Post by New York Knicks on Apr 26, 2023 14:24:54 GMT -6
Who's Hot
The Seattle Supersonics have themselves a new General Manager, and now they have a new hot streak as well, winning 8 of their last 10 games. Their new GM calls himself TheSlough, and he's been a long time Sonics fan, that has vowed to make this team more successful than they have ever been in the past. So far he's staying true to his word. Sonics have now improved to 27-16, which translates to a .628 winning percentage, the highest in team history. Last year they won a franchise best 50 games, but then they lost Bryant Reeves in free agency to Memphis. It's crazy to see them actually improve (for now) WITHOUT Reeves. However, losing Reeves has opened the door for Isaiah Stewart to step up. He's been doing exactly that in the 2003 season. He's averaging career highs in points (15.4), blocks (1.7), and FG % (47.6). Another guy that's really elevated his play is point guard Ron Lee. Last year he signed a free agent deal with Seattle to backup Dennis Schroder. Dennis was never a perfect fit in the slower pace Seattle offense. So he left in free agency to sign with San Antonio, where he's finally showing what he's capable of in an up tempo style. While Lee has been a perfect fit here. Seattle is all about defense. And Ron Lee is one of the best perimeter defenders in the league (A+ Def Grade). He can score the ball (17 PPG), be takes care of the ball (1.1 TPG), and he defends the Shit outta the ball. What else could you ask for from a PG in an inside based offense? This is a solid team. But if they ever want to take a step toward legit title contention, it's on the broad shoulders of Giannis. It's time for him to become. Superstar. The fans of Seattle have been waiting 4 years on Giannis to become The Man. Can New GM TheSlough help Giannis finally fulfil the potential of a former #1 Overall Pick?
Who's not
It's been an excellent season for the Brooklyn Nets. Last year they were slightly over 500 and were first round fodder in the playoffs. This year they look like a legit Eastern Conference powerhouse at 34-15. And they looked even greater 2 sims ago, when their record was 30-9. Unfortunately that's when things have started going in the wrong direction in Brooklyn. The GPS isn't working, and the Nets have crashed right into the Barclays Center. Where they just lost by 16 points to the Toronto Raptors. Toronto's offense was clicking as they scored 112 points. They had 6 different players score 14+ points. While the Nets shot just 34 % from the field, and were held under 100 points (96) for the 6th time in the last 10 games. Over that stretch Brooklyn has a 4-6 record. Offensive futility has been the reason for this stutter step. They've scored 86 points vs Portland. 70 points vs the Detroit Pistons. And worst of all, 65 points vs the New York Knicks. They had a 21.8 field goal percentage in that game. They had FIVE team assists. The WHOLE team. Knicks backup point guard Malachi Flynn had more (6). Offensive struggles are part of this game. Teams, players all go through dry spells. But usually what goes down, comes back up in terms of shooting/scoring. We expect the Nets to right the ship. And with a home game coming up vs the Houston Rockets, I think This is the night the Brooklyn offense explodes.
Injury Report
Joffrey Lauvergne (76) - Joffrey L took an L this sim, as he was officially diagnosed with a ruptured Achilles. His time table for a return is 76 days. Unfortunately there's only 57 days left in the season. So the Kings are shutting him down. The 25 year old big man averaged 11.2 PPG and 8.6 RPG in 33 games this season.
Damon Stoudamire (14) - Damon is expected to miss 14 more days (10 games) with his dislocated knee. The good news is the Knicks have actually won the last 6 games without him. Thanks in large part to backup guard Theo Maledon stepping into the starting lineup. Maledon recently had a 22 point 14 rebound 10 assist Triple double vs Miami. His play has allowed the Knicks to be patient with Stoudamires injury.
Artis Gilmore (12) - Suffering an injury vs your own proxy team, that's like a punch to the face. Which resulted in a fractured jaw for Artis Gilmore. With Gilmore out, backup C Sam Lacey stepped up in the last game, with 23 points and 18 rebounds. The Clippers are gonna need consistent production out of him and Dieng in the coming weeks.
News Around The League
- All-Star weekend took place, and Michael Carter Williams was the most busy guy on the planet. He won the three point competition. He was the leading scorer (16 points) for the Eastern Conference All-Stars. He won the POW award. AND he won player of the month. That's alot of GM Cash he just earned for his team.
- Dan Roundfield just earned a quick buck too for Methatswho. He's the 2003 slam dunk champion. Breaking the 3 year streak of Dennis Johnson (2000, 2001, 2002 Slam Dunk Champ). Johnson actually finished in last place among the 8 slam dunk contestants. I guess the judges kinda got tired of him.
