Tracy McGrady: Game 2 in New York
Tracy McGrady’s first game as a New York Knick exceeded expectations for both minute allotment and overall performance. T Mac played a staggering 32 minutes dropping in 26 points on a variety of jumpers, slashing moves to the lane, also adding 5 assists and 4 boards while shooting 58.8% from the field.
However, McGrady had to sit the majority of the overtime period due to (He admitted post-game) being exhausted.
Considering the duration of time missed over the past two years and how he was underutilized in Houston this season, it is unimaginable to have foreseen this type of breakout performance in his first outing for the Knicks.
McGrady is looking to make New York fans believers.
McGrady’s 32 minutes are the first true starter-caliber minutes he’s played since February 9th, 2009.
McGrady’s shocking and inspirational game combined with David Lee to form a competitive dynamic duo, producing one of the Knicks’ most memorable games. Unfortunately, they lost in overtime. They are still the Knicks.
Had McGrady not run out of gas, and played more during overtime, a different outcome might have halted OKC’s current 9-game winning streak. But hey, the guy missed a lot of time and is coming back from microfracture surgery, so 32 minutes in a close overtime loss is good enough for his first game.
The Knicks showed up and competed against OKC and are a better team with McGrady starting. The 1-2 punch of T Mac and Lee has the potential to make attending a game at the Garden a worthwhile experience again for Knicks fans.
What I wonder now, especially since T Mac opened all of our eyes wide open on Saturday, will be how well will he performs in Madison Square Garden tonight against the Milwaukee Bucks.
How well will he bounce back after logging heavy minutes against an extremely athletic Thunder team? Will muscle fatigue and soreness in his knee render the second game back a dud, cause a reduction in minutes, or can he “will” himself to a solid performance?
The Knicks match up against a competitive Milwaukee Bucks team currently hovering around .500 (26-28), who, like New York, completed a trade prior to the trade deadline, acquiring John Salmons from the Chicago Bulls.
Like McGrady, Salmons has paid dividends for the Bucks, averaging 19 points in his first 2 games for the Bucks, both wins.
If he continues to play pain free, and conditioning improves, McGrady will continue to regain the skills he possessed prior to his derailment from the knee injury. If so, look for T Mac to have consistent and solid performances over the final stretch run.
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Mon, Feb 22, 2010 by Adam Sedie
News, Opinions