The Knicks sliced their roster to their final 15 yesterday, cutting a player who started their first preseason game and keeping a player who was forgotten about until the second half of the second game.
The team waived four players — forward Mychel Thompson, guard Oscar Bellfield, forward John Shurna and center Henry Sims. The Knicks kept forward Chris Copeland, who averaged 15.5 points in the preseason.
Thompson started two of the Knicks’ six preseason games including the opener, averaging 4.7 points in 16.2 minutes but shooting just 30.6 percent (11-for-36).
Copeland, who committed five fouls in 15 minutes in the opener and did not play in the first half of the second game, ended up pouring in 21 points after being inserted into Game No. 2. He later delivered performances of 34 points, 15 and 16.
The 6-foot-8, 225-pound Copeland, a 28-year-old who went to school at Colorado, played for the Knicks’ summer league team in Las Vegas, averaging 13.8 points. He played the last two years in Belgium, averaging 18.5 points and 5.6 rebounds.
* Working in his first scrimmage (and second practice) yesterday since ending a two-year retirement, Rasheed Wallace impressed coach Mike Woodson and Carmelo Anthony.
“I thought in the scrimmage he looked good playing on both teams,” Woodson said. “His conditioning was in better shape than I thought. He got up and down the floor, made some shots and from a defensive standpoint, he’s great because he communicates.”
Woodson would not commit to any plans for using Wallace for Thursday’s season opener and said “a big key” would be how Wallace is today physically.
“’Sheed looked real good,” Anthony said. “He came out actually better than what everybody probably thought. Played a lot of minutes today. It’s just a matter of him taking it day by day and getting ready. As far as his conditioning and shape goes, he surprised a lot of people.”
* Marcus Camby (strained calf) and James White (sore left foot) did not practice.