The Sincerest Form of Flattery

76ers Reportedly Aim to Emulate Knicks

I found an interesting/weird/heartening story over at SI.com today. According to SI hoops maven Chris Mannix, The Philadelphia 76ers are looking over the shoulders of the New York Knicks to try to steal our answers. And, not the 1969-1970 Knicks. The 2008-2009 Knicks.

With expensive free-agent acquisition Elton Brand sidelined, Sixers GM Ed Stefanski wants the Sixers to run, gun and hoist up some more three pointers in hopes of keeping afloat. According to Mannix, he wants them to play like D'Antoni's Knicks. Which is sort of weird since D'Antoni's Knicks are 13-20 while the Sixers, under neophyte playcaller Tony DiLeo, are 15-20.

I was confused but bemused when I read the article. I forwarded it a Philly resident and he experienced a total mind blow. Apparently, he has little interest in his team playing like my team. Just a few months ago the 76ers were on the cover of Sports Illustrated's NBA Preview issue (at least the edition that ended up in my mailbox) and were a trendy pick to win the Eastern Conference. Fast forward to the first week of 2009 and they're under .500 and purposefully trying to play like the Knicks.

Of course, it worth noting that none of the quotes in the story from anyone associated with Sixers actually mention the Knicks or D'Antoni. So, it seems that Mannix made the "Be Like Mike (D'Antoni)" connection himself when he was told Philly wanted to pick up the tempo and add more perimeter shooting. Which is fine. And makes sense. Mostly. Because if any NBA team wants to play fast and aim to hit 10 three pointers a night in this era then they will likely bring to mind the Seven Second or Less philosophy that D'Antoni employed in Phoenix with Steve Nash, Shawn Marion and Amare Stoudemire.

In this regard it makes sense to mention the Knicks, who are in their first year under D'Antoni and doing their bestest to play fast and well. But, really the Sixers don't want to be more like the Knicks. They actually want the same thing as the Knicks. They want to be like the 2006-2007 Suns. Because the Knicks still aren't very good on many nights. And, nobody should want to be like them.

The Importance Of What Happens Next

The longest book that I've ever read is The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R Tolkien. The single-volume edition clocks in over a 1,100 pages. I tried to read it once when I was late in my elementary school years, shortly after reading and re-reading The Hobbit, but it was just too long. And, there was too much going on. At least, for the sort of little kid that I was. Every plot point had a back story and every character came from somewhere and went somewhere else. Nothing was transient and without context. You were thoroughly convinced that if Tolkien had the time he would have written through the life story of virtually ever character who he mentioned even fleetingly (actually, he pretty much tried to). When I returned to the book during college, this richness and complexity was precisely what made me mildly obsessed with the book for a brief spell. I've since read it four times and even took a course "The Philosophy of Tolkien" during the first semester of my senior year, just as The Return of the King was being released in movie theaters.

But, I digress. When I was mature enough (in other words, anyone who doesn't like LOTR is just immature...right?) to appreciate Tolkien's life's work I did so largely for it's breadth and depth. The story was epic and the characters well drawn for certain, but the best aspect of the trilogy was that it was complete. Which is why it consumed the entire writing career of its author. I'd really never read anything like it. I'd read books that were more artful or thought provoking or more...whatever, but nothing like it. And, I was a dorky kid who read a lot of books. For fun.

For me, the best way to show how complete a world it was that Tolkien created is to take a look at the conclusion of "Return of the King," the third part of the trilogy. The story climaxes with the main character tossing the titular ring into a volcano, which vanquished all of the bad guys. At that moment the good guys had won. The bad guys lost. The war was over. And the world was saved. Damsels were to be married and kings were to be crowned. Most books/films would have just ended then and there. Jerry Bruckheimer would have had Frodo and Sam (the two characters at the volcano) high-five and then one of them would have made an "I'm getting too old for this shit" remark and we'd be done. Fade to black. Roll credits.

