Category Archives: Raymond Felton
When I think Billups I think a Derek Harper 2.0. For those who remember Harp, he was a big, physical, non-traditional point guard who could stretch the defense in the half court with his shooting. Billups is a better shooter, and a less effective defender but the game is different today in terms of no longer being able to hand check. People talk about Billups’ lack of dishing, but Harper averaged 5.5 assists for his career and never averaged more than 5.7 during his Knicks tenure. Billups can pass to himself for all I care as he’s shooting 44% from deep this year and is 40% for his career. No one blamed Harper for the team’s loss in Game 7 and his lack of play making ability didn’t keep them from 3 years of relative playoff success. Again, the game is different in so many ways, but to me the constant is the necessity to make shots in half court situations in the fourth quarter.
Truth be told Harp should (would?) have been Finals MVP if the Knicks could have won game 7 in Houston.
Harp was 32 when he came to NY, while Billups just turned 34.
As you look closer at Billups you see a guy who can play in the pick and roll but he rarely gets below the foul line, something we’ve talked about being essential for Raymond Felton. Why is it more essential for Felton than Billups? Billups can certainly get to the foul line in the pick and roll, but can also get away without it because he can shoot over players, and shoot period, more consistently. If Felton isn’t getting to the mid-paint then he’s far from being most effective in setting up his teammates.
Another critical point about Billups is the fact that he doesn’t get shook when players are running at him contesting his shot. The Knicks young players, particularly Gallinari and Chandler, struggle with aggressive closeouts. This was on full display against the heat and Magic in Florida several weeks back. That speed is what the playoffs are all about and there’s no substitute for experience when it comes to knocking down key contested shots that spread the defense out in the half court down the stretch. Billups is a master of that craft.
So to sum up, Billups can pick and roll, hit big shots, and is playoff tested. He also can play at a fast pace, albeit for less minutes. These qualities, to me, make him an upgrade over Felton and give the Knicks a much better chance to compete in the playoffs.
By now everyone has seen the reported deal that Donnie Walsh has turned down, and of course it has to include something about the owner.
It is believed that Walsh and Mike D’Antoni feel the team would be giving up too much. Garden chairman James Dolan has had direct involvement in the negotiations and may ultimately overrule his basketball staff
And you’d have to assume that the “starter” is Landry Fields. This deal doesn’t solve the team’s need up front and Billups isn’t a Mike D’Antoni-type point guard, so I can see the hesitation. It is a ton. Plus, Donnie Walsh, since he’s been here, waits until the deadline before dealing. Of course, he did pull the trigger on several deals in November of 2008, but any time the deadline rolls around Walsh traditionally stays patient. That is to say I don’t buy an owner override if this exact deal happens 9 days from now. Walsh won’t deal with a game left before the break and one has to assume, based on history, that a deal won’t happen during it either. But it’s good to know that it appears both parties are working on banging out a deal.
Last I heard, the teams were getting very close.
For me, if the Nuggets took back two starters and you substituted Chandler for Gallinari that deal has to be made.
I can understand Denver’s hesitation on including Chandler and instead preferring Gallinari, who, the Knicks desperately want to keep. Gallo is just 22, on a good contract and of course was the first 1st round draft pick of the Walsh era in New York.
Chandler is on a different contract, but it appears the rumors that he’ll be asking for 5 years/60 million have quieted although he has hired Amar’e Stoudemire’s agent Hap Walters, a shrewd mid-season move that may just keep him in New York.
Stay tuned.
After what I deemed as his best stretch as a Knick, Danilo Gallinari has hit the skids from deep.
While Danilo Gallinari has been excellent from the free throw line this season (89.1 percent; he’s hit 22 straight), what has happened to his three-point touch? He went 0-for-6 from downtown in the game and is now 3-for-26 from beyond the arc in his last five games. He hasn’t hit two threes in the same game since he was 4-for-7 against Detroit on Jan. 30. He is shooting 34.5 percent from three-point range this season, which isn’t terrible, but is below his standard from last season (38.1 percent), when he attempted 488 threes, which is the fourth-most in franchise history for a single season.
What I noticed during training camp was the simple fact that Gallo hasn’t been an automatic 3-point shooter. He has the ability to make big 3s, like he did against Miami, but the truth is he hasn’t hit his stride from behind the arc.
