New York Knicks: Courtney Lee Emerging As A Leader

Courtney Lee is often the forgotten man in the New York Knicks starting lineup during games, but has made his presence known showing leadership off the court.

The New York Knicks are still trying to find themselves halfway through the season, while remaining alive in the race for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The recent embarrassing defeat to the Los Angeles Lakers was one of the worst performances from the team this season.

The following day’s practice was said to be emotionally driven and renewed focus for the Knicks looking to bounce back and salvage the season.

The Knicks reportedly had a 80-minute scrimmage that featured several chippy fights among teammates pushing each other to get better. Knicks shooting guard Courtney Lee addressed the media discussing the heated practice.

"“Today was much-needed, We got after it today. Guys were pushing each other. It got a little chippy. That’s what we needed. Multiple flare-ups, guys getting annoyed with each other. Guys being into guys. Guys voicing their opinions, but also competing against each other. Me trying to score on you, you trying to stop me.”"

Lee was very open about the team not performing to expectations, even going on to apologizing to the fans.

"“That effort was pretty bad, man,’’ Lee said. “I definitely got to apologize to the fans who spent hard-earned money to watch us play. We definitely didn’t show up to compete at the level we needed to win the game, especially in the situation we’re in.’’"

The evolution of Lee becoming more vocal about the team needing to step up is a promising sign that he is focused on winning now. He has had a moments in his Knicks career both memorable and forgetful.

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There was the infamous final seconds of the Jan. 19 matchup with the Washington Wizards in which Lee was unable to get off a shot in regulation due to interference from Wizards assistant coach Sidney Lowe.

The incident cost New York the game and forced the NBA to issue a ruling afterwards in the Knicks favor, but that didn’t reverse the 113-110 result.

The other moment came at the end of the second of four overtimes in the Knicks’ epic battle with the Atlanta Hawks on Jan. 29. Lee stepped up to hit the game-tying three-point shot to extend the game as time was running out.

The Knicks, however would come up short, 142-139, on the road after four action-packed overtimes.

Lee is averaging around 10 points per game this season for the Knicks on 45 percent shooting from the field. His greatest contribution could end up being his vocal leadership after the recent practice.

The team needs some stability as it appears team president Phil Jackson has distanced himself from the players and continues to pursue trading star player Carmelo Anthony.

Jackson took to his Twitter to agree with an article from Bleacher Report criticizing Anthony’s inability to change his game, causing yet another distraction for the team.

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There are plenty of changes on the way to New York as the trade deadline of Feb.y 23 is quickly approaching.