Welcome to Reality, New York Knicks: Overhyped Knicks Fall to Philly

Knicks fans were ecstatic when they saw their new (and improved?) team lead the Heat by 19 points in the fourth quarter.

After allowing Miami to come within four points over a course of six minutes, Knicks fans began to realize that the D'Antoni era may not be as promising as they thought.

Despite nearly losing the game, there were some positives that Knicks fans could look back on with pride.

Six players scored in double figures, and the Knicks shot 48.3 percent from the field and a solid 36 percent from beyond the arc.

Too many analysts thought that the Knicks were the real deal—that they were somehow purified and improved by D'Antoni. Of course, they were wrong.

They didn't consider that the Knicks may not be capable of maintaining such a high field-goal percentage every game.

Tonight, the Knicks brought back bad memories of last year's team. Although D'Antoni's style of gameplay is new to New York, they still managed to lose like Isiah's Knicks did.

Five players scored in double figures tonight, but none of them shot better than 41.6 percent from the floor. As a team, New York connected on 32 of their 98 field-goals—a percentage of 32.7 percent—and only hit 7 of 28 from deep.

Philadelphia beat the Knicks at their own game. The 76er's capitalized on the fast pace of the game, shooting a whopping 59.1 percent from the floor. They scored 100 points off of two-point field-goals.

Philly's ability to beat the Knicks at their own game left the 76er's ahead by 19 points entering the fourth quarter.

Even though the Heat were able to overcome the same fourth quarter deficit against the Knicks, D'Antoni's squad only succumbed to Philadelphia, and lost by a final score of 116-87.

This inconsistency is something the Knicks will need to get used to. Some nights they will be hot, some nights they will be cold. That's what happens to teams who take over 90 shots per game.

There is no reason to switch up the system—especially after two early-season games—because the Knicks have a better chance of winning in a running style of basketball.

Jamal Crawford and David Lee have been the best thus far, and Wilson Chandler has impressed many critics.

Chris Duhon needs to pilot the offense better than he has so far. After two games he is shooting an abysmal 28.6 percent from the field. His seven assists tonight were four better than his total on Wednesday, but Duhon should average seven assists per game in this running game that the Knicks play. He will get there, eventually.

So, tonight was a 29 point loss. It is hard to predict the future of the Knicks. They host Michael Redd and the Milwaukee Bucks Sunday evening.