The Knicks Fix

Two blogs in a day? Hell yeah. It's Knicks-Bobcats, baby! How can you not be fired up?

I just had to share this with you. Last week Eddy Curry was asked if he thought Scott Skiles, his former coach , would give him a vote to be an all-star reserve. Curry said, "Who knows, man."

So I asked Chicago Tribune reporter KC Johnson to ask Skiles -- who was critical of Curry during his days with the Bulls -- if he included the Knicks' blossoming big man among his choices for all-star reserves. The list was due Monday. The reserves will be announced tomorrow. So how about giving us an idea of one coach's thinking?

"Why would I tell you that?" Skiles asked KC.

"Because it's for a New York writer," KC replied.

Skiles then laughed and said, "That makes the chance even less than zero."

A few thoughts before I head to JFK for this two-game trip to Charlotte and Orlando:

* If Kobe plays, do the Knicks win? I'm sure it's a conspiracy theory, but doesn't it seem like the Knicks have gotten all of the breaks this season when it comes to facing teams without their top players? I hit on this before, but now I'm starting to wonder if Emeka Okafor or Dwight Howard will be out in either of the next two games. That would make a good book, don't you think? Do a story about a league that secretly orders the refs to make favorable calls for a certain team and has team doctors declare players "injured" for games against this certain team that can't make the playoffs without help but the league can't afford to have this big market mecca not in the playoffs. Have James Woods play the commissioner, he's good at being slimy. But I have to say I love "Shark" and I watch it when I can (which is rare).

* I'm already looking past Charlotte tonight (and I'm not even there yet) to Saturday night in Orlando. Eddy Curry vs Dwight Howard. Too bad the all-star reserves will be named by then, otherwise we could hype up the media machine and make it into a battle for a roster spot. Either way, we'll find a reason to sensationalize the first meeting of the season between the top two young big men in the East.

* If the Magic win the NBA Championship some day it probably wouldn't make sense to have the "I'm Going to Disney World!" commercial.

* Stephon Marbury's condition will be worth watching tonight, especially against the sneaky-quick Ray Felton, who had a strong game at the Garden the last time the Bobcats visited. Marbury was definitely in pain at the end of Tuesday's game against the Lakers and that sore knee is going to bother him for the rest of the season. He'll probably feel it the most in the second game of a back-to-back. Isiah Thomas might be better off resting him tonight. Then there are two off-days in Orlando before Saturday's game and only one game next week, Tuesday against the Clippers, before the three-game West Coast trip.

* The next time the Knicks play the Bucks at the Garden, they should play Beyonce's song Irreplacable, every time Mo Williams has the ball.

To the left, to the left . . .

Just as a reminder of which way to force Mo Williams, who just torches the Knicks off the dribble.

* It was good to see some of Jared Jeffries' extra work after practice -- he puts in at least a half-hour to an hour after every practice with Herb Williams and Mark Aguirre and also to work on his shooting form with assistant coach Dave Hanners. But the best way to get out of a shooting slump is to take high-percentage shots. A dunk is about as high-percentage as one can get. That three-ball from the corner at the end of the first half? Don't get used to that. Jeffries' effectiveness is his size and athleticism. His long-range jumper is about as consistent as a paper airplane.

* Welcome to February. A lot will happen this month, I promise. From Curry's first all-star appearance (I'm calling it now) to the Knicks matching last season's 23 wins to Nate Robinson defending his Slam Dunk title (D-Howard plans to contend) and, of course, the Feb. 22 trade deadline. It's safe to predict Isiah Thomas wants to do something big before the deadline if he can. It'll be curious to see what shakes out between now and then regarding trade rumors. Remember, folks, they're called rumors because that's what they are. But some people in this business live off of the idea that it's better to be first than right. So go ahead and lose yourself in the speculation. Then when you wake up on Feb. 23 and all you have to show for it is giving up Malik Rose for a second round pick, ask yourself if it was worth it.

* Matt Carroll sees the Knicks coming. He's warming up his shooting arm. Hickory!

Watching the Knicks go through the motions for three quarters against the Bucks this afternoon and yet still have the ball and a shot to win it at the buzzer has to be maddening for any fan. To your benefit, however, you didn’t have to sit through that game because it was on tape-delay and therefore by the time it ran on MSG Network, you knew not to bother.

If you bothered anyway, that's two-and-a-half hours of your life you'll never get back my friend.

Still, these cruise-control-to-full-throttle performances have been a notable theme for the Knicks this season. And it should be of great concern for Isiah Thomas.

Look at the six losses in the past nine games and point to the most frustrating losses. Games you feel the Knicks should have had. I see five.

But toss out the last-second losses to the Wizards and Nets because those games were tight down the stretch and could have gone either way. What I’m talking about are two L’s that you might have penciled in for W’s. Desperately-needed W’s. W’s you knew you had to have.

The games that stand out are Jan. 15 against the Charlotte Bobcats, Jan. 22 at Miami and Sunday’s loss here to the Bucks. Gotta have ‘em. Three killer losses that will come back to haunt you when the playoff standings are settled.

In each game the Knicks had far more talent on the floor, most especially in Miami, when Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O'Neal were out. But in each game the Knicks defense was shredded by high screens that freed up guards to make open shots or blow-by for layps. Matt Carroll. Jason Kapono. Mo Williams. Not exactly the Big Three.

In fact, who the hell is Matt Carroll?

Never mind. We did that blog already.

I asked Isiah Thomas about his team's defense performance, especially against the screens. The was I see it, the Knicks' interior defenders do a poor job “showing” on the screens to make the guards pause long enough for the Knick guard to get through the screen and recover.

The times the opposing guard does penetrate, another thing I noticed was the Knick bigs rarely, if ever, use a hard foul. Jerome James was in the game early against the Bucks and he actually tried to avoid making contact with Williams as he drove to the basket. This was minutes after he flexed his massive biceps to me and said, "It's been banned by the NBA. Can't use 'em anymore."

Jerome, you have six, baby. Six fouls. And they're not there to save up for another night.

I have to give props to wiley veteran Malik Rose, who played the high screen for Williams to perfection in the final 10 seconds of the game. Rose went with Brian Skinner up for the screen, but as Williams tried to go right – which he did like 99 times out of 100 – Rose stepped out and forced him to go left. Stephon Marbury pushed off the screening Skinner and was step-for-step with Williams, who forced up a right-handed runner while fading to his left. The damn thing went in, but still, it was solid defense.

Thomas wouldn’t talk about his defense, or the 60 points in the paint the Knicks allowed or much of anything else. He just kept talking about the free throws. How free throws cost his team the game. If you check the fourth quarter, the Knicks made all four of their attempts then, when it mattered most. What they didn’t do is get a critical stop when it mattered most.

They could do a better job on the foul line, sure. Especially for a team that leads the league in attempts per game.

But the reason why the Knicks won’t be a playoff team this season has to do with defense. Or a lack thereof.

All of you who think David Lee should start, I don't disagree. But I don't believe he should start at power forward. I think he's better suited at small forward (depending on the matchup) and, as I've said before, the Knicks need to find themselves a very athletic, pogo-stick big forward who can block and alter shots, rebound, defend the post and maybe hit a 15 footer when need be.

* * * * *

Speaking of David Lee, I think we've seen him dunk enough this season -- especially when he explodes among the tall trees -- to think he might deserve an invite to the Slam Dunk Contest. Why not? He'll already be in Las Vegas in the Rookie-Sophomore game. And we've already seen what he can do going back to his high school championship in 2001 (as featured on this blog....if you haven't seen it yet, check the archives). Lee would probably defer to Nate Robinson, however, because he's a teammate and he's defending his title.