I know several people who would have liked the novel (and the film) to end that way. They claim the stuff at the end was boring and unnecessary. They claim the story would be the same if it ended in Mordor (the place where the volcano was). But they are wrong. The Lord of the Rings would be less real and a lesser work if it just ended following its climax. It wouldn't be complete. Because what happens next matters. In life, in literature and especially in sport. Tolkien knew this and followed all of his characters through what happened next. He followed them home. Because in life the hardest part of any large event (like saving the world) is picking up the pieces afterward. If a character is so wounded that he or she can't move on successfully then doesn't that reality drastically affect the nature of their victory? Most books/films centered around any action-packed climax ignore the aftermath. There is no falling action or denouement. Tolkien provides these things and is a legend for it. Perhaps he was sensitive to this because he was writing in a postwar England were "victorious" London was all ash, rubble and poverty.

The fact that the main characters get back to their home after being gone for so long and find it totally overrun and fucked up is important. Learning that the main-est character is fractured beyond repair by his experiences is crucial. His realization that he has to leave behind the place he gave everything to save unalterably changes the way a reader thinks of everything that he did in the proceeding thousand pages. The falling action and denouement/resolution of a story can be more important, albeit less exciting, than the climax. And at the very least, those two elements of a story can place the action of the climax into a context that is more meaningful. Such context is arguably more important in sports than in literature. Because there can be value in ambiguity at the end of a novel. There is no ambiguity at the end of a game or a season. There is a boxscore.

Even though The Lord of the Rings would still be hanging around if the last fifty pages had been excised from the manuscript by an editor at Allen & Unwin there is no way that Bill Buckner's error in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series would be widely remembered today if the Red Sox hadn't blown the 3-0 lead they had heading into the sixth inning of Game 7. If the Red Sox win that Game 7 then nobody remembers Buckner. What happens next changes what happened before it. That's why Johan Santana's brilliant "season-saving" three-hit shutout against the Marlins on the second-to-last day of the 2008 regular season is meaningless. If the Mets won the following day then Johan's gem would have gone down in franchise history as one of the biggest performances of all times. But, the Mets lost the next day so the game doesn't really mean a thing.

And this is why the Knicks win over the Celtics on Sunday was rendered meaningless when they lost to the woeful Oklahoma City Thunder last night. The Knicks victory over the NBA's best team needs to be disregarded. Because the Knicks lost their next game to the worst team, by record, in the NBA and they lost badly. They trailed by 23 points at one point, which is more points than Oklahoma City has led in a game this season. The Thunder had won just four games heading into last night (while losing 30) and had not won a single game by more then 8 points. Yet they were able to get up 23 on the Knicks. This was a must-win for the Knicks if they were going to show that the spectacular effort against Boston was anything more than an aberration.

But there was no win. Just an inexcusable loss. All of the optimism of Sunday was washed away in a baptism of suck last night. The Knicks were listless in the early going against an energized StolenSonics club. The Knicks forced shots and relied on the 3-ball. They chased guys on defense who already had the ball rather than actively denying the ball and getting hands and arms into passing lanes. It was an unmitigated disaster. At the half, MSG play-by-play man Mike Breen summed it up: "Playing hard. Sometimes it's that simple. Sunday against the Celtics the Knicks played harder than the Celtics. Here tonight, clearly, the Thunder are playing harder than the Knicks."

It makes no difference the Knicks closed the deficit and gave themselves an opportunity to win in the fourth quarter. In fact, all the unfinished comeback does is highlight how bad self-inflicted the wounds of the first half were. The Knicks didn't play hard. Or smart. They didn't play at all like they did on Sunday, proving that they fundamentally do not understand what it takes to be winners even if they are capable of beating anyone on any given Sunday.

***
And, yes. I'm fully aware that writing about the importance of what happens next in understanding what just happened after games 31 and 32 of an 82-game season is a fundamentally flawed exercise. But, I did it anyway. Try not to worry about it. I clearly didn't.

