D'Antoni Making Things Happen

When the New York Knicks announced this past summer that they were signing former Phoenix Suns head coach Mike D'Antoni, many speculated that although D'Antoni was a very good coach, the contention was that his running style of play would not work with the current Knickerbockers' personnel.

Although it is certainly too soon to be making room for any banners in the Madison Square Garden rafters, the Knicks have made a statement by getting off to a 6-3 record, their finest start in a decade.

The Knicks are actually still in the playoff hunt, which sadly enough hasn't been much of an option nine games into the season in recent seasons, as New York typically has proven itself to be a roster of overpaid underachievers by the end of the first month of play.

Instead, the Knicks find themselves in second place in the Atlantic Division, just two games behind the World Champion Celtics, who are off to a hot start of their own at 9-2.

They are 4-1 at the Garden and 2-2 on the road. That is generally what you ask of your team, to win at home and to play .500 on the road. That normally qualifies as a recipe for success, especially in the NBA, where half of the league makes it to the post season. And anything can happen once the playoffs begin.

13.3 million-dollar-man Zach Randolph has begun to earn his paycheck, as he is both scoring and averaging 12.3 rebounds per game, third in the NBA.

Nate Robinson continues to electrify the crowd, sitting at fifth in the league with 2.4 steals per game.

The Knicks also have balanced scoring. You won't find a Knickerbocker in the top 10, or even the top 15 of the league in points per game, but both Jamal Crawford and Randolph are averaging more than 20 points per contest, with Crawford leading the team at 21.9 and Randolph at 20.1, and the Knicks have three other players averaging double digits.

And don't forget Chris Duhon, who has done a fine job of running D'Antoni's offense and dishing out nearly seven assists per game.

And all of this is being done without perhaps the most selfish, unhappy, overpaid player in the league: Stephon Marbury.

The Knicks have begun talks with Starbury about a buyout, because they are in such a tough situation due to the astronomical salary that Marbury brings to the table, and his being somewhat of a distraction, or better said, a cancer, in the locker room. It's a lot of baggage, and with every team in the league knowing that, a trade is nearly impossible. So, the Knicks are left with the option of buying him out, since he has not played a minute yet this season, and is making a quarter of a million dollars per game to be a spectator.

Although Duhon has served the Knicks well thus far, D'Antoni is still shopping for a point guard, so who knows what the future will bring.

They may not win 50 games this year, but the 2008-09 Knicks are making things interesting, and after several years they are finally giving the Madison Square Garden crowd something to cheer for, and some hope for the future of the organization.

Giants Still the Team to Beat in NFC

At 7-1 after eight games this season, the World Champion New York Giants have picked up where they left off this past February...winning games.
There was a bit of controversy in Giants' camp coming into this season, such as the loss of Michael Strahan, and how New York was planning on filling that void.
Was the end of last year just a fluke for Eli Manning, or had he finally come into his own?
Manning has thrown for more than 3,000 yards in each of the past three seasons, including over 3,700 in '05, and this year is no different. Through eight games played, Manning has thrown for 1,735 yards, which projects to nearly 3,500 for the season.
He is also enjoying his most accurate season, completing over 61 percent of his passes. Manning has never completed 60 percent in a season.
Manning has also thrown 24, 24, and 23 touchdowns over the past three seasons. This year he has 12, which is right on pace for 24.
And, finally, Manning is throwing less interceptions than ever. Again, since 2005, he threw 17, 18, and 20 picks, respectively. This year Manning has thrown just five, which would put him on a pace for 10 on the season. Quite a step up from the previous three seasons.
The loss of Strahan was bad enough, but when New York's other defensive end, Osi Umenyiora, went down in week 1, the doubters were out again.
Hence, the arrival of Justin Tuck. Although Tuck had a fine season last year as the G-Men's third DE, there were questions as to how he would play as a starter.
As he has shown , Tuck has had no problem settling in as a regular, posting 8.5 sacks, 36 tackles, an interception, and a TD, and the Giants' defense has been outstanding this season, even without Strahan and Umenyiora.
The Giants are at 7-1 on the 2008 campaign, and it seems as if they are making it look easy (tossing out the Cleveland game) by routing teams, as they did to the Dallas Cowboys this past Sunday.
New York may not have the best record in the NFL (see Tennessee's undefeated 8-0 mark), but they do seem to be the best in the NFC, and ready to not just defend their crown, but to annihilate anyone that stands in their way.

Islanders Continue to Take Steps Back

Watching the changes that the New York Islanders make to their personnel each year is reminiscent of the old song: "take one step forward and two steps back."
Each year, New York adds interesting pieces to their puzzle (and believe me, this team is puzzling), but also loses key elements. If you take a look at the roster of players that the Islanders have let go over this past decade, you find the makings of what would be a pretty good hockey team.
This year, the Isles do not have Miro Satan. Although Satan's numbers declined over his three seasons in New York (66 in his first year, 2005-06, 59 in '06-'07, and 41 in '07-'08), he still finished last year as a 40-point player, which is more than many others on this roster can claim.
After the '07 campaign, Jason Blake departed. Blake was a fan favorite, a shorthanded specialist, and a huge spark plug for the team. They lost a lot of intensity and fire when he left.
The year before, Mark Parrish was wished farewell. Parrish was perhaps the best and most consistent scorer that the Islanders have had in the past decade. He was terrific in front of the net and on the power play, and New York lost a lot of goals when they lost Parrish.
Other players that were sent packing since the turn of the century include team captain, fan favorite, and All-Star Michael Peca. Peca is perhaps the best two-way player in the NHL, and is fantastic on the penalty kill. Enough said.
In addition, Alexei Zhitnik, Roman Hamrlik, Adrian Aucoin, Chris Osgood, Tim Connolly, and Zdeno Chara were all bid adieu.
If you take all of these players, and if the Islanders would have kept them, this is quite a formidable roster. But as they did with Zigmund Palffy, Todd Bertuzzi, and a host of other young talent, the Islanders let them go, mostly to save money.
In this day of free-agency and high-priced contracts, it has been proven (mostly by the Detroit Red Wings) that you need to spend money to put a decent product on the ice.
The Islanders, apparently, do not see it that way. Each year they add some exciting players, like a Doug Weight, but they offset that acquisition by letting other integral parts of the team go.
How good would New York be this season if they boasted a lineup of Weight, Peca, Parrish, and Blake at the forwards, to go with a defense corps of Hamrlik, Aucoin, Connolly, and Chara? Not to mention a goaltending tandem of Osgood and Rick DiPietro?
I know that you can't pay all of the players all of the time, and sometimes you have to give up some quality to get quality back in return, but if most of these players would have been kept on the Island, this team would be winning right now, and they would have been winning for the past several seasons.
It wouldn't be the same old one step forward and two steps back.