I'm sitting in my kitchen about 100 miles away from Madison Square Garden digesting a late-night snack and all that transpired tonight. What keeps coming back to me is the shoes.

Money, it's gotta be the shoes.

Jamal Crawford and I have this thing going about his sneakers. I didn't like the kicks that Reebok sent him at the start of the season, especially the black ones for away games. But in January he received a new set and, quite frankly, they're even worse. Think of wrestling shoes in orange and blue.

But free grip is free grip. That's what Reebok sends him, that's what he wears. Truth be told, Crawford prefers the first pair. "They're comfortable," he said. The new ones, which have that cool Reebok Pump thing? Crawford just shook his head.

Mardy Collins, who also has a Reebok hook-up, grinned and looked down at the floor, where his pair lay. Clearly he doesn't like 'em either.

But Jamal just dropped a Fiddy-Deuce against the Miami Heat with those goofy-looking things. Something tells me he might have a place in his heart for them after tonight.

I might have to greet him with a little Mars Blackmon tomorrow.

Oh sweat! Reebok you gotta hook me up! Please baby, please baby, baby please!

* * * *

To the anonymous comment from my previous blog entry that promoted Eddy Curry for an all-star bid, I am very aware that Curry is not as good of a rebounder as he could be and that he's quite inconspicuous on defense. If you have followed this blog since the start of the season, you would have read such analysis just about every time I mentioned Curry's name (my personal favorite was when I passed out New Year's resolutions and Curry's read: "Help defense is an attitude, not a plea." That kind of quality you don't see in other Knicks blogs).

But aside from his rebounding (he is, however, averaging over 7 a game, which is decent, but he can do better) and his weak defense, Curry's dominance on the offensive end is enough to justify a spot on the East all-star roster. For argument's sake, if we're judging Eddy for his all-around game, then should we debate Gilbert Arenas' defensive abilities and his assist statistics?

* * * * *

By the way, the Norbit ad is still hanging off three corners of MSG. And only one of you has bothered to toss in some suggestions to my Top 5 BBW list from a few blogs ago. Is it that difficult? What about Jennifer Hudson from Dreamgirls? She might knock Queen Latifah off the chart.

* * * * *

The Bucks may be without Michael Redd (knee) and Mo Williams (shoulder), but they've remained competitive with Charlie Bell, Andrew Bogut and Charlie Villanueva. OK, who are we kidding. They've lost 11 of 12 in the month of January and are plummeting like the mercury in my patio thermometer (the damn dog needed to go out, so I got to feel what 27 degrees is like at 2:30 a.m. in a pair of basketball shorts and a fleece).

If you're Isiah Thomas, do you rest Eddy Curry in this game just to make sure his left calf strain gets a little more time to heal before more critical games such as Tuesday against the Lakers, Wednesday against Emeka Okafor and the Bobcats and Saturday against Dwight Howard and the Magic?

Let Jerome James bang with Bogut on Sunday afternoon. Plus, I just want to see Big Jerome bring it behind his back on the break one more time. That dribble was so high off the ground it almost got pulled into orbit.

I'll check in Sunday from Milwaukee.

Eddy Curry may or may not play tonight – my bet is that he will give it a go – against Shaq and the Heat. But regardless of the outcome, Curry has established himself as one of the top centers in the East and, therefore, it should be a lock that he is named to the all-star team.

Shaq has played just five games this season, but he was voted on by fans who, apparently, think he has any interest in dragging himself to Las Vegas on Feb. 18 to be part of a show that has no place for an aging – but still dominant – big man who is coming off knee surgery and, as some have suggested, took his time to come back. But I don’t begrudge the fans. You vote for whom you want to see in the game. And, apparently, more people want to see Allen Iverson play for the West than two-time MVP Steve Nash. I guarantee if the players voted, they’d vote Nash. No one in the world is more suited to play the point in an all-star game than the Crafty Canuck.

The fans apparently aren’t as impressed with Curry’s emergence as teammates, opponents, coaches and the media have been this season. Curry finished eighth in the voting – behind Zaza Pachulia and Andrew Bogut?? Where were you Knicks fans??? – with barely 200,000 votes. Certainly he is behind Shaq in popularity and Orlando’s Dwight Howard in development (slightly), but we’re saying he definitely deserves to be selected as an all-star reserve (which is decided by votes from the East coaches).

Why? Just ask anyone he’s faced, and dominated, this season.

Phoenix Suns center Amare Stoudemire: “Once he catches the ball deep, he is hard to stop. When he is five feet from the basket, he is hard to stop.”

Milwaukee Bucks coach Terry Stotts: “Eddy Curry was a monster.”

Boston Celtics center Al Jefferson: “Eddy Curry is a monster.”

Portland Trail Blazers forward Zach Randolph: “Eddy Curry is a beast.”

Isiah Thomas will get to vote and should be campaigning for his player with other coaches in the East to get the well-deserved trip to Las Vegas. Some have suggested that opposing coaches might not want to give Curry a nod because it would look favorable to Thomas, who traded two first-round picks to Chicago to get him. Thomas’ antics this season – from the Larry Brown mess to the verbal altercation with Bruce Bowen to the alleged on-court warning to Carmelo Anthony before the brawl with Denver – have made him unpopular in the coaching fraternity.

“I think he’ll get a lot of support,” Thomas said today after the shoot-around. “Most coaches I’ve heard talk about him, they’ve been impressed with his play so far this season and I think they’ll continue to be impressed by it.”

With Shaq already on the team and Howard a lock as a reserve, there is a question as to how Curry may fit within the seven reserve spots. You can get around the concern about having three centers on the team by labeling Howard a power forward, which, for the most part, he is. Shaq might also consider taking the weekend off to rest his body to prepare for the playoff push after the all-star break.

Regardless, Curry deserves to be an all-star this season. The NBA is big on promoting its young, up-and-coming stars. He is not only one of them, he is also a rarity: a big man who intimidates.

“On a nightly basis, I see a lot of faces out there on the court from a lot of people who don’t really want to guard me,” Curry said. “So I think I deserve it.”

* * * * *
Stephon Marbury participated in the shoot-around and he says he’s going to play tonight against the Heat. It’ll be worth watching how his bum left knee holds up in defending Dwyane Wade. Thomas could try to use Quentin Richardson on Wade, but Wade might be too quick for Q-Rich . . . It’s so cold in New York right now, Jared Jeffries’ shooting touch feels warm . . . And to all of you Knicks fans – and James Dolan –
who are so pleased with this sub-.500 team and comfortable dwelling in the slums of the Eastern Conference, I present to you, Mrs. Rhonda Deane, from White Men Can’t Jump: “All I care about is getting out of the Vista View apartments, because there ain't no ‘vista’, there ain't no ‘view’, and there certainly ain't no vista of no view.”

Stephon Marbury was wearing a white shirt and blue shorts -- not his practice uniform -- as he walked off the court at the Knicks practice facility this morning following the shoot-around. It didn't take a seasoned reporter (read: me) to surmise that he won't be in the lineup tonight against Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns at Madison Square Garden.

"I'm not going to go tonight," Marbury said. "It's more looking like Friday."

Marbury's left knee is still troubling him, though he and the team medical staff do not feel an MRI is necessary. It is tendinitis, something that flared up a month ago and has since been re-aggravated. It led to him pulling himself from the game on Saturday with 1:26 left in the win over the Pacers in Indiana. It then caused him to call it quits at halftime of the Knicks' blowout loss in Miami on Monday.

Some of Marbury's worst critics might suggest he's ducking Nash, the two-time MVP who looks as if he's headed for a third. But that would be an unfair accusation. In the game at Indiana, it was clear that Marbury's knee had buckled twice on drives to the basket. In Miami, his knee didn't look stable in warmups and Marbury grimaced a few times on landings in the first quarter.