- Speaking of tired, Roundfields teammate Eric Money looked tired in the three point competition. He had 6 points in round 1. Overall the entire competition looked BAD. Right down to the Finals, where Carter Williams (12) beat Zach LaVine (8). Not the greatest display of three point shooting. The cool thing for Laker fans had to be watching LaVine and Wiggins BOTH advance to the 2nd Round. The future is gonna be bright with those 2 bombing threes for the next 15 years.
- On to the more important moment of the weekend, the all-star game itself. John Drew tried to make this all about himself. But this isn't Orlando pal. It's an All-Star game. SHARE THE DAMN BALL. Drew took 18 shots (made 7) against only ONE assist. I would say he was single handedly responsible for the East inexplicably losing to the West.
- Well actually we could put some blame on the East Centers too. Moses Malone and Greg Ostertag combined for 4 / 20 FG shooting. They smoked away any chance of victory. While on the Westside, the man from the countryside Big Country Reeves, had 11 points 12 rebounds 5 blocks. He finished 2nd in the All-Star MVP voting. The 1st place guy was...
- Larry Kenon. He's already got two regular season MVPs in his trophy case. Might as well add an All-Star MVP too (you're only missing THE finals MVP now Larry). Kenon made it look easy in this, scoring 29 points in 28 minutes. 9/14 from field. 11/13 from free throw line. That's how you spell efficiency. He cooked George McGinnis all night long.
- What wasn't efficient, was the play of the West point guards. Coming In, the talent disparity between West/East Point guards was acknowledged. And it was on full display. Tyrese Maxey and Randy Smith scored 5 points on 2/14 shooting. MCW and LaMelo scored 24 points.
- Speaking of scoring point guards. Sam I am Cassell, changed his name to Sam I am a bad MotherFer. He scored 26 points (10/14 FG), as the Rookies defeated the sophomores. Interestly enough, he was matched up against fellow Cavs teammate Spencer Dinwiddie, who started at point for the Sophomores.
- Also on the rookie side, Chris Webber showed his all around potential in this one. He scored 12, grabbed 11 boards, dished out 6 assists, and collected 3 steals . Did a little bit of everything, and he was named the rookie game MVP. I think Webber is going to have a HUGE second half of the season. This rookie game will be his springboard.
- And that wraps up All-Star weekend. We'll see you tommorow as we start the 2nd half of the season.
The Seattle Supersonics have themselves a new General Manager, and now they have a new hot streak as well, winning 8 of their last 10 games. Their new GM calls himself TheSlough, and he's been a long time Sonics fan, that has vowed to make this team more successful than they have ever been in the past. So far he's staying true to his word. Sonics have now improved to 27-16, which translates to a .628 winning percentage, the highest in team history. Last year they won a franchise best 50 games, but then they lost Bryant Reeves in free agency to Memphis. It's crazy to see them actually improve (for now) WITHOUT Reeves. However, losing Reeves has opened the door for Isaiah Stewart to step up. He's been doing exactly that in the 2003 season. He's averaging career highs in points (15.4), blocks (1.7), and FG % (47.6). Another guy that's really elevated his play is point guard Ron Lee. Last year he signed a free agent deal with Seattle to backup Dennis Schroder. Dennis was never a perfect fit in the slower pace Seattle offense. So he left in free agency to sign with San Antonio, where he's finally showing what he's capable of in an up tempo style. While Lee has been a perfect fit here. Seattle is all about defense. And Ron Lee is one of the best perimeter defenders in the league (A+ Def Grade). He can score the ball (17 PPG), be takes care of the ball (1.1 TPG), and he defends the Shit outta the ball. What else could you ask for from a PG in an inside based offense? This is a solid team. But if they ever want to take a step toward legit title contention, it's on the broad shoulders of Giannis. It's time for him to become. Superstar. The fans of Seattle have been waiting 4 years on Giannis to become The Man. Can New GM TheSlough help Giannis finally fulfil the potential of a former #1 Overall Pick?
Who's not
It's been an excellent season for the Brooklyn Nets. Last year they were slightly over 500 and were first round fodder in the playoffs. This year they look like a legit Eastern Conference powerhouse at 34-15. And they looked even greater 2 sims ago, when their record was 30-9. Unfortunately that's when things have started going in the wrong direction in Brooklyn. The GPS isn't working, and the Nets have crashed right into the Barclays Center. Where they just lost by 16 points to the Toronto Raptors. Toronto's offense was clicking as they scored 112 points. They had 6 different players score 14+ points. While the Nets shot just 34 % from the field, and were held under 100 points (96) for the 6th time in the last 10 games. Over that stretch Brooklyn has a 4-6 record. Offensive futility has been the reason for this stutter step. They've scored 86 points vs Portland. 70 points vs the Detroit Pistons. And worst of all, 65 points vs the New York Knicks. They had a 21.8 field goal percentage in that game. They had FIVE team assists. The WHOLE team. Knicks backup point guard Malachi Flynn had more (6). Offensive struggles are part of this game. Teams, players all go through dry spells. But usually what goes down, comes back up in terms of shooting/scoring. We expect the Nets to right the ship. And with a home game coming up vs the Houston Rockets, I think This is the night the Brooklyn offense explodes.
