Amar’e Finally Speaks….Return Coming Soon

By JOSH NEWMAN

Special to ZAGSBLOG

NEW YORK — Viewed as one of the NBA’s media-friendly superstars, Amar’e Stoudemire had not addressed reporters since March 24 when he went down with a bulging disk in his lower back.

He has missed 12 games since, including Tuesday night against the Boston Celtics at Madison Square Garden, and details of the injury, the rehabilitation process and a potential return date have been scarce. That is, they had been scarce until Tuesday night.

After New York Knicks interim head coach Mike Woodson finished telling the assembled media during his pregame availability on Tuesday that Stoudemire is “feeling good, won’t play tonight, speculation is probably Friday,” the 6-foot-10, 10th year power forward unexpectedly showed up in the Knicks’ locker room 50 minutes before game time.

Now It’s Amar’e Who Must Fit In to Melo’s Team

NEW YORK — Remember when it was Carmelo Anthony who had to go?

Remember when the dominant paradigm among Knicks fans was that Melo was a ball-stopping cancer who ought to be run out of town on a rail?

Ah, yes, it wasn’t that long ago that Linsanity dominated the Knicks — and the NBA — and practically everyone questioned how Anthony fit into the free-flowing, Mike D’Antoni-inspired, Lin-run offense.

But that was then and this is now.