"If I was able to play and I was ready today, I'd play," Marbury said. "It wouldn't matter what the tempo of the game would be."

Marbury has been the team's best perimeter defender over the past month and has had strong performances against the likes of Ray Allen and Gilbert Arenas. Once the knee troubles started, it was clear his lateral movement had suffered and, more notably, his ability to explode to the basket was hindered.

Isiah Thomas will go with a backcourt of Jamal Crawford and Quentin Richardson, with Nate Robinson expecting to see a significant amount of playing time off the bench against the run-and-gun Suns.

Track shoes might be required for this one.

Isiah Thomas has gone out of his way to promote his mid-level signing of Jared Jeffries from last summer. He's the glue, Thomas told us, that will bring it all together.

If you saw Jeffries' performance against Jason Kapono in the first quarter against the Heat, you'd see that the glue isn't sticking to anything. Especially Kapono.

Thomas pulled Jeffries in the midst of that 27-0 Heat run -- 27-0! -- and he didn't see the light of day until 26 seconds in the second quarter. After that, he rode the bench the rest of the way, which means $60 million in payroll, which includes the previous mid-level signing Jerome James, was rendered unusable by Thomas.

Little by little, Jeffries has started to fall out of favor and his minutes have declined. Will he eventually be taken out of the starting lineup and replaced by the popular choice, David Lee?

As some of you have noted already, Channing Frye is another Knick to analyze. He gives you a little something early in games, but by the second half, he's relegated to the bench. His numbers look decent (10.2 points, 5.6 rebounds in 26:09 minutes per game), but his defense on the post is very weak. Frye is a small forward, at best. He's not your typical power forward and if the Knicks are going to live with Eddy Curry as a mediocre rebounder and a disinterested defender, they need a pogo-stick PF who can block shots and rebound (Marcus Camby). With a decent stat line however and his young age, Frye has a lot of trade value so you wonder if teams will be calling for him come the deadline. I'd be curious to see if Thomas will listen. Or will James Dolan's edict to develop the young players make Frye an untradable commodity.

Bottom line, the Knicks eventually need to make a decision: Lee or Frye. Having both of them is like having two former all-star point guards.

Evident progress? Perhaps as a coach, because Thomas has proven he can motivate (other than at the start of games, that is). But as a team executive who makes personnel decisions, his record is still very questionable.

* * * *

The run, which was led by Kapono's red-hot shooting (he was 3-for-3 from downtown and 5-for-6 overall), set a franchise record for the Heat for consecutive points scored. The previous record was 26, which Miami did against Golden State on March 24, 1995.

The Knicks finished the quarter with 12 points, which is a low for a first quarter this season but not the worst in franchise history. That mark -- 5 points -- was set in 1956 when the Knicks played the Pistons. The Fort Wayne Pistons.

* * *

Most halftime entertainment in the NBA is actually worth watching. But what they had going on here tonight was completely wrong. They call it "The Great Baby Race" and it is three infants -- literally infants -- placed on a mat with lanes drawn on it. Then the parents entice their baby to crawl toward them while the weird looking Heat mascot bobs around madly and a crowd screams.

One baby went right at it, crawling desperately to his Mommy and Daddy to get him out of this scary place. Another kind of looked around. And yet another sat and wailed.

Somewhere in Miami, a child psychologist knows he has some potential clients headed his way.

* * * *

OK, so I only spent an hour by the pool. My wife called from home and I didn't have the heart to tell her what I was doing. But she guessed it. I told her, "I'm only staying out here an hour so I don't get sunburned."

Her reply, "If I stayed an hour outside I'd get frostbite."

Eddy Curry joked that he "dodged a bullet" the last time the Knicks were here in Miami because that was the day Shaquille O'Neal decided to go for surgery to repair cartilage in his knee. He hasn't been back in the lineup since and it is not expected that The Diesel will be running tonight when Curry and the Knicks face the Heat here in Miami.

With the way Eddy Curry is playing this year -- all-star level, some say (and I agree) -- isn't there some curiosity to see how the emerging Eddy would do against the aging O'Neal? Get some Shaq vs. Baby Shaq?

"I would prefer not to see that," Isiah Thomas said with a laugh. "I'm sure Eddy would prefer not to see that, too. I'm not curious at all."

The Knicks will gladly take all of the undermanned opponents they can get this season. And they've had quite a few already, if you consider they had two games against Memphis without Pau Gasol, possibly two games with Miami without Shaq (and Dwyane Wade twisted his ankle on Sunday so he might not be 100 percent tonight), no Paul Pierce in one game against Boston, the Indiana Pacers just after the big trade and the first Denver game without Kenyon Martin. I'm sure there are others I'm missing, but those stand out to me right now as I rush to get this done so I can soak up some South Beach sun (just kidding...not really).

Curry is always gracious to Shaq, who has always been encouraging to Curry. He says he is not happy to see O'Neal still hurt and unable to play, but he's not disappointed he doesn't have to bang with that 320-pound body for 48 minutes.

Then someone mentioned that the consolation prize is Alonzo Mourning.

* * * * *

Stephon Marbury says his balky left knee is doing better today -- especially after some massage treatment yesterday -- and he's in for tonight. He's not even questionable. But Isiah Thomas talked about the need to monitor Marbury's minutes so the injury doesn't get worse, especially to the point where he might miss some games.

“We’ll have to buy him time within practice sometimes," Thomas said. "But for the most part, when he shows up, he’s going to play.”

Wade is a little banged up after tweaking his ankle on Sunday against the Mavericks. But it will be interesting to see if Stephon can defend Wade -- I would assume he will get some time against him -- as well as he's defended other guards over the past few weeks.

* * * * *

Got this from the Knicks crack media relations manager Nick Brown, who might already be starting the David Lee for Sixth Man of the Year campaign. It's a worthy cause.

Lee's 10.5 rebounds per game is by far the best among players coming off the bench in the NBA this season. The second-best rebounder off the bench is Reggie Evans of the Denver Nuggets, who is pulling 8.3 boards a game. Here's the list. The criteria is you must have played a minimum of 20 games and have less than 15 starts.

1. Lee 10.5
2. Evans 8.3
3. Sean May (Cha) 6.8
4. Dik. Mutombo (Hou) 6.6
5. And. Varejao (Cle) 6.3

* * * * *

So, yeah, I'm staying in South Beach and it's been in the 80s. Worse places to be right now. I left Indianapolis on Sunday morning wearing sandals in the snow. Got out of the plane in Miami with a blast of humid air in my face. Walking down A1A, I feel pasty. But this isn't a vacation. There's work to be done and not on my tan.

I have some friends here, as one does in several cities after years of traveling for your business. He has a college-age son I used to coach when he played basketball and he called me to meet him for lunch. His plan was for a lazy afternoon of lunch and hanging out and I was like, "I have a lot of work to do."

He couldn't understand it. "Work? The game is tonight. You write about the game, right? What is there to do now?"

Kids.

Anyway, I gotta get to the beach now.

With consecutive last-second losses, it's only natural to dissect the endings of both games. On the surface, the Knicks defense was caught scrambling in the loss to the Wizards and Eddy Curry missed the box-out on Clifford Robinson in the loss to the Nets.

But in both situations, the Knicks did get one last -- albeit desperate -- possession with just over two seconds left. Both times they threw up half-court shots (Jamal Crawford against Washington and Stephon Marbury against the Nets) and both just missed.

The thought then comes up that if the Knicks had one last timeout in both situations, they could have gotten better shots and, possibly, won each game.

