McGrady ready for Rockets reunion

McGrady ready for Rockets reunion
By MARK HALE

Last Updated: 12:18 PM, February 22, 2010

Posted: 1:44 AM, February 22, 2010

Tracy McGrady is ready for his version of March Madness.
McGrady said yesterday that he is well aware when he will look to exact revenge against the Rockets, including knowing the tip-off time. On March 21, the Knicks play host to the Rockets, who earlier this season exiled McGrady after his six-game comeback and traded him to New York four days ago.
"You already know," McGrady said with a laugh. "You already know. One o'clock game, eh?"
* David Lee said his new teammates -- McGrady, point guard Sergio Rodriguez and two-guard Eddie House -- made it much easier for him to score.
"I've got four guys with those three and [Chris] Duhon who are all very good in the pick-and-roll and can all make plays," he said. "I had 30 points [in Saturday's 121-118 overtime loss to the Thunder], but it felt like at least 14 or 16 of them were easier buckets than I've been getting the last 15 or so games."
Lee also said he's confident the new-look Knicks will play hard every game.
"To be honest with you, usually I'm kind of back-and-forth -- 'Well, I hope we can play with that,' " Lee said. "I have no doubt we're going to play with that effort from here on out."
* Coach Mike D'Antoni said he is impressed with Rodriguez's game.
"The guy is really quick," he said. "Just [his] enthusiasm and moving the ball and hitting open guys and running the floor.
"It's something that I tried to slow it down and just don't like to coach that way," he added. "I will and that's what we're better at. But I'd rather speed it up and run, and I think we can do that."

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T-Mac feels strong morning after debut

Tracy McGrady was worried after his brilliant Knicks debut on Saturday night about how his body would respond to a season-high 32 minutes played.
Yesterday's verdict: not as bad as he expected.
"This morning, I woke up thinking that I was going to be really sore and really stiff," McGrady said yesterday at practice. "But no, I'm fine."
Think that's pretty encouraging? McGrady went further.
"It's very encouraging," said the new Knicks star. "Because I haven't played 32 minutes in God knows how long. And woke up and felt the way I feel now. The hard work, it paid off, and my body feels good."

McGrady's first game as a Knick -- Saturday's 121-118 overtime loss to the Thunder at the Garden -- was electrifying and extremely surprising. Acquired from the Rockets two days earlier, McGrady had not played since Dec. 23. Working his way back from microfracture surgery on his left knee, he had appeared in just six games the entire season and had not played more than eight minutes in any of them.
On Saturday night, however, he played four times that number and starred, pouring in 26 points. He tired at the end and barely played in overtime.
Though McGrady admitted to being "very stiff" on Saturday night, he clearly was happy with his recovery time yesterday.
"I feel better than I thought I would feel," he said. "My body is not sore."
McGrady's Knicks career resumes tonight against the Bucks at the Garden, and there are several unresolved questions going forward. One is how his playing time will progress.
Coach Mike D'Antoni said McGrady has zero medical restrictions, so how much McGrady plays is essentially his call.
"Just how he feels," D'Antoni said.
McGrady added, "It's a feel thing. I haven't played in so long, and I just don't want to jump into averaging 30-something minutes right now. I just don't think that's a smart thing to do. Listen to my body."
McGrady also said he plans to play both games when the Knicks play on consecutive nights -- after tonight's game with Milwaukee, they face Nate Robinson's Celtics tomorrow.
The 30-year-old said he is not close to being in game shape yet, figuring he needs five games of 25-30 minutes of action per game before he's at that point.
After watching film of Saturday's game, D'Antoni mentioned a few things that stood out about McGrady, namely his hoops IQ ("way off the charts") and the fact that "you can tell he just has a star presence."

http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/knicks/bounce_mac_AHD0XnLdKOGFEZPxCYrrDO