I decided I'm going elsewhere with my pick.
Dan Issel
PPG: 16.7
RPG: 8.2
APG: 2.1
Observation: I'm going to Portland Oregon, and I'm picking Dan The Man Issel for the 2002 6th man of the year. He's averaging nearly 17/8 coming off the bench. He was a 23 PPG all-star just 2 years ago. But he's made the selfless sacrifice to be the teams 6th man this season, and he's done a phenomonial job in his role.
- Most Valuable Player
Brian Winters
PPG: 26.4
APG: 9.2
RPG: 4.0
Observation: They say the game favors the point guards when it comes to the MVP award. So you gotta like Brian Winters chances. He's 6th in
the league in scoring, and 3rd in the league in assists. That's usually an excellent combination to win MVP. Especially if you don't turn the ball over either (Only 1.8 TPG). Winters checks all the MVP Boxes. But He's not checking this box. He will NOT be my choice for MVP. Moving on to the next choice.
Larry Kenon
PPG: 26.4
RPG: 10.4
APG: 3.4
Observation: Even though the PGs are supposed to win the MVP, that wasn't the case last season as SMALL FORWARD Larry Kenon was named the 2001 league MVP. And this year he's been just as great. He's 7th in the league in scoring. He second in steals (2.1 SPG). He never turns the ball over. He's shooting over 50 % from the field and 86 % from the free throw line. And his team has a 61-16 record. Larry Kenon deserves the MVP. But just like Snoop from The Wire said "Deserve got nuttin to do with it". Clint Eastwood said some Shit like that too. Sorry Kenon
Damon Stoudamire
PPG: 28.7
APG: 7.7
RPG: 4.9
Observation: Yeah that's right I'm gonna be bias on this one. The league wont even put him in the all-star game, so I'm giving him the MVP instead. He's leading the ITP in scoring. The Knicks got a shot at the #1 seed in the East. Damon has hit more three pointers (224) than anybody else in the league. He's consistently come up big in big games. He's averaging 47.0 PPG in 2 games vs the Clippers this season. Big game player. Big shot taker. Damon is the little guy with the big balls. And he's your 2002 ITP Most Valuable Player of the year.