Thomas was asked about his timeout management and he gave a reasonable explanation for using his timeouts the way he did in both games. In Washington, he burned one in the third quarter when the Wizards were in the midst of a 9-0 run that eventually became a 15-1 run. Clearly the timeout was meant to quell momentum (and it didn't quite work). Against the Nets, Thomas again burned one in the third quarter, after Jason Kidd hit a long-range jumper to make it a 71-65 Nets lead.

Then down the stretch, knowing he had just one timeout left, Thomas chose to use it before the possessions that put the Knicks ahead for the last time in the game. Against Washington, it was to get Jamal Crawford in for his usual late heroics. Against the Nets, Crawford again was subbed in and David Lee put back his miss. (Right before that, Marbury had Robinson one-on-one on a switch, but Thomas still opted to call the timeout because he didn't like the "angle" Marbury had to the basket. "I didn't want to settle for a jump shot there," he said. It didn't cost them on the scoreboard because Lee's put-back resulted in the points they needed. But it cost them a timeout.)

The opposing team called timeout after the Knick scores and Thomas was able to make the defensive switches (Jeffries back in for Crawford). However after failing to get stops, the Knicks were forced to throw up desperation shots to win it. If they had a timeout left, perhaps those final possessions wouldn't be so desperate.

Consider a timeout would move the ball to halfcourt. It would also allow for a play. Hey, if Crawford can connect with David Lee with three-tenths of a second left to beat Charlotte, who's to say they couldn't do something with 2.2 seconds left in Washington and 2.7 seconds left against the Nets?

“You’re making an assumption that if you save one, then you were gonna score without calling a timeout," Thomas said. "In both of those situations we took a timeout, came out of the huddle and scored. So, you want to be up one as opposed to being down three. So we scored on both of those situation and, again, in both of those games, we were down a lot in the fourth quarter, so there are other things that come into play other than just getting blown out. You can save a timeout and lose the game by 12 and walk into the locker room and say, ‘Well, we still have one timeout.’ But you lost by 12. Or you can be up one. So I felt we did everything necessary to win the game. We just didn’t get a bounce or two.”

* * * *

Another point noticed by one veteran scribe from late in the Nets game was that Vince Carter knocked the ball into the front row after Robinson's put-back. The extra few seconds it took for the Knicks to get the ball for the inbounds gave the Nets time to get back on defense. Normally, that's a delay-of-game warning, and the Knicks would have been able to sub Crawford back into the game to, at least, have another scoring option on the floor.
But everyone knows the officials aren't calling that one in the final seconds.

"I'm not making a big deal about it," Thomas said. "I just think the last 5 to 7 seconds left in a game, it's a players' game."

* * * *
No one is talking basketball in the Basketball State right now. Everyone is Colts Crazy. I'm not, but who cares about me. Still, it was fun to mess with the nice people at the hotel who were decked out in Colts apparel. When I told them I'd be checking out around 6 a.m. tomorrow morning, one replied, "You're not staying for the game?"

"Sweetheart," I said, "by the time the game kicks off I'll be laying on a lounge chair in South Beach, watching on a portable TV."

I'll be hanging out with Glauber and Rock, who are here to cover the AFC Championship.

Forecast for tomorrow here in Indianapolis: Snow.

Enjoy it boys.

Isiah Thomas punctuated the gap that still exists -- although it is shrinking -- between the Nets and Knicks when he made this comment about Clifford Robinson, who made the game-winning tip over Eddy Curry in the Nets' 101-100 win over the Knicks.

"The guy that tipped it in," Thomas said, "I played against him in the NBA Finals."

Robinson was a rookie with the Portland Trail Blazers when Thomas' Detroit Pistons won their second straight NBA title in 1990.

He's learned a few things in 17 NBA seasons. One of them is how to get in position to make a play like he did over Curry's back to beat the Knicks. And Thomas recognized it.

“Right now, at the end of the game we play a little too fair," Thomas said of his young front court, which includes the 24-year-old Curry. "Veteran guys know how to push, grab and hold, push you out of the way. They know when an official is going to blow the whistle and when he’s not going to blow the whistle.

"At the end of the game, in that situation, you probably get away with a little bit more."

Thomas pointed out how Wizards forwawrd Antawn Jamison held Jared Jeffries just enough to keep him from getting to Caron Butler, who put down a game-winning dunk with 2.2 seconds left to beat the Knicks on Wednesday.

These things are what Thomas considers education. And one day Curry will come up with that rebound because he'll know how to keep Robinson off his back.

"The longer we hang around and stay in these kinds of games, the more we grow up on that back line, we won’t continue to get beat on what they just call in the NBA old veteran know-how," Thomas said. "And that’s what we got beat with tonight. You have to give Cliff Robinson credit.”

It's a few minutes before Knicks-Nets tips at the Garden. Friday Night Fights (can I say that after the Denver disaster?). There's a tangible buzz. And Isiah Thomas seems to be loving it.

"Just the talk around the city, just the feeling and the atmosphere that you're kind of sensing in the building a little bit," he said. "People are anticipating a good game and I hope we give them one."

Eddy Curry said Thomas has been hyping the game up with the Knicks for the past two days.

"We've never really pumped up any other game like this before," he said. "Coach has really been trying to get behind us and light a fire under us and get us to play like we've never played before. We'll be ready to go tonight. We can't wait to be out there."

Thomas may be talking up the game, but he's been very careful to be complimentary of the Nets.

"I don't know if it's a rivalry yet," he said. "You need two good teams to have a rivalry. We know they're a good team and we're trying to crystallize and it become one of those teams that people refer to and look at as a good team."

The Nets have continued to downplay the game. There's no rivalry. It's not a big game for them. Not like it used to be, when they once looked up at the mighty Knicks from across the Hudson. Not since Jason Kidd arrived and led the Nets to 20 wins over 24 games against the Knicks.

“I believe them," Thomas said. "They’ve accomplished a lot and they’ve done a lot. We’re the team that’s chasing. We’re the hunters. They’re pretty much grazing in the grass. We’re the hunters.”

Enjoy. I'll check in tomorrow from Indianapolis.

If you're a Knicks fan, this is this season's first real moment of truth. Your team can prove a lot over the next very difficult stretch of games.

The Knicks lately have proven to be very watchable. They no doubt compete and have proven time and again that you can never count them out until the final buzzer. Is all of that -- plus the development of Eddy Curry as a dominant post player, the transformation of Stephon Marbury into someone who gives a gritty effort on both sides of the ball and a healthy supporting cast that is starting to understand their respective roles -- enough to pull the Knicks out of pretender mode and into contender mode?

We'll know over the next seven days.

It starts with a killer weekend against some old friends: The Nets on Friday at the Garden. The Pacers Saturday in Indiana. The Heat on Monday in Miami.

Isiah Thomas seemed to already begin stoking the fire -- perhaps his greatest trait as coach -- under his team. The Nets can continually talk about how they view the Knicks as just another game (so says Richard Jefferson), but don't believe it. And don't believe that Lawrence Frank hasn't forgotten about some of the hard fouls from the preseason finale in Jersey, when the coaching staffs from both teams exchanged words after the game. And when Thomas seemed to get pleasure out of annoying the Nets, who have worn the New York-area basketball crown for a while now (and are on their way to invade prime Knick territory, Brooklyn, very soon).

No, Friday's game will be the most significant Knicks-Nets game since they met in the playoffs in 2004 (and even that seemed too one-sided to matter).

And with the Knicks two-games back of the Nets in the Atlantic, Thomas wants this thing to get hyped. He knows it's a statement game not just for where the Knicks are in the standings, but where they are in reclaiming the status as New York's hoop kings.

