SH Blog: Deron Williams has been tagged as a diva around the league, Nets covet Josh Smith

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When you think about how good or how far the Brooklyn Nets might go this season, it all comes down to this: which version of Deron Williams are we going to get?

Brook Lopez and Joe Johnson are integral pieces to the puzzle, but the main reason the Nets have become as relevant as they have is because of the acquisition of Williams. This team goes only as far as he can take them.

During his days as a member of the Jazz, he was consistently known as one of the top three point guards in the league. Some even considered him the very best, period. Those days are long gone now, and you wonder if he’s even the best point guard in his own division. One of the issues that has caused his downfall has been the state of his body.

Word has been – since he became a Net, really – that the once-great guard has been dealing with an assortment of injuries, from his wrist to his ankles. In fact, he has been ailing all season with ankle issues and will have them treated during the much-needed All-Star weekend, from Tim Bontemps of New York Post: 

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SH Blog: Rondo expects to win NBA title, plans to beat Jeremy Lin “pretty badly”

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Today’s major news might make you very sad: Sasha Vujacic is no longer in a relationship with Maria Sharapova. Actually, most guys are probably happy to hear of this development (or not give a damn). In equally important news, former 90210 stars Jennie Garth and Luke Perry are not dating as previously thought.

Jokes aside, we do have some very interesting material in today’s news, including a slew of noteworthy quotes from Rajon Rondo, an explanation of Dwyane Wade’s beef with Erik Spoelstra during the playoffs, the predictions of Lakers fans and more:

  • Rajon Rondo said plenty of attention-grabbing things in his recent interview with The Standard (via Hoops Hype). My favorite? He expects to beat Jeremy Lin “pretty badly” in the upcoming season: “Boston guard Rajon Rondo said he expects the Celtics to unseat Miami and win the NBA title in the coming season. The NBA’s assist leader last season said he likes Boston’s offseason additions. ”I think because we have a talented group of guys… the additions of Courtney Lee, [Jason] Terry and Jeff Green,” Rondo said. ”We have high expectations every year… I think we got a lot better than last year.” Rondo didn’t talk much about Ray Allen leaving Boston to sign with rivals Miami Heat for less money — except for saying, “he’s fine”. The Celtics guard was somewhat skeptical about the new lineup of another rival team, the L.A. Lakers, who now feature stars Dwight Howard and Steve Nash alongside Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol. Rondo said they’ve done nothing yet and it’s all on paper. The Celtics All-Star also said he expects to beat Jeremy Lin “pretty badly” when Boston meet Lin’s new team, the Houston Rockets, RTHK reports.”
  • Rondo also discussed why he loves basketball fans in the Phillippines, and that he used to play basketball in sandals all the time. Ethan Sherwood Strauss of Bleacher Report has the interview: “B/R: You talked about being interested in the basketball culture in the Philippines. I was wondering: What made you interested in that culture? RR: Just common sense. The fans are crazy there. It’s unbelievable how many Celtic fans are there, how many Rondo fans are there. They bleed basketball. It’s like being home in Boston, but kinda on steroids. Population of about 93 million, and they show a lot of love. A lot of fans understood the game of basketball, and I think they could relate to me because I’m not the biggest guy on the court, but I play with a lot of heart. B/R: I hear that they play in sandals. Did you see any of that? Could you ever see yourself playing in sandals? RR: As I grew up, I played in sandals. I played in flip-flops all the time back in the day. That’s why I didn’t really care about spraining my ankles. When I first started in the NBA, I loved low-cuts. I can play (in them), because I used to grow up playing in flip-flops all the time.”
  • Zach Lowe of SI provided more interesting information, thanks to a system called SportsVU (which you can read about by clicking on the link). Here is the scoop on who is most likely to take a shot after touching the ball at the elbow: “Kobe Bryant (57 percent of touches), Serge Ibaka (61 percent), Leandro Barbosa (!) 55 percent, DeMar DeRozan (!!) 58 percent, Monta Ellis (47 percent) and Mike Dunleavy Jr. (47 percent). Each of those guys touched the ball at the elbow fewer than three times per game, save for Kobe, who got it there a hair more than five times per game in the recorded sample. Ibaka touched the ball at the elbow just 1.16 times per game in 55 recorded games, meaning it’s clear he’s supposed to shoot when he receives it there, mostly in pick-and-pops. Bryant, DeRozan and Ibaka each shot around 41 percent on these attempts, placing near the bottom of the field-goal percentage rankings. Among big men who got the ball at the elbow a lot, the most likely to shoot included: Dirk Nowitzki (40 percent of touches), Amar’e Stoudemire (42 percent), David West (41 percent) and DeMarcus Cousins (45 percent).”
  • From the same Lowe article, Ty Lawson and Andre Miller were ranked among the best point guards that created the best possible shots for teammates when they drove to 10 feet or fewer from the basket from 20 feet or beyond. Jeremy Lin was even better. Brandon Jennings? Not so much: “Andre Miller and Lawson ranked among the half-dozen “best” point guards in the league by this standard, with 67 percent of Miller’s potential assists and 56 percent of Lawson’s leading either to threes or shots at the rim. Only Jeremy Lin (68 percent) had a higher percentage of potential assists fall in those areas, a fact I suspect Houston’s geeky brain trust is already aware of… A point guard who does not fare well by this “potential assists” measure: Brandon Jennings, up for a contract extension before Oct. 31. Only 49 percent of Jennings’ potential dimes led to either layups or threes, a very low number, while 39 percent alone went to long two-point jumpers.”
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  • Ryan Anderson of the New Orleans Hornets

