Suddenly, It's Woodson's Fault - New York Times

GREENBURGH, N.Y. '� On the day he inherited the Knicks '� the Linsanity, the insanity and the rest of it '� Mike Woodson was handed a singular challenge: get Carmelo Anthony to play like Carmelo Anthony. Everything else would fall into place.

At that moment, on March 14, 2012, Woodson was precisely the coach the Knicks needed. He was stern, direct, demanding, with a decidedly paternal touch '� as quick with a lecture as with a supportive pat on the back. And, critically, he was not Mike D'Antoni, whose system and coaching style had been rejected by Anthony, the franchise star.

Freed of a coach he did not want, Anthony responded and flourished, and Woodson reaped the benefits. The Knicks won 18 of their final 24 games in the 2011-12 season, earning Woodson universal praise, a 3-year contract and a rollicking honeymoon that unofficially expired Tuesday night at about 9:30 Eastern.

It ended with the dissonant blare of the final buzzer at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, which was soon followed by the dissonant blare of countless Twitter timelines, bursting with bewilderment and outrage after the Knicks' 93-82 loss to the Indiana Pacers.

The Knicks are facing a daunting 3-1 deficit in their Eastern Conference semifinal series. And Woodson is facing blistering criticism, for the first time since he assumed the job 14 months ago.

Across fan forums and blogs, the questions were the same Tuesday night:

� Why would Woodson abandon the small-ball lineup that got the Knicks this far?

� How did Pablo Prigioni go from invaluable starter to four-minute reserve?

� With the offense wilting for two weeks, why did it take so long to use Chris Copeland?

� Why was Copeland benched right after he made a 3-pointer that cut the deficit to 10 points in the fourth quarter?

� And what in the blazes is Jason Kidd still doing on the court after missing every shot he has taken in the last eight games?

'Blame it on me,' Woodson said Wednesday afternoon, in an attempt to deflect blame from J. R. Smith, who volunteered to take the heat a night earlier.

The statement was classic Woodson, an old-school coach who prefers that all criticism and praise be distributed equally across the bench. It is a page ripped from the handbook of his mentor, Larry Brown, who in times of trouble is fond of saying, 'I got to coach them better.'

If the Knicks fail to make the Eastern Conference finals, as it appears they will, there will be no shortage of worthy scapegoats.

Anthony, presumed to be the N.B.A.'s best scorer, has converted only 40.9 percent of his field-goal attempts in this series but is still stubbornly dominating the offense, using 36.2 percent of the team's possessions. Smith is shooting a ghastly 28.1 percent, making a mockery of his Sixth Man of the Year award. Tyson Chandler has been outworked by Roy Hibbert. Kidd is scoreless for the series.

The Knicks' once-fearsome offense is producing only 97.3 points per 100 possessions in the playoffs '� a mark that would have ranked last in the regular season.

The Knicks insist they are missing shots that they normally make, but the truth is they are finding few quality shots against Indiana's disciplined defense. Anthony has been blanketed by Paul George, whose ability to guard him one-on-one has allowed the Pacers to avoid double-teaming, thus leaving few openings to drive or shoot.

The Knicks won 54 games this season on the strength of their offense and were at their most dominant when the ball was moving, the floor was spaced, and Anthony and Smith were alternating good shots with smart passes. That identity has been lost, and Woodson has failed to do anything to restore it.

Instead, Woodson went the opposite direction in Game 4 on Tuesday. He abandoned the small lineup that gave the Knicks their edge. He started Kenyon Martin, a defensive-minded enforcer, in a failed attempt to counter the Pacers' size. He benched Prigioni, whose passing skills had been critical to the Knicks' offensive rhythm for two months. (Prigioni has the best plus-minus rating of any Knicks starter in the playoffs.)

Though the Knicks quickly fell behind by double digits, Woodson stuck with the big lineup for most of the night, thoroughly revamping his rotation in the 90th game of the season.

Amar'e Stoudemire started the fourth quarter, despite recently returning from a two-month layoff after knee surgery. It was a bewildering move on many levels, but Woodson stood by it.

'That didn't hurt us,' Woodson said. 'Last I checked, we won the third and fourth. It was a tie, I think, in the fourth quarter.'

The Knicks opened the fourth trailing by 11 points. By the time Stoudemire checked out, the deficit was 17.

Woodson was as strident in addressing his loyalty to the 40-year-old Kidd, saying, 'I'll never kick J-Kidd to the curb.'

Although he declined to explain Prigioni's reduced role, Woodson said he was 'contemplating' a return to the small lineup, acknowledging, 'That lineup has been great for us for two, three months, and I went away from it.'

Woodson has indisputably been a net positive for the Knicks, corralling a locker room of volatile characters and disparate talents and presiding over the franchise's best season in more than a decade. His failures in this series threaten to overshadow it all.

On Wednesday, Woodson abruptly canceled his weekly radio spot with ESPN's New York affiliate '� a first this season. If the Knicks falter again Thursday night at Madison Square Garden, there will be no escaping the backlash.

'Blame it on me,' Woodson said. As if the city needs any encouragement.

