SACRAMENTO, Calif. (NBA.com exclusive) -- Donte
Greene had a big smile on his face in the Sacramento Kings locker room
after Wednesday night's contest against the visiting New York Knicks.
And why wouldn't his grin be a mile wide?
The 6-foot-11 Greene was a monster at both ends of the court and a major factor in the Kings' 111-97 victory.
The
second-year forward from Syracuse set career highs in blocks (six) and
assists (five) and also tied his career high with 24 points in 35
minutes. He converted 6-of-7 3-pointers and was 9-of-13 shooting
overall.
"Donte Green was just amazing tonight, forget the fact
that he was shooting the ball well -- his decision-making and his
defense were what was so outstanding," Kings coach Paul Westphal said.
Greene mentioned that he hoped that people from Syracuse, where he played only as a freshman, were watching on Wednesday night.
Maybe then they'd understand why he entered the NBA Draft so early.
"I
think I showed all the Syracuse fans back in New York why I left school
early," Greene said. "This is my dream . . . and I had to make my own
decision (to leave school early)."
"It's fun and it feels good. I just go out and do what I do and I just love playing this game with all my heart."
Greene is currently in the starting lineup but says his starting status makes no difference to him.
"I
prepare myself every night like I'm starting -- trying to be as ready
as possible," said Greene, who didn't surprise himself with his six
blocked shots.
"I've been a shot blocker -- I was third in the league in the Big East," he said. "I am a shot blocker. It felt good."
Greene wasn't the only King to post impressive stats in the win over the Knicks (3-12).
Rookie
point guard Tyreke Evans went for 19 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists
and two steals in 39 minutes. It wasn't even a sure thing that he would
play because of a sore ankle.
"My ankle was really sore but I knew I had to go out there," Evans said.
He
ended up just one point short of scoring 20 points for the eighth
consecutive game. This would have been a Sacramento Kings' rookie
record.
"He would have liked to have gotten (20 points) but he
wasn't going to stay in the game and pad his stats," Westphal said.
"We're here to win the game and he understood that if he twisted his
ankle trying to pad his stats, that isn't professional. The attitude
that these guys have about putting the team first rather than trying to
get famous or get records, it's very impressive."
Evans was very aware that he was close to 20 points. He left the game for good with just under four minutes left to go.
"Toward
the end of tonight I was thinking to myself, just one more point,"
Evans said. "I knew I had 19. I was also trying to go for a
triple-double . . . I just couldn't get there."
Evans impressed Robinson.
"He's so aggressive going to the basket . . . he's going to be a good player in this league," Robinson said.
Spencer
Hawes (16 points), Sergio Rodriguez (15), Omri Casspi (11), Jason
Thompson (10) and Andrew Nocioni (10) also scored in double figures for
the Kings.
The Kings ended a four-game losing streak with this win, the largest margin of victory that they have posted this season.
David Lee and Nate Robinson both scored 25 points for the Knicks while Al Harrington tallied 17.
NEW YORK (NBA.com Exclusive) -- Al Harrington elevated to block Chris Paul's driving layup attempt late in the fourth quarter and then ran downcourt wagging his finger a la Dikembe Mutombo as the Madison Square Garden crowd roared in approval.
Harrington finished with 24 points off the bench, David Lee scored a season-high 28 and Larry Hughes had a season-best 20 in his first start as the Knicks earned their first victory of the season, 117-111, over Paul and the visiting New Orleans Hornets.
"We played unselfishly on offense and we played hard on defense. And when we can do those two things, we'll have a chance to win," said Lee, who scored on a variety of pick-and-rolls and added eight rebounds.
Chris Duhon, who last week publicly criticized his team's pre-game preparation, scored 13 of his season-high 18 points in the second half and added nine assists.
For the fourth straight game, the Knicks (1-3) surrendered more than 100 points. But they also outscored New Orleans 40-30 in the final period.
At least now when LeBron James comes to the Garden on Friday, he won't be facing a winless team.
On a night when LeBron's favorite baseball team, the Yankees, were involved in Game 5 of the World Series in Philadelphia, the Knicks were hardly the biggest sports story in the Big Apple.
But they'll take the win just the same.
"To get that first win, sometimes it gets a little hairy," Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni said with a laugh.-NBA.com Read More
New York Post-"CHARLOTTE -- The Knicks made a stirring comeback, rallying from a 21-point, first-half deficit, but they could not get the break needed to close out the night in a wild evening at Bobcats Arena.
In a game marked by Mike D'Antoni's curious use of Danilo Gallinari in the late stages, the Knicks suffered a heartbreaking, 102-100 defeat in double overtime.
The Bobcats survived on a questionable foul call against Al Harrington and a questionable decision by D'Antoni to bench Gallinari, his ace 3-point shooter, for too many key minutes. The Knicks fell to 0-2 and face the Sixers tonight in their home opener.
DOUBLE THE PAIN: The Knicks' Danilo Gallinari goes up for a shot against the Bobcats' Tyson Chandler during the Knicks' 102-100 loss in double-overtime last night.
The winning points came when Harrington blocked a driving layup by D.J. Augustin with 2.5 seconds left and the game tied. Harrington made contact with Augustin's body, but blocked it cleanly.
Harrington was fuming.
"It was a block and the referees know it," Harrington said. "I let him go by me and he jumped back into me. I guess people wanted to go home. It was a terrible call."
Augustin, who had missed two free throws moments earlier, sank both to give Charlotte a two-point lead that stood up.
After receiving a frantic inbounds pass, Gallinari fired from half-court and came up several feet short. But had Gallinari played during the majority of the overtime periods and the final minutes of the fourth quarter, matters may not have come down to that desperation heave.
Gallinari, who remained as a reserve, finished with 16 points in 23 minutes, caught fire during the Knicks' fourth-quarter comeback, when they outscored the cold-shooting Bobcats 27-13. But after committing his fifth foul with 5:42 left, D'Antoni pulled Gallinari and didn't put him back until 7.2 seconds left in regulation with the score tied, even as their offense sputtered.
Gallinari took the final shot -- a 3-pointer from straightaway -- but missed it short. D'Antoni, who spent preseason saying the Knicks will win close games because of Gallinari, sat him for the first overtime and almost all of the second. The Knicks finished shooting 38.8 percent.
Gallinari finally got off the pine with 50.7 seconds left in the second OT. Gallinari promptly hit a tough jumper over Stephen Graham, cutting it to two, then hit another jumper with 19.5 seconds left, slicing it back to two again.
D'Antoni said Gallinari's defensive matchup vs. Graham led him to sit him for most of the two OTs.
"I wanted to get Gallinari out there," D'Antoni said. "He made some big shots. I put him on Stephen and they went at him. I still don't know the team well enough. We'll figure it out."
