Knicks vs. Lakers and The Problem With Early Returns

Today's throwback video takes us to November 11, 1990: An early season matchup between the New York Knicks and the Los Angeles Lakers from the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, California. This video features two legends facing off for teams that are in flux: one on its way in and one on its way out.

The New York Knicks entered the game 3-2, coming off of a win the night before in Sacramento. This was the second game of a 4-game west coast set. The Lakers were 1-2, playing their fourth game at a point in the season when most teams had played their fifth or sixth. 

The Knicks won on the road 109-103 over the Lakers, making it their third straight. LA's loss fell to 1-3 on the young campaign. The game was a back-and-fourth shootout on both sides, but the Knicks were able to pull away with a 11-4 run in the final 3:47 of the game. Patrick Ewing led New York with 27 points and 14 rebounds despite being triple-teamed on multiple occasions. Kiki Vandeweghe added 22 points, scoring 20+ for the third straight game.

Magic Johnson led the Lakers with a triple-double: 24 points, 15 rebounds, 14 assists. Byron Scott added 24 of his own. Despite big performances from Magic and Scott, the Lakers bench was outscored 32-19, which made a difference in the long run.

While it seemed like the two squads were trending in certain directions (the Knicks on the way up, the Lakers on the way down), things soon turned in opposite directions for both sides.

The Knicks would split the final two games of the west coast trip with an overtime win at Seattle and a high-scoring loss at Portland. From there, however, they would have two wins bookend a five-game losing streak. GM Al Bianchi saw this as an opportunity to fire head coach Stu Jackson and replace him with John MacLeod, a man Bianchi tried to hire in 1987 after being his assistant coach for 11 years in Phoenix. Bianchi would be fired midseason and John MacLeod would leave for Notre Dame after the season. The Knicks would end the campaign 39-43 and was swept by the eventually champion Chicago Bulls. Former Lakers coach Pat Riley would step in the following season.

The Lakers were starting the season slowly as they adjusted to new head coach Mike Dunleavy, who looked to establish more set plays than the Showtime Lakers were used to under Riley. Los Angeles would start the year 2-5 before reeling off 8 straight wins. They'd go on a 16-game win streak in January and February and finish the year 58-24. The Lakers would take the Western Conference crown in six games over defending conference champ Portland. They would fall in the NBA Finals to Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls, four games to one.

It goes to show that the season is a marathon. Early returns - like a few weeks in - don't always foretell how things will turn out over the course of 7 months. The grind is real!

Video courtesy of NBAOLDTWO. Marv Albert and John Andariese are on the call for MSG Network, with a special appearance from comedian Richard Lewis in the third quarter.

NBA 2015-16 All-Axed-Coaches Team

Derek Fisher was fired by the New York Knicks on Monday, making him the fifth head coach to be fired during the 2015-16 season. Photo Courtesy AP Photo/Lynne Sladky.

In-season coaching firings are nothing new in the NBA. Since 1980-81, there has always been at least one coach to get the axe over the course of the season. 9 coaches were dropped during the 2004-05 season and 8 were fired during the 2008-09 campaign. This season, 5 head coaches were let go with a sixth coach holding on to his job for now. There's a few teams that may make changes at some point, but things look quiet on the coach-slashing front for now.

So with the dust having settled, let's take a look at the best players to play during these released coaches' tenures. There are going to be some substantial names on this list, which may be a testament to these coaches' inability to cultivate the talent they had in these go-arounds. Some of these guys may get chances somewhere else, but for now we bid them farewell and nothing but the best.

COACHING TENURES COVERED

Kevin McHale: Houston 2011-2015

Jeff Hornacek: Phoenix 2013-2016

Lionel Hollins: Brooklyn 2014-2016

David Blatt: Cleveland 2014-2016

Derek Fisher: New York 2014-2016

POINT GUARDS

Kyrie Irving (Cleveland, 2014-2016)

100 games, 20.9 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 4.9 APG

Eric Bledsoe (Phoenix, 2013-2016)

124 games, 17.9 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 5.9 APG

Goran Dragic (Houston, 2011-12; Phoenix 2013-2015)

194 games, 16.3 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 5.2 APG

Kyle Lowry (Houston, 2011-12)

47 games, 14.3 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 6.6 APG

SHOOTING GUARDS

James Harden (Houston, 2011-2015)

285 games, 26.5 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 6.4 APG

Brandon Knight (Phoenix, 2015-2016)

53 games, 18.3 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 4.9 APG

SMALL FORWARDS

LeBron James (Cleveland, 2014-2016)

119 games, 25.1 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 7.0 APG

Carmelo Anthony (New York, 2014-2016)

87 games, 22.5 PPG, 7.2 RPG, 3.7 APG

Chandler Parsons (Houston, 2011-2015)

213 games, 14.1 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 3.3 APG

POWER FORWARDS

Kevin Love (Cleveland, 2014-2016)

125 games, 16.2 PPG, 10.0 RPG, 2.3 APG

Thaddeus Young (Brooklyn, 2014-2016)

81 games, 14.7 PPG, 7.9 RPG, 1.6 APG

CENTERS

Dwight Howard (Houston, 2013-2015)

154 games, 16.5 PPG, 11.7 RPG, 1.6 APG

Brook Lopez (Brooklyn 2014-2016)

125 games, 18.4 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 1.1 APG

Scenarioballin' on a Thursday

Kobe Bryant hosted the Bulls for a final time last night. On the court he finished with 10 points. In a game of Scenarioball, his 2-7 shooting from outside and 2 turnovers saw him finish the night with -1 points.

Yesterday I told you about a game I started playing to make the games I watch more interactive. I named it "Scenarioball", which may not be the most inventive sport name, but we're just going to roll with it. I decided to try out my game on TNT's Thursday Night doubleheader. Last night's slate consisted of the undermanned Knicks taking on the Raptors in Toronto, followed by the Bulls visiting Kobe for the final time as they took on the Lakers in LA. Here are my results:

The Knicks were able to keep the game somewhat close, losing 93-103 despite being without Carmelo Anthony, Kristaps Porzingis, and Jose Calderon. The Knicks were mostly blah outside of Afflalo going 3-for-3 from three and Vujacic going 3-for-6 from outside with 2 steals. The Raptors on the other hand were pretty fun to watch. Kyle Lowry knocked down a few treys and got a few steals, James Johnson got 4(!) blocks, and DeRozan, Ross, and Biyombo threw down a dunk each.

As a Bulls fan, it felt good to see them not play down to an opponent. This was a free win coming in and they took advantage with the decisive 114-91 victory. Jimmy Butler and Taj Gibson rose to the Scenarioball occasion by notching double-figures. They both had three dunks each, with Butler receiving two alley-oops. Butler also swiped four steals. The Lakers, though they were blown out in Scenarioball and in real life, defied my expectations. Brandon Bass, a guy I largely ignore, led the way with 5 points. D'Angelo Russell, a guy I'm really hoping pans out as an NBA player, was at the bottom with -3 points in 24 minutes of play.