A lot of that, to me, has to do with the idea that he’s trying to do more with his game in terms of getting to the basket and foul line, but his bread and butter has to be his jumper…which just isn’t falling.
Also, I’ve heard rumblings about Felton’s ankle causing him issues, but another simple fact is that when he first entered the league his greatest strength was his foot speed. He was lightning quick and could get out in transition. He’s slowed down a lot, it seems.
He seemed to be playing at a faster pace during that impressive stretch earlier this season, so that’s why I’ll buy ankle issues, but the fact is because of his lack of athleticism he needs his legs in order to be ultimately effective.
The Knicks and Nuggets have talked about other players changing uniforms, with one scenario having Raymond Felton going to Denver and Chauncey Billups ending up with Anthony in New York.
Alan Hahn mentioned Billups in a Melo deal about a month back. Billups was said to be rumored in a possible Nets deal but he had little interest in going there, threatening a buyout if he were dealt. He’s from Colorado, played his University ball there, and doesn’t seem to want to leave. He’s won a ring and seems content to be home. It seems as if a lot of second hand information is being passed around, first Bynum, who was said to be talked about and dismissed by the Lakers and Nuggets months ago, now Billups.
Obviously, anything can happen as the deadline approaches and brace yourselves this is just the beginning as the deadline is still weeks away. We haven’t even passed the All-Star break and remember all those Amar’e/ Cleveland rumors when nothing ended up happening.
This is unfortunate for the Knicks who need to stay focused on playing well at home against LA’s two teams both of whom will be in MSG on the second of back-to-back games.
The back and forth leverage game is in about 3rd gear right now, and expect it to be in 5th by the 24th.
Felton led the team in FGAs last night and it reminded me of the days of Marbury and/or Crawford, who would get the team in the offense and settle for too many shots.
I don’t know what the number is, but I just feel like every time a PG leads their team in shot attempts, it’s a losing equation. It limits touches for other players. The Knicks actually had good ball movement on the last play, but Felton hadn’t been getting the ball out of his hands that early most of the night.
This is not to blame Felton, who looked the freshest he’s been in a while going to the basket, but there were early shot clock pull ups and floaters that were ill-advised.
Wilson Chandler only took 6 shots in 20 minutes, and some of those were actually forced due to lack of touches.
And for crying out loud, can Felton stop throwing the ball to Amar’e in transition 40 feet from the basket? He’s not a ball handler. He has to work to hard to get his shot off and it usually results in a turnover or missed shot.
Rule #1 as a PG, don’t give the ball to a big man so far from the rim on the break.
Maybe it’s just me, but I just can’t stand when PGs lead the team in shot attempts.
It’s a discussion that keeps coming up, mainly because of Raymond Felton’s legs and what many consider a lack of facilitation from Toney Douglas.
Douglas hasn’t developed into your classic point guard, but he can facilitate. He gets the team into their sets and has the ability to find open players. He’s not a great creator, however, and rarely gets anyone easy baskets even in the pick and roll.
Defensively, he guards both positions, an asset that simply cannot be overlooked.
I was talking to my good friend Mike Salfino about the subject as he was doing research on the piece he wrote, which came out today.
Mr. Douglas has a reputation for being a better on-the-ball defender than Mr. Felton. And there’s supporting evidence of that in our numbers—opponents average 12 fewer points per 48 minutes when Mr. Douglas is quarterbacking the Knicks compared to Mr. Felton’s time on court. Additionally Mr. Douglas’s turnover rate is about half of Mr. Felton’s and his paltry rate of assists suggest he’s a poor distributor. But Mr. Douglas has played with 61 different combinations of players (excluding those with Mr. Felton). And he hasn’t logged more than 26 minutes with any of them. That’s hardly a formula for fostering basketball chemistry.
How the Knicks fare when Raymond Felton is playing point guard compared to how they fare when Toney Douglas is playing, plus how they do when both are on the court at the same time.
