Curry Becomes Top Scoring Option, Just as Planned

Curry becomes top scorer for knicks in the past few games
link:There is nothing subtle about a 300-pound man-child bounding to the basket, dunking and woofing as he goes. This is only appropriate, because there is nothing subtle about the transformation the Knicks are undergoing with Isiah Thomas on the bench and Eddy Curry roaming the lane.

As the team president, Thomas acquired Curry in a risky and much-criticized trade with the Chicago Bulls. As the coach, Thomas is making Curry’s development his top priority, and it is starting to pay dividends.

Curry, the 6-foot-11 center, has scored at least 20 points in four consecutive games, by far his best streak since joining the Knicks last year. Curry leads the team with six 20-point games this season — twice as many as the Knicks’ high-powered starting guards, Steve Francis and Stephon Marbury, combined.

None of this is by accident. When Thomas traded for Curry, he viewed him as an offensive centerpiece — a franchise player who could anchor the Knicks for the next decade. Upon becoming coach this season, Thomas immediately designated Curry the No. 1 scoring option. The better Curry has played, the stronger Thomas’s rhetoric has become.

Thomas was never clearer about his vision than Wednesday afternoon, before the Knicks’ 101-98 victory in Cleveland.

“Where Eddy’s at right now, he definitely will become a go-to guy,” Thomas said. “That’s one of the subtle changes that’s happened in our team, is the point and the direction of the ball is starting to go and focus more inside, which is forcing some changes out on the perimeter. There’s a natural growth process that will happen, and it’s happening in our team, although it’s not showing up in terms of wins and losses. But I feel good about the direction that we’re going and the way our team is taking hold.”

It was a prescient speech. A few hours later, Curry scored the winning basket on a dunk with 46.5 seconds left. He also hit a free throw to complete a 3-point play, which forced the Cavaliers to attempt a 3-pointer on their final possession. Donyell Marshall shot an air ball.

Since Patrick Ewing began his decline in the late 1990s, the Knicks have been dominated by perimeter players. Ewing was the last big man to lead them in scoring, with 17.3 points a game in the lockout-shortened 1999 season. In the seven seasons that followed, the Knicks were led in scoring by Allan Houston four times and by Marbury the past three. Curry, at 15 points a game, is now second on the team.

Thomas, a former point guard, has shown an affinity for guards, acquiring Marbury, Jamal Crawford, Quentin Richardson and Steve Francis in trades over the past three years.

Obtaining Marbury once figured to be Thomas’s signature move. And Marbury, a native of Coney Island, once figured to be the star who would rescue his hometown team. That no longer appears likely.

The 23-year-old Curry is emerging as Marbury is fading. This, too, is no coincidence. The motion offense Thomas installed calls for ball and player movement, which means Marbury is no longer dominating the ball or the scoring load. He has struggled with a reduced role, shooting 39 percent from the field and averaging 10.1 points.

Nate Robinson signatures released!

ClubKnicks member The Force has released two sigs with our young gun player Nate Robinson himself!

Nate Robinson signature created by The Force