New York Knicks: vs Lebron Drago

To read more thoughts from Jason on the Knicks, continue to check here or on his site, http://www.malajas.com/knicks.  

Funny how things work.  I was on my way to work today and thought about how best to describe the current match between the Knicks and Miami.  How they are clearly overmatched and no one is predicting them to win.  Of course, I settled on the Rocky IV, one of the best movies that exemplifies the underdog versus a force of nature. The force of nature in question is Ivan Drago, an unmatched specimen in power and speed.  The natural comparison is to LeBron James, who could arguably be the best player in the NBA if he just took that next step.  I was hoping this series would play out like the movie.  The Knicks clearly getting beat in game 1 and game 2, then with a hint of desperation, throws a punch that cuts the large Soviet.  They then battle it out for the rest of the series, culminating in a knockout blow for the underdog in the final round.  I found it amusing that doing a quick search for "LeBron Drago" on Google yielded this site.  The writer was talking about LeBron and the Cavs versus the Celtics in the 2010 playoffs.  But I digress.  I went into work this morning and what was the first article that I found on ESPN.com but that Amare had punched a glass fire extinguisher case and is out for game 3, possibly for the rest of the series.  The Knicks had punched themselves in their own glass jaw, effectively knocking themselves out this year.

The game itself was a great example of how good the Heat can be.  They seemed like they were in cruise control, keeping the Knicks at arm's length the whole game.  I knew it was over when I knew every shot Miami took would go in, but I hoped the Knicks shots would.  The Knicks kept it close after the first quarter and were down by three, then doubled it to six at the end of the half.  Once again, the Knicks lost the game in the third quarter where they went almost eight minutes without scoring a field goal.  I never understood that about this team.  The one constant from this team this season is that they are always so flat in the third quarter, usually letting a team catch them if leading, pull away if behind.  They did it under D'Antoni and now with Woodson as well.  I hope this is addressed for game 3.  I would hate to see them head into the locker room with a ten point lead, only to give it away in the third quarter.

PREDICTION:
I still think the Knicks win this one.  I thought game 2 could possibly be the "get out the way, I am going to score at least 40 points tonight" statement game from Carmelo, but it will definitely be game 3.  With no Stoudemire, the Madison Square Garden crowd will demand it of Melo and he better deliver.

Knicks 106, Miami 100.

We will see how they perform and if the rest of the Knicks gain some momentum and help Melo carry the burden for the rest of the series.  Otherwise, this will not be Rocky IV, but Rocky III.  Where an immature Rocky is unprepared for the first fight and loses quickly in the first fight.  He then refocuses, and at the end of the movie, takes every punch Clubber Lang can muster and knocks him out in the end.  This may be the story of the Knicks this season.  They are just too immature and unprepared, and have to wait until next time to prove they are champions.