5. Closing Time Once again, the Knicks found themselves in a close contest during crunch time on Friday night. Jeff Green’s driving slam dunk trimmed New York’s lead to just six points with 1:18 left in the fourth quarter. The Knicks effectively staved off Boston’s late surge, which was absent in the past couple of weeks during several narrow defeats. Tim Hardaway Jr. noted some key points in the locker room about what the team learned and corrected in the win. The second-year man said the squad avoided fouls, overloaded one side and shifted correctly to the weak side defensively on a string, and rebounded the ball in the late stages.
4. Melo’s Surprise Return
Head coach Derek Fisher did not seem optimistic Carmelo Anthony would suit up on Friday night when he spoke to reporters at the team’s morning shootaround. He said Anthony, dealing with left knee soreness, was questionable to doubtful after missing Wednesday’s game in San Antonio. About an hour and a half before tipoff, Fisher announced Anthony’s availability and placement back in the starting lineup. Anthony registered 22 points and five boards in a team-high 39 minutes of court time.
3. Shump’s Shoulder
The unfortunate part of Friday’s victory was the loss of Iman Shumpert. At the 2:40 mark of the second quarter, Shumpert dropped to the ground in severe pain, which was later revealed to be a dislocated left shoulder. The Boston trainers helped to pop his shoulder back in place inside the Knicks locker room. Despite dealing with immense pain, Shumpert was in good spirits following the game and even joked that if he has to dislocate his shoulder every game in order for New York to get a win, he would do it. Shumpert received an MRI on Saturday that confirmed the dislocation. No surgery is necessary and he will be reevaluated in approximately three weeks.
2. Stoudemire’s Impact Amar’e Stoudemire is providing this Knicks crew with an efficient offensive option on the blocks. After years of minute restrictions and injury issues, Stoudemire is a force, especially when he drives baseline to the rack and often finishes over defenders. Stoudemire posted 20 points on 9-of-16 shooting from the floor in 26 minutes of action on Friday night. Fisher has been staggering Stoudemire’s minutes with Anthony to ensure New York has an offensive weapon on the court at all times.
1. Looking Ahead Shumpert is out for at least the next three weeks and J.R. Smith is questionable for Sunday’s game against Toronto. Smith also underwent an MRI on his left foot that revealed a small partial tear of the plantar fascia. Without two significant players, Fisher will most likely increase Hardaway Jr.’s minutes and utilize three guard lineups, featuring Shane Larkin, Jose Calderon, and Pablo Prigioni in different configurations to counter the loss of Smith and Shumpert.