Fourth-quarter rally propels Knicks past Wizards

By Adam Zagoria, for NBA.com
Posted Monday April 12, 2010 11:28PM

NEW YORK (NBA.com exclusive) -- David Lee wasn't on the court for most of the fourth quarter in what could have been his last home game in a Knicks uniform.

But at least he went out on a winning note.

Lee sat out the final 10 minutes 45 seconds as the Knicks rallied from a 10-point fourth quarter deficit to beat the Washington Wizards, 114-103, in their final game this season at Madison Square Garden.

After trailing 92-83 in the fourth quarter, the Knicks used a 20-2 game-turning run, highlighted by nine points from reserve guard Sergio Rodriguez, to go ahead 103-94 and take control for good.

"All of me wanted to get a victory tonight and Sergio and Gallo caught fire from the outside after a little bit of a slow start tonight. They did a great job in the fourth quarter and that's what matters. I'd gladly trade in any double-double or anything I had this year for a couple more victories at the end," said Lee, who finished with a game-high 26 points and eight rebounds and will become an unrestricted free agent this summer.

Danilo Gallinari, scoreless at the half, finished with 24 points in the second half, including 14 in the fourth quarter, when the Knicks outscored the Wizards, 40-21.

Asked about leaving Lee on the bench down the stretch, Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni said: "Those guys turned the game around and it didn't seem fair to take those guys out. I'm sure David didn't care."

The Knicks (29-52) can reach the 30-win plateau by closing out the regular season with a win in Toronto Wednesday.

The Knicks have lost 50+ games in four of the last six seasons, and in the other two years they lost 49 times.

As Lee sat on the bench down the stretch, the fans chanted his name, hoping D'Antoni would give him one last run.

"I've been on the floor so much at the Garden. To also get a chance to watch a little bit and sort of be a fan and cheer our guys on in the last six or seven minutes, it was pretty special," said Lee. "It was a night I'll remember and it was a good night and once again I'm just glad we won."

The Knicks have just four players under contract for next season: Gallinari, Toney Douglas, Wilson Chandler and Eddy Curry.

Team president Donnie Walsh hopes to radically alter the roster this summer on the free agent market.

Walsh is armed with more than $30 million to potentially spend on two max-contract free agents, with LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh the top targets.

Lee will likely have to wait and see what those players do before his situation is settled.

Of course, another team could also come in and steal him away while the Knicks are focused on the big fish.

"If the Knicks aren't able to get any of the good free agents, I'd like to still stick around," Lee joked. "It's going to be another interesting summer, probably the most interesting summer that the NBA's had in years and years just because of the number of teams with cap space. There's bound to be a lot of movement amongst players."

One player who could be in the mix at a reduced rate is seven-time All-Star Tracy McGrady, who sat out the home finale with a sore left knee and was generally disappointing in his short tenure with the Knicks.

Several other players acquired during the season who D'Antoni seems intrigued by are Rodriguez, who scored all 12 of his points in the fourth quarter; wing Bill Walker (nine points) and 7-footer Earl Barron, who recently agreed to his second 10-day contract with the Knicks and finished with eight points and 13 rebounds.

Asked if he had a message for the fans going forward, D'Antoni said: "They need to hang in there a little bit with us. And hopefully we'll get the job done. It's going to be a tough summer, no doubt about it. They've hung this long, they might as well hang a few more months, see what happens."