#GoNYGoNYGo!!! The New York Knicks’ deep front line just got a little deeper.
Veteran big man Marcus Camby will make his season debut Friday night against Dallas, coach Mike Woodson said Thursday.
Camby has been sidelined for the entire preseason and for the Knicks’ first three regular-season games with a left calf strain.
“I can’t give you the minutes (Camby will play against Dallas), but he’ll play tomorrow, absolutely,” Woodson said.
The 3-0 Knicks have given up a league-low 85.3 points per game and have allowed opponents to shoot 40 percent from the floor. If healthy, Camby should only help the Knicks’ effort on defense.
“It helps us tremendously,” Woodson said of Camby’s return. “This is a young man that’s played in enough systems, that’s talented enough to play defense. He’s capable of scoring some points — he can do a little bit of everything. (He can) block shots, were going to need that.”
Even at 38 and entering his 17th season in the NBA, Camby is thought of as a very strong interior defender. He averaged nine rebounds and 1.4 blocks in just 23 minutes per game last year in Houston.
In New York, Camby is expected to serve as a backup center for Tyson Chandler, a luxury Chandler didn’t have last season.
“It’s going to be huge,” Chandler said of Camby’s addition. “He can put in some positive minutes. Not just backup minutes, but some positive minutes out there. He can make a lot of things happen.”
Camby was originally expected to miss just 7-10 days when he hurt his calf in the first week of training camp. He’s participated in a handful of practices since.
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WRITTEN BY Ian Begley | Special to ESPNNewYork.com & FULL STORY HERE
