But for hurricane Sandy this would
have been the opener; certainly off Broadway but in a place no less important
to the history of our nation, our city and the game of basketball..
Both the Knicks and the Nets have
played 12 games and while they do count in the standings they can easily be
seen as dress rehearsals for a game between one team whose place in the city's
sports fabric is established and one who had a smaller place in it on Long
Island and in New Jersey but came to Brooklyn in search of something bigger and better. There's little question that the Barclay
Center has helped the Nets gain some ground at the box office and the chants of
Brook-lyn first heard in Atlantic City during a Nets pre-season game prove that
while Brooklyn may have many Knick loyalists Kings County likes a team of its
own.
. Through 12 games, the Knicks have been
a game better in the standings (9-3 vs. 8-4) but the Nets have played well and
may be playing better at the moment. They are, after all coming off two wins
against tough Western Conference foes while the Knicks, prior to yesterday's
home win against Detroit suffered three losses in four games. And in those
losses they have had deficiencies in athleticism (against Houston) and the
ability to play a physical style (against Memphis) exposed. They have also
reminded Knicks' fans in those games that there's a fine line between playing
with an edge and losing your cool. That said there's a lot to like about these
Knicks. Carmelo Anthony, media contrived Brooklyn citizenship aside has been
spectacular and while he's been their best player Jason Kidd has been their most
valuable one giving them two essential elements of winning basketball,
defensive toughness and offensive unselfishness. .
Like the Knicks, the Nets have
demonstrated a winning combination of stars who have responded to the challenge
of expectations and veteran tough guys who have reminded them of the
"little things" that are essential to winning. Brook Lopez, who was
nearly traded in the Dwightmare negotiations is playing better than he has at
any time in his career, and after a poor game against Minnesota, a team with a
similar sized center Nikola Pekovic he has bounced back with fine games against
the athletic front lines of the Lakers (Howard and Gasol) and the Clippers
(D'andre Jordan and Blake Griffin). It's worth noting that the Knicks' Tyson
Chandler while not as athletic as those guys presents a similar challenge and has had success controlling Lopez in the
past. The Nets have moved Lopez around in the offense and that has clearly
helped him. They need a big game from him against Chandler to earn a win.
The Nets other two stars Deron
Williams and Joe Johnson have played well but inconsistently so far this
season. Johnson's best games as a Net have been the last two so he may be just
beginning to get comfortable. And while Williams has struggled shooting the
ball he took over yesterday's game against Portland by being a playmaker. The
Nets are clearly better when he's passing more and shooting less.
Both teams are very deep as the
Knicks minutemen can bring scoring in the form of JR Smith, a three point
specialist in Steve Novak, heady playmaking in Pablo Prigioni and tough veteran
size inside with Kurt Thomas and Rasheed Wallace.
The Nets can nearly match that with
scoring guard Marshon Brooks center Andray Blatche and the NBA's best back-up
point guard C.J. Watson. The key to the Nets' bench however is Reggie Evans who
has carved out a similar niche on the Nets to the one Paul Silas had on the
Celtics teams that were the Knicks fiercest rivals in the 1970's. Since that
reference is a bit old school I'll try and explain it briefly. Silas is one of
the long line of great Celtic "sixth men" for the league's most
successful franchise and the team that pioneered that role. Unlike many who
came before and after him Silas provided that spark off the bench not by
scoring but with rebounding and defense and he, just as Evans was in the wins
against Portland and the Clippers, often found himself in the game during
winning time in the game's closing moments. Even though he may not start a game
for the Nets he is certainly a vital part of a winning effort.
With or without the ancillary hype
about things that have nothing to do with basketball (Jay-Z Dolan, Prokarov,
celebrity row and provocative billboards) it figures to be a great opening
night. With a respectful nod to the team
on the other side of the bridge that was the first sports team I followed growing
up, Go Brooklyn.
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