    Ryan Anderson credited Stan Van Gundy for making him the player that he is today, while also admitting that he was a restricted player with the Magic. Here is a piece of his interview with Yannis Koutroupis of Hoops World: “I had an amazing three years with Orlando,” Anderson said. “I learned so much as a player with that team and I’m really, really grateful to have spent those three years being coached by Stan Van Gundy, a guy who really challenged me and made me the player that I am now. Just having him give me the confidence that he did, especially last year. He always had faith in me but he always pushed me really hard, more than any of the other guys really because I think he expected a lot out of me and it’s a good feeling from such a great coach to have that coach have so much faith in you… It was a great city to play for and I feel really blessed to have spent three years in Orlando, but transitioning to New Orleans, I think is a great opportunity for me to go through some change. I think I’m ready to venture out and play a different role and have a little bit more freedom playing in New Orleans. I was restricted a bit in Orlando.”

  • Ira Winderman of South Florida Sun-Sentinel pointed out some notable content from Dwyane Wade’s new book, including an explanation of the infamous heated moment between Wade and Erik Spoelstra during last season’s playoffs: “Wade discusses his confrontation with coach Erik Spoelstra in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Indiana Pacers, stressing that a balky knee minimized his coach’s possible intent of the moment. “He might have been trying to see what would happen if he could get me to play mad, which is when I usually play well,” he writes. “But this was me playing frustrated, very different from playing mad.” He writes effusively of the championship contribution of Spoelstra, whom he says, “opened my eyes to new lessons of what being a champion is all about.”
  • Who are the smartest spending teams in the NBA? Kurt Helin of NBC Sports breaks it down with help from businessweek.com: “Bloomberg’s businessweek.com decided to do that kind of study (for all four major sports) but tried to take a big picture view — they looked at the last five years and they gave bonuses for finishing over .500 and winning playoff games and championships. So how did the NBA shake out? Here is their top 10: 1. Lakers 2. Celtics 3. Heat 4. Magic 5. Spurs 6. Thunder 7. Mavericks 8. Hawks 9. Nuggets 10. Bulls. Looks to me that by adding weight to playoff wins you basically made this a “win and you’re at the top” contest. The Lakers have been one of the biggest spenders (because they have the revenue to do it) but to be fair have been smart about it and won titles. Boston and Miami much the same, and Dallas has been the biggest spender of them all up until last season.”
  • Mike Bibby is unlikely to be re-signed by the Knicks, according to Jared Zwerling of ESPN New York: “A source close to Knicks unrestricted free agent Mike Bibby told ESPNNewYork.com that it’s unlikely the veteran point guard will return to New York. ”We do expect a need for him [with a team] once camp starts or just before,” the source said, “but we don’t think it’s going to be with the Knicks.” The Knicks can afford to re-sign Bibby because he’s open to the veteran’s minimum, which is what he made last season. But the team now has four point guards on the roster:Raymond Felton, Jason Kidd, Pablo Prigioni and Chris Smith, J.R. Smith’s younger brother. (Chris’ contract, for now, is only for training camp.)”
