Knicks Fall, But Impress in Summer League Debut
Toney Douglas looks like an All-Star, at least when it comes to the NBA Summer League.
Playing in the first of five games in Las Vegas this summer, the returning point guard from the 2009-10 Knicks carried a squad filled mostly of rookies in the Knicks' 100-90 defeat to the Denver Nuggets at the Cox Pavilion on Sunday afternoon.
"I thought we played well," said Dan D'Antoni, the Knicks assistant coach who is serving as the Summer League entry's head coach. "We competed. We were playing a team that was playing their third game already, and this was our first. It takes time to gel and for some of these guys to shake nerves. But we competed and hustled and didn't give up. It was encouraging."
Douglas scored a team-high 27 points and added six rebounds and five rebounds in 35 minutes for New York, which features 13 rookies on the 17-man roster. Bill Walker, the third-year forward who shined for the Knicks last season after coming over from Boston at the trading deadline, added 14 points and two assists in 28 minutes.
The Knicks fell behind by seven after the first quarter and by 13 at the half, but they outscored the Nuggets by 11 in the third quarter and eventually tied the game early in the final period. But Denver quickly regained the advantage and once again pushed its lead to double digits midway through the fourth quarter.
"We put them in a lot of pick and rolls and were able to get back into the game," Walker said.
Ty Lawson led the Nuggets with 28 points and seven assists, while Coby Karl added 22 points and seven boards. Denver shot 56.4 percent from the field.
The Knicks' rookies also made solid contributions during their first NBA action. Landry Fields scored 13 points on 6-for-8 shooting off the bench and Andy Rautins chipped in 11 points. Jerome Jordan, whose draft rights were traded to New York from Milwaukee last week, had four points and two rebounds.
"I thought Landry and Rautins played well," said D'Antoni. "Again, they competed and showed flashes of what they are capable of. I thought they especially played well in the second half. With Jordan, he is a big guy but we were facing a lineup that was incredibly small. So I don't think we saw what he is capable of and it isn't really fair to assess him off this one game."
The Knicks will be back in action Monday at 4 p.m. ET when they take on the Lakers. The game will be broadcast on MSG, and immediately follwing the game, Andy Rautins will be conducting a live chat with fans on nyknicks.com
Playing in the first of five games in Las Vegas this summer, the returning point guard from the 2009-10 Knicks carried a squad filled mostly of rookies in the Knicks' 100-90 defeat to the Denver Nuggets at the Cox Pavilion on Sunday afternoon.
"I thought we played well," said Dan D'Antoni, the Knicks assistant coach who is serving as the Summer League entry's head coach. "We competed. We were playing a team that was playing their third game already, and this was our first. It takes time to gel and for some of these guys to shake nerves. But we competed and hustled and didn't give up. It was encouraging."
Douglas scored a team-high 27 points and added six rebounds and five rebounds in 35 minutes for New York, which features 13 rookies on the 17-man roster. Bill Walker, the third-year forward who shined for the Knicks last season after coming over from Boston at the trading deadline, added 14 points and two assists in 28 minutes.
The Knicks fell behind by seven after the first quarter and by 13 at the half, but they outscored the Nuggets by 11 in the third quarter and eventually tied the game early in the final period. But Denver quickly regained the advantage and once again pushed its lead to double digits midway through the fourth quarter.
"We put them in a lot of pick and rolls and were able to get back into the game," Walker said.
Ty Lawson led the Nuggets with 28 points and seven assists, while Coby Karl added 22 points and seven boards. Denver shot 56.4 percent from the field.
The Knicks' rookies also made solid contributions during their first NBA action. Landry Fields scored 13 points on 6-for-8 shooting off the bench and Andy Rautins chipped in 11 points. Jerome Jordan, whose draft rights were traded to New York from Milwaukee last week, had four points and two rebounds.
"I thought Landry and Rautins played well," said D'Antoni. "Again, they competed and showed flashes of what they are capable of. I thought they especially played well in the second half. With Jordan, he is a big guy but we were facing a lineup that was incredibly small. So I don't think we saw what he is capable of and it isn't really fair to assess him off this one game."
The Knicks will be back in action Monday at 4 p.m. ET when they take on the Lakers. The game will be broadcast on MSG, and immediately follwing the game, Andy Rautins will be conducting a live chat with fans on nyknicks.com
