Category: New York Knicks Blog

Jeremy Lin may be a global phenomenon, but he is no longer a Knicks phenomenon. Linsanity was the flavor of February, but he appears not to be new interim coach Mike Woodson’s favorite dish.

Woodson, calling Lin “in a learning stage,’’ said yesterday he is turning the focus of his new deliberate offense to his bread and butter: Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire, the Knicks’ two stars who combine to make $37 million this season.

Lin is expected to remain the starting point guard for now, but Woodson indicated he’s all about veterans. That could mean backup point guard Baron Davis or even his former Hawks favorite Mike Bibby, who has been out of the rotation, could supplant Lin eventually as the starter.

In fact, the de-emphasis of Mike D’Antoni’s speedball system that relies heavily on a penetrating point guard could affect whether the Knicks want to spend all or part of their $5 million mid-level exception on keeping their cash cow, Lin, next season.

— Reported by Marc Berman of the New York Post

Mike D’Antoni told interim Knicks general manager Glen Grunwald in a meeting before Wednesday’s morning shootaround he didn’t feel he could “positively affect the team’’ anymore.

More to the point, D’Antoni no longer felt he could “positively affect’’ Carmelo Anthony to buy into his speedball system and being a team player, according to sources.

On the day The Post reported Anthony wanted to be traded by Thursday’s NBA deadline unless he had assurances D’Antoni would not be around next season, the Knicks coach made it easy for Anthony.

D’Antoni quit, but only after asking owner James Dolan if the team would consider trading Anthony. The answer was no.

A month after Jeremy Lin became a global phenomenon under D’Antoni’s watch, the Knicks went from Linsanity to insanity, as D’Antoni resigned because of his conflict with Anthony, whose return from injury sent the Knicks into a 2-8 spiral and 18-24 record.

— Reported by Marc Berman of the New York Post

New York Knickerbockers Senior Vice President, Basketball Operations and Interim General Manager Glen Grunwald announced today that it has been mutually decided that Mike D’Antoni will no longer be the head coach of the Knicks. Mike Woodson has been named interim head coach.

“After speaking with Mike this morning, we mutually agreed that it would be best for the organization if he did not continue in his role as coach of the Knicks,” said Jim Dolan, executive chairman of The Madison Square Garden Company. “Mike is a class act and true professional and we have appreciated his honesty, commitment and years of service to the organization.”

Over the past four seasons, D’Antoni, who had been hired on May 13, 2008, compiled a 121-167 (.420) record at the helm, including leading the team to the NBA Playoffs last season.

“We thank Mike for the hard work he and his staff had put towards making New York a destination for great players in our league as we went through our rebuilding process,” Grunwald said. “But now is the time to look forward to the remaining 24 games of the season. We have a lot of faith in Mike Woodson, who will focus all of his efforts to get this team back into the playoffs and make our final push.”

In six seasons as the head coach of the Atlanta Hawks, Woodson compiled a 206-286 (.419) record, that included three consecutive playoff appearances ending an eight-year drought. He was named a Knicks assistant coach on Aug. 29, 2011.

Carmelo Anthony’s agent, Leon Rose, shot down reports that his client wants the Knicks to trade him.

“That’s total nonsense,” Rose the Daily News on Wednesday. “It’s not true. It’s laughable. All Carmelo is concerned about is how he can help the New York Knicks win games.”

The News reported on Wednesday that MSG Chairman James Dolan, who made the trade for Anthony 13 months ago, still supports Anthony and does not plan to make any moves before Thursday’s trading deadline.

— Reported by Frank Isola of the New York Daily News

Carmelo Anthony’s discontent with the Knicks organization became so severe after Monday night’s loss to the Bulls, he told a confidant he preferred to be traded before Thursday’s NBA deadline, The Post has learned.

According to a person familiar with his thinking, Anthony’s disillusionment stems most from a belief coach Mike D’Antoni and interim GM Glen Grunwald do not trust him. He is surprised that after all the Knicks gave up to trade for him, he has not been asked for more input on personnel decisions, as Deron Williams has with the Nets.

“The organization makes believe his opinions don’t matter,’’ the source said.

However, Tuesday night, a source said Anthony and D’Antoni spoke in an attempt to reconcile their differences and made headway. On Monday night, Anthony only wanted to remain a Knick if he had assurances D’Antoni wouldn’t be back next season.