Sunday's Best

Knicks Top Celtics at Garden, 100-88

In a mildly shocking turn of events - overshadowed by the implosion of the Miami Dolphins and the toppling of UNC hoops by Boston College - the Knicks beat the Celtics yesterday at the Garden behind a career-high 31 points from Wilson Chandler. And, there are really no asterisks to this win. I don't think. The Big Three was intact, Paul Pierce went off for 30+, and the Celtics wore green. Everything was in its right place and seemed as it had during each of the Knicks eight straight losses to Boston heading into yesterday's tilt. Yet, the Knicks won the game. They beat the Celtics. Thoroughly. The Knicks won three out of the four quarters and were propelled by a 28-15 performance in the third. Weird.

Even stranger, the Knicks are now 3-2 in home games contested on New Testament's sabbath. Which means that they're better on Sunday than on other days of the week, when they're 10-17. And those three Sunday wins at the Garden came over the Celtics, the Pistons and the Jazz. Not too shabby. On top of that, the Knicks spoiled another dominant home performance on the Lord's Day by frittering away a late lead to the Mavs and falling in OT. Of course, the other blemish on the seventh day was in the first week of the season and came at the hands of the Milwaukee Bucks, who have already beaten the Knicks three times. Ugly, uninspiring losses each of them. Which shows that all of these trends and whatnot are probably meaningless. And, looking at the schedule... I hope this trend is meaningless. Because the Knicks next home game scheduled for a Sunday won't take place until the playoffs or next season. All remaining Sunday tilts in the 2008-2009 regular season are on the road.

Read All About It:
ESPN
The Times

Shipping Up To Boston

Before the season began I was concerned that Stephon Marbury would end up playing for Miami. I had nightmarish visions of him pairing with Dwyane Wade, Shawn Marion and the No. 1 pick from the previous draft to lead a resurgence in South Beach. I imagined him running the pick and roll with Udonis Haslem to perfection during a key game in late March as the Knicks and Heat battled for one of the last playoff spots in the East.

I wanted D'Antoni to give Steph a chance to play so that we wouldn't have to see that. I also wanted D'Antoni to give Steph a chance to play because I beleived (as I do now) that he was the best professional basketball player on the Knicks roster. Well, Steph never stepped on the floor for the Knicks. Yet, according to recent reports, I don't need to worry about him playing for the once and possibly future rivals in Miami. Which is a relief. Instead, I need to brace myself for Marbury winning an NBA title with the Boston Celtics.

As each day passes without a buyout, rumors about Marbury's eventual destination are going to multiply. Today he's heading to Boston. Tomorrow it might be San Antonio. The day after he might be heading to Dallas. Or Phoenix. The Knicks created this situation by benching/alienating/exiling a healthy player with a All-Star talent. The worst thing that can happen is for Donnie Walsh and Jimmy Dolan to get cheap and spiteful right now. We can't be concerned with where Marbury ends up. Do I want to see him win a title in Boston? Nope. But that's just because I wanted to see him win a title at the Garden and not because I hold any ill will towards him.

Aside from the fact that there is really no reason for Walsh to want to wrong Marbury, the team needs his roster spot. Badly. And, the fate of the Celtics has little to do with the Knicks right now. These two teams are not competing for the same things. If Marbury ends up lowering his shoulder and barrelling to the rim in the waning moments of Game 7 of the NBA Finals and dropping in the clinching bucket then so be it. Walsh and D'Antoni didn't want him here. But they've got to realize that decision was based in their ideas about the direction of the team and not in any lack of ability our health on the part of the player. They need to cut him. And, let him go whichever way the wind blows. It may help the Celtics (and Marbury) down the road but it will definitely help the Knicks immediately. That has to be the main concern.

The Conversation

Emails Exchanged Between WWOD? and an Eagles fan on Monday, About Sunday

FredEx4Life: Bittersweet Sunday. Happy for Chad or pissed about the Jets? I'm obviously happy the Eagles are in but not so much about the fact that the Andy & Donovan show will back for at least another year.

WWOD?: I am happy for Chad. For what it's worth. At the very least, that win further solidifies everything that was great about him when he was a Jet. Three playoff appearances and consistency. I'd take it now. That's for sure. By the second half, we knew the Jets weren't going to the playoffs and I think the worst thing that could have happened would have been a meaningless fourth quarter score to send the game to OT and then a win. Which would have ended the Dolphins' season and sent the Pats to the playoffs. That would have been terrible.

