WILLIAM BOTCHWAY’S POSTGAME REACTION

Today’s Knicks game showed me something about this team, and it makes me feel a lot better about their playoff chances. The Knicks didn’t win in their traditional style by being an offensive team, chucking as many three pointers as possible. They shot 40% overall and 36% from behind the arc. The really impressive part about this game one victory was the Knicks’ ability to stymie the Celtics with great defense, as New York forced 20 turnovers. Boston only scored 25 points in the second half after scoring 29 in the first quarter alone. They also were only able to muster 8 points in the fourth quarter. This was more of a statement about the Knicks’ commitment to the defensive end of the floor than it was to the Celtics’ inability to shoot or run the offense. In fact, they were doing a pretty nice job of running their plays, but the Knicks weren’t giving anything up easily. The Knicks didn’t play that well; Carmelo and Earl “Pipemaster” Smith shot low percentages. But they still got the win, and it is always a good sign when a team can seemingly pull a victory out of their a$$. The Knicks will play better throughout the playoffs, which is a scary thought for all teams.

Also, you have got to love the fact that James White played a total of 15 seconds at the end of the third quarter.