“I hope it become one of the most intense rivalries that we’ve seen in a long time," Isiah said on Wednesday. "I hope it becomes that. Rivalries are good. Having an enemy is not a bad thing. To get a little respect on the block you’ve got to have a couple of enemies.”

The Knicks seemed to have gotten through their worst times this season, from the awful start and the ugly brawl. The Nets, with Jason Kidd's very public divorce and trade speculation that involve Kidd, Jefferson and Vince Carter, seem in the midst of a trouble. But if that's true, it's only off the court. On it, the Nets have won seven of nine games and are inching closer to .500.

The Knicks have slowly gained respect as they have won 8 of the 14 games since the Dec. 16 brawl and played with a relentless spirit that is a Thomas trademark. He's been very good at developing that Us-against-The World mentality.

"We’re not a group that’s looking for sympathy," Thomas said. "We’re a group that is trying to gain and get respect. I take pride in the attitude that we fight.”

OK, let's see it now. And we don't mean hard fouls and bravado. Let's see what you're made of, Knicks.

Eddy Money

I took a seat next to Eddy Curry at his locker after the Wizards game and said, "What's up with you and the foul line lately? Suddenly you're Larry Bird."

Curry smiled. "I know."

"Seriously," I said, "are you doing anything different?"

He raised his eyebrows as he gathered his stuff and said, "The leather ball."

The numbers supported his theory.

Curry is shooting 48-for-66 from the line, which is a respectable 72.7 percent, in the seven games since the New Year, when the leather ball was reintroduced.

In the 33 games prior to that -- and using that synthetic ball the NBA implemented at the start of the 2006-07 season -- Curry made just 143 of 248, which is a 57.6 percent clip.

Gotta be the ball.

Deep Thoughts

Jared Jeffries hit three jumpers - deep jumpers - against the Wizards. It was so out-of-character even some of the Wizards personnel were asking each other when the last time they remember seeing him hit a long-range jay. But it looks like the extra work Jared has put in is paying off . . . Would it bother you as readers and fans if you happened to see someone you know who covers the NBA for a prominent national media outlet finish an interview with a star player by giving him a hug and saying, "You know I'm your boy, right?" . . . At the Verizon Center, the visiting NBA team now use the locker room of the WNBA's Mystics. When Thomas and the Knicks arrived for the shoot-around, they seemed hesitant to enter the room with "MYSTICS" written on the wall next to the door. Someone joked that he had been demoted to the WNBA. Thomas, whose good friend Bill Laimbeer has had a very successful run as coach of the WNBA's Detroit franchise, chuckled at the thought and said, "Not yet."

Here's the video of David Lee in the high school dunk contest we promoted in the David Lee feature from this Sunday's paper (if you haven't read it, check this: http://www.newsday.com/sports/basketball/ny-splee145052357jan14,0,7565449.story?coll=ny-basketball-headlines)

Jamal Crawford is good at repeating back questions as statements. He's one of the more media-savvy players on the Knicks and he knows how to play the game. So he was asked after the MLK-day win over Sacramento if him being out of the starting lineup doesn't bother him. "It's not who starts it's who finishes, right?"

"Right, it's not who starts, it's who finishes," he replied.

Gold Jerry. Gold.

Isiah Thomas' starting lineup has changed nine times this season and might again a few more times (if David Lee's efforts have any bearing), but Thomas' finishing lineup in the Sacramento game seemed like it should be set in stone.

PG - Stephon Marbury
SG - Jamal Crawford
SF - Quentin Richardson
PF - David Lee
C - Eddy Curry

It's an excellent combination. Marbury can defend and drive and get himself open for a perimeter shot. Richardson can defend and hit the three-ball. Lee can defend on the post and will rebound, rebound, rebound, along with getting to loose balls. Curry is getting to the point where he can draw fouls automatically down low (and he's even starting to hit his free throws). And Crawford -- or "Mally-'mal" as some call him -- is an unconscious gunner who just knows how to score in crunch time.

Thomas seems defiant with his starting group and there is a method to his madness. He has Channing Frye start at power forward and Frye has shown an ability to get hot right out of the gate with his perimeter shooting. The past two games Frye has scored the majority of his points in the first half. Against Charlotte on Friday he had all 12 of his points in the first half. Against the Kings, 11 of his 17 were in the first half.

And that's OK, because Frye's shooting keeps the defenses honest when looking to double-team Curry early. But down the stretch you need Lee's tenacity on the boards more than you need Frye as a shooter, especially when he's not going to be the first two options.

Jared Jeffries, too, has found himself on the bench in the fourth quarter lately and for good reason. Teams can easily play off him on defense and double elsewhere because he has not shown an ability to consistently hit open shots. His defensive ability is important early in games, which is why he starts -- Jared twice blocked Ron Artest early in Monday's game to set a tone -- but down the stretch the Knicks can rely more on Richardson for his D and his ability to shoot. They can't play both Jeffries and Lee, who also has yet to prove he can consistently hit open shots from outside, because then you have two players you can play off of on defense. And Lee is a much better rebounder than Jeffries, so he gets the nod.

Thomas seems to be stroking the many egos on the team carefully with how he is working his rotation. Frye and Jeffries get to start and Lee and Crawford get to finish.

It's a good plan.

But when it comes to the starting lineup, there's only one change still to come:

That is when Eddy Curry is the last player announced, which is an honor usually bestowed on the best player on the team. Marbury's outstanding play recently proves he still deserves the honor. But it seems only a matter of time before Big Eddy takes the throne.

* * * * *

It's been hard not to notice the extra work Jeffries has been putting in on his offensive game. He stays after practice and works on post moves with Mark Aguirre. He has openly talked about how he knows he needs to be more of a factor, especially on defense. Especially because that's why Thomas gave him the $30 million mid-level exception. But no matter what he does on defense, Jeffries can't keep himself on the floor if he continues to be a liability on offense.

He showed up Monday with a haircut and sporting an orange headband (for the first time this season). He seemed more determined, especially with his first block on Artest early in the game.

Though Marbury is likely to get the assignment, I'd like to Jeffries guard his former teammate, Gilbert Arenas, a few times tomorrow in Washington. Arenas is a scoring machine right now -- he dropped 51 on Utah on Monday -- and his out-in-the-stratosphere personality is reminiscent of Darryl Dawkins. (Thanks to ESPN, however, his "Hibachi" catchphrase is now completely worn out and no longer cool).

Marbury will need a break from time to time and Jeffries does have the quickness to keep up with Arenas. His 6-11 length can also be a factor against the 6-4 Arenas. Then again, the Jazz had 6-9 Andrei Kirilenko on him and it didn't matter.

Oh well.

* * * * *

Most people wouldn't answer the front door in their underwear, right? (Most people, I said . . . people like Dennis Rodman and the dudes from Jackass don't apply here). And they tell you that you can quell the nervousness of speaking before an audience by picturing them in their underwear.

Then I look across the Knicks locker room Monday and see Eddy Curry at his locker. He had just finished his media scrum. He only had time to put on his dress shirt and tie. He was sockless and still in his underwear.

And a woman standing by the door pushed her autograph-seeking daughter over to him. Curry kind of hesitated and looked for a towel to grab. Then he finally just signed the girl's jersey and smiled. Her mother reached to shake his hand and Curry obliged.

"You can put your pants on now, Eddy," I said.

* * * * *

A quick P.S. to landLORD, who posted a comment about the Norbit ad. I agree man, there are many BBWs (means: Big Beautiful Women) out there. But the one in that ad is Eddie Murphy, man. That's Eddy Murphy in a fat costume (and some airbrushing).

Eddy Murphy, man!