  • The Knicks’ uniforms will have a slightly different look for the upcoming season, according to Marc Berman of New York Post: “Months after the Brooklyn Nets’ new black-and-white hip color scheme and uniforms have gained popularity, the Knicks have made alterations to both their home and away uniforms. Their new jerseys will be unveiled next Thursday, a club official said. Amar’e Stoudemire and Tyson Chandler will model the new jerseys, though one person familiar with the situation said the change is “not major.’’ The last time the Knicks had significant uniform alterations was 2001, when a thick bands of blue on the sides were removed. The Knicks’ color scheme has been orange, blue and white — the city’s official colors — except for 1979-83 when red was added. The change is also an attempt to sell more jerseys but their leading jersey-seller last year, Jeremy Lin, is now with the Rockets.”
  • Lakers fans are obviously expecting big things from their super team for the upcoming season. In fact, 87 percent majority of fans believe the Lakers will win the championship, from Mark Medina of Los Angeles Times: “At a time of skepticism over our nation’s future, here’s one thing leaving Laker fans optimistic. The purple and gold will win the 2013 NBA championship. Based on a series of poll questions, there’s very little sapping the enthusiasm of Laker fans. There’s an 87% majority of fans who say the Lakers’ title chances are already a foregone conclusion. A 38% plurality simply gush over the Lakers’ overwhelming talent in the Lakers’ Fantastic 5 starting lineup. Even 50% believe the Lakers will collect 64 to 72 wins, meaning many expect the purple and gold at least to be within striking distance of matching the Chicago Bulls’ 72-win record set in the 1995-96 season.”
  • Sasha Vujacic has broken up with the uber-popular tennis star Maria Sharapova, according to Deadspin: “Did you remember Maria Sharapova and Sasha Vujacic were dating? Neither did we. But somehow they were together for two years and were all set to get married in November. Well, Sharapova shot down the marriage rumors a few days ago and didn’t tell us why. And now Vujacic tells La Gazzetta dello Sport that the relationship is off, and it’s been that way for three months. This helps explain why Sharapova left him out of her victory speech after winning the French Open in June (Vujacic was in Turkey, where he’s still playing).

Don Nelson wishes he could coach Rubio and Love 

Blake Griffin’s knee ready for action


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Post Game Notes and other News from around the NBA: May 10, 2012.

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KNICKS/HEAT

  • There will be no more professional basketball in New York City, at least until next season as the Knicks fall to the Miami Heat in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference first round series on Wednesday night in Miami, 106-94.
  • LeBr0n James had 29 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade both scored 19 points.
  • Carmelo Anthony scored 35 points for the Knicks.
  • Anthony has played 54 postseason games, being part of wins only 17 times.
  • Amare Stoudemire scored 14 points, Landry Fields and J.R. Smith both added 12,Mike Bibby had 10 and Tyson Chandler grabbed 11 rebounds for New York.
  • James shot 48 percent from the field in the series; Anthony shot 42 percent. James averaged 6.2 rebounds and 5.6 assists; Anthony averaged 8.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists.
  • Their head-to-head scoring matchup in this series was even, 139 points apiece.
  • The Knicks are 1-8 in playoff games with Anthony and Stoudemire as teammates.

