Jose Alvarado #5 of the New York Knicks
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Jose Alvarado #5 of the New York Knicks
The old adage that states if you can’t say something nice about someone, don’t say anything at all probably does not apply to saying something about yourself. At least, when it comes to Knicks guard Jose Alvarado, acquired from the Pelicans at the NBA trade deadline, that seems to be the case.
Alvarado has had some difficulties shooting the ball lately, and while he is mostly known for his defense–that’s why the Knicks got him–he likes to think of himself as a 3-and-D player. Alvarado was a career 35.1% shooter from the 3-point arc during his time in New Orleans and was shooting a respectable 36.3% from the 3-point line this season.
But since he has arrived in New York, the D has been there, but not the 3. Alvarado is shooting just 26.8% on 3-point tries since becoming a Knick. Things looked good in his third game with the Knicks, when he went 8-for-13 from the 3-point line and scored 26 points in a win over the 76ers, and after five games, he was at 37.5%. Since then, though, Alvarado has shot 3-for-24, just 12.5%, and he is 0-for-11 in March.
Jose Alvarado: ‘I (Expletive) Suck’
Alvarado was asked about the slump by the New York Post before the Knicks’ last game. He was harsh with himself.
“Terrible,” Alvarado told the paper. “I (expletive) suck, put that [in the story]. It (expletive) sucks right now. I just gotta continue to trust in my work. I’ve been a good shooter my whole career. It’s a different road, a different situation here. You asked me how [my 3-point shooting] is, it sucks, so I gotta get better at it. …
“It’s just basketball, that’s just part of basketball. The best of the best go through it, so imagine a role player. You just gotta figure it out, continue growing. This league is a make-or-miss league, so you gotta make shots to stay here. They gotta go in eventually to stay on the court.
The problem for Alvarado is that not only is he struggling to make shots, but he appears to be losing confidence and avoiding the shot altogether. Alvarado took only one 3-pointer three times this month, and has not taken more than two. For first time this season, Alvarado played more than 10 minutes and did not try a 3-pointer.
Knicks Struggling to Shoot Lately
The Knicks’ offense as a whole has been struggling, particularly in the last four games, which has seen New York post an offensive rating of 114.3, which is 17th in the NBA. They’ve shot just 33.1% from the 3-point line in those games, which they split.
“Simply put, we just have to shoot better,” said Karl-Anthony Towns. “The last two games, we’ve done a great job of giving ourselves chances to win games, but we just haven’t shot well. Then we weirdly shoot well at points in the game to give ourselves a chance. It’s just sometimes how the game goes. We just have to stay confident.”