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Knicks Get Blown-Out in What Could be Jimmer Fredette’s Final Game

By William Lee

Mar 1, 2016; New York, NY, USA; New York Knicks guard Jimmer Fredette (32) drives to the basket past Portland Trail Blazers guard Brian Roberts (2) during the second half at Madison Square Garden. The Trail Blazers defeated the Knicks 104-85. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 1, 2016; New York, NY, USA; New York Knicks guard Jimmer Fredette (32) drives to the basket past Portland Trail Blazers guard Brian Roberts (2) during the second half at Madison Square Garden. The Trail Blazers defeated the Knicks 104-85. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports /
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The crowd of 18,200 was raucous Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden, as the Portland Trail Blazers dismantled the New York Knicks 104-85.

For most of the first half the Knicks were keeping up with the high scoring Trail Blazers, who came into the game eighth in points per game with 103.6 PPG per NBA.com. That is until Damian Lillard EXPLODED to close out the first half, scoring 14 points in less than three minutes!

Lillard knocked down a jumper, and then drilled two consecutive three-pointers in a row, before doping Jose Calderon into fouling him from beyond the arc. Dame converted on all three free-throws, and then proceeded to hit another three-pointer to give Portland a 58-50 lead heading into halftime.

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Carmelo Anthony did his best to keep up with Lillard’s 24 first half points by scoring 15 first half points himself. Arron Afflalo and Kristaps Porzingis lent a helping hand to New York’s superstar in the first half as well, combining for 17 points on 7/12 shooting in the first half.

Unfortunately… Lillard’s backcourt teammate lent a helping hand as well. C.J. McCollum erupted in the third quarter, destroying the Knicks with his mid-range game. McCollum scored 13 of his total 25 points in the period.

The game got out of hand when the Knicks went for an eight minute stretch, stemming from the end of the third quarter to the middle of the fourth, where New York ONLY scored on one field goal… In that time Portland’s lead ballooned to 20 points…

With the game out of hand, this is when the fans at MSG voiced their displeasure with the team. Chants of “Jimmer, Jimmer, Jimmer” started up from a portion of the crowd. Then the Knicks’ faithful threw their venom at Calderon when he missed consecutive three-pointers in a desperate attempt to come back in the game. The boos grew louder and louder for Calderon, after each and every miss.

The Spaniard is in a no-win situation, as it is widely known that the fans do not appreciate the 34 year-old point guard. The fans know that Calderon is washed up and wanted to see Jimmer Fredette get a crack in the lineup before his ten-day contract expires on Thursday.

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The massive boos turned into deafening “we want Jimmer!” chants. Fans finally got what they wanted, as Fredette checked into the game with 3:13 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Anytime Fredette touched the ball, you can hear the anticipation and excitement from the crowd. Anytime anyone else touched the ball, you can feel the disdain and displeasure from the crowd.

With 1:56 remaining in the game, Fredette drew a foul and MSG erupted into cheers. The BYU star calmly converted on both free-throws. Although on the ensuing possession… you could see why interim head coach Kurt Rambis is hesitant to give the college star any real minutes, as Fredette failed to fight over a screen and his man scored immediately.

For the remainder of the game, whenever the ball rotated to Fredette, there would be a huge pop from the crowd. As Jimmer moved the ball around, you can hear the groans from the crowd. And whenever anyone not named Jimmer Fredette attempted a shot… PURE VENOM from the stands! MASSIVE boos rained down from MSG as other Knicks attempted a shot.

In the closing second, a silly altercation between Meyers Leonard and Fredette occurred, as Jimmer attempted a last-second shot. It looked like Leonard did not appreciate the Knick not just running out the clock in a blowout game. The two did not shake hands as the buzzer sounded.

After the game, Leonard apologized to Fredette via social media for the heat of the moment play.

This very well could have been Fredette’s final game, as there is no news of any guaranteed second ten-day contract. In fact, there are rumors that the Knicks maybe looking else where to fill the final roster spot.

New York NEEDS SOMEBODY! Anybody! The Knicks’ bench Tuesday night was a dismal! The bench combined for 7/36 from the field… THAT’S LESS THAN 20%! The Knicks need someone desperately to provide some offense off the bench. And the Knicks desperately need a more productive point guard! Calderon had more turnovers (3) than field goals (2), or assists (2) Tuesday night…

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The Knicks will have a couple of days to rest up, and it will be interesting to see what management does with Fredette in those days. Whichever way the organization decides to go, hopefully that player will be given (more of) a chance to prove himself.

New York will need the rest, as they head to TD Garden to take on the scrappy Boston Celtics Friday night.

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