Hahn: Knicks must find way to feed ball to Stoudemire

Mike D'Antoni stood with his arms folded, staring at an offense he couldn't possibly recognize. On the side of the court closest to him stood four Knicks, doing what their coach was doing: standing and watching. On the far side was Amar'e Stoudemire, facing up against Andris Biedrins in an old-school isolation that used to draw a look of disgust from the Wizard of the Seven Seconds or Less.

Now, it seems to be all he has left in the playbook. That and the perpetual green light from three-point range for just about anyone who has an open look.

The pick and roll, which Stoudemire has feasted on throughout his All-NBA career, has disappeared from the menu like Long Island striped bass. The $100-million man with the explosive athleticism and a YouTube library of emphatic dunks has been relegated to nothing more than a midrange jump shooter forced to put it on the floor - something clearly not in his skill set - just to get to the rim.

Stoudemire still managed to put up a big statistical effort (33 points, 10 rebounds) in last night's 122-117 loss to the Warriors, but eight games into the season he's had to work way too hard for his numbers.

"Our biggest weapon is Amar'e,'' D'Antoni said before the game, "and he's having a hard time getting to the basket.''

He's having a hard time even getting the ball most nights. Perhaps it's because the team is still lacking one key ingredient to the success of the Seven Seconds or Less system and, of course, Stoudemire's career: a point guard who specializes in the pick and roll.

Stoudemire and D'Antoni left that part back in Phoenix, where Steve Nash despondently remains to witness the setting of the Suns. Dreams of D'Antoni and Stoudemire reuniting with Nash - that would be a Big Three, of sorts - now are far-fetched, but if you ask a random NBA executive which team could be the first to make a major move this season, it's the Suns.

This isn't an indictment of Raymond Felton, the up-tempo floor general who brought a long-lost art to the Garden - defense - and plays the drive and kick quite well (problem is, the Knicks don't have enough shooters to kick to). But his ability to hit Stoudemire on the run, in an open space, for an easy deuce is as common a sight as Eddy Curry in uniform. And it's been equally as effective. Three times it failed on a critical late possession with the Knicks down one with just over a minute to go.

What a coincidence that this issue came to a head when David Lee was back in town. For two years, Lee lived off the pick and roll, and for all of his faults, Chris Duhon could almost always find the seam to hit Lee for easy scores on a nightly basis. And when Felton explains that it's tough to make the pass because defenses are keying so much on Stoudemire, you only have to look at last season's Knicks to know that the advance scouting against them included only one main focus: stop the pick and roll.

Lee said it took a little while, however, for him and Duhon to develop the chemistry. By Lee's recollection, it was about 15 games. So Felton and Stoudemire have seven more games to figure this out.

"It's something that takes rhythm and it takes timing,'' Lee said, "and it's developed throughout the season.''

Can the Knicks afford to wait? Duhon and Lee were part of the era of waiting, during a period when patience was the virtue as long as LeBron was the light at the end of the tunnel.

Felton and Stoudemire have not developed any chemistry as a tandem, and as a result the offense is lacking any focal point. And, yes, even with Carmelo Anthony as the next light down this seemingly endless tunnel of obscurity, the most critical piece - point guard - has still yet to fit into place.

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