And, honestly, hold onto Andy and Donovan while you can. They may not be best-ever great but this team has been good to very good for a long time. They may make way too many mistakes to ever get too confident and they may have missed their best chances to win it all but you've been able to watch a lot of Eagles playoff games. Mostly because of those two guys. That is something.

Of course, this is coming from a Knicks/Jets/Mets fan who has never had a team win a championship since he's been old enough to know the difference. So, maybe my sights are set a little low.

You Don't Know What You Chad, 'Til It's Favre

I've been moonlighting over at a Jets blog. So stop by there to check out my thoughts on the denouement of the 2008 season.

A Thousand Words

Postcards of the Hanging

Past Visits From Jolly Ol' St. Knick

It's a white Christmas at my parents' house in northern New Jersey. It's ice not snow. But it's white. My mom is psyched about this. But, I was dreaming of a blue and orange Christmas, just like the ones I used to know. But instead I've got a green and purple Christmas and I almost broke my neck slipping on all the ice in my parents' driveway.

2008-2009 is the 61st season of the National Basketball Assocation. During that time the league has scheduled games on Christmas day in each season save one (the strike-shortened 1998-1999 campaign), and the Knicks played on Christmas in 38 of the first 40 seasons, and in 45 overall. In fact, the Knicks playing at the Garden on the 25th was about as dependable an occurence as a run on milk and cookies late on the 24th. The New York Knickerbockers tipped off against opponents in New York City on 38 of those 45 games. Although the home team didn't fare exceedingly well in those contests they were overwhelmingly tightly contested games, with 23 of them being decided by 6 points or fewer. And the opponents were generally among the league's best at the time, even when the Knicks were struggling.

The Garden was the marquee venue in the NBA and all eyes were there on Christmas day. For Knicks fans the highlights are the double-overtime victory over the defending champion Celtics in Patrick Ewing's rookie season, Bernard King's 61-point outburst the year before and the 136-135 win over Wilt Chamberlain's Philadelphia Warriors in 1961. The Knicks tradition of home games on Christmas was broken up when NBC began broadcasting NBA games in 1990. Although they did provide us with a phenomenal theme song they did take away our local tradition, even sending the Knicks on the road for three out of the four games they did schedule for the Knicks on the 25th.

Knicks on Christmas

12/25/1946	No game	n/a
12/25/1947	Providence Steamrollers	89-75
12/25/1948	Chicago Stags	64-70
12/25/1949	No game	n/a
12/25/1950	@ Philadelphia Warriors	86-84
12/25/1951	Fort Wayne Pistons	72-65
12/25/1952	Boston Celtics	80-75
12/25/1953	Syracuse Nationals	89-80
12/25/1954	Syracuse Nationals	109-101
12/25/1955	@ Fort Wayne Pistons	87-92
12/25/1956	St. Louis Hawks	105-107
12/25/1957	@ Syracuse Nationals	130-134
12/25/1958	Boston Celtics	120-129
12/25/1959	Boston Celtics	119-123
12/25/1960	@ Syracuse Nationals	100-162
12/25/1961	Philadelphia Warriors	136-135
12/25/1962	Los Angeles Lakers	126-134
12/25/1963	Los Angeles Lakers	126-134
12/25/1964	Baltimore Bullets	108-114
12/25/1965	St. Louis Hawks	111-131
12/25/1966	Chicago Bulls	133-132
12/25/1967	Boston Celtics	124-134
12/25/1968	Philadelphia 76ers	110-109
12/25/1969	Detroit Pistons	112-111
12/25/1970	Buffalo Braves	115-102
12/25/1971	Golden State Warriors	114-89
12/25/1972	Detroit Pistons	112-111
12/25/1973	Capitol Bullets	100-102
12/25/1974	Philadelphia 76ers	97-104
12/25/1975	Philadelphia 76ers	111-103
12/25/1976	Philadelphia 76ers	104-105
12/25/1977	Philadelphia 76ers	113-110
12/25/1978	Philadelphia 76ers	94-109
12/25/1979	New Jersey Nets	131-102
12/25/1980	Boston Celtics	108-117
12/25/1981	New Jersey Nets	95-96
12/25/1982	New Jersey Nets	110-112
12/25/1983	New Jersey Nets	112-110
12/25/1984	New Jersey Nets	114-120
12/25/1985	Boston Celtics	113-104
12/25/1986	Chicago Bulls	86-85
12/25/1987	Detroit Pistons	87-91
12/25/1988	No game	n/a
12/25/1989	No game	n/a
12/25/1990	No game	n/a
12/25/1991	No game	n/a>
12/25/1992	@ Chicago Bulls	77-89
12/25/1993	No game	n/a
12/25/1994	@ Chicago Bulls	104-107
12/25/1995	No game	n/a
12/25/1996	No game	n/a
12/25/1997	No game	n/a
STRIKE-SHORTENED SEASON
12/25/1999	@ Indiana Pacers	90-101
12/25/2000	No game	n/a
12/25/2001	Toronto Raptors	102-94
12/25/2002	No game	n/a
12/25/2003	No game	n/a
12/25/2004	No game	n/a
12/25/2005	No game	n/a
12/25/2006	No game	n/a
12/25/2007	No game	n/a
12/25/2008	No game	n/a

