MAYBE I’ve been covering too much boxing lately, but seeing that welt under David Lee’s eye during the Knicks’ 102-90 victory over the Clippers Tuesday night at the Garden was inspiring.
It was a healthy shiner, black and blue, the kind fighters proudly display as a badge of honor. It was fitting the bruise was on Lee’s face for he as much as any other player represents what the Knicks have displayed this year: energy, passion, and tangible potential.
Yes, there is half of a season to play with no guarantees on how it will turn out. But the Knicks have shown enough “significant progress” for Garden boss James Dolan to remove the lame duck noose from Isiah Thomas’ neck and publicly state he will return as the Knicks president and coach next year.
Demanding the Knicks show “significant progress” was the mandate Dolan gave Thomas when he was named head coach before the season. It wasn’t a promotion, but a move made out of necessity after the debacle of Larry Brown’s one-year tenure on the bench. Nearly four months into this season, the Knicks have shown enough for Dolan to remove the cloud of uncertainty covering the future leadership of the franchise.
What the Knicks need now is stability, which is why the All-Star Game break is the perfect time to announce Thomas will return for at least another year. Critics might cringe and view this as premature. But let’s look beyond the questionable trades in his role as team president, the pending sexual harassment suit by a former employee, the Brown disaster and the personal vendettas between Thomas and various media and NBA peers. Let’s focus strictly on what has been displayed on the court.
As the head coach of the Knicks, Thomas has gotten far more out of his players in half of a season than Brown did all last year, and there are enough signs of “significant progress” to believe the franchise is turning the corner back to respectability. Clearly, Eddy Curry has emerged as an offensive force; Jamal Crawford is fearless and confident; and Lee, as evidenced by his black eye, has flourished in his niche as an aggressor and rebounder. Most of all, the once mal-content Stephon Marbury is playing his best basketball as a Knick, willing to defer to Curry as the team’s primary offensive option.
The Knicks head west for games at Utah, the Lakers and Golden State before the All-Star break. One victory will give them 23 for the season and match their win total for all of last season under Brown. That in itself is no reason for a parade, but it is an indication the franchise is off life-support and the notion of making the playoffs is no longer fantasy.
Certainly, the Knicks remain a work in progress. They have lapses in consistency, playing defense must become more meaningful and possessions more precious. Curry needs to be a presence on both ends of the floor, and Marbury’s knees have to hold up.
Sure, we don’t know if their performance on any given night is going to be brilliant or brutal, but they’re willing to battle and won’t shy away from an elbow to the eye.
If the players wanted Thomas gone, they would have tanked this season long ago. And to suggest they’ll play less hard knowing his job is no longer on the line would be an insult to their professionalism.
The players deserve some stability. This franchise has had four coaches over the last two years, creating a turnstile of change that has stunted their growth. Keeping Thomas for another season isn’t so much a reward for his effort as it is for the players to finally have some continuity. They’ve earned that. Thomas has earned that.
