Lee? Well, he’ll be stuck watching from home.
Despite his gaudy numbers and an improved offensive game, Lee was not invited to Dallas when the NBA announced the reserves for the Feb. 14 contest. After leading the league in double-doubles last season with 65, Lee added some range to his jump shot and even increased his role as a distributor in the Knicks' fast-paced offense.
His points went from 16 per game to nearly 20, and he added 1.3 assists to his average. Despite averaging 19.6 points and 11.6 rebounds, Lee was snubbed. Horford got one of the East’s backup big-man spots with averages of 13.6 points and 9.8 rebounds, numbers that look paltry in comparison to Lee’s.
"Plenty of motivation has been handed to me the rest of the season," Lee told the New York Post.
While his personal stats may justify his appearance as an All-Star, the most telling stat of them all could be the number 11. That's how many more wins Horford's Hawks have compared to Lee and the Knicks. Atlanta currently sits third in the East, and a win in Friday's game against the Celtics could move them into second.
On the other hand, the Knicks started the season 3-14 and now sit nine games under .500 and 4 1/2 games out of the playoffs. Of the 14 players elected as reserves from both conferences, none of them play on a team with a losing record.
The last time the Knicks had an All-Star was 2001, when Allan Houston and Latrell Sprewell made the squad. Perhaps less than ironically, the last time the Knicks had a winning record: that same '01 season.
Lee isn’t happy about the turn of the events this season. But if he can use his snub as an impetus to turn the Knicks around in the second half, he could find himself playing somewhere New York fans would be even more proud of — Madison Square Garden during the playoffs.
