Tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET the New York Knicks (9-19) will try to back up the confident words of embattled head coach Mike Woodson when they face the Atlantic Division leading Toronto Raptors (11-15) at Madison Square Garden. Live stream the game here; Knicks fans can hear the radio broadcast on 98.7 ESPN New York, while Raptors fans can do the same on Sports Net 590 The Fan.
The struggling Knicks were embarrassed on Christmas by the Oklahoma City Thunder, and the team leaders are being vocal about fixing the problems.
"We got to get better," center Tyson Chandler said. "The first thing we have to do is individually, we have to take accountability. That's the only way we're going to turn this thing around." Chandler returned from a multi-week absence due to a broken leg, but alone has not been able to cure New York's putrid defense.
They've lost three straight at home, but Chandler talked about digging deep and finding their pride in front of the Big Apple fans.
"We got to seize the moment," Chandler said. "They're coming to our house, we got to feel good about playing in the Garden. The Garden is our home, and we got to embrace it. We got to give our fans a show, we got to give them something to cheer about. ... We got an opportunity that we got to take advantage of."
Their shellacking against OKC happened without leading scorer Carmelo Anthony, who expects to be back from his sprained ankle tonight. "If he says he's ready to go, then we'll put him in uniform and play him," Woodson said. Raymond Felton is likely to miss tonight's contest with a hamstring strain. Who is or isn't on the floor matters little to scoring guard J.R. Smith, though.
"Whether Melo plays or doesn't, Ray plays or doesn't, everybody has to make plays," Smith said. "It's not like we can forfeit just because they're not here. We got to play, and if we want to win, we got to play the right way."
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