J.R. ABLE TO TIE IT TOGETHER
Embattled guard lifts Knicks to 4th straight
PHIL A DEL - PHIA — The J.R. Smith saga resoundingly was trumped by the news of Alex Rodr ig uez’s seasonlong PED suspension earlier in the day. But the ostracized Knicks guard perhaps took a small step toward rewriting his story line and regaining his shoe-laced footing with an unexpected, rebound performance on Saturday night.
Smith, who was benched for the entirety of Thursday’s win over Miami, returned to Mike Woodson’s rotation and sparked a 20-point turnaround in the second quarter en route to the Knicks’ season-best fourth straight victory, 102-92, over the Sixers at Wells Fargo Center.
“I didn’t know nothing about it. I just prepared like I was going to play. He called my name, so I played,” Smith said of Woodson. “I just wanted to be aggressive, attack, get back to my old self, play with a chip on my shoulder. And it worked. “It was very important for my own psyche, as well as the team.”
With his high-powered agent Leon Rose seated courtside, Smith played 27 minutes and buried his first four shots, including two 3-pointers, netting 11 of his 14 points in the second quarter.
Carmelo Anthony finished with 18 points, nine rebounds and seven assists, Amar’e Stoudemire scored a team-high 21 points in 22 forceful minutes on 8-for-10 shooting as the Knicks (14-22) improved to 5-1 in 2014. “I thought J.R. was a real pro tonight, man, despite everything that’s going on,” said Anthony, who had said after Thursday’s win that he and the Knicks “need” Smith. “Anytime you’re going through a situation . . . you’ve got to find people you can lean on and as teammates we will always be there for him. So I was glad to see him bounce back.”
Smith, of course, had infuriated owner James Dolan and team brass by suggesting he was “betrayed” when his brother Chris was released last month, and Woodson criticized him after he was fined $50,000 by the NBA on Wednesday for twice attempting to untie an opponent’s shoelace during consecutive games earlier in the week. The reigning Sixth Man of the Year still didn’t seem to get why he was singled out against the Heat following the morning shootaround at Temple University. He claimed he’s “been misunderstood (his) whole life,” and that he was “extremely surprised” by the backlash he’d faced in recent days. “I see both sides of it, because I really don’t have a choice but to see it,” Smith said. “Honestly, I’ve been (untying shoelaces) for four, five years and I’ve only seen it from a joking side. . . . I guess some people don’t have a sense of humor that others have.”
Smith and Woodson both acknowledged they had talked on Friday, but the coach hadn’t publicly addressed the situation since calling the guard’s behavior “unprofessional” and “unacceptable” two days earlier in an ESPN radio interview, adding that Smith needs to “grow up.”
The Knicks trailed 28-20 after one quarter, but Smith emerged from the bench and played the next 12 minutes, totaling 11 points and four assists before halftime. That sparked a 32-10 run and a 52-40 lead at intermission, and the Sixers barely threatened thereafter.
“(Being benched) is the worst feeling in the world, when somebody literally just takes the game away from you, especially something you love and you’ve been doing it your whole life,” said Smith, who also was asked if he had finally learned any lessons this week. “Yeah, don’t goof around, I guess. Be serious. Be a professional. And just don’t take this opportunity here you have for granted.
“There’s a lot of people in this world that want our jobs. You can’t take it for granted. It can be taken away just that fast.”