GREENBURGH, N.Y. — The enduring image from the Knicks’ first encounter this season with the Los Angeles Clippers was of Blake Griffin using Timofey Mozgov’s chest as a flotation device for a dunk that is still going viral.
With Griffin and the Clippers coming to Madison Square Garden Wednesday for the rematch, Mozgov was asked his thoughts on the now-famous flush.
“I don’t like it,” he said Tuesday.
The 7-foot Russian said he received numerous text messages from friends, asking, “‘How did this happen?’ Joking, funny. But I’d like to forget it because sometimes it happens.”
Even though the Knicks won that Nov. 20 game in L.A., 124-115, Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni speculated that Mozgov may have gone into a “funk” because of the dunk.
“The guy [Griffin] is a human highlight film,” D’Antoni said. “And he’s unbelievable. It just happened to be Timmy that time. It could have been anybody. He’s one of the hardest, highest-jumping guys I’ve ever seen.”
After opening the season as the starting center, Mozgov fell out of the rotation in mid-December, only to re-enter the starting lineup after a 23-point, 14-rebound performance Jan. 30 against the Detroit Pistons.
With Ronny Turiaf still out (sprained right ankle), Mozgov will start against the Clippers and D’Antoni said he will be assigned to cover Griffin.
Griffin enters averaging 22.9 points and 12.8 rebounds and his 116 dunks trail only Dwight Howard (131) for most in the NBA this season.
“I think it will be hard because he’s really strong,” Mozgov said of Griffin. “He can run, he can shoot. He dunks well.”
Amar’e Stoudemire will also cover Griffin for parts of the game. He said he recalls when Griffin, then a freshman at Oklahoma, attended his Nike Skills Academy over the summer.
“I think I showed him too many skills,” Stoudemire cracked.
Griffin has drawn comparisons to Stoudemire because of their athleticism and explosiveness, but Stoudemire said there are some differences.
“He’s a much better rebounder than I am,” he said. “He gets in great position. But the athleticism is similar, and the way we play is similar. But he’s a better rebounder.”
For his part, Mozgov said he feels “much more confidence on the court” since the first encounter with Griffin, the likely NBA Rookie of the Year.
“Timmy’s gotten a lot better,” D’Antoni said. “Don’t make it a duel between Timmy and Griffin, that’s not fair to either one of them.”
Asked how he would handle another situation in which Griffin elevates toward him for a dunk, Mozgov sheepishly said: “I don’t want it happen again. I try to be there a little bit faster.”
FREE THROWS
The NBA announced that Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Kevin Durant, Daniel Gibson, James Jones and Dorell Wright will compete in the 3-point contest over All-Star weekend. Knicks forward Shawne Williams will not participate even though he leads the league at 51 percent from beyond the arc.
