Daily Rant: 3/8/11

Everything clicked for the Knicks last night against the Jazz, their two superstars went for 65 points and only missed 7 of 31 shots combined. Toney Douglas, filling in for the injured Chauncey Billups scored 20 points and was hitting 3-pointers at will. But, even with the Knicks blowing out the Jazz from beginning to end, one problem seems to still remain. Defending an opposing teams big man. Utah's center, Al Jeffferson scored a season high 36 points and had 12 rebounds in a losing effort. The Knicks started Jared Jeffries alongside Melo and Stoudemire, at center. Which is a good move, since he is the best defender on the team. At 230 pounds and barely 6-11, his slender frame isn't the long term answer for the Knicks at the center position, but for now, due to injuries, he is the only option. The Knicks will not outscore everyone like they did last night, so having good defenders out there will only help them communicate and give them a better chance in closer games. Amare can block some shots and grab rebounds and Melo is a decent rebounder, so with Jeffries calling out the defensive plays, maybe they can put pressure on other teams as a trio. For example, last night, the Knicks went to the zone defense early. Jeffries was active, at the top of the zone a lot and it confused the Jazz, so that could work to their strengths going forward with this starting lineup. The Knicks have won two in a row, in one of the games they allowed only 79 points and in the other, they scored 131 points. Those two wins are at either ends of the spectrum, but they are wins and that's all the matters.