My Top 5 "BBW" list (feel free to add any I might have missed)

5. Queen Latifah -- in her prime, she had it going on
4. Kym Hampton -- beautiful smile, beautiful voice and yet a hell of a rebounder
3. Kirstie Alley -- she can do the Weight-Watchers thing all she wants, but she still counts
2. Anna Nicole Smith -- Somewhere between TrimSpa and her reality show
1. America Ferrara -- After seeing her on the Golden Globes, Ugly Betty ain't so ugly out of character

With that, I'm off to Washington D.C. Catch you all tomorrow after the shoot-around.

Have you seen this hanging on the famous exterior of Madison Square Garden?

It's bad enough that Knicks and Rangers radio broadcasts were evicted from the legendary Marty Glickman memorial radio booth at Madison Square Garden so it could be -- what else? -- sold as a luxury box for $500,000. It's not enough that the beat reporters were moved out of their traditional place courtside next to the visiting team's bench so those seats could be sold for $2,500 a pop.

But now the World's Most Famous arena has finally been completely embarrassed and degraded.

For on three corners of the building's exterior (31st and 33rd at Eighth Avenue) hangs a gigantic banner with the image from the ad above promoting Eddy Murphy's upcoming movie, Norbit.

The slogan, "Have you ever made a really big mistake?" should also apply to the Garden executive who approved this banner for the once-proud arena.

You can almost hear the venerable Garden let out a defeated sigh Friday night as I walked up Eighth Ave. with this ridiculously undignified ad dominating the facade.

* * * * *

On to basketball matters.....

Once the euphoria of David Lee's miracle Tip against the Charlotte Bobcats on Dec. 20 subsided, I was killing Charlotte coach Bernie Bickerstaff to anyone who would listen for drawing up his team's final possession to put the ball in Matt Carroll's hands. He had rookie Adam Morrison (whose shaggy hair and mustache make him look like a bassist for a 70s rock band) on the bench and several other arguably better options on the floor. But it was Carroll who got the ball. And it was Carroll who lost the ball to Stephon Marbury, who dove on it and called timeout with three-tenths of a second left in overtime. One Jamal Crawford inbounds later, the Knicks ran off the court with a win.

I just kept saying: "Matt Carroll? You have the chance to win the game and you draw a play for Matt Carroll?"

So as the Bobcats were putting the finishing touches on their 126-110 win over the Knicks at the Garden on Friday, a night when Matt Carroll scored twenty-freaking-three points and was 8 for 12 from the field, Jeff McInnis kept glaring at the media table and yelling, "Yeah Bernie!"

Guess Bickerstaff knows his players better than I do. Guess I, who shares some of that Irish-Catholic blood that runs through Matt Carroll, fell into that trap of not expecting much of the fair-skinned white boy with that textbook shooting form.

So I took it upon myself to get some education. Who is this Matt Carroll? Why would Bickerstaff have so much confidence in him?

I called on Wikipedia for the facts.

Matthew Carroll was born Aug. 28, 1980 in Pittsburgh. He played at Notre Dame. Played his high school ball at Hatboro-Horsham, as if that means anything to me. His brother played at St. Joseph's. His grandfather, Don Graham, started a basketball camp that teaches the fundamentals of - ah-ha! - shooting.

He is Notre Dame's all-time leader in three-point field goals made (301) and attempted (762), as well as the most career games (133) and starts (125).

Dude even had a cup of coffee with the Knicks in the 2003-04 training camp (I was covering hockey then), before he was cut. Bounced around a bit, spent some time in the NBDL, too, and earned MVP honors in 04-05. That still wasn't enough to get him a regular NBA gig (Golden State cut him after the preseason...what's up with that Chris Mullin? This guy is like your clone!).

He was eventually signed by the Bobcats in Feb. 2005. That's perseverance. That's determination. But signing mid-season with the Bobcats? That's also about as last-chance as you can get.

And now, at 26 years old, he walked into MSG as Charlotte's go-to guy and dropped 23 on the Knicks. He's averaging 21.7 points per game in Charlotte's past six games. The Bobcats are 4-2 in that stretch, including wins over Detroit, Indiana and the Lakers. And now Matt Carroll is getting respect.

"I think [teams have] been kind of noticing I've been hitting some shots out there," he said after the game. " I've just kind of noticed it lately.”

Consider yourself noticed, Matt Carroll.

* * * * *

Random Thoughts You'll Never Read:

I was disappointed by the mild reaction Johnny Newman received from the Garden crowd when he was shown on the scoreboard during Friday's game. J-New was one of my favorite Knicks back in the day. Yeah, he was streaky, but before the Knicks were legit, he was exciting to watch. I can still see him soaring for that dunk over Manute Bol . . . Anyone else as disinterested in the whole Chris Webber thing as I am? Once it was made clear he was looking to go to a contender, the Knicks were easily ruled out . . . I think it's great Stephon Marbury is going to have his own talk show on FSN. But if he's going to do it, I say go for the shock value so you can get some ratings. I want to see Larry Brown among the guest list.

"I love the game of basketball. It's in my blood. I love to play. You never know how much you miss stuff until you are gone. Being gone for 10 games, I missed it a lot. I am back home playing. I am comfortable and I am happy." -- Nate Robinson

Yes, that Nate Robinson.

It was hard to recognize The Spontaneous One Wednesday night against the Sixers in his return from the 10-game suspension. He had a very, very low-key game with only three shot attempts (none from downtown), two uncharacteristic misses from the free-throw line, two assists, a steal and a turnover in 12:45 of playing time.

No doubt N8 the GR8 made an effort to show control as he made his way back to the lineup after his explosive demise on Dec. 16, when his unbridled emotions got the best of him and he started shoving J.R. Smith, which turned what appeared to be some pushing and shoving into an ugly melee at the Garden. Isiah Thomas has counseled the second-year guard and so have his teammates. He has vowed to keep himself in check.

However, that brings us back to what we've said before: what makes him an @$&*#% is what makes him good. There has to be a way to draw out the energy that roars within his 5-8 body without having it turn into the ugly green monster. Pass the Ritalin, perhaps.

The feeling is here it's probably best to keep it to small doses -- playing time, not the Ritalin -- and continue to give big minutes to Stephon Marbury and Jamal Crawford in the backcourt. Robinson will make a few shots here and there and will always get the crowd buzzing just from being on the court (he received a warm welcome when he entered the game in the second quarter). But less might be more with him at this point of the season.

The Knicks have won six of 10 since the brawl without him, so there's no reason to believe he needs to go back to playing significant minutes.

But there is some irony to Robinson's situation. Even if he doesn't play much at all the rest of the way, he could be, in a peculiar way, credited for the Knicks turnaround this season. That brawl, which he arguably escalated, has seemed to galvanize the team.

"I think we've definitely been a different team," Eddy Curry said. "It brought us together a little bit. Sometimes a little adversity helps."

* * * * *

Chris Webber can still play the game -- and, apparently, he can make a pretty good bowl of chili, which I got to enjoy at his restaurant in Sacramento last week -- but at this point in his career he is not the right fit for the Knicks. As much as I've been critical (fairly, I believe) of Channing Frye's game (he has improved his rebounding), I don't think it's the right move to bring in a veteran and put more of a squeeze on the rotation. The Knicks aren't going to win an NBA championship this season; they might not even make the playoffs. But they can have success this year if their young players, from Curry to Frye to David Lee, con continue to develop and emerge as quality players you can build a franchise with.

(Ruler slap for ending a sentence with a preposition....it's a blog, there are no rules for blogs!....My editing mentor, Double-G, will be most disappointed in me. But saying "quality players with which you can build a franchise" just doesn't sound natural. And I'm going with the blog defense.)

