The Knicks lost to the Portland Trail Blazers 105-100 tonight, but the loss is nothing compared to the game's key storyline. Star big man Amar'e Stoudemire returned to the court in his first game since undergoing knee surgery prior to the start of the season, and returned to a standing ovation from the rowdy Madison Square Garden crowd.
Stoudemire only played 17 minutes, and scored six points on 3-of-8 shooting. It wasn't much, but fans need not worry about the man looking rusty tonight.
The fact of the matter is that down the stretch, Knicks coach Mike Woodson is going to make Stoudemire one of a deadly 1-2 punch, the other half of whom is star scorer Carmelo Anthony.
Now, some may think that such an approach is crazy. After all, under former coach Mike D'Antoni, Stoudemire and Anthony and the Knicks as a whole struggled mightily. As hard as it was to admit, it looked as though the two couldn't play together in D'Antoni's specific offensive game.
Then, Woodson took over following D'Antoni's resignation, and it all changed. The Knicks went 18-6 down the stretch, and the new isolation offense turned Stoudemire and Anthony into a viable off ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NBA
Article written by Josh Benjamin
How Mike Woodson Will Make Most of Amar’e Stoudemire’s Return to NY Knicks
January 1st, 2013 by Josh Benjamin Leave a reply »
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