“Jeremy Lin is a good player but all the hype is because he’s Asian. Black players do what he does every night and don’t get the same praise.”

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HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Somebody was going there. Thankfully, it was boxer Floyd Mayweather, and not an NBA player.

Mayweather recently tweeted Lin was being praised because he’s Asian, and African-American players do what he does 'every night' without getting praised.

Not true.

Perhaps 'Money' Mayweather took too many shots to the dome in his controversial win against Victor Ortiz.

Lin is posting epic numbers. He’s the only player in NBA history to average over 20 points and 7 assists in his first four starts.

Best of all, the struggling Knicks have won five straight since Coach Mike D’Antoni took the shackles off Lin and increased his role.

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J.R. Smith officially becomes Jeremy Lin's teammate today, that lucky gun of a son.

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HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Do they need another scorer, especially one with a reputation for clashing with coaches and the organization?

Talent isn’t the issue with J.R. Smith. He’s a dynamic talent, capable of shooting the lights out from beyond the arc, while also aggressively attacking the basket.

Smith, who is confident and self-assured, will want minutes, touches, and shots, though. Superstar Carmelo Anthony, when he returns from injury, will want the same.

Then there’s Amar’e Stoudemire. Anthony’s shot-first mentality has turned the perennial All-Star into a $100 million blue-collar post who only rebounds and blocks shots.

Of course, Smith, Anthony, and Stoudemire have to fit next to NBA sensation Jeremy Lin, who has turned around the Knicks and captivated the basketball world.

Two large personalities, Anthony and Stoudemire, are enough -even in an up-and-down, all-you-can-shoot system like Mike D’Antoni’s.

So, why add Smith?

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"Man, listen, George needs to keep his mouth shut, first and foremost," Martin said. "Melo don't play there no more. So Karl shouldn't be commenting on Melo. If George was such a great coach, then Melo would want to stay. He wouldn't want to leave. "If the organization was ran right, he wouldn't want to leave, so it ain't Melo. With Melo, not one time when he was there did he bring that in the locker room when all that stuff was going on. Not one day. Everybody made it a bigger deal than it had to be. That's a good kid.

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So will D’Antoni look into tinkering with the starting five, even bringing Lin off the bench? It could [change],’’ D’Antoni said. “I’m trying to find the right combos. But it’s got to be determined over time. It’s not going to be over one game. Not going to just throw people under the bus for one or two games. Over a length of time, if they prove they need to be out there, they’ll be out there.’’

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HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Experience could trump youth.

New York Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni is right to say there’s a possibility Baron Davis could eventually replace Jeremy Lin in the starting line-up.

Sure, Lin sparked a turnaround that likely saved D‘Antoni‘s job. Sure, Lin is a media darling. And sure, fans love Lin, the NBA’s Cinderella.

The NBA is a results-orientated business, though. And D’Antoni’s only loyalty is to the player or players who provide the Knicks with the best chance at winning.

Davis, a former All-Star who struggled with conditioning and injuries, is wonderfully talented, but will still struggle if given extended minutes.

The best case scenario: a two-headed point guard monster with Lin and Davis splitting time.

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Except that the Knicks with Jeremy Lin started to look a lot like they did without him. They were 8-15 when Lin fell into their laps and are 18-22 today and need to win a ballgame, and keep winning ballgames, or maybe people will start wondering if (Mike) D’Antoni is even going to make it to the end of the season that Jeremy Lin was supposed to have saved for him.

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HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Jeremy Lin is not the Messiah. He’s a young point guard trying to find his way in the NBA.

Lin can’t save Mike D’Antoni’s job as coach of the New York Knicks. And he can’t save the Knicks from the dysfunctional Carmelo Anthony.

Remember, the Knicks were decent before selling the farm to acquire Anthony from the Nuggets one year ago.

Owner James Dolan wanted Anthony so GM Donnie Walsh reluctantly traded for the forward -even though he knew the shot-first small forward would clash with Amar’e Stoudemire.

D’Antoni’s run-and-gun style won’t work with Anthony, who must be the focal point of any system he‘s in. So it’s a ‘fait accompli’ that the former coach of the year will lose his job.  

Anthony has the backing of ownership. D`Antoni does not. Lin can’t change this.

Got thoughts? Well, get at HoopsVibe News in the comment box below.

Carmelo Anthony has told a confidant that he prefers a trade from the Knicks before the deadline, according to a source.  Anthony reportedly believes Mike D'Antoni and Glen Grunwald do not trust him. He is surprised that his opinion hasn't been sought more on personnel moves. “The organization makes believe his opinions don’t matter,’’ the source said.

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HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Of course, Mike D’Antoni has lost the New York Knicks.

D'Antoni lost the NBA’s flagship franchise the moment owner James Dolan forced him and GM Donnie Walsh to acquire Carmelo Anthony from the Denver Nuggets.

D’Antoni didn’t want Anthony. Neither did Walsh. They sacrificed a decent team to land the one-dimensional scorer and appease Dolan, the man who signs their pay cheque.

