Spurs at Knicks
The New York Knicks' disastrous homestand finally reaches an end Sunday afternoon, but unfortunately it comes in a nationally televised matchup with the mighty San Antonio Spurs. The Knicks are 0-4 on the homestand - which notably included the dust-up between the organization and former player Charles Oakley - after an ugly 131-123 loss to Denver on Friday.
"We all should be embarrassed the way that we're playing," star forward Carmelo Anthony told reporters. "Nobody likes to lose. We have to do better. We have to do better as a team." Anthony added that things are even worse inside the organization than it might appear from the outside, which is saying something considering the negative attention garnered through the Oakley incident and the team's on-court play. The Spurs seem primed to take advantage of the situation, having won five of their last six games after a 103-92 victory at Detroit on Friday. San Antonio never trailed, led by 19 at halftime and easily improved to 19-4 against Eastern Conference foes.
TV: 3:30 p.m. ET, ABC
ABOUT THE SPURS (41-12): Kawhi Leonard scored 32 points and Dewayne Dedmon chipped in with a season-high 17 points and a career-high 17 rebounds in Friday's win. "He hit the board hard, he ran the floor," coach Gregg Popovich told the media of Dedmon, who has started the last six games. "His energy, his aggressiveness, his defense -- he was fantastic in that regard." The USC product is averaging 9.8 points and 10.6 boards in a five-game stretch, while regular starting center Pau Gasol nears a return from a broken finger.
ABOUT THE KNICKS (22-33): Anthony scored 33 points but was part of a starting five called out by coach Jeff Hornacek after they offered little resistance on the defensive end and were outscored 104-84 by Denver's starters. Hornacek also said he should have played his second unit more and that would have involved greater opportunity for big men Kyle O'Quinn and Willy Hernangomez, who combined for 28 points and 10 rebounds in 31 minutes. Amid all the turmoil, Anthony is averaging 29 points while shooting 57.9 percent from the field in the last three games.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Spurs PG Tony Parker has 17 assists and two turnovers over the last two games.
2. Hernangomez is averaging 12 points and 10.2 boards over a six-game span, both nearly double his season average in those categories.
3. San Antonio entered Saturday second in the NBA in scoring defense (98.7) while New York was 25th (109.4).