My America

I'm getting smarter.

At least in terms of how I watch the Knicks, I'm getting smarter.

I had last evening's game on from the end of the first quarter till the would-be tying Carmelo airball 3 at the buzzer. But I probably watched only 3-5min of actual game action. I just let the game glaze over in the background as I worked on my laptop. I know the score by now. I know how this movie ends.

[Sidebar: Speaking of movies, I was sure there had to be a movie called Freefall that was vaguely popular, because I got the idea to photoshop Melo's head onto whatever the movie poster looked like for this hypothetical movie––you'll see the fruits of this labor above. But much to my chagrin... slim pickings. It was either this made-for-the-BBC drama, or a German flick about gay cops. I think it came out OK for two minutes of work. /Sidebar]

In a way, this season stings pretty bad. At 22-22, it seriously looked like the Knicks were one of the best eight teams in the Eastern Conference, and the more optimistic fan was probably having pipe dreams about a 3 or 4-seed. (It was right around this time, I bought the mid-season, NYK-only NBA League Pass so you can blame me for the freefall if you'd like.)

The Knicks are now 24-35 and they cannot get out of their own damn way, losing games by blowout and by heartbreaker, and every which way in between. It's hard to swallow the pill that Melo's knee(s) are bum, and that's why we stink now (because get him out of there if he's injured). It's hard to swallow the pill that Jimmer can't play because of his defense when Calderon and Sasha are getting solid minutes (because there's literally no dropoff in that department). I'm not saying we'd better off with a Jimmer-led, Melo-less squad. That's crazy. But this is essentially the same roster that battled to a .500 record at the midway point (while playing a statistically harder schedule, mind you), so WTF happened?

Everybody's got a suggestion and MGMT has even taken a few stabs (fire that filanderer Fisher, Fil!), but after last night I'll be damned if the issue isn't wearing an orange headband (hint: #CarmeloAnthony).

The final two minutes last night––of which I watched at least 80 seconds––were textbook Knicks futility. You would have to find a pretty strong Marbury lowlight or maybe this clip or [insert Isiah Thomas comment/meme/gif], to find a better example of post-1999 shitiness. From Melo's inexcusable technical foul (the indomitable Myles Turner got in his head) to that very ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ airball attempt... well, that was quite the performance (he was 5 for 20 for the game overall, taboot).

The Melo Era got off to an OK start. People forget that. Three straight playoff appearances and even a series victory in 2013 put most Knicks fans off the stink. Yes, losing to a Roy Hibbert-led team in the second round was our new zenith. (【・ヘ・?】) Throughout, I was always a big Melo supporter, for the most part. It was always felt like we were genuinely better off for having his services. And there has been stretches even this season where he's looked as though he's playing the most 'complete' basketball of his career. (I even defended him starting the All-Star game a couple weeks ago! "I wish I knew how to quit you!" PS. I think I know now.)

Yet this is where we're at... we've never been worse. (Note: We were obviously worse last year, but Melo played less than half the season and had a much worse supporting cast.)

And I feel fine. This is my obit on the 2015-2016 run. Pack it in, folks. I would say the move was to T-A-N-K, but (in case you didn't know) Toronto has our pick.

Yes, this is a creepy gif of Andrea Bargnani winking I made, so what?

Whenever this happens during a Knicks season, I feel a large sense of relief. I can now just put the games on in the background. I don't need to get myself frazzled. I know the score.

Here are a few random notes to close out this New Yorks Knicks Postscript Blog Post Content Smorgasbord Supreme:

• I wish I hadn't purchased League Pass. What a waste of $$.

• I still have faith in Porzingis. (BUT––and this could be the depressed, battered Knicks fan talking––I'm no longer sure if he's THE piece to build around. He's definitely an awesome #2 guy at the very least, and he's only 20. I'd just be lying if I didn't admit I see some potential failings which would limit his potential to be a true SUPERSTAR.)

• My definitive position moving forward is "ditch Melo." My secret hope/wild & insane conspiracy theory is that Phil is sort of orchestrating some long(ish) con, which involves creating an untenable working situation, which in turn leads Melo to lifting his no-trade, and shipping him off for picks and/or prospects after the season. I feel like Kurt Rambis is a suicide-bomber-like cog in this wheel of deception, though please don't ask me why.

• So, that means I still have faith in Phil. (BUT, this faith is on very shaky ground. I was never gonna buy into his cultish bullshit, △ or otherwise. Bottom line is that he had never held this position before in his career, and to think it was a no-brainer that his coaching success would translate into front office success was never a sale I was just blindly gonna buy.)

And that's that.

"Goodnight you princes of MSG, you kings of New York City." See ya, 2015-16.