Anthony, since arriving at Madison Square Gardens, has refused to buy-in to D’Antoni’s system. Instead, he’s trying to make the coach and teammates buy-in to his system of shooting at will.

Not surprisingly, it hasn't worked.

Here’s the problem: D’Antoni can’t hold Anthony accountable for insubordination. The small forward is armed with a three-year, $60 million contract and still has Dolan’s support.

Then there’s D’Antoni’s contract -as in he doesn’t have one beyond this year. Dolan and/or Walsh haven’t extended him, which means he’s a lame-duck.

The players know this, too. So the headstrong Knicks are unlikely to follow D’Antoni’s orders, preferring to ‘get theirs’ and ‘do their’ thing.

Add it up and there’s only one outcome: D’Antoni’s gone.

Got thoughts? Well, get at HoopsVibe News in the comment box below.       

Mike D'Antoni has resigned as coach of the New York Knicks, sources confirmed for ESPN on Wednesday. D'Antoni's resigned was first reported by Yahoo! Sports.

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HoopsVibe`s Very Quick Call: No surprise here.

For months, there's been an obvious disconnect between Mike D'Antoni's style of play and the Knicks` roster.

Several players have openly defied the former coach of the year. For instance, recent reports have superstar Carmelo Anthony refusing to stand in the correct spot on offense, which compromises spacing for pick-and-rolls.

Today, the media had the Knicks on the verge of mutiny. Anthony supposedly asked for a trade; the player liked but did not respect D'Antoni; Baron Davis, and several others, were upset about playing time.

D'Antoni, who is in the final year of his contract, saw the situation, specifically the unrealistic expectations, as untenable and quit rather than get fired.

Now the Knicks have a handful of game to secure a playoff spot and salvage what they can from the season.

Whatever happens, a summer makeover is inevitable. Such dysfunction can’t continue. 

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“It’s everybody’s ball club,” Woodson said after practice Thursday, when he was asked if the Knicks were once again Anthony’s team, as they were before Jeremy Lin briefly took over. “I want everybody to feel comfortable. When I put a guy in the game, if he’s got a shot, I want him to feel comfortable about making that shot.”But then he spoke more bluntly, saying that he wanted everybody to know that when “I’ve got to get a big shot, I’m going to go to Melo and Amar’e and guys that have done it,” a reference to Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire.“A lot of these guys are young,” Woodson said in reference to their teammates. “They’re still trying to figure it out.

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HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: ‘Linsanity’ was fun while it lasted, right?

Two days ago, Mike Woodson was named interim coach of the New York Knicks after Mike D’Antoni resigned. And he’s made two major decisions since taking over the bench at Madison Square Gardens.

First, Jeremy Lin’s role will decrease. And second, Carmelo Anthony’s role will increase.

Bottom line: Woodson gets who his meal ticket is.

After all, D’Antoni left, in large part, because he challenged Anthony’s authority, even attempting to trade him to the New Jersey Nets for Deron Williams.

Woodson won’t make the same mistake. He’ll turn the team over to Anthony, running iso’ after iso’ for the small forward.

This, of course, was the plan one year ago when owner James Dolan forced GM Donnie Walsh to break up an emerging team and acquire Anthony from Denver

And Lin, who a month ago was the buzz of the sports world, will watch these changes while, in all likely-hood, on the bench.

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Anthony became a controversial figure after Mike D'Antoni 's departure as reports insinuated he was at odds with his former coach. But Anthony maintained that he was an innocent bystander in the process, and in the past few days, he has tried to revamp his image into a team-first guy who not only welcomes but seeks criticism. "When he got the job, I told him, 'Hold me accountable,' " Anthony said of Woodson. "I don't have a problem with criticism. If I can do something to help better this team, let me know. And he's been doing that."

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HoopsVibe’s Very Quick: Well, there’s a first time for everything.

Carmelo Anthony saying he wants New York Knicks interim coach Mike Woodson to hold him accountable is interesting because nobody has ever done, or even tried, such a thing.

Think about it: Anthony has received the VIP, red carpet treatment since arriving in the NBA in 2003. And this has resulted in more ‘get out of jail free cards’ than one can count.

After all, Kiki Vandeweghe, Jeff Bzdelik, and Nuggets ownership swept his early indiscretions under the rug, while respected Coach George Karl was undercut when trying to discipline Anthony.

Then there was Mike D’Antoni, a one-time coach of the year and assistant with USA Basketball. The former New York sideline boss only asked Anthony to be ready to play, to share the ball, and to have fun.

When Anthony balked at such lofty expectations, D’Antoni went to his boss, owner James Dolan, to pursue a trade. Dolan refused, encouraged D’Antoni to resign, and empowered Anthony.

Bottom line: nobody has ever held Anthony accountable. Not once.

It doesn’t matter that he hasn’t won anything. And it doesn’t matter that his only playoff success in Denver came because teammate Chauncey Billups was an MVP candidate.

Anthony demands, and gets, superstar treatment.

So it’s hard to see Woodson, an interim coach, truly holding Anthony, a star with the backing of ownership, accountable.