Of course I can say this with confidence because of how openly Isiah spoke about his interest in C-Webb, who is more likely to sign with a true contender. If Thomas knew he had a shot at him, do you think he would have been so forthcoming?

* * * * *

Maybe it was my hockey roots coming to the surface, but I thought Marbury landed a good, clean body check on Andre Iguodala in the third quarter, when on a fast break he took out the Sixers guard so Quentin Richardson could get an uncontested dunk. Brendan Shanahan of the Rangers must have agreed with me, too. He was seated at the baseline and looked curiously at the referee when the call was made. Totally a dive by Iguodala, right Shanny? Right, Hahnsie. If anything, there should have been minor penalties handed out to both players and have the teams play four-on-four.

No doubt, Shanny. By the way, you can't beat the Islanders.

Go away, Hahnsie. Don't you have an NBA game to cover? Go back to being outraged about that weak little fight they had here last month, you hypocrite.

Moving on:
There aren't many NBA players I could see playing hockey, but if I had to build a team:

Goal: Dikembe Mutombo -- OK, huge 5-hole. But the guy loves swatting shots. And how cool would it be to see him take off his blocker just to wag his finger at Sidney Crosby?
Defense: Ben Wallace and Danny Forstson -- Just try to get to the net against these two
Left wing: Andreas Nocioni -- Now this guy plays with a hockey mentality
Right wing: Dwyane Wade -- Slick sniper who isn't afraid to take a beating to score
Center: Steve Nash -- great passer, sees the floor, er, ice and he's Canadian!

Reserves: Quentin Richardson (hockey tough), Ron Artest (crazy enough to try it on skates) and Bruce Bowen (love to see him try to stick his skate under another player on a shot attempt).

* * * * *

An alternate perspective:

Some have said Isiah Thomas has destroyed a great franchise. But, really, he’s no Kevin Federline. That dude brought down an empire right in the midst of it’s prime and probably has walked away with more money than Isiah will get when he is eventually kicked to the curb.

So what ever happened to that 'Dynamic Duo' the Knicks were supposed to have in the backcourt this season?

Stephon Marbury clearly is a different player when Steve Francis is not around to take up his minutes, not to mention the ball. It never was a good idea to try to pair together two guards who need the ball in their hands to be productive, but the Knicks didn't have much of a choice in November.

The truth is, the whole reason behind Francis even being a Knick wasn't to play with Marbury, but to play against him. To outplay him to the point where Larry Brown could provide enough evidence to convince Isiah Thomas to move Marbury out. The two were supposed to go head-to-head at the end of last season. Instead, they both turned against him and Brown's plan to rid the Knicks of Marbury was foiled.

Francis knows he doesn't belong here. Thomas had to visit him over the summer to convince him he would have an important role and that it could work. Francis bought in, but less than a month into the season he could see it would not work. He volunteered to step out of the starting lineup and come off the bench for that game in Minnesota. He did it to help the team find some needed chemistry. No one looked more happy about it than Marbury. But then they got blown out that game and Francis went back into the starting lineup. Marbury's smile was gone just as fast as it came.

The only option that remains for the Knicks is a buyout of Francis' contract. There's some big money still left to be paid to him. Half of this year's salary is still on the books for $7,503,500, plus $16,440,000 for next season and $17,180,000 for 2008-09. That's $41,123,500 sitting on the table in guaranteed money. Let me say that again - guaranteed money.

If you were Steve Francis, why would you agree to accept anything less?

You wouldn't if you believed another team out there would be willing to pick up the contract. You wouldn't if you believed if you took a leave of absence and went to Houston to rehabilitate the tendinitis in your right knee so you can get back to 100 percent health and show that your high-flying, explosive game is still there. And if so, you can attract someone who would be willing to take on that contract so he can continue to earn every penny of the $41,123,500 that is left on it.

I believe that's why the Knicks have granted him this leave. It is far more beneficial for the Knicks to trade that contract rather than buy it out and then watch Francis sign for the veteran's minimum with another team and rediscover his game. Nothing worse than paying a guy to contribute for another team. At least Jalen Rose and Maurice Taylor aren't doing much of anything where they are now.

So when it comes to these rumors of buyouts, I wouldn't believe anything that suggests Francis is looking to be bought out right now. It makes no sense that he would want to take a penny less than what he is guaranteed to make over the remainder of this season, plus the next two. Especially if his knee condition doesn't ever improve to the point where he can return to the player that earned that kind of cash.

The Knicks might have looked into it, but even for them, what's the rush? It seems to be a better plan to see how Francis does after some rest. If he comes back looking good enough to entice at least one desperate team to take a chance, then you've dumped a contract you really never wanted in the first place.

Knick fans want to believe the glass is half-full.
The media insists it's half-empty.
Isiah Thomas blames Larry Brown for drinking half of the glass.
James Dolan is willing to pay the glass to be completely full, therefore eliminating any doubt. But it only brings on more controversy when the glass is overflowing and other glasses have no interest in taking on some of the excess.

Send in your own version of the above and the funniest and most poignant will get to post his or her (or its) mid-season analysis of the Knicks (at the 41-game mark) right here on this blog. Be sure to include your name and email address so you can be reached by the proper authorities and have your computer searched and privacy invaded.

* * * * *

I know you Knicks fans love it when the H8rs in the New York media accentuate the negative - hey, God made light switches so ugly people could have sex - but before we start planning the parade route as the Knicks come home from the five-game West Coast swing with a 2-3 record, let's look ahead to what's coming before the all-star break.

They have a great opportunity to put a few more wins together with Philly and Charlotte this week. The Knicks also owe one to Mr. 39-points Tru Warier (phonetic spelling makes it look tough) and the Sac-Kings on MLK day at the Garden. The Wiz the following Wednesday is a reasonable W.

However . . .

From there until the All-Star break (Feb. 16-18), the Knicks have a schedule tougher than a Jeb Bush presidential campaign tour with Tom DeLay as the opening act:

Jan. 19 at the Nets -- This game could be a great battle
Jan. 20 vs Indiana -- A tough opponent to face in a back-to-back
Jan. 22 at Miami -- Shaq Daddy plans on being back by then
Jan. 24 vs Suns -- Get out the SPF 100
Jan. 26 vs Miami -- Shaq twice in the same week for Big Eddy
Jan. 28 at Milwaukee -- Winnable afternoon road game
Jan. 30 vs Lakers -- Big Chief Triangle against the 2-3 zone, plus: who guards Kobe?
Jan. 31 at Charlotte -- Back-to-back off Laker game, gotta watch for a letdown
Feb. 3 at Orlando -- Vying for the top spot in the East vs. vying for .500 record
Feb. 6 vs Clippers -- Owe them one after the awful performance in LA
Feb. 10-14 -- Three-game Western swing vs Utah, Lakers and Golden State: 1-2 would be a "good" trip

Coach Norman Dale has something to say:
If you put your effort and concentration into playing to your potential, to be the best that you can be, I don't care what the scoreboard says. At the end of the game, in my book, we're gonna be winners!

And if Michael Jordan spent more time as a kid playing baseball he would have been a janitor.

* * * * *

Quentin Richardson's back looked pretty healthy each time he jumped off the bench to cheer on his team in the latter stages of the blowout win Friday night in Seattle. It was a wise move to rest him for the last game of the road trip, especially with four days off until the next game. Now he'll have two days of practice -- some coaches might have opted to use the break for a mini-camp, but Isiah Thomas decided to make it a time to rest -- for Thomas to decide whether Q is healthy enough to step back into his spot at starting small forward.

