BOSTON — There is only one way for the narrative to change for Carmelo Anthony, and it's a simple task: win tonight. It doesn't matter if he shoots 14-for-16 or 4-for-26, doesn't matter if he carries the Knicks or goes along for the ride. The specifics will be worked out later. This is what can happen:
The Knicks can beat the Celtics, in Boston.
They can advance to the second round of the playoffs for the first time in 13 years. And Anthony can write his team's name on a winning playoff bracket for only the third time in his career. After all the craziness and zaniness of the past seven days, there is room for a satisfying ending for Melo. Win the game. Beat the Celtics. Survive and advance. And do it now.
NBAE/Getty Images
Carmelo Anthony, a career .456 shooter in the regular-season, has shot .417 in the playoffs and made it out of the first round just once — in 2009 with the Nuggets.
"It's not only just Melo, it's our team as a rule," Knicks coach Mike Woodson said yesterday following a brief practice session. "This is the first time we've assembled this team. There's a lot of guys who've played a lot of basketball but this is our first time together. Our goal has been to get out of the first round and that hasn't changed. And he's a big part of it."
That's what the coach has to say, of course, because every coaching mantra always involves some iteration of team over self. But there is no mistaking who carries the biggest burden in a moment like this. Anthony would anyway because he is the biggest name, the biggest star, the biggest paycheck.
KNICKS PLAYOFF SCHEDULE
PHOTOS: BEST PLAYOFF MOMENTS
But his playoff history weighs heaviest against his chest. Twenty games under .500 for his career. One year (and counting) out of 10 when he's seen the second round. And now: two of his worst games of the season arriving with the Knicks' first two opportunities to close out the Celtics and alter the conversation at last.
So, yes, it's true that there is no "I" in team.
But you do find M, E, L and O in "Camelot." And if the Knicks want to author a happy-ever-after story for themselves in this series, it means writing a final chapter for their best player that reads like it was written by Nicholas Sparks rather than Stephen King.
"As a teammate of his it matters a lot to me, because I came here with one goal in mind and that was to take the Knicks to the promised land," said Tyson Chandler, one of only three Knicks who have "Promised Land" stamped on their Passport. "We have the team to do that, and winning this series is essential to doing that. It's our time to make a run."
But it is also Anthony's time to put his frosty relationship with the NBA playoffs behind him. It has been possible to defend his record, spotty as it is, because his Nuggets were almost never the higher seed in the series they lost, and, especially in the deeper West, that always matters.
But even F. Lee Bailey would have a hard time making a case if Melo is the foundation player on the first team to let a 3-0 lead in a best-of-seven slip away. A few days ago, this seemed a foregone conclusion. A few days from now, it could be an un-erasable mark on his permanent record.
"He's had a couple of bad games," Woodson said. "That's playoff basketball. It happens. I'm expecting him to have a great game [tonight]."
That's really beside the point, of course. Melo could score 50, and if the Knicks lose, that's all that will matter. Same if he scores 5 and the Knicks win. The Knicks have to win this series to validate their season; Melo needs it to verify his status amid the game's elite. They are different goals that can be rectified by the same outcome.
Look, a year ago, in another Game 6 in Boston, LeBron James turned in the signature game of his career — maybe anybody's career — when he scored 45 points, grabbed 15 rebounds, made 19 of 26 shots and rescued the Heat's season. The moment the final buzzer sounded, LeBron's rep was altered, for the better, forever.
Melo's mission is simpler. The Knicks can still close with one more win. He doesn't need to go 45-15. He just needs a win. Win, and the narrative can change once and forever.
Lose?
Lose and the hours connecting late tonight and early Sunday afternoon will be the longest of his career. Maybe anybody's career.
michael.vaccaro@nypost.com
0 comments:
Post a Comment