Knicks Look to Close Out Road Trip with Victory

The Knicks visit Seattle to take on the SuperSonics tonight, as New York looks to close out its five-game road trip with a win. Though the Sonics are a young, rebuilding team, they did defeat the Knicks earlier this season in The Garden. In that game, rookie Kevin Durant was the star, with 30 points, five rebounds and four assists, as he truly announced himself to New York.

“He was spectacular,” Knicks Coach Isiah Thomas said of Durant after that 117-110 loss to the Sonics on Dec. 12.

Seattle features Durant in almost all games, however, and the youngster leads the team with and average of 20 points, four rebounds and two assists in 33 minutes played. He gets perimeter scoring help from Wally Szcerbiak, who came over in the deal that brought Ray Allen to Boston. Szcerbiak puts in 13 points a game on 46 percent shooting, including an impressive 41 percent from downtown, in only 23 minutes per game.

Seattle’s impressive and athletic big man, Chris Wilcox, is another important part of the team’s rebuilding effort. He scores 13 points on 52 percent shooting to go with his seven boards and assists per game.

Wilcox gets help in the post from Nick Collison who nets nine points on 50 percent shooting, with nine boards per game, including three on the offensive glass. Along with ex-Knick Kurt Thomas, who adds nearly eight points and grabs nice boards per game, they combine to create a tough interior presence for Seattle.

Jeff Green and Damien Wilkins chip in from the wing, as both score nine points per game. Wilkins adds three boards and two assists, while Green, the fifth pick in this summer’s draft, grabs nearly five rebounds per game and plays active defense as a rookie.

Earl Watson and Delonte West contribute for the team from the point guard position. Watson scores eight points and dishes six assists per game while providing veteran leadership on the court. West, another player who came over in the offseason from Boston, puts in seven points per game, with three rebounds and three assists in 20 minutes per game. Luke Ridnour rounds out the point guard rotation, with six points and four assists in 19 minutes per game.

This game will close out New York’s five game road trip against the Western Conference and the Knicks will face a tough task even though Seattle is the most vulnerable of the five teams they have faced. This will be the Knicks' fourth game in five nights and the second of back-to-back contests. Moreover, much of the team has been logging heavy minutes since the flu hit the Knicks, first knocking Fred Jones out for a couple of games, and now Eddy Curry and Quentin Richardson.

It is unclear if Curry or Richardson will play tonight, but it is certain that the team needs them, as the shorthanded Knicks racked up the minutes in an overtime loss to the Blazers Friday night. In the latter stages of the game, when the Knicks needed a big shot or a big play, the hard work and minutes seemed to have drained the team.

No one needs a break more than Jamal Crawford, who is second only to Allen Iverson in minutes played per game this season. Crawford put in only 13 points on 6-27 shooting, well off his season average of 20 per contest, in a game-high 51 minutes played.

Crawford, who grew up in Seattle along with Knicks teammate Nate Robinson, has led New York in scoring and in the locker room. He and Zach Randolph have given the team consistent scoring, particularly in New York’s recent stretch of strong play.

On Friday night, Randolph was back in the Portland for the first time since the team traded him to the Knicks before the season. He showed his old team what they are missing with 25 points and 13 boards in the loss.

In the absence of Curry and Richardson, Crawford and Randolph had a couple of new additions to the starting lineup. David Lee and Robinson, as they have done consistently in the team’s recent improved play, shone in increased minutes last night.

Lee scored 14 points on 5-for-6 shooting while grabbing 15 boards, including a remarkable six on the offensive end. His energy and intensity on both ends of the floor has been a boost for the team.

Another player who usually changes the tenor of the game from the bench started for the Knicks last night. Robinson got his first start of the season, and impressed across the board, with 17 points, eight rebounds, and six assists on the night.

Their efforts, along with Renaldo Balkman’s best game of the season, got the Knicks close to their first win on the road against a Western team. Balkman impressed with 11 points, 10 rebounds, a steal and two blocks in the game. More impressive were his seven offensive boards, giving the Knicks extra scoring opportunities.