The Knicks Fix

After a delicious meal at Issac Hayes’ restaurant – none of Chef’s trademark specialties from South Park, if you know the reference – last night and a walk around town, Beale Street and all that, I woke earlier than usual ready for the start of the season.

On the MP3 as I got ready, a little Iron Maiden:

Jump in the cockpit and start up the engines
Remove all the wheelblocks theres no time to waste
Gathering speed as we head down the runway
Gotta get airborne before its too late.

I arrived at the FedEx Forum to find Isiah Thomas leaning against a wall along a corridor that leads to the court. He was in a black adidas sweatsuit with a black Knicks t-shirt underneath and his Autism Speaks pin, an omnipresent part of his daily wardrobe. Thomas was smiling and calm. Jitters don’t normally start until just before gametime, which is 7 p.m. here, 8 p.m. New York time.

“I’ll probably start getting a little intense about the situation and probably start feeling whatever I’m going to be feeling at that time,” he said.

It’s not his first time coaching an NBA game, so it’s not those kind of nerves. Rookie Mardy Collins admitted quietly to me that he had that kind of feeling too. Not worried, just anxious. The other rookie, Renaldo Balkman? His expression, which rarely changes, suggests none of this impresses him one bit.

He’s wearing black leggings by the way.

The team is going with black sneakers. I’m new here, so I asked why. I recall back in the day the Knicks wore black sneakers in the playoffs. Nate Robinson explained it’s just what they do on the road. It looks cool, but Nate knows white sneakers make you look faster. David Lee looked at his pale legs and lamented how bad black sneakers look on white guys. I once had those black Cons, the Larry Bird ones. Twisted my ankle in them. Went back to Nike. Still waiting for my endorsement check.

Quick observations: Stephon Marbury’s Starbury One sneakers look better in black, which weren’t previously available at Steve & Barry’s until now. In my opinion, Eddy Curry has the best-looking ones: black, blue and orange Nikes. I’m into sneakers. Not a big fan of Jamal Crawford’s Reeboks.

Moving on.

It’s possible the Knicks will have the maximum 12 healthy players available tonight because Malik Rose said he’s going to give it a go. After Jalen Rose was waived, the Knicks roster was down to 14, one under the limit, but Thomas doesn’t seem interested in adding another player just to sit the bench.

Probable Starting Lineups:
Knicks: Francis, Marbury, Richardson, Frye and Curry
Grizzlies: Stoudamire, Jones, Miller, Roberts and Tsakalidis

For Memphis, swingman Stromile Swift is probable. He was nursing a sore knee in the preseason. They’re already without Pau Gasol (broken foot), so losing Swift, an athletic wing player, is another blow.

Watch for: Curry vs. Tsakalidis. I’d like to see how Eddy handles himself against a bigger body. Tsakalidis is almost immobile, but he has had good games against Shaquille O’Neal.
I’ll check in before gametime if there’s any updates. If not, enjoy the game.