CLIPPERS/GRIZZLIES

  • Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph power the Grizzlies past the Clippers on Wednesday night in Memphis, 92-80, giving them another life by forcing a Game 6.
  • Marc Gasol scored 23 points and Zach Randolph added 19.
  • Mo Williams had 20 points for the Clippers while Chris Paul scored 19 and Blake Griffinhad 15 points and 11 rebounds.
  • The Clippers said Paul strained his right hip flexor, while the guard also jammed a finger.
  • Griffin sprained his left knee.
  • Chris Paul did not play as well as he did in Game 4 when he single-handedly led the Clippers to victory.
  • Last night he had just five points by halftime and scored nothing in the fourth quarter.
  • Meanwhile Gasol scored 12 points in the first quarter and Randolph hit his first six shots in scoring 15 points while grabbing five rebounds as Memphis led 36-22 at the end of the first quarter.
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Playoffs Day 11: Previews of Knicks-Heat and Clippers-Grizzlies

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What looked to be a fast ending to the first round of the playoffs took a turn for the competitive good on Tuesday night when three of the four teams that faced elimination – the Hawks, Bulls and Nuggets – all survived to play a Game 6.

The New York Knicks and Memphis Grizzlies are in the same boat – down 3-1 in their respective series – and they will try to avoid elimination on Wednesday night rather than go fishing, as they say on TNT (By the way, classic line from Charles Barkley last night on the Hawks: “We’ve been watching this same movie every year for the past five years now. The ending stays the same. It never changes. The boat goes down. Everybody drowns.”

Here is what to look for in the two games slated for tonight.

New York (1-3) at Miami (3-1):

knicks small logoThe Knicks looked like a team that were meant to be swept out of the first round as they got hit with one disaster after another, and in Game 4 Baron Davis suffered a dislocated kneecap and multiple ligament tears in his knee, likely ending his career.

Yet, they never gave up.

Carmelo Anthony, after struggling for much of the series, found his rhythm just in the nick of time and scored 41 points while Amare Stoudemire – deemed questionable to play due to hand laceration – stepped up with 20 points and 10 rebounds.

Thanks to their efforts, New York won the nailbiter 89-87 and head down to Miami for Game 5.

They will have to continue to fight short-handed, and Jeremy Lin has been all but ruled out for the remainder of this series.

From Howard Beck of The New York Times: “It is fair to wonder how different the ledger might look if not for the Knicks’ freakish string of misfortune over the last two weeks. Chandler was struck with flu symptoms just before the playoffs began and played, in his words, like a “zombie” in the series opener. Shumpert, the prized rookie, blew out his knee in the third quarter of Game 1 (a 100-67 loss). Then came Stoudemire’s moment of madness after Game 2 (a 104-94 loss), which caused him to miss Game 3 (an 87-70 loss). When the Knicks finally celebrated a victory at Madison Square Garden on Sunday (89-87), even that moment of joy was tempered — by Baron Davis’s career-threatening knee injury. They will open Game 5 with Mike Bibby, formerly their third-string point guard, and with pestering thoughts of what might have been. What the Knicks have needed most — other than a karmic cleansing — is a point guard to straighten out the offense and create easier scoring chances. Davis and Bibby, for all of their experience, are well past their prime. Jeremy Lin, the 23-year-old point-guard sensation, has not played since having knee surgery five weeks ago. He had held out some hope of returning in the first round, but Coach Mike Woodson ruled it out Tuesday. “He’s out,” Woodson said. “Speaking with medical and Jeremy, he will not play in this series.”

With Davis out, Mike Bibby will start at the point, with Toney Douglas expected to see the backup minutes.

heat small logoDwyane Wade, who has picked on his former teammate at times during the series, had this quote to offer on Bibby:

“I know Mike. I know Mike’s made more shots in this series than he did all playoffs last year.”

