As the final seconds of an intense scrimmage clicked off the clock at the Knicks practice facility yesterday, Chris Copeland launched a baseline jumper that swished through the net to give the white-jersey team a buzzer-beating tie, yes a tie, with the blue team.
You would have thought they had won Game 7 of the NBA Finals the way they carried on. J.R. Smith practically jumped into Copeland’s arms before the rest of the white team celebrated as if they had hit a walk-off home run.
Sure we’re talking ’bout practice. But it was a reminder of earlier in the season when Smith buried a couple of game-winning shots and making 3-pointers was one of the Knicks’ best weapons. Now it’s as if the 3-point shot is a dirty word, talked about as having gone from a weapon to a liability that should be de-emphasized if this team is going to truly contend for an NBA title. Hogwash.
If the Knicks are going to have any sustained success for the remainder of the regular season and through the postseason, their 3-point shooting will have to be feared rather than jeered.
Sure, the Knicks haven’t been converting the 3-point shot with the regularity they did earlier in the season when they were shooting 41.6 percent from behind the arc at the end of the November and 39 percent at the end of December.
Over their last seven games, they have made just 29.3 percent (56 of 191) of their 3-pointers, including just 8 of 33 in their win over the Sixers on Sunday night. But just as the torrid shooting was not sustainable, this stretch should not be either.
The Knicks can’t afford to turn gun-shy against the Warriors tonight when they meet at Madison Square Garden. Shooting 3s is part of the Knicks’ identity and it’s what they must do if they are going to get anywhere this season.
“Everybody knows we like to shoot the 3-ball — that’s a no-brainer,” Carmelo Anthony said. “I think sometimes as shooters, if we don’t make the first one, we’re going to make the next one.”
Coach Mike Woodson scolded his team for settling for too many 3s in the closing minutes of a loss at Toronto last week. But the message shouldn’t be to stop shooting them.
Defenses have made it a priority to defend the Knicks’ 3-point game, which is one reason the shooting percentage has dropped. But they are still getting enough open looks to make a difference. They just have to start converting with more regularity. It’s the only way to open up the offense and take pressure off Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire. Plus, the 3-pointer complements the high-pick-and-roll offense.
“When Tyson [Chandler] goes to the rim, you’ve got to honor that,” Jason Kidd said. “You’ve also got to honor Ray [Felton] getting to the basket, Melo getting to the basket and Melo being able to get a lot of double teams. So with good ball movement, we get a lot of great shots.”
Kidd is the poster child of the Knicks’ shooting slump, having made just 10 of his past 50 3-pointers, including a dreadful
1-for-7 Sunday night. But he insists he has not lost confidence and will continue to fire when open.
“They all felt good. They hit back iron. I can live with those,” he said. “If they get going left or right, that’s when you have to sit back and try to figure out what’s wrong.”
Don’t be surprised if it turns into a 3-point-fest tonight at the Garden. The Warriors had one of the league’s best shooting percentage from 3-point range at
39 percent going into last night’s game at Indiana.
The Knicks are at
37.4 after attempting 1,538 3-pointers, second only to the Rockets (1,663).
The last thing the Knicks need to do now is change who they are.
“If you start making them in March, April and June everybody forgets about what happened earlier in the season,” Kidd said.
The message should remain: shoot when open.
george.willis@nypost.com