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The last time we played the Knicks we went into the game with 1 win and 4 losses. The Knicks were 4-3 at the time. The Spurs came out with a starting lineup of George Hill, Roger Mason, Ime Udoka, Tim Duncan, and Fabricio Oberto. It’s hard to believe that game and tonight’s contest will have actually occurred in the same season.

For me, this game is all about the continuing Popovich/D’Antoni saga. Popovich has pretty much single-handedly destroyed the dreams of so many happy-go-lucky NBA fans who believed D’Antoni would usher in a new era of fun-and-gun ball. The scores would be astronomical; you could get whiplash by merely considering the pace. But alas, a utopia free of the trappings of defense could not be built in the deserts of Arizona.

D’Antoni has brought his particular brand of basketball to the Big Apple and to his credit, the team has improved (although one could argue they had nowhere to go but up). Donnie Walsh has traded away much of the talent Mike had to work with, so the team has slipped since its surprisingly solid start but D’Antoni deserves credit for what he has done in such little time. But let’s all be honest, D’Antoni and Walsh are kind of just spinning their wheels, hoping that when the tectonic plates shift in 2010, everything shakes out in their favor.

Broader narrative aside, Pop will do what he always does: Forgo the offensive board, drop two men back, and make them beat us in the half-court for 48 minutes. The game starts at 7:30 Eastern/6:30 Central. Go Spurs.

Further Reading:

48 Minutes of Hell: The Notebook: Spurs-Knicks, 11/11/08

The Blowtorch: Mike D’Antoni is Dismayed

Knicks Coverage: KnickerBlogger