The Heat, who looked lackluster for long stretches in Game 4, may simply have to show a little more emotion to finish off the series at home. And if it is close at the end, there’s always the question of who takes the last shot.

From Joseph Goodman of Miami Herald: “It’s not about whether LeBron James or Shane Battier guards Carmelo Anthony. It’s not about who takes the last shot. Here’s what the Heat lacked in Game 4 and what it’ll need in Game 5 on Wednesday to close out the Knicks: more passion. The Heat couldn’t match New York’s desire in Game 4. Simple as that. Sometimes that’s all the playoffs are about. And, so, the Knicks took a game back in this best-of-7 series with a power forward playing with one good hand, a Heat castoff at point guard, an interim coach managing a depleted roster and one legitimate superstar trying to save a little face before bowing out of the postseason. “We just have to be more aggressive and stay poised,” Heat center Chris Bosh said. “It’s really not about being concerned about the offense or anything like that. They’re going to go down swinging. We have to stay tough mentally.” Will the Heat make any strategic changes for Game 5? Not likely. The only significant adjustment will be that of attitude, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said.”

Still, the team made sure to go over last-second plays in practice to ensure that execution would not become an issue, as it clearly was in the previous game.

From Barry Jackson of Miami Herald: “Two days after squandering a last-second chance to tie or win Game 4, the Heat spent part of Tuesday’s practice working on late-game situations “so we’ll be more comfortable in our package,” Dwyane Wade said. To refresh: With his team down two, Wade received the inbound pass with 13.2 seconds left, dribbled, fumbled the ball briefly, recovered, and missed a difficult 24-foot three-pointer with 2.4 seconds left. “Look, guys,” coach Erik Spoelstra said. “If you get Dwyane Wade going down the lane with an open lane, and you’re down by two, I think you take that. It was a pretty good opportunity to attack the rim. It was a broken play, and we know what happened from there. … “We had an open trigger for LeBron James. We had an open window on the second one with Chris Bosh. Just made the wrong read, and it ended up being a miscommunication between him and Dwyane. Otherwise, that would have been a pretty good opportunity.” The Heat is now 6-for-16 this season — and 9-for-36 since the Big 3 was assembled — on shots to tie the game or go ahead in the final 24 seconds of the fourth quarter or overtime. Wade is 3-for-7 on those shots this season, James 1-for-2.

The Clippers are on the brink of moving past the first round for just the second time in their existence, thanks mostly to Chris Paul.
Paul has put his stamp on this series with one clutch play after another and is averaging 23.5 points and 8.8 assists through the first four games.
Joining the party, finally, was Blake Griffin who by far played his best overall game of the series.
From Arash Markazi of ESPN Los Angeles: “In the Clippers’ Game 4 win, Chris Paul and Blake Griffin scored or assisted on 30 of the Clippers’ 34 field goals and 81 of the team’s 101 points, including all 10 field goals in the fourth quarter and overtime. Griffin finished the game with 30 points and seven assists while Paul finished with 27 points and seven assists. The Clippers were the first NBA team to have a pair of players with at least 25 points and at least seven assists in a playoff game since another pair of Clippers did it back on May 14, 2006, when Elton Brand had 30 and eight and Sam Cassell had 28 and nine in a victory over the Suns. Paul, however, separated himself from the pack in overtime, scoring eight of his 27 points in the extra session and totaling 10 points in the 4th quarter and overtime period. Paul has been one of the league’s top crunch-time players in the regular season and playoffs. In the final five minutes of games, with his team ahead or behind by five points, Paul ranks second in the NBA with 16 total points.”
Together, they have become a flopping physical force and have clearly gotten into the heads of the Grizzlies with their style of play.
More from Markazi: “When the Clippers returned home after losing Game 2 in Memphis, the players talked on the team charter and at practice the next day about the need to be more physical. The key, however, wasn’t simply to push back and compile fouls, it was about being “smart about it,” as Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro said. This was about Paul stopping on a dime on a fast break, reversing course and forcing Mike Conley or O.J. Mayo into a bad foul. This was about Griffin throwing himself into Randolph and Marc Gasol and flailing every time he was hit, forcing them to get frustrating fouls as well. Quite simply this was about the Clippers out-Grizzling the Grizzlies with a Hollywood twist. Hollins might consider it flopping but none of that matters to Paul and the Clippers as long as they win the series. ”I don’t care what he’s talking about,” Paul said. “He’s got a team over there he has to worry about.” No one has embraced the antagonist role on the Clippers more than Griffin, who really had the position thrust upon him this season whether he liked it or not. Griffin’s reputation around the league has largely changed from a must-see dunker to a can’t-watch flopper. Whether that’s true or not really doesn’t matter as long as he gets under his opponent’s skin like he did on Monday night.”
grizzlies small logoThe Grizzlies will have to find a way to bottle up Paul who has had his way inside and out.
Barkley had this to say about the situation: “It is Chris Paul going one-on-one every time. You can’t let Chris Paul make all those shots; you have to take the ball out of his hands.”
Trapping may be the key in limiting Paul, as one particular play in Game 4 showed.

