As sedated as Jeremy Lin appeared in a photo he posted via social media following knee surgery, the New York Knicks are in a much better from of mind with nine wins in their last 11 games.
Lin is expected to miss the remainder of the regular season and maybe more after the New York sensation underwent successful surgery on the small meniscal tear in his left knee.
"Praise God for a successful surgery...road to recovery! Lets goo (sic). Much love to the fans for your support and kind words," Lin posted on Twitter.
The Knicks are already without frontcourt presence Amare Stoudemire because of a bulging disc in his back, but that hasn't stopped them from their pursuit of a postseason berth. They are eighth in the East standings -- two games ahead of Milwaukee -- and will pay a visit to the Indiana Pacers tonight in a battle of conference hopefuls.
New York is coming off Saturday's 91-75 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers at Madison Square Garden. J.R. Smith led the way with 20 points, nine rebounds and five steals, Carmelo Anthony scored 19 points and Tyson Chandler finished with 14 points and 12 boards in the win for New York, which has won seven in a row at home.
"I thought [Smith] bounced back big time. That's how we need him to play off the bench," said Knicks interim head coach Mike Woodson. "He has the ability to score points and he's been defending."
New York is 3 1/2 games behind Boston for the Atlantic Division lead and will play two straight and four of five games on the road. The Knicks are 9-16 as the visitor this season and have dropped two in a row away from MSG. New York is holding opponents to 86.3 ppg over the last 11 games -- all under Woodson.
Indiana is still fighting for homecourt advantage in the first round of the playoffs and sits fifth in the East -- one game ahead of Atlanta and just one- half game in back of Orlando for the No. 3 seed.
The Pacers have won six of nine games, including a 104-102 overtime victory at Houston on Sunday. Danny Granger scored 32 points and blocked Chandler Parsons' potential game-winner at the buzzer. Roy Hibbert totaled 15 points and nine rebounds for the Pacers, who rebounded from a loss at San Antonio.
"Danny made...a heck of a basketball play to block (Chandler) Parsons' shot," Pacers head coach Frank Vogel said.
Darren Collison finished with 11 points, seven assists and five rebounds, while David West chipped in 12 points. Indiana will play four of five games as the host and is 16-7 at home this season.
Indiana will try to salvage a win in the season series with New York tonight and has dropped the first two meetings by at least 14 points. The Knicks have won three straight and six of the last nine matchups with the Pacers, and haven't swept them in a season series since winning all four games in 1993-94.
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