Mike Woodson was asked a week ago on WFAN why he had to go from Knicks assistant to interim head coach for the team’s defense to improve.
“One reason I think is we fell out of the playoff hunt in that six-game stretch that we lost …,” he said.
The answer was nonsensical because the truthful answer likely would have thrown Carmelo Anthony or Mike D’Antoni — or both — under the bus. And that was originally bothersome because how long would it be before Anthony started tuning out Woodson and returned to his selfish ways? But six games later there has been no sign of the player we saw under D’Antoni for a year.
“My whole concern is that these guys stay together as a team, we hold them accountable both on and off the floor, and we push them to play at a high level. That’s my job now and that’s what I am going to do now,” Woodson said.
How much credit Woodson deserves is up for debate, and it certainly will be discussed once the season is over and his future is determined. But for now, Knicks fans should enjoy what they have and that is a team playing championship-caliber defense.
Except for the eight-game stretch when Linsanity ruled the sports world, it’s been a depressing season for the Knicks. Even the good times were spoiled by the dread of what would happen when Anthony returned and how that would affect the team. A scenario that would ultimately play out a as a worst-case had Anthony playing terribly and D’Antoni eventually being run out of town.
For the first time Wednesday night, Madison Square Garden belonged to Anthony. He dominated the game on offense and continued his stellar defensive play in the rout of the Magic. With that win, the Knicks are back over .500 for the first time since they were 6-5 on Jan. 14. Now they are a win away from matching their high-water maker of two games over .500, not seen since a Jan. 11 win over the 76ers put the Knicks at 6-4. After that game, Philadelphia held a one-game edge over the Knicks in the Atlantic Division.
Forty-one games later, and through countless controversies, the Knicks are 2½ games back of the 76ers and Celtics and still have a real chance to steal the division and claim one of the top four seeds in the conference.
With 15 games left, the Knicks are improbably again one of the hottest teams in the NBA. The Knicks just have to hope Linsanity doesn’t put an end to Melo Mania.
Superman not super teammate
ESPN analyst Jeff Van Gundy slammed Dwight Howard and Jameer Nelson for staying out of the Magic huddle at the end of their loss to the Knicks. It was an uninspiring end to an uninspiring evening, one of many the Magic have authored this season.
Though Van Gundy said the problem was league-wide, it was interesting the criticism came out while watching his brother Stan’s team.
Stan’s relationship with Howard will likely go a long way to determining whether or not he is the coach in Orlando next season.
Missing the Zenmaster
Phil Jackson’s tenure with the Lakers was not free of controversy, and he has an especially tumultuous relationship with Kobe Bryant.
But it has gotten significantly worse in Los Angeles this season with Jackson gone. The Lakers have leaked like a sieve all season with complaints about players and new coach Mike Brown becoming public through back channels. The Lakers recently promised to stop those kind of reports from getting out, and they have succeeded.
But the problems are still abundant; this week Brown was forced to bench Bryant and center Andrew Bynum. Through it all — and that includes the ridiculous hype the Clippers have received — the Lakers are in first place in the Pacific.
Wild West
With the Cavaliers fading in the second half, the Knicks only have to worry about the Bucks chasing them down for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Western Conference is a complete mess by comparison. The fourth-seeded Clippers are 29-21, but just 2-1/2 games clear of the ninth-place Nuggets. Denver is tied with Houston and Utah for the final two playoff spots in the West.
It all adds up to an exciting final stretch to the season.