From Nikki Boertman of The Commercial Appeal: “Paul has been a key for the Clippers in this series. He nearly amassed a triple double in Game 4 and his scoring in pick-and-rolls dominated the overtime period. Paul scored eight of his 27 points in the extra session. He also got to the free-throw line where he hit all six of his free throws in the game. ”I used the wrong word (Monday) night,” Hollins said. “Chris Paul is very good at creating fouls and I shouldn’t have used the word ‘flop.’ That’s the wrong word to use but he’s good at putting you in position where you have to foul him; where he creates a foul.” Expect the Griz to continue to use Allen’s size and strength to defend Paul. Several Grizzlies will also have their shot at giving Paul a different defensive look. Memphis will likely send another defender to crowd the crafty floor general. One of the best and clutch defensive moments on Paul Monday night happened at the end of regulation when Rudy Gay converged on Paul with Allen guarding him. The result was a trap that didn’t allow Paul to attempt a good shot or locate an easy passing lane.”

Rudy Gay - recipient of the Kia Community Assist Award for April – shot just 8-of-25 in Game 4 and will have to find a way to be more efficient.

The team will also have to get Marc Gasol more involved on the offensive end. He has taken nine combined shots over the last two games.

James Park is a regular contributor to Sheridanhoops.com. You can find him on twitter @nbatupark.

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Hamilton: How The Knicks Can Win Against the Miami Heat

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NEW YORK — On Sunday in Madison Square Garden, the Knicks trailed the Heat by 11 points with less than 20 minutes remaining in not only Game 4—but possibly their season.

It was at that point that they got a spirited effort and a much-needed energy jolt from the man that was once the leader of their renaissance.

Finally, Amar’e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony won a playoff game. And in some ways, it was fitting. Before the series began, I made the somewhat obvious assertion that Anthony can’t beat the Heat by himself. And that was painfully obvious in Game 3.

The Knicks would win Game 4, 89-87, and although Carmelo Anthony scored 41 huge points on 15 mostly timely field goals, Stoudemire gets my game ball.

Through the first half of Game 4, the Knicks looked the same way they looked in Game 3. Their offense was stagnant, they looked lethargic, and the “World’s Most Famous Arena” was dormant. Stoudemire was the lone bright spot in that first half, and it was his five straight points at a critical time in the third quarter that closed the aforementioned 11-point lead to a more manageable six.

It was only than that everyone began to believe that the Knicks had a shot.

Anthony and Stoudemire would combine for 18 points in that pivotal third quarter, and although ‘Melo hit the big shots down the stretch of the fourth, the 1-2 punch of the Knicks ended the game with a combined 61 points on 23-of-42 field goal shooting. They also collectively grabbed 16 rebounds and dished out five assists. Together, they ended the Knicks’ 13-game playoff losing streak.