With Q-Rich and N8-the-Gr8 each back for Wednesday's game against LB's Sixers at the Garden (I'll give you 18 million reasons why he won't be in attendance), the rotation is suddenly jammed up again. Isiah's got to know he's going to have at least one player grumbling about his playing time. The challenge is to make sure the right players are grumbling.

If Stephon Marbury has shown anything since the Brawlgame -- other than a determination to defend and a lot more aggressiveness in his offense -- it is that he plays better when he plays more. Take him out of his rhythm and his passion level plummets like the ratings will for CBS's new ill-fated reality show, "Armed & Famous."

As if watching the Jets get blown out wasn't enough, we had to be pummeled today with promos about this sure-fire disaster . . . Can't they just have Wee Man show up at my house and punch me in the crotch and just get it over with?

OK, back to the point. Focus.

The return of N8, a.k.a. The Spontaneous One, will tempt Thomas to want to plug him in for some energy off the bench, but if he does, don't do it at Marbury's expense.

Isiah has said he prefers having David Lee off the bench because it allows him the versatility of subbing Lee in for any of the three front-court players. But starting Double-D Lee at the power forward spot, where he does his best work, seems to make more sense and doesn't change the philosophy of using him in various positions. Consider if Thomas wanted to sub out Richardson a the '3', he could send Channing Frye into the game and move Lee to the '3'. If he wanted to go small, he could send in Jared Jeffries for Eddy Curry and slide Lee to the '5'. It's really not that complicated.

It's so easy, a Caveman could do it.

I know it seems like the Knicks have had several lineup shuffles as a result of the various injuries and suspensions, but they've actually only used eight different starting lineups so far this season. They're nowhere near the pace of last season's NBA-record 42 starting lineups.

Here's the breakdown:
Marbury, Francis, Richardson, Frye, Curry -- 11 games (4-7)
Marbury, Crawford, Richardson, Frye, Curry -- 4 games (1-3)
Marbury, Crawford, Richardson, Lee, Curry -- 2 games (1-1)
Marbury, Francis, Balkman, Lee, Curry -- 1 game (0-1 and Aw man, crazy.)
Marbury, Francis, Richardson, Lee, Curry -- 5 games (2-3)
Marbury, Crawford, Jeffries, Frye, Curry -- 6 games (2-4)
Marbury, Crawford, Richardson, Jeffries, Curry -- 2 (1-1)
Marbury, Crawford, Lee, Frye, Curry -- 4 games (3-1)

The most successful lineup was the last one, which was used right after the brawl. When Jeffries came back from his suspension, Thomas pushed him right back into the lineup and moved Lee back to the bench. Was it a mistake? The record shows that the Knicks were 4-1 with that lineup and 3-3 with the Marbury, Crawford, Jeffries, Frye, Curry set. Sure, it's only one player and Lee continued to get a lot of minutes off the bench, but, as Bill Parcells has famously said, "You are what your record says you are."

And as this blog often says, "LeBron James is overrated."

Now with almost a full roster of players (other than the estranged Steve Francis, who is still rehabbing his knee in Houston), Isiah has to put some serious consideration into his rotation. You can't play a 12-man game. You can't really go with 10. Thomas has to find his eight and stick with that eight.

Richardson, if he can return to form without another flare up of his back spasms (that is an "if" bigger than Zach Randolph's skull cap), will factor in because of his long-range shooting that stretches the defense and opens up the middle more for Curry. It also will create more space for Marbury to drive to the basket. Richardson's presence on the left side of the court also allows Curry to post-up on the left block so he can make some of his moves to the middle, where it is easier to see the double-team as well as his passing options, including Jamal Crawford waving frantically for the ball because, you know, he's always open.

* * * * *

I need to amend my New Year's resolutions for one Knicks player. This is what I meant to write:

Steve Francis - Go to Houston, take some time off and rehabilitate your knee so you can get yourself back to full strength in time for the playoff push.

Now I can say I called it before anyone else. Sweet.

That was an impressive performance by Eddy Curry tonight against the Sonics. He hit all nine of his field goals - all of them were in the paint and many of them were dunks. We're getting used to that, I guess. But it was the 7 for 12 from the free throw line that caught my attention the most.

Imagine how dominant Curry would be if he was a 75-percent free throw shooter. I'm not even going to get greedy and try to consider him above 80 percent. But 75 percent? Using his current statistics after 36 games (162-for-278 from the line, a 58.3 percent clip), if he shot 75 percent from the line he would have 47 more points. That would mean him averaging 20.2 points per game as opposed to 18.7. You wonder if those 47 points might have also been the difference in a few losses this season.

Curry is still developing and developing right before our eyes. Some nights he still can get bottled up by a double-team. But other nights he can be a force on the paint like you don't often see anymore in this game.

And yet he's still way behind in the all-star voting (I mean really, how does Zaza Pachulia, Andrew Bogut and Zydrunas Ilgauskas get more votes?), but Curry could be added as a reserve in recognition for his emergence this season as a go-to guy for the Knicks. It'll be hard to squeeze another center on the East All-Stars with Shaq and Dwight Howard, but it's debatable that Ben Wallace deserves a spot this year more than Curry.

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Regarding Curry's 9-for-9, it missed tying the franchise record for most field goals in a game without a miss by two shots (and, keep in mind, Curry didn't play in the fourth quarter). The record of 11-for-11 is shared by Bernard King, who set the mark on Jan. 19, 1984 against the Chicago Bulls, and Johnny Newman, who tied it on Jan. 6, 1988.

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While the Knicks were having fun in their blowout win, Sonics fans weren't too happy. So they started up a chant of "We Want Jerome!" for former Sonic Jerome James, who, which is worth mentioning, was booed when he entered the game in the first half. The chant grew loud and the Knick bench broke up in laughter. Stephon Marbury joined in on the chant and Kelvin Cato and Quentin Richardson were laughing hysterically. Isiah Thomas then looked down the bench at James and raised his eyebrows as if to say, "You want to go in?"

James smiled and declined.

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Just had to point this out: Using Thomas' logic for the fight that broke out between the Denver Nuggets and Knicks last month (when Thomas blamed George Karl for leaving in his starters and showing up the Knicks on their home floor by dunking the ball in a blowout), shouldn't the Sonics have tried to take out one of the Knicks after Jamal Crawford attempted an unnecessary alley-oop pass to David Lee late in the fourth quarter? The Knicks saved face because Lee didn't read Crawford's intention and the pass bounced off the rim.

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Sir Mix-A-Lot was courtside at the game in Seattle. So his joints weren't as groundbreaking as they were just pop appealing, but you have to admit he did bring into the public realm the undeniable appeal of the maximus gluteus. A few years later, J-Lo made it an artform. And then Beyonce took it to the Michaelangelo level.

And now families sitting all around an arena in Seattle were dancing and smiling as they sang,

I like big butts and I can not lie
You other brothers can't deny
That when a girl walks in with an itty bitty waste
And a round thing in your face
You get sprung

Good, clean family fun. Shake that booty mom!

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Kind of bummed I didn't have time to visit Viretta Park, where there is a Kurt Cobain memorial. I wished there was something downtown in Seattle, similar to John Lennon's legendary spot in Central Park. But then again, Lennon was more of a Manhattan cat, while Cobain seemed more of a suburban loafer. Still, the melancholy poet and Messiah of the Grunge Era is one of my greatest influences -- writing wise, not the drug use -- from my generation. Ferris Bueller, Kurt Cobain and Chuck D.

One of my favorite Cobain lines is from "Something in the Way" when he takes a shot at some self-righteous vegetarians who make it their mission to lecture us carnivores about ingesting other once-living animals with apparent souls, such as cattle and fowl. Yet things that once lived in the water is fair game.

It's OK to eat fish
Cause they don't have any fee