Injury Report
Joffrey Lauvergne (76) - Joffrey L took an L this sim, as he was officially diagnosed with a ruptured Achilles. His time table for a return is 76 days. Unfortunately there's only 57 days left in the season. So the Kings are shutting him down. The 25 year old big man averaged 11.2 PPG and 8.6 RPG in 33 games this season.
Damon Stoudamire (14) - Damon is expected to miss 14 more days (10 games) with his dislocated knee. The good news is the Knicks have actually won the last 6 games without him. Thanks in large part to backup guard Theo Maledon stepping into the starting lineup. Maledon recently had a 22 point 14 rebound 10 assist Triple double vs Miami. His play has allowed the Knicks to be patient with Stoudamires injury.
Artis Gilmore (12) - Suffering an injury vs your own proxy team, that's like a punch to the face. Which resulted in a fractured jaw for Artis Gilmore. With Gilmore out, backup C Sam Lacey stepped up in the last game, with 23 points and 18 rebounds. The Clippers are gonna need consistent production out of him and Dieng in the coming weeks.
News Around The League
- All-Star weekend took place, and Michael Carter Williams was the most busy guy on the planet. He won the three point competition. He was the leading scorer (16 points) for the Eastern Conference All-Stars. He won the POW award. AND he won player of the month. That's alot of GM Cash he just earned for his team.
- Dan Roundfield just earned a quick buck too for Methatswho. He's the 2003 slam dunk champion. Breaking the 3 year streak of Dennis Johnson (2000, 2001, 2002 Slam Dunk Champ). Johnson actually finished in last place among the 8 slam dunk contestants. I guess the judges kinda got tired of him.
- Speaking of tired, Roundfields teammate Eric Money looked tired in the three point competition. He had 6 points in round 1. Overall the entire competition looked BAD. Right down to the Finals, where Carter Williams (12) beat Zach LaVine (8). Not the greatest display of three point shooting. The cool thing for Laker fans had to be watching LaVine and Wiggins BOTH advance to the 2nd Round. The future is gonna be bright with those 2 bombing threes for the next 15 years.
- On to the more important moment of the weekend, the all-star game itself. John Drew tried to make this all about himself. But this isn't Orlando pal. It's an All-Star game. SHARE THE DAMN BALL. Drew took 18 shots (made 7) against only ONE assist. I would say he was single handedly responsible for the East inexplicably losing to the West.
- Well actually we could put some blame on the East Centers too. Moses Malone and Greg Ostertag combined for 4 / 20 FG shooting. They smoked away any chance of victory. While on the Westside, the man from the countryside Big Country Reeves, had 11 points 12 rebounds 5 blocks. He finished 2nd in the All-Star MVP voting. The 1st place guy was...
- Larry Kenon. He's already got two regular season MVPs in his trophy case. Might as well add an All-Star MVP too (you're only missing THE finals MVP now Larry). Kenon made it look easy in this, scoring 29 points in 28 minutes. 9/14 from field. 11/13 from free throw line. That's how you spell efficiency. He cooked George McGinnis all night long.
- What wasn't efficient, was the play of the West point guards. Coming In, the talent disparity between West/East Point guards was acknowledged. And it was on full display. Tyrese Maxey and Randy Smith scored 5 points on 2/14 shooting. MCW and LaMelo scored 24 points.
- Speaking of scoring point guards. Sam I am Cassell, changed his name to Sam I am a bad MotherFer. He scored 26 points (10/14 FG), as the Rookies defeated the sophomores. Interestly enough, he was matched up against fellow Cavs teammate Spencer Dinwiddie, who started at point for the Sophomores.
- Also on the rookie side, Chris Webber showed his all around potential in this one. He scored 12, grabbed 11 boards, dished out 6 assists, and collected 3 steals . Did a little bit of everything, and he was named the rookie game MVP. I think Webber is going to have a HUGE second half of the season. This rookie game will be his springboard.
- And that wraps up All-Star weekend. We'll see you tommorow as we start the 2nd half of the season.