— Reported by Marc Berman of the New York Post

UPDATE: Melo’s agent has denied this report. 

After recent success fueled by Linsanity being wiped out by losses and question marks, a juicy story has broken out about the Knicks:

One thing you can’t blame Carmelo Anthony for is the J.R. Smith signing, The Post has learned.

Contrary to popular belief, Anthony was leery of the Knicks bringing in his former Denver teammate three weeks ago and gave a thumbs down to upper management, according to a person close to the Knicks superstar.

Publicly, Anthony said all the right things about Smith, who was fined $25,000 by the NBA Saturday for tweeting a photo of a partially naked woman in his Milwaukee hotel room.

— Reported by Marc Berman of the New York Post

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New York Knickerbockers Senior Vice President, Basketball Operations and Interim General Manager Glen Grunwald announced today that the team has recalled center Jerome Jordan from the Erie Bayhawks of the NBA Development League.

Jordan, 7-0, 240-pounds, scored 20 points and grabbed 15 rebounds over 61 minutes in 13 games with New York this season. He appeared in five games with Erie this season, averaging 18.0 points, on .485 shooting, 8.6 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 2.80 blocks over 32.6 minutes.

The New York Knickerbockers and New York Rangers today released season ticket information for the 2012-13 seasons when Madison Square Garden will debut the second phase of the building’s historic, three-year top-to-bottom Transformation. The first phase of the Transformation debuted in Fall 2011 and included a completely redone lower bowl and select new areas in the upper levels of the Arena. The second phase will focus on adding new amenities and a completely new seating area with significantly improved sightlines to the upper bowl of the Arena.

For the 2012-13 season, Knicks season ticket prices will increase an average of 4.9%, and Rangers will increase an average of 9.5%. Price increases are primarily focused on upper bowl seats, reflecting the new amenities and improved sightlines in the upper bowl. Knicks and Rangers season ticket holders will be contacted directly by their dedicated experience manager with specific information on their account in the coming weeks.

When fans return to The Garden for the 2012-13 seasons, the seating configuration in the upper bowl of the Arena will be completely transformed. The upper bowl will offer larger, more comfortable seating and significantly improved sightlines as the incline for the upper bowl will increase 17 degrees, moving fans seven to 10 feet, or nearly three rows, closer to the action. Season ticket holders will be relocated to new seats accordingly.

A completely new offering for fans next season will be the new Gallery Seats, providing a premium experience in the upper bowl. The new Gallery Seats will be the front two rows of the upper bowl and feature 25% more legroom, and superior sightlines. The first row will also have a personal television for each seat and a drink rail to rest food and beverages. Current season ticket holders will have the first opportunity to purchase the new Gallery Seats.

For the 2012-13 seasons the new expanded Garden Concourse (8th Floor) will have city views in select areas, additional restrooms and retail locations, and new first-class food and beverage options, including MSG Signature Collection’s exclusive food items from leading chefs Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Andrew Carmellini, renowned restaurateur Drew Nieporent and Aquagrill’s chef and owner Jeremy Marshall. Final work will also be completed on the Madison Concourse (6th Floor). In addition, Knicks and Rangers fans will experience the return of the Blue Seats, which was a frequent request from fans during the planning of the Transformation. The Blue Seats will be located in a section on the west side of the building and be authentic to the color of the original Blue Seats.

“With the first phase of the Transformation complete, fans are already starting to discover a state-of-the-art venue that’s as memorable as the moments that happen at The World’s Most Famous Arena,” said Scott O’Neil, president, MSG Sports. “From improved sightlines to expanded concourses with new food and beverage offerings to new social gathering areas, the second phase of the Transformation will offer even more exciting amenities for fans. Our top priority continues to be creating a world-class experience for every person that visits The Garden, and we have a dedicated staff that will ensure that the experience before, during and after fans attend an event is seamless and exceeds their expectations.”

The second phase of the Transformation will also include 58 new Madison Suites that will open throughout the 2012-13 seasons and the Madison Club, both located on the 7th floor approximately 23 rows up for hockey and 30 rows for basketball. The Madison Club will be a new all-inclusive, exclusive membership-only club that will include tickets to Knicks, Rangers, college basketball, boxing, tennis and all other sports events held at The Garden.