New York Knicks’ Report Card following loss to Celtics
By Matt Shetler
Carmelo Anthony and the New York Knicks lost their cool Monday night against the Boston Celtics and ultimately lost the game as well.
Without Rajon Rondo in the lineup and with Paul Pierce in foul trouble most of the night, the Knicks did not shoot the ball well and couldn’t get stops when they needed to, en route to a 102-96 loss to their Atlantic Division foes.
Jan. 7, 2013; New York, NY, USA; Boston Celtics small forward Paul Pierce (34) loses the ball to New York Knicks point guard Jason Kidd (5) during the second half at Madison Square Garden. Boston won 102-96. Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-USA TODAY Sports
The in-game and postgame altercations between Anthony and Kevin Garnett overshadowed what was not a great performance by the Knicks.
With that being said, let’s see how each Knicks’ player graded out in my daily report card.
Game Stats
Field Goal Percentage: 40.8% (31-of-76)
Opponent’s Field Goal Percentage: 52.7 %( 39-of-74)
Three Point Percentage: 43.8% (14-of-32)
Opponent’s Three Point Percentage: 33.3% (6-of-18)
Free Throw Percentage: 76.9% (20-of-26)
Opponent’s Free Throw Percentage: 90.0% (18-of-20)
Assists: 26-19 (Celtics +7)
Rebounds: 42-36 (Knicks +6)
Points in the paint: 40-28 (Celtics +12)
Individual Grades
Jason Kidd (8 points 3-of-5 shooting, 6 assists, 3 rebounds, 3 turnovers)
Kidd had some problems early with the aggressiveness on defense from Avery Bradley, but had a steady night and led the Knicks with a plus-11 and was all over the floor defensively in the fourth quarter. Grade: C+
Ronnie Brewer (3 points, 1-of-4 shooting, 1 assist, 1 rebound)
Jan. 7, 2013; New York, NY, USA; Boston Celtics power forward Kevin Garnett (5) dribbles around New York Knicks small forward Carmelo Anthony (7) during the second half at Madison Square Garden. Boston won 102-96. Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-USA TODAY Sports
Another ineffective day for Brewer at both ends of the floor. He knocked down a corner three in his 18 minutes, but did little else. Grade: D
Carmelo Anthony (20 points, 6-of-26 shooting, 3 rebounds, 5 assists)
It was one of the rougher nights of the season for Anthony, who picked up his second foul only four minutes into the game and didn’t knock down his first shot until a couple of minutes into the second quarter. Anthony got into an altercation with Kevin Garnett and allowed KG to get under his skin. In addition, his 20 points came on 26 attempts and showed his immaturity by attempting to go to the Celtics locker room and waiting for Garnett by the Celtics bus. Not one of ‘Melo’s finer moments in a Knicks uniform. Grade: C-
Marcus Camby (4 points, 2-of-4 shooting, 7 rebounds, 1 block)
Camby pulled down seven rebounds in only 10 minutes, which begs the question of why he didn’t play a little bit more? I know the Knicks are better with ‘Melo at the floor, but in a tough and physical game, the Knicks could have used Camby’s defense and rebounding a little bit more. Grade: C
Tyson Chandler (13 points, 4-of-6 shooting, 17 rebounds)
Chandler played 41 minutes and grabbed 17 rebounds to go along with an efficient 13 points. The impressive part is that eight of those boards came at the offensive end. Chandler made 4-of-6 shots and it is a wonder why he didn’t get a few more touches. Grade: A
Amar’e Stoudemire (13 points, 4-of-6 shooting, 2 rebounds, 2 assists)
Stoudemire played 28 minutes and showed flashes of his old offensive brilliance, but they were limited. It was a good sign though. Grade: C+
Chris Copeland (0 points, 0-0 shooting, 1 rebound, 1 steal)
Jan. 7, 2013; New York, NY, USA; Boston Celtics shooting guard Leandro Barbosa (12) looks to pass around New York Knicks small forward Steve Novak (16) during the first half at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-USA TODAY Sports
Copeland played only four minutes for the second consecutive game. Grade: Incomplete
Steve Novak (9 points, 3-of-4 shooting, 2 rebounds)
Novak played 18 minutes and was a liability on the defensive end of the floor, but he did knock down three shots from behind the arc. He played 18 minutes and took four shots. When he is hot, they have to find ways to get him more open looks. Grade: C
Pablo Prigioni (2 points, 1-of-3 shooting, 3 rebounds, 0 assists, 4 turnovers)
Prigioni continues to turn in a bad performance after a good one. He coughed up the ball four times and didn’t have an assist in 15 minutes of playing time. In addition he got rung up for a technical. Grade: D
J.R. Smith (24 points, 7-of-18 shooting, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 assists, 1 block)
He made only 7-of-18 shots, but made four from behind the arc and led the team with 24 points. Smith played hard at both ends of the floor and even though he forced up a few shots late in the game, the Knicks wouldn’t have been in the game without him. Grade: A-
James White: Only played a few seconds. Grade: Incomplete
Rasheed Wallace: DNP (foot)
Kurt Thomas: DNP (Coach’s Decision)
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