When this season started there were rumblings that the Knicks’ re-vamped line-up might be able to compete with the big boys. Then they went out and beat the Celtics opening night and we felt that this team would be worth watching. With a dominant front line of Amare Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony and the recently signed Tyson Chandler, the Knicks would once again be the hottest ticket on Broadway. Isiah Thomas warned us that the loss of Chauncey Billups would be detrimental, but what did he know. Remember, this is the man that threw a truck load of cash at Eddie Curry. So we scoffed at his blabber and fastened our seatbelts in anticipation of a season to remember. Then a funny thing happened. The Knicks discovered they had no leader to orchestrate all their imported talent. Iman Shumpert seemed to fit the bill for a few games, but before long he began to show why rookies are called rookies. Tony Douglas for all his hard work, and good intentions, ultimately, is nothing more than a back-up. Henry Bibby’s son Mike, was a step too slow, and seems to have left his jump shot back in Sacramento. Their best hope (Baron Davis) was injured and on the bench in street clothes, unsure if he would ever see another minute of NBA action. The Knicks were a horror show. They found it difficult to compete with the lesser teams in the league, and Coach D’antoni’s head was securely fastened to the chopping block.
Then came the feel-good story of the year, when little used, and even lesser known Jeremy Lin came off the bench and had an otherworldly night against Deron Williams and the NJ Nets, scoring 25 points and dishing 7 assists. The kid had an interesting knack for getting into the paint and for one night, the Knick coach didn’t have nightmares about standing on the unemployment line. With nothing to lose, D’antoni started Lin for the next two games against Utah and Washington. The kid responded with two surprisingly productive games of 28 points, 8 assists and 23 points with 10 assists. By this time the entire country had jumped on the bandwagon. This kid from Harvard of all places, came out of nowhere to be proclaimed “Prince of the City”. There was only one problem……….Black Momba and the Lakers were coming to town next, and were sure to bring this foolishness to a grinding halt. Knick fans braced themselves for the letdown, especially after Kobe flippantly dismissed Lin’s success with “I don’t even know who this kid is” type comments, but like they say in the hood “If you don’t know then you better ask somebody.” Kobe decided he didn’t need to ask anybody and found out the hard way. Jeremy pummeled the Lakers for 38 points, and basically put the team on his back and carried them to victory. Lin-sanity was now an officially certified product. Sports Center can’t seem to get enough of it, and neither can we. The Knicks then went to Minnesota and stole a game from the Timberwolves despite 32 points and 21 rebounds from Kevin Love. Lin was visibly tired in this game, but still managed 20 points, inspiring his team to a gut-check victory that surely would have been a loss two weeks ago.
A point worth mentioning is that both Amare and Carmelo have been absent for most of this 5 game winning streak. What happens when they return? It is fairly certain that Amare will flourish, because this is the same system and coach he played under in his successful phoenix days, but what about Carmelo? Can he be effective without the ball in his hands? Will he even be willing to try? Anthony has claimed to be willing to do what’s necessary for the benefit of the team, and with the latest turn of events, we’ll be sure to find out if he means it. This is where a coach earns his money because star players’ egos rule in this league, and it will be D’antoni’s job to keep Anthony a happy camper without allowing him to dominate the ball. What will he do if Anthony decides he isn’t happy? There are lots of unanswered questions, but one thing is Lin-escapable. If D’Antoni can’t find a way to Lin–corporate Lin’s Lin-tangables, he’ll be a Lin-terim coach looking for a Lin-terview.