What will AK-47 do to the Knicks?

We’re at MSG this afternoon, where the Jazz are trying to remain one of the League’s three remaining unbeatens through a five-game Eastern Conference swing. Before game time, usually some guys are on the court shooting jumpers or stretching, but these guys seem to do everything together. Even if they’re separated into a bunch of cliques, the Jazz genuinely like each other. Virtually the entire squad was in the locker room for the majority of the 90 minutes leading up to tip-off.

Ronnie Price, Ronnie Brewer, Paul Millsap, and C.J. Miles – who all wear the same black Hyperdunks – were holding down one corner, while the foreign contingent of Andrei Kirilenko and Kyrylo Fesenko joked around in another one. Carlos Boozer was relaxing by himself, bumping music in his headphones loud enough to make someone standing next to him deaf. Dude loves DJ Khaled.

Together, these guys give off the type of vibe that you want from a team who is at the beginning of an eight-day road trip. AK-47 might have summed it up best.

“I can see how people say we’re a European team. We’re all about the five guys on the floor – together. That’s the tone that Coach Sloan has set over the last 20 years.”

No one seems bent out of shape about Deron Williams‘ ankle – even though he’ll be out two weeks longer than expected – he still got some work in on the court long before the game. And during the starting give announcement, D-Will was jumping around doing the pre-game routine as if he were about to rip off his tearaways. The only difference was that he was wearing a suit.

The Knicks are looking to make a statement against one of the best in the West. The Jazz are trying to do the one thing that they struggled with last year – win on the road.