The Knicks didn’t have starting point guard Chauncey Billups last night. And you can make a strong argument the Hornets didn’t have Chris Paul.
So it was up to backup point guard Toney Douglas to steal the night. From when he scored 10 first-quarter points to when he dribbled out the final seconds with a big smile on his face.
In one of those surreal games, Douglas shined as the best point guard on the Garden floor. He posted a superior 24-point, five-assist outing to lead the Knicks to a 107-88 rout of the Hornets.
Douglas is far away in stature from the Knicks’ newly arranged Big Apple 3. But for one night, he was “Toney The Tiger” after receiving a big talk in the morning from Mr. Big Shot.
“I had a talk with him this morning,” said Billups, who could be out two-to-three games with a bruised thigh. “I told him, ‘Try not to defer too much to the guys. When you call a play, run it, no matter what people say. Call a play, stick to it and be in command out there.’ It’s probably tough as a young player playing with those studs, the two alpha males. It’s a difficult position to be in. He has to be confident in what he’s doing.”
Douglas played with bravado and gusto and was more electric than either Amar’e Stoudemire or Carmelo Anthony.
Coach Mike D’Antoni felt he had been intimidated by the starry new arrivals.
“He’s deferring his game to the Big 3,” D’Antoni said. “You could see it. Toney comes with a lot of good stuff. He comes with play-making deficiency. That’s him. But he can’t all of a sudden become a setup guy. He has to play with ego.”
Douglas was fearless, making 10 of 13 shots and lit it up from the 3-point line — going 4 of 6. The Knicks (31-28) moved to 3-2 in the new era and erased the stench of Tuesday’s loss in Orlando.
Douglas also was helped by Paul’s invisible performance — a laconic four-point, 2-of-7 outing after which he denied his knee is still bothering him. Paul set the tone for the disinterested Hornets, who sleepwalked through the game and got ripped afterward by their coach Monty Williams.
“I can’t stomach guys who don’t play with passion and play like they’re afraid and I saw that tonight,” Williams said.”
Anthony scored 16 of his 22 points in the first half and Stoudemire cruised to a 24-point night. The Knicks never were threatened in the second half and were up by at least 15 the final 17 minutes.
“For Carmelo and myself, we command so much attention, the game opens up for guys like [Douglas],” said Stoudemire, a close friend of Paul’s and witness to Paul’s wedding toast last summer about joining up in New York.
The specter of Paul, whom the Knicks have on their radar as a 2012 free agent, also got Douglas pumped.
“I just wanted to stay aggressive and bring energy,” Douglas said. “He’s a great point guard in this league, a top-five point guard. I just didn’t want him to feel so comfortable and make him work for whatever he gets.”
D’Antoni and Stoudemire also were in Douglas’ ear before the game, signifying the level of concern as the Knicks did battle without Billups, who probably will miss tomorrow’s game against Cleveland, too.
Billups’ injury also forced newcomer Anthony Carter into 18 minutes, and he played workmanlike and efficient.
It has been a strange season for Douglas, who has battled a series of chronic injuries to his back and both shoulders. After playing lax the past three games off the bench, the Knicks weren’t sure what they would get last night. And they got Toney the Tiger.
“This morning [Chauncey] talked to me and told me to stay aggressive,” Douglas said. “He really helped me a lot. I’m better picking his brain.”
Stoudemire also has advised Douglas to “take notes” when Billups is on the floor.
It became another giddy Garden night. The fans chanted the name of Jared Jeffries, who made his Knicks season debut. Jeffries added length, grit and five rebounds in 24 minutes, despite going scoreless.
Jeffries, who was traded away last February for cap space, has noticed the change in the Garden air.
“It’s crazy, the anticipation Amar’e and Melo, Chauncey brought to the Garden,” he said. “That’s what builds this atmosphere. We have a chance to be a really good team.”
They will need a better bench and Douglas heads that unit once Billups is back.
“He knew he had to take that challenge being the starting point guard and he did it,” said Anthony, who rebounded from an 8-of-24 showing in Orlando.
“He picked us up throughout the whole game.”