KNICK-NET NOTES Patrick Ewing was Comeback Kid II last night and things didn’t go quite as well for the big man as they did for Latrell Sprewell.
But Ewing, as is his nature, took it all in stride. After missing 14 months, except for a brief playoff comeback vs. the Pacers, Ewing knows there is much work to be done.
“I thought we started out a little slow and then we came out in the third and played a lot better,” said Ewing, who remains a long way from being in top shape. He still managed 10 rebounds but shot only 3-for-9 from the field in 26 minutes.
Ewing received a mixed welcoming during pre-game introductions, about 60-40 cheers over boos. When he was asked about hearing the boos, he said, “Did they?”
He did admit there is much work to be done personally. “I’m a little rusty,” he said. But then he came back with a quick hit for critics. “I did a little better than people thought I would,” he said.
Ewing also is getting over taking some lumps on his reconstructed right wrist. After making one fadeaway in the third quarter, he banged the wrist and it took several minutes before the pain went away. *Kurt Thomas was the first big man off the bench for the Knicks, ahead of Marcus Camby. Thomas looked very smooth. He is Comeback Kid III, having played only 23 games the last two years. Camby got off to a slow start and finished with only two points on 1-for-4 shooting and only one rebound.
Knicks were out-rebounded 44-37, 17-7 on the offensive glass. Said Jeff Van Gundy, “People have said that we’re not gonna be able to rebound, and those people were very right at least for one night.”
Van Gundy said he will often play both point guard Chris Childs and Charlie Ward together. “I’m very comfortable playing both point guards together,” he said. “When they had the opportunity to play together last year against teams that pressured a lot like Boston and Chicago, they played very well. They’ve played very well together these first nine practices.”
Ward played 29 minutes last night while Childs played 30. Childs had six points, six assists and six rebounds while Ward finished with eight points and nine assists.
It could be back to the old grind – the backcourt grind – for Kendall Gill.
With the potentially devastating injury suffered by Kerry Kittles, Gill, a two-guard by trade who has made a successful switch to small forward, could find himself at shooting guard again for the Nets.
“That’s my ‘natural’ position,” Gill said with a smile. “Yeah, I can handle it. I think I remember how to play it. Seriously, in this system the two and the three positions are virtually interchangeable anyway. The main thing is Kerry. His injury hurts us. But it seems like that’s the norm around here.” Buck Williams, who announced his retirement last night after finishing his career with the Nets, admits he’d love to return to New Jersey to see his No. 52 retired. Williams still remains the greatest Net in the franchise’s NBA history.
“I won’t lie. I would love for my number to be in the rafters. Yes, I would love to have my number retired,” Williams said. “The stats were great, but the most important thing was the relationships and the idea of playing for such a long time and all the players I played with. It’s a great experience.”
Former Navy and Pitt coach Paul Evans has joined John Calipari’s staff as a scout … Chris Gatling raised some eyebrows on the Net bench when he was openly rooting for his buddy, Latrell Sprewell … Nets and Knicks will do it again tomorrow night in the Meadowlands.