Got thoughts? Well, get at HoopsVibe News in the comment box below.

Apparently, even Phil Jackson was shocked that the Lakers decided to hire Mike D'Antoni instead of the Zenmaster himself.

Hoopsvibe's quick call:  So are we, Phil.  So are we.

The Lakers lost again last night, and their performance has been so sub-par lately that hearing them lose is no longer coming as a surprise.

Hoopsvibe's quick call:  They are going to have to step up their game in a lot of areas if they want to be a competitive team in the Western Conference this season.

How much more Mike D’Antoni can the Knicks and the city of New York stomach? With his arrival, Knicks fans were promised to never again feel the way they are feeling now.

The Knicks just need to look at the other bench tonight to see what their offense is supposed to look like. Nash, who ran D’Antoni’s system to perfection, was averaging an NBA-high 10.1 assists before last night’s 118-97 loss to the Bulls, even though he will turn 38 next month. That’s why The Post has reported the Knicks plan to target Nash (along with Jameer Nelson and Raymond Felton) with this summer’s $5 million mid-level exception.

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HoopsVibe's Very Quick Call: Nothing new here.

The New York Knicks are reportedly interested in Phoenix Suns point guard Steve Nash, and will try to sign the sure-fire Hall of Famer this summer when he becomes a free agent. 

After all, the Knicks are coached by Mike D'Antoni, Nash's old coach and mentor. And they need a reliable table-setter to deliver the ball to scorers Carmelo Anthony and Amar'e Stoudemire. And Nash lives in New York during the summer, so the transition would be easy.

In fact, the only surprise is the Knicks waiting until summer. Why not pursue Nash now and enhance their chances of playoff run?

Well, the Suns and their two-time MVP are playing chess. Both sides know a parting of the ways is inevitable, but neither wants to make the first move.

Sun fans would never forgive owner Robert Sarver for dealing Nash. And they'd never see Nash in the same light if he requested a trade.

This, however, won't stop the Knicks from pursuing Nash. Not now, and not six months from now if he gets to free agency.

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D'Antoni on Rondo: "I'd like to see him on Minnesota and see how well he does." But quickly adds, "He's a really good player."

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HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Mike D’Antoni should’ve been worrying about his New York Knicks beating Rajon Rondo and the Boston Celtics.

After all, D’Antoni’s Knicks were trailing their series 3-0 when he spouted off on whether Rondo could succeed without The Big Three on a weaker squad like the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The sideline boss had to field a team without starting point guard Chauncey Billups. Instead of preparing a solution like, say, inserting veteran Anthony Carter earlier on, D’Antoni provided bulletin board material for Rondo.

Know this: Rondo would be a player in The Frozen Tundra of ‘Sota -or anywhere else, for that matter. He’d pile-up assists with Michael Beasley, Kevin Love, and anybody else.

And Rondo makes his squad go, as demonstrated by his 21 points and 12 assists in game four against the Knicks. Now his Celtics are going to the second round after sweeping D’Antoni’s Knicks.

--Oly Sandor.

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After the buzzer, (Carmelo) Anthony sat alone on the Knicks bench long after his teammates left the court. Asked what he was thinking, the Brooklyn native said, "This ship is going to turn right."  For now, the ship be sinking -- to borrow Micheal Ray Richardson's famous Knicks quotation.

"We just got to a point where I thought we panicked," coach Mike D'Antoni said. "This is a work in progress and we have a month to get this thing figured out. If we can figure out fourth quarters, we can get a lot smoother. With two scorers on the floor like Carmelo and Amar'e, we just have to figure it out." We're going to get it right," Anthony said. "There's no need to panic."

"I do not think (the Knicks) can win with that system. I saw it in Phoenix. And let me tell you something, they had a lot more talent in Phoenix. A lot more. Let me just tell you this -- the three most critical areas of the game are defense, rebounding and turnovers. That's one of the fundamental flaws of that system."

I didn't leave the NBA washed or banged up..Mike D'anPHONY didn't let me contribute my last year..he was determined not me play me..HATER. 

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HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Gee, ever wonder why Jalen Rose hasn’t made it big as an analyst?

After retiring from the NBA, Rose was seen as the next big thing in the broadcast booth. Many were predicting he’d give TNT stars Charles Barkley and/or Kenny Smith a run on the mic`.

Well, they were wrong.

While Rose hasn’t flopped, his second career hasn’t gone as planned, either. Currently, he’s a secondary analyst for ESPN, and calling a former coach - who happens to ply his trade in the league’s biggest market – a ‘HATER’ won’t help.

Oh yeah, let the record show Mike D’Antoni’s Phoenix Suns went 61-21 in 2006-07, which was Rose’s final season in the NBA.

--Oly Sandor.

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The Knicks have reportedly discussed a sign-and-trade with the Cavs for free agent Shaquille O'Neal.

Reports, however, have O'Neal headed to Atlanta for Marvin Williams. A Knicks source said, "I don't think it would work with us on all kinds of levels."