Based on his Knicks postgame autopsies this season, I am very hesitant to call former Timberwolves star-turned MSG mouthpiece Wally Szczerbiak the worst pro basketball analyst on television. Mostly because I’m starting to think he’s the worst sports analyst in any medium. After the Knicks were routed Wednesday night by the host Pacers, Szczerbiak demonstrated that his range is not merely limited to empty platitudes and painfully banal observations. He’s also adept at being an apologist for a team phoning it it. From the New York Daily News’ Bob Raissman
At Woodson’s postgame press conference, Tina Cervasio, MSG’s Knicks reporter, immediately asked the coach about his pregame “sense of urgency” comment. “(Are you) shocked you didn’t see it?” she asked.
Woodson said he was very shocked. “I thought we had a good practice (Tuesday) before coming to Indiana,” Woodson said. “Nothing carried over.”
That “good practice” line was heard often at Rex Ryan press conferences this season. The media mocked it. So far, Woodson has steered clear of Ryansville, especially with guys such as MSG studio analyst Wally Szczerbiak running interference for him. After saying he didn’t know “how many excuses” you could make following the Indiana fiasco, Szczerbiak made one, saying the Knicks were operating with an All-Star break hangover.
“Some players (were) on vacation, some guys had a lot of stuff going on at the break,” he said. “Tyson and Melo went down to Houston, had to travel back, practiced and came here.”
Even Woodson wouldn’t buy that excuse.