Point Guard Minutes Points per
48 min.Opp. Points per 48 min. Differential Raymond Felton 1817 107.2 107.6 -0.4 Toney
Douglas434 103.2 95.4 7.8 Felton With Douglas 606 102.8 103.6 -0.8
The bottom line is that, yes, the Knicks hope Douglas, using Dallas as an example, can be the scorer that Jason Terry is with better defense, and have a JJ Barea-type come off the bench to spell Felton. Although, to be fair, Felton is far younger than Jason Kidd who played close to 40 minutes per night in his hay-day. Lead PGs log minutes.
For now, Douglas is playing a key role, at least according to the above numbers. He doesn’t turn the ball over much, but I equate bad shots as turnovers and TD often takes poor shots.
I think for now the Knicks want to see if Felton is capable of playing high level basketball during a high amount of minutes. Twenty guards in the NBA average more than 35 plus. At some point, I’d look for the Knicks to add depth at the PG position.
Great find via our boy Seth From P&T (from John Schuhmann)
The worst unit on a good team has been the Knicks’ Raymond Felton, Landry Fields, Danilo Gallinari, Amar’e Stoudemire and Ronny Turiaf, which has been outscored by 6.5 points per 100 possessions in 108 minutes. more
Turiaf’s injuries this year have to be a factor in this, but does this disprove the idea that the Knicks need to play Amar’e at the 4 and a big body up front for rebounding? The name of the game is to outscore the opponent. Interesting that this particular group struggles to score and defend particularly with Fields on the court.
What does this say about Gallo?
It is very clear that Mike D’Antoni believes that 70% of Raymond Felton is as good as anything the Knicks have right 
now. And that’s probably a big reason why amateur GM fans have scoured the D-League and been making trades on NBA 2k to try and find a suitable backup.
Felton injured his ankle and Portland and the numbers would suggest that he hasn’t been right since. He’s 8 for his last 43 and just 2 for his last 13 from downtown.
He’s the engine that makes the Knicks go, there is no question about that. You can see him settling for passes and shots above the foul line area. Moreover, you can see it in his FT attempts. After taking 10 in Utah the game after, he’s taken just 4 in 2 games.
I think what fans need to understand is that starting point guards are like starting quarterbacks. If they can walk they will start and play the whole game. It’s a pride thing. Playing Felton for 25 effective minutes makes you want to play him another 8-10, maybe more. And right now they don’t have a guy to be able to come in and pick and roll and make shots with the second unit. It was the first unit, however, who stunk up the joint in the third quarter. And it was the first unit who stood around and watched Amar’e isolations all fourth quarter. The decision to dump the ball into the high post is Felton’s and when he’s doing that often, instead of trying to make plays towards the basket, you know something isn’t right. Again, this has nothing to do with playing too many minutes in my opinion because Felton craves them, like all star point guards do. It comes with the territory. There is no “I’m hurt” or “I’m tired” if you want to be a star PG in this league.
I think a big reason for the Knicks slide also is that many players know the trade deadline is coming but the All-Star break is first. It’s a long season. A grind. Toney Douglas has been playing with a badly injured shoulder, but knows that if he misses much time he may not find his way back into the rotation.
But they better get themselves healthy, focused and ready, and the coach better start making better defensive substitution patterns because positive energy switches to negative energy real quick in this city (and when referring to that outlet I use the term “positive” VERY loosely, I’m referring to the fans).
.500 isn’t so far away.
Neither is the trade deadline where you’d expect reinforcements to come in and balance out a roster in need of some holes plugged.
Last night *messed around and got a triple double.
23 points 11 assists 10 rebounds
It was a good day.
Enjoy
I’ve been asked a lot about my thoughts about several Steve Nash rumors out there. They seem a bit convenient. Nash extended in Phoenix, who unfortunately are rebuilding after not giving Amar’e a guaranteed 5th year. And let’s get one thing straight about that, yes the Knicks offered a 5th year, but that was not the only reason he signed here. He’s embraced New York and loved the city before he signed. From what I hear it wasn’t a guarantee that he would have resigned in Phoenix even if they did offer a 5th year.
Be that as it may, I wouldn’t trade Felton for Nash. Nash is playoff tested, and a Hall of Famer. But he’s going on 37 and Felton guards the ball better. He’s been very efficient. The biggest edge Nash has is he shoots well-over 50% from the field. He doesn’t take bad shots. If he does, they usually go in.
I don’t think there’s much to the rumors anyway, but I’m curious to hear your thoughts.
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