Tracy McGrady made an unforgettable debut as a New York Knick tonight. While Kevin Durant would have the last laugh tonight and lead the Thunder to victory, it was McGrady’s poised performance that will leave the Knicks fans with something to talk about around the water cooler this week. Coming into tonight’s game, McGrady had only appeared in six games this season (none of which he played more than eight minutes) with ten points being his season high. While the Rockets hadn’t considered him physically fit enough to play this season (as he had still been recovering from micro-fracture surgery on his knee), in all likelihood they just didn’t see him fitting into their future plans. McGrady had insisted all along that he was ready to start playing again, and in his first night as a Knick he showed it.
Coach Mike D’Antoni started McGrady with the logic that he would be loose and ready to play immediately following warm-ups. The fans let out a collective cheer the first time McGrady caught the ball on the wing, and he continued to give them reason to cheer throughout the game. While McGrady might have looked a step slower than he was in his prime, he conducted himself as the star he likely believes himself to be. He came out with a swagger, making shifty drives to the hoop, working the pick-and-roll to perfection, and knocking down mid-range jump shots. It was great to see McGrady’s out there catching the ball on the wing with his back to the basket, then turning slightly to assess the defense while palming the ball with his outstretched arm – and then just making consistently sound decisions.
The young Thunder players treated McGrady with the attention that any superstar would demand, often bringing double-teams for added pressure. But McGrady kept the show going. Among his first half highlights were two “and one” layups, a ridiculous three-quarter-court bounce pass to Al Harrington for a layup, a successful bank shot from the top of the key, and a three-pointer from the corner to beat the shot clock. When the buzzer for halftime went off, McGrady had already amassed 19 points and three assists.
The second half was a bit less of a McGrady highlight-reel, but he still had a few moments that helped us remember the old “T-Mac”. In the third quarter he hit a beautiful 20-footer from the right wing and drew the foul with it. He also had an impressive hanging-layup over Nenad Krstic. In the fourth quarter, McGrady spent a substantial amount of time on the bench, but he did come into the game during crunch time and nailed a shot from the top of the key with 1:30 remaining in the fourth to put the Knicks up by six. He’d later make his way to the free-throw line, only to miss both attempts. This turned out to be a major blunder, as the Thunder capitalized on these misses and forced the game into overtime. Fatigue was likely a key culprit to those final misses from the free-throw line, and McGrady let D’Antoni know that he didn’t have enough energy to be a contributor in overtime.
“I didn’t have any legs at all,” said McGrady, “I felt like why go out there and hurt my team when we’re in a position to win. If I feel like I can’t be effective then there is no need for me to be out there.”
Still, the crowd yearned for more McGrady in the overtime period, and it was a bit of a surprise to not see him out there after the stellar game that he had put together. With about two minutes left in overtime, a “We want T-Mac” cheer started buzzing throughout the Garden. With about 30 seconds left, McGrady did get into the game as an inbounder for an out-of-bounds play where he hit Eddie House for a baseline jumper. He immediately returned to the bench following the play.
While the heroics of Durant would eventually seal the win for the Thunder, McGrady’s performance showed everyone that he still has a lot of game left. We all seem to forget that he is only 29 years old, and should be entering the prime of his career had he not been struck with injuries. No matter how you look at it, this performance was an impressive one for a player who hasn’t played since December 23, 2009, and hasn’t even played 46 full minutes this entire season.
Talking about his performance tonight in a seas0n-high 32 minutes of play, McGrady had this to say:
“It really felt good. It will help my confidence moving forward as far as mentally knowing that I can go out there and play a significant amount of minutes. The key is how I’m going to feel tomorrow and then Monday.”
The real judgment of McGrady will be on how healthy he can keep himself throughout the remaining 28 games of the season. If his knees can handle the day-to-day pounding and he can play himself into better playing shape, the Knicks might be inclined to look at McGrady as more than a rental player. Still, that’s a big “if”.
So what’s your take. Is the old T-Mac back, or was tonight just a spirited fluke?