Christmas 1985


Christmas 1984


Christmas 1992

Twas Two Years Before Knicksmas

Twas two years before Knicksmas, when all through MSG
Not a hoops fan was stirring, not even Spike Lee.
Retired numbers were hung from the rafters with care,
In hopes that King James soon would be there.

The Knicks players were nestled all snug in bunk beds,
While visions of Laker Girls danced in their heads.
Walsh stroked D'Antoni's 'stache, and Dolan his paid lady friend,
This three had resolved to wait two seasons 'til two thousand and ten.

When out on the avenue there arose such a clatter,
They sprang forth to Seventh to see what was the matter.
Away down the stairs they flew like Chris Paul,
Tore open the doors and bounded past the booths for will call.

The gray pavement-hued slush on the cars' breasts of yellow
Gave the pallor of death to passing Knicks fans, a lady and fellow.
When, what to their wondering eyes should appear,
But a souped-up sleigh, and eight Knicks legends held dear.

With a tall, slender driver, with a hat brimmed wide,
Coach D knew in a moment it must be St. Clyde.
More rapid than showtime his courtiers they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name!"Now Patrick! now, Willis! now, on Pearl and Mason!
On, Bradley! On, Oakley! on, DeBusschere and Clifton!
To the top of the East! to the top of them all!
Now dash to! Dash fro! Dash after the ball!"

As Nash's Suns, before Shaq, used to fly,
With quickness they ran, walking like Kenny through sky.
So up to the Garden roof St. Clyde flew,
With the sleigh full of future free agents, and LBJ too.And then, in a twinkling, Walsh heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each size-21 hoof.
As D'Antoni drew in his head, and Dolan turned 'round,
Down the chimney Walt Frazier came with a bound.

He was dressed in purple fur, from his toe to his hair,
And his clothes were tailored and all without compare.
A bundle of players he had flung on his back,
And he looked like Boras, just opening his pack.

His words how they twinkled! his vocabulary how varied!
His game was like roses, lesser teammates he carried!
His play-by-play calling came with the tightest flow,
And Just For Men kept his beard from being white as the snow.The proof of his life shone when he smiled bright with his teeth,
And his winning aura encircled his fedora like a wreath.
He had an angled face and the just slightest bulge of a belly,
But foes still shook when he slashed, he turned ankles to jelly!

He was fit for his age, his handle top shelf,
Yet D'Antoni laughed when he saw him, in spite of himelf!
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave the coach know he had nothing to dread.

He talked of posting and toasting as he undid Isiah's work,
And put new Knicks in hightops, calling Dolan a jerk.
After brushing aside bad contracts, bringing in all-pros
And giving a hat tip, up the chimney he rose!

He sprang to his sleigh, ready to fix a new mess,
And away they all flew, gone in seven seconds or less.
But New York heard him exclaim, ‘ere he drove out of sight,
"Happy Knickmas to all, and to all a good-night!"