After a slew of games on the road, the Knicks will play five of their next six at Madison Square Garden, starting tonight against the Detroit Pistons. Both teams will be significantly short-handed. Amar'e Stoudemire should suit up for New York despite a sprained right knee, but Wilson Chandler (calf) and Shawne Williams (one-game suspension) will not be available. Meanwhile, the Pistons will be without Rodney Stuckey, Ben Wallace, and Rip Hamilton, who has been sitting for quite some time.
Missing two rotation players, Mike D'Antoni might dig deeper into his bench than he usually does. He expressed some willingness to give minutes to Anthony Randolph and Timofey Mozgov, two young big men who have fallen out of the rotation.
The Pistons sit at just 17-30 this season, but they pushed New York to double overtime back in November and have beaten the Magic and Mavericks in recent weeks. Given the Knicks' recent highs and lows and their injury-ridden lineup, anything could happen.
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