J.R. Smith was having a swell time last night, posing for pictures and flirting with models at the Chelsea Piers Knicks Bowl-a-thon.
It was a far cry from Sunday, when the Clippers’ Jamal Crawford may have won the Sixth Man of the Year Award in one afternoon, torching Smith. Crawford scored a team-high 27 points while Smith was 1-for-9 with six points and two turnovers in the Knicks’ 102-88 loss.
Smith bolted the Garden without speaking to reporters after the game. Last night he was curt on the subject of Crawford.
“We lost, so of course I was disappointed,’’ Smith said. “It was just a bad game [for me].’’
The Knicks are desperate for Smith to be consistent, maybe too desperate, which is why general manager Glen Grunwald is working the phones before the trading deadline to see if there’s another sharpshooting defender available.
Coach Mike Woodson said he’s most disappointed with the defense of the second unit that Smith commands with Amar’e Stoudemire and Steve Novak. Woodson indicated the offensive woes may have lessened their defensive tenacity. The Clippers bench outscored the Knicks bench 48-15.
“I got a second unit where they’re defending and feeling good about themselves, I know they can score the basketball,’’ Woodson said. “We didn’t have much from our bench from a defensive standpoint.”
Smith acknowledged the team’s recent defensive struggles.
“We’re a pretty good defensive team, but we got to get better,’’ he said. “Some games we bring it. Some games we don’t. It can’t be like that. It has to consistent the rest of the season.’’
* Tyson Chandler was angry at a quote in a recent article from former Bulls teammate Jay Williams that the 2002-03 Chicago team he used to play on smoked weed before games.
“I don’t know why he would say something like that,’’ Chandler said. “I think that’s ridiculous he would come out and say something. I don’t remember that, to be honest with you. It was unfortunate he would make that kind of statement about that team.”