Source: http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&usg=AFQjCNEjdEIc_cmdl_xzWlgj_smKw_HgQw&url=http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/16/sports/basketball/suddenly-knicks-problems-are-coach-mike-woodsons-fault.html

Fix Penn Station Now; Raze $1 Billion Knicks Garden Later - Bloomberg

New York's grimy Madison Square Garden (MSG) has been an eyesore for all of its 50 years and hope has never died that one day the wrecking ball will swing.

But for the owners, the Dolan family, who are nearing the end of a $1 billion makeover, the Garden -- with its Knicks, Rangers and musical acts -- is a wonderful cash cow.

It's perched atop the depressing, low-ceilinged maze known as Penn Station, daily hive for 600,000 scuttling commuters.

The Garden's presence is one major impediment to the 25-year-old dream of turning the decrepit and overcrowded Penn station into a smoothly operating city gateway.

Then there's the bureaucratically toxic stew that includes three cash-strapped railroads (The Long Island Railroad Co., New Jersey Transit Corp. and Amtrak) and the nearly bankrupt U.S. Post Office.

Now the Municipal Arts Society is turning up the heat on a languishing plan to transform Penn Station.

At issue is the Garden's operating permit, which has expired. The Dolans want it extended in perpetuity. Advocates would like the city to renew the permit for as little as 10 years, during which time a relocation plan could be devised.

(A plan to move the Garden a block west to rise within the stone walls of the Farley Post Office Building in 2008 fell through.)

Lost Cause

Moving the Garden is probably a lost cause in the short term, since the Dolans have been flushing millions into the brown monster for three years now. The $1 billion the family says it will ultimately spend so far entails little more than rejiggering the seating bowl for better sightlines.

In truth, Penn can be vastly improved around the Garden. The arena roofs a considerable chunk of the station, but there are acres of ugly, useless plazas that are fair game to create expanded and more welcoming railroad entrances. Skylights and clerestories can be punched in to help create a civilized experience for travelers.

The station runs under the Garden so passenger movement and services for the railroads can be organized on a single, broad, easily navigated concourse. (Now they are Balkanized in separate mazelike fiefdoms on three different levels.)

A deal to extend the operating permit must assure the flexibility needed to improve the station. And it must insist on a vastly improved flow into the arena, especially at the dreadful entry through the Two Penn Plaza office building and over an especially ugly bridge that happens to occupy prime real estate above a no-longer-used driveway.

Architectural Ballet

These essential improvements are also architectural opportunities.

The station could choreograph the movement of people among station, subways and arena into an architectural ballet bathed in gorgeous light drawn from above. A talented architect could recapture much of the glory of the 1910 McKim Meade & White station, demolished to widespread horror in 1963.

The other Penn wild card is a long-planned additional tunnel to New Jersey. It is needed to handle a large expected increase in travel demand. In the latest of a long line of political grandstands that has tortured the Penn project, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie canceled the tunnel in 2010.

The plan needs to be revived and improved in a way that will genuinely extend Penn, as opposed to the murdered plan, which abetted a completely separate station.

The Municipal Art Society has asked four teams of architects to rethink the Penn plan. I hope at least one will design around the continued presence of the Garden and will create a persuasive extension to the new tunnel.

The essential plan, though, would find a way to supply backbone to the politicians essential to getting the station overhauled.

(James S. Russell writes on architecture for Muse, the arts and culture section of Bloomberg News. He is the author of 'The Agile City.' The opinions expressed are his own.)

Muse highlights include Ryan Sutton on dining, Jeremy Gerard on theater, David Shribman on books.

To contact the writer of this column: James S. Russell in New York at jamesrussell@earthlink.net. http://web.me.com/jscanlonrussell

To contact the editor responsible for this column: Manuela Hoelterhoff at mhoelterhoff@bloomberg.net.

Enlarge image Penn Station

James S. Russell/Bloomberg

Rush-hour at the main entrance to Penn Station in New York. The station has 600,000 commuters daily.

Rush-hour at the main entrance to Penn Station in New York. The station has 600,000 commuters daily. Photographer: James S. Russell/Bloomberg

Enlarge image Penn Station

Allison Joyce/Getty Images

The exit of the Long Island Railroad platform at Penn Station. The Municipal Arts Society has asked four teams of architects to rethink and improve the Penn Station plan.

The exit of the Long Island Railroad platform at Penn Station. The Municipal Arts Society has asked four teams of architects to rethink and improve the Penn Station plan. Photographer: Allison Joyce/Getty Images

Enlarge image Penn Station

Morning rush hour at Penn Station, beneath Madison Square Garden. The Dolan family, which owns the venue, wants to have its expired license extended.

Morning rush hour at Penn Station, beneath Madison Square Garden. The Dolan family, which owns the venue, wants to have its expired license extended. Photographer: Mario Tama/Getty Images

Enlarge image Madison Square Garden

Madison Square Garden in New York, owned by the Dolan family. The venue hosts lucrative Knicks and Rangers games, as well as musical acts.

Madison Square Garden in New York, owned by the Dolan family. The venue hosts lucrative Knicks and Rangers games, as well as musical acts. Photographer: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg

Enlarge image Madison Square Garden

Madison Square Garden in New York. The operating permit for the venue has expired.

Madison Square Garden in New York. The operating permit for the venue has expired. Photographer: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg

Source: http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&usg=AFQjCNHiOAztAjNLQhX2qNLqvW1xWBOWWg&url=http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-15/fix-penn-station-now-raze-1-billion-knicks-garden-later.html