The New York Knicks Felt They Could Beat Miami Heat In 2012 Playoffs
Carmelo Anthony revealed that the Knicks wanted to face the Heat in the 2012 playoffs
With the New York Knicks back in the playoffs for a second straight season, many people have began reminisicing on the old days. One of them being Knicks legend and future Hall-of-Famer Carmelo Anthony.
On a recent episode of Anthony and The Kid Mero’s podcast 7PM In Brooklyn, he admitted that the Knicks looked forward to facing the Miami Heat in the 2012 playoffs.
“It was the year here in New York where we felt like we matched up better with Miami,” Anthony said. “At that end we felt that we could match up with them. So we was like ‘We want Miami’.”
During the 2011-12 season, the Heat were in the midst of their Big Three era and locked into a championship run. They finished the season with 46 total wins, three of those victories coming against their Eastern Confernce rival, Knicks.
The Knicks earned the right to feel confident
The Knicks had every right to believe they could beat Miami in the playoffs. The Heat swept the season series against New York but two of their wins came within 10 or less points, one of them with Anthony sidelined. The third battle, however, ended with a 102-88 victory in Miami where the Knicks struggled offensively.
Throughout the series, a lot of fans had their eyes on the matchup between Anthony and superstar LeBron James. In the two games they played against each other, Anthony averaged a combined 30.5 points while James had just 24.5. Though Anthony might have had the upper hand in terms of scoring, it was exciting to see two of the NBA’s best players go head-to-head.
The playoffs are always a different monster
New York got the desired matchup they wanted as they battled the Heat in the first round. The Knicks were able to squeeze out one win in the series but ultimately lost in five games. Three of the Knicks’ losses came in incredibly huge deficits, the largest one being a 33-point one in Game 1.
During the series, Anthony averaged 27.8 points including three games with 30-plus points. He didn’t have much help, though, as Amar’e Stoudemire was their second leading scorer with an average of 15.3 points.
Despite the Knicks being one of the best defensive teams at the time, the Heat easily advanced past them, capturing their second championship in franchise history.
Cory Nelson is a contributor to Fansided’s Wiz of Awes. He attended Northern Virginia Community College. He can be reached at corymckenzienelson@hotmail.com or follow him on Twitter @CKenzyNelson, Instagram @ckenzynelson, and Threads @ckenzynelson