Knicks gambling on J.R. in the clutch

Knicks gambling on J.R. in the clutch

Ron Antonelli/New York Daily News

Shooting guard J.R. Smith is a key piece to the NY Knicks’ playoff push.

Not even John Starks the original hand grenade in high tops could prepare Knicks fans for J.R. Smith.

He is instant offense and instant agita. The player covered head-to-toe with tattoos, Smith is a one-man, 48-minute drama every night.

MELO & SMITH TEAM UP TO TAKE DOWN BUCKS

His performance in W ednesdays 111-107 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks was classic Smith. He twice fouled Mike Dunleavy in the act of shooting a three-pointer. His poor decisions in the second quarter earned him a quick hook, affording Smith the opportunity to collect his thoughts on the bench while clipping his finger nails.

And just when all appeared lost, Smith made several key plays in the final period, including sinking the decisive three with 1:04 left.

Im hoping I can get any chance at an open look, Smith said after the key win. I wasnt having the best game all-around. My individual defense was terrible tonight. Its something Ive got to keep working on and get better at.

The Knicks enter Fridays home game against the Washington Wizards with a chance to solidify their playoff positioning.

Wednesdays win moved them two games ahead of Milwaukee for eighth place and the final playoff spot, one game behind seventh-place Philadelphia.

The Atlantic Division title remains a remote possibility because Boston, which visits the Garden on Tuesday, is four games up with eight games remaining. The Knicks are also four games behind fifth-place Atlanta and Orlando so, barring nothing short of a minor miracle, the Knicks are in line to play either Chicago or Miami in the first round.

A playoff berth and winning a postseason game the latter of which the Knicks havent done since 2001 would improve the chances of coach Mike Woodson losing the interim label. Woodson is 12-4 since replacing Mike DAntoni, and one of his reclamation projects is Smith, who up until Wednesday hadnt done much with the Knicks other than receive a $ 25,000 fine from the NBA for posting a semi-nude picture of a woman on his Twitter account.

Last week, Woodson met with Smith following a practice in Orlando and implored him to conduct himself as a professional both on and off the court. Woodson then sounded like a frust rated parent when he said that he urged Smith to pull up his pants.

I need J.R., Woodson said. Im a big believer in J.R. I told him that after the game. Im in his corner and Im going to do everything I can to see that hes successful for this ballclub. I think he has a talent and he showed it at the end of the game. He hit that big three.

Woodson is living and dying with Smith, whom he seems to prefer over Landry Fields in the fourth quarter. And with the Knicks point-guard situation unsettled to say the least, Woodson is gambling that the backcourt duo of Iman Shumpert and Smith can make proper decisions in the final minutes.

Shumpert had another strong defensive game, holding Monta Ellis to six fourth-quarter points. Smith, meanwhile, led all scorers with eight fourth-quarter points, including his biggest shot since joining the Knicks. At one point, Woodson was running a two-man game with Smith and Carmelo Anthony, but when Ellis ran u nder the screen, Smith decided to take an open shot.

Woodson, a charter member of the Larry Brown School of Play the Right Way, smiled when asked if that was the shot he wanted in that situation.

When it went in I thought great shot, Woodson said. All coaches think like that. In the heat of the moment I put Melo in the two-man game, thanks to my staff. They were shouting in my ear about that. It worked perfectly.

Smiths relationship with Anthony they were teammates with the Nuggets and share the CAA agency are the main reasons why Garden chairman James Dolan signed the guard out of China. Having regained his form in recent weeks, Anthony is putting up big numbers every night. It would have made sense for Anthony to take the games biggest shot, but he was fine with Smiths decision. On one condition, however.

If youre going to shoot it, make it, Anthony said. Thats my thing. He shot it with confidence.