Knicks' Felton, big men faltering on pick-and-roll
The Knicks' Raymond Felton makes a pass against Portland's Andre Miller. (Oct. 30, 2010) Credit: Jim McIsaac
The ghost of Steve Nash followed Mike D'Antoni to New York, and now it haunts Amar'e Stoudemire. Can either of them and this pick-and-roll-predicated offense be anywhere near as successful as it was when the trio averaged 58 victories a season with the Phoenix Suns and reached two conference finals?
In two seasons with the Knicks, D'Antoni hasn't been able to prove he can win without Nash. In three games with the Knicks, despite a team-leading 21.3 points per game, Stoudemire is learning that he has to work a lot harder for baskets without him.
Both now look to Raymond Felton to provide what Nash, a two-time MVP, did for them.
"I ain't trying to match nobody. I am who I am," Felton said after Saturday's 100-95 loss to the Trail Blazers in the Garden opener. "Steve Nash did it his way, I'm going to do it mine."
Felton had a solid game with 16 points (7-for-14 shooting), five rebounds, five assists and one steal, but most of his work has been off his own offense, not within the flow of it.
That is Nash's greatest strength: the ability to score and also set up others, all within the flow of the system.
Stoudemire believes that comes from playing fast. When it comes to the pick-and-roll, there can be no hesitation. Right now, Felton is hesitating.
"We have to get a little bit more pace to it and really attack them on the screen-and-rolls," Stoudemire said. "That seems to be the key sometimes; the pace, the effort you're putting forth."
The pick-and-roll, especially at the top of the key, seemed to be the only play that ever worked for the Knicks in the previous two seasons. Chris Duhon and David Lee ran it almost exclusively and effectively. But Felton hasn't been able to find the passing lanes to get Stoudemire and Timofey Mozgov on the rolls to the basket. On Saturday, Felton missed an open Mozgov a couple of times in the paint; later in the game, when he did attempt the pass, it was deflected away.
Felton pointed out that opposing defenses are "sucking in right now" because the Knicks are lacking a perimeter presence, which is a nod toward the early-season ineffectiveness of Danilo Gallinari.
Said D'Antoni: "We're just not executing as well as we should."
Notes & quotes: The Knicks had Sunday off and will return to practice Monday. Eddy Curry (hamstring) is expected to return to practice and Anthony Randolph (ankle) also might be cleared to play . . . Wilson Chandler said he understands why the Knicks, who want to maintain flexibility in the offseason, are likely to pass on signing him to a contract extension by today's 5 p.m. deadline and said it won't unnerve him this season. "I spent most of my life with no money, so [to wait] a year won't be hard to deal with," he said. "Whatever I get will be better than what I have."
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