Jeff’s team suddenly has a ’Dash of optimism
As long as Jeff Hornacek can keep the Kardashians away from Kristaps Porzingis, Enes Kanter and Doug McDermott the Knicks should be just fine. The Clippers on the other hand are an absolute mess right now, having dropped nine straight with Monday’s 107-85 loss to the Knicks. The losing streak started right around the time the supermarket tabloids were reporting that Clippers forward Blake Griffin is dating Kim Kardashian’s half-sister Kendall Jenner. Be afraid Doc Rivers. Be very afraid. This could be another documented case of the so-called “Kardashian Curse” or perhaps the Clippers’ slow start can be easily explained this way: they miss their leader, Chris Paul.
Doc’s team has other issues, namely getting former Knick Danilo Gallinari and rookie point guard Milos Teodosic healthy and back on the court. The Clippers clearly can’t survive without two starters. But the loss of Paul, the perennial All Star point guard, has made the greatest impact.
Yes, the Clippers never advanced out of the second round of the rough and tough Western Conference with Paul running the offense. But they also never lost nine consecutive games with him either.
Paul, who forced a trade to the Houston Rockets last June, held his teammates accountable. He would not have allowed Griffin to be bullied by Porzingis and he certainly would not have tolerated DeAndre Jordan being pushed around by Kanter.
“There are ups and downs throughout the season,” Griffin said afterwards. “We know as a team this won’t be the end.”
In the opposing locker room the Knicks are coping much better in the aftermath of trading their longest tenured All Star to Oklahoma City in September. In fact, they’ve managed better than expected without Carmelo Anthony.
The Knicks improved to 9-7 on Monday while Oklahoma City fell to 7-9 following Monday’s home loss to New Orleans. On Wednesday, Kevin Durant and the Golden State Warriors visit OKC.
The schedule will eventually catch up to the Knicks. They are 8-3 at the Garden and on Wednesday they’ll play their league-high 12th home game. The Knicks, who are 1-4 on the road, will have plenty of chances to prove if they are a legitimate playoff contender.
But considering the 0-3 start the Knicks have made the seamless transition from Carmelo to Kristaps. This Knicks team plays for one another. They share the ball. They play hard. They have taken on the personality of their best player.
After the Clippers used a 15-0 run to close to 66-64, the Knicks answered with 14 straight points, including a pair of three-pointers from McDermott.
Of course, the Knicks had a winning record after 31 games last year and appeared to be headed in the right direction before injuries and Phil Jackson’s meddling derailed the season.
Jackson’s persistent poking of Anthony through the media was counterproductive on every level. It alienated Anthony and brought the team down. That’s not an excuse. It’s a fact.
Or perhaps you haven’t been paying attention to both Porzingis and even Hornacek saying that the team has benefitted without having any outside interference.
Hornacek is regaining the trust of the locker room by running a system that fits the roster. Porzingis has flourished. He entered the night averaging 27.8 points and scored 25 against the Clippers. Kanter has been a revelation. His production has kept Willy Hernangomez on the bench and has moved Joakim Noah closer to the exit.
Kanter finished with 12 points on four shots with 16 rebounds. Jordan, regarded as one of the league’s top defensive centers, had 10 points and nine rebounds in 33 minutes. Dougie McBuckets added 16 points. Both McDermott and Kanter were acquired in the Anthony trade, which looks like a win-win for the Knicks. But it’s a long season and the Knicks have a lot of road games to play.
But as a group they seemed to be connected while the Clippers are only making news in the gossip pages.