• Slowing Stoudamire. He was a beast in New York, scoring 33 (14 of those from the line) and snagging 10 boards. With Lee out tonight, the Warriors will need to play interior defense by committee. Hopefully we get a chance to see if Jeff Adrien can do anything to slow a quick big like Stoudamire.
• Avoid the whistles. The Warriors set their season high in steals fouls in the previous game against the Knicks, and all told there were 58 fouls and 75 free throws taken in the game. With Lee out, I think the Warriors would love a more free-flowing game so they don’t get stuck in a half-court grinder with Stoudamire drawing inside fouls the whole night.
• Get Curry going. Curry was solid on Monday against Detroit, but he hasn’t really looked himself since…the Knicks game last week when he scored 25. More concerning are his assist totals, where he’s broken 6 just once since opening night. Tonight would be a great night to post his second double-double of the year.

Chat after the jump:

Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images

An ugly win, but a win nonetheless. After blowing a huge lead and falling behind in the closing minutes, the Warriors rallied behind a pair of clutch plays by Dorrell Wright and solid rebounding by David Lee.

I missed most of this game, and my DVR cut out right after the Knicks had tied it near the end. The endless and-1 procession to the free throw line for the Knicks was depressing, and I thought Reggie Williams was generally woeful down the stretch. Dude needs a confidence booster, stat.

But the Warriors pulled it off: Lee put up his best game as a Warriors in his New York homecoming, and played Amare to a standstill in terms of stats. Monta recovered well enough to play 40 minutes and had a solid game (his kick-out pass to Wright for his big 3-pointer was huge), while Curry did his best to remind the Knicks of what might have been had they been able to leapfrog the Warriors in last year’s draft.

With a quick turnaround before tonight’s game in Chicago, this was a game that would have been a devastating loss if they hadn’t recovered. So kudos to the team for gutting it out, and picking up their first back-to-back road wins since 2007.

Postscript: Along with Anthony Randolph’s scoreless 7-minute performance (no trade regrets tonight!), this was satisfying to read:

Thanks for nothing: Asked about the offseason deal between the Warriors and the Knicks, one New York writer said, “Thanks for the 6-foot-11 guy who can’t play.” No, he wasn’t talking about Ronny Turiaf; he was referring to Anthony Randolph.

Slam!

• Homecoming. David Lee returns to the arena where he became an all-star, an honor which at this point seems a far-off dream given his low scoring averages this year. He’ll match up against his replacement, Amare Stoudamire, who so far is not exactly setting the world on fire in terms of production. Can Lee remind the Garden crowd — and his new team’s fan base — of the 20 and 10 machine from 2009-10 and maybe even instill some New York regrets?
• Reggie, Reggie, Reggie. It’s been a tough year so far for Reggie Williams, as the pleasant surprise from late last season has looked tentative while failing to find his groove. He’s the player who is best situated to step into the potential scoring vacuum if Monta sits this one out (or is ineffective), and if the Knicks defense is similar to recent years then this could be the perfect opponent to try to jump-start things.
• (Return to) The Prodigal Son. Anthony Randolph, the apple of many a Warriors fan’s eye over the past few years, has so far disappointed in New York since being traded for Lee during the off-season (along with Turiaf and a still-rehabbing Azabuke). Last night, Randolph got 28 minutes during the blowout (by far the most minutes in his five appearances this year), posting 8 points (on 2-7 shooting with four free throws), 9 rebounds, 5 fouls, and a -15. I’d have to assume he’ll be motivated to bring it against his former team, though knowing Randolph the extra energy will likely cause him to increase his unforced errors. Like Lee, can Randolph induce regret from the fans of the team that traded him?