Philadelphia 76ers defeat the New York Knicks in a blowout
With Philadelphia 76ers coach Doug Collins missing his second straight game, his team still managed an easy 118-91 win over the New York Knicks (3-4) last night in Philadelphia.
The 76ers (2-5), playing in their final pre-season game of the year, had associate head coach Michael Curry patrolling the sidelines, replacing Collins, who is suffering from symptoms
related to a concussion he suffered this past May.
Collins was undergoing tests yesterday and is expected to participate in Philadelphia’s practice in a couple of days. Curry said he was simply applying Collins’ system.
“It was all scripted by him,” Curry said of Collins.
Philadelphia guard Jason Kapono said even with his coach’s health issues, he remains intimately involved with the team he took over at the end of last season.
“First off, we hope coach is going to be OK,” Kapono said. “Coach is always into every detail in practice. He’s been calling and texting, so he has been involved. We didn’t know he was
not feeling well. We hope he gets back as soon as possible.”
The Sixers were led by 20 points apiece from Kapono and Andre Iguodala. Lou Williams finished with 18 points while Thaddeus Young chipped in with 14. Two Philadelphia players finished
with double-doubles, with Elton Brand scoring 16 points to go along with 11 rebounds while point guard Jrue Holiday notched 10 points and 11 assists.
The Sixers led the entire game, going 15-24 from the field in the third quarter to enter the final frame up a whopping 24 points. Kapono, known around the league as a three-point specialist,
scored the final 10 points of the third quarter for his team.
“Coach Collins has given me a green light to shoot,” said Kapono, who was 4-7 from behind the arc. “It’s a good feeling to keep shooting, even if I get off to a slow start.”
Raymond Felton led the Knicks with 16 points while Anthony Randolph and Landry Fields each had 15 on the night.
The Knicks were playing with a severely depleted roster. Amar’e Stoudemire, after a stellar 39-point output Tuesday night against the New Jersey Nets, was given the night off. The Knicks
were also without Kelenna Azubuike, Danilo Gallinari, Wilson Chandler, and centre Eddie Curry.
Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni is looking forward to quickly moving on from this one. “We’ll just throw that one away, get our guys back and regroup for Friday night."
When asked about the recent ESPN report suggesting the Knicks are increasing their efforts to acquire Carmelo Anthony from the Denver Nuggets, D’Antoni suggested he would have no problem
with the Knicks acquiring the three-time All-Star. “I can’t talk about it. I won’t talk about it,” he said before the game. “It’s an easy answer.”
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