The Knicks still trail the series 3-1 and probably won’t be able to dig out of the 0-3 hole they dug themselves. But in Game 4, we got a glimpse of a few things that the Knicks can do to give themselves a fighting chance against the Miami Heat.

Here they are:

    1. Give Stoudemire Isolation Opportunities Against Udonis Haslem
      After receiving an epidural injection back in early April, Stoudemire has returned and has looked much better than he did during the early portion of the season. Although his explosiveness is still a bit lacking, his lateral quickness is much improved and his midrange shooting has seemed to improve. What was obvious in Game 4 was that Udonis Haslem had much more trouble containing Stoudemire than Chris Bosh did. It’s quite unlikely that coach Erik Spoelstra will have Bosh guard Stoudemire for 35 minutes on Game 5, so coach Mike Woodson would be wise to allow Stoudemire the opportunity to go at Haslem whenever the opportunity presents itself. If the midrange jumper is falling, things could open up for everyone—including Anthony.
    2. Play High-Low From the Free-Throw Line To the Lower Box
      One of the worst kept secrets in the NBA is that the Miami Heat’s frontline is devoid of any real intimidation. With all due respect to Joel Anthony, Dwyane Wade is the Heat’s best rim protector, and one of the league’s most intimidating frontlines shouldn’t be afraid of attacking a 6’4″ guard—no matter how great he is. The Knicks made plenty of over-the-top entry passes in Game 4 and gave Stoudemire and Anthony the opportunity to catch passes in the paint and finish. Since both can finish at the rim, and since both have shown the ability to make good passes, the Knicks should consider playing high-low with their two best offensive weapons. Especially when Shane Battier finds himself guarding Anthony.
    3. Move the Ball
      None of the Knicks’ guards have the foot speed to effectively attack their Heat counterparts off of the dribble and cause defensive breakdowns. For that reason, threading the needle on pick and rolls, playing high-low, and finding backdoor cutters are the best ways to get some easy buckets from the Heat. If the game slows down to a crawl, there’s no reason to believe that Anthony will be able to have his way with LeBron James and Battier. Moreover, if J.R. Smith, Landry Fields, and Mike Bibby become bystanders, Anthony will need to score 60 points by himself to beat the Heat. And that’s just not likely. Flashing, passing, catching, and ball movement are as important as they’ve ever been to this team. They’d be wise to not forget that.
    4. Play Zone Defense
      Without Iman Shumpert and Baron Davis, Landry Fields will be expected to guard either Wade or James for extended time in Game 5. Because he and Anthony lack the foot speed to stay in front of Wade and James, it’d be wise for the Knicks to employ a zone defense. Although the Heat have a few sharpshooters in James Jones and Mike Miller, allowing Tyson Chandler to stay in the paint and keeping the Heat on the perimeter could go a long way toward neutralizing one of the Heat’s greatest advantages over the Knicks—their athleticism on the perimeter and superb dribble penetration.
    5. Get Steve Novak Some Shots
      The Heat deserve a lot of credit for how they’ve defended Steve Novak over the duration of this series. The Heat aren’t giving Novak any breathing room on the perimeter. As a result, he doesn’t have shooting opportunities. As the league’s most accurate 3-point shooter, though, the Knicks need to utilize him better. Double screens, motion, and baseline cuts are all rather simple adjustments that Novak and Coach Woodson can make to give him a chance. Shooting off of curls and screens isn’t easy, but it’d be better to see Novak miss opportunities than continue to be uninvolved in the game because his coach simply has him spot up for opportunities that aren’t there.

That said, the Heat will probably win Game 5. They’re the better team and they’re a much better team at home than they are on the road. But they play the games for a reason.

And if the Knicks can find a way to exploit some of the Heat’s weaknesses, a Game 6 in New York on Friday remains a possibility—even if it’s a longshot.

Moke Hamilton covers the NBA for SheridanHoops.com and is the Deputy Editor for CHARGED.fm. For the latest on the New York Knicks and all things NBA, follow him on Twitter.

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