# 2011–12 New York Knicks season

The 2011–12 New York Knicks season was the 66th season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Knicks finished the regular season with a 36–30 record and a seventh place in the Eastern Conference to reach the 2012 NBA Playoffs where they lost in the first round against the eventual NBA champion Miami Heat in five games. Notable events of the season included coach Mike D'Antoni's resignation, the surge in popularity of 23-year-old point guard Jeremy Lin during a seven-game winning streak (Linsanity), and the Knicks winning their first playoff game since 2001 against the Miami Heat, snapping an NBA-record 13-game playoff losing streak.

## Key dates

* June 23: The 2011 NBA draft took place at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
* July 1: The CBA expires and the 2011 NBA Lockout begins.
* December 8: The player and the owners ratified a new 10-year CBA ending the 161-day lockout.
* December 9: Free Agency and Training camps begin.
* December 25: The regular season begins with a match against the Boston Celtics in the Madison Square Garden.
* April 19: The Knicks clinched a spot in the 2012 NBA Playoffs.
* May 9: The Knicks' season ends with a game 5 loss to the Miami Heat.

## Draft picks

| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College |
| 1 | 17 | Iman Shumpert | Guard | United States | Georgia Tech |

## Pre-season

Due to the 2011 NBA lockout negotiations, the programmed pre-season schedule, along with the first two weeks of the regular season were scrapped, and a two-game pre-season was set for each team once the lockout concluded.

### Game log

2011 pre-season game log :
Pre-season: 2–0 (home: 1–0; road: 1–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
1
December 17
@ New Jersey
W 92–83
Renaldo Balkman (20)
Landry Fields (7)
Toney Douglas (5)
Prudential Center 13,027
1–0
2
December 21
New Jersey
W 88–82
Carmelo Anthony (21)
Tyson Chandler (12)
Carmelo Anthony Toney Douglas Landry Fields Iman Shumpert (3)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
2–0 :
2011–12 season schedule :

## Regular season

After a lack-luster start to the season where the Knicks had 8 wins and 13 losses in their first 21 games, Jeremy Lin burst on the scene. Injuries forced coach Mike D'Antoni to name Lin as the starting point guard, and Lin responded with averages of 27.3 points, 8.3 assists and 2.0 steals in his first four starts. Lin closed the February 14th game against Toronto with a game-winning three-pointer that left 0.5 seconds on the clock.
However, when Carmelo Anthony returned from injury in late February, the Knicks hot streak ended. After a 6-game losing streak to start the month of March, Mike D'Antoni resigned as coach, and was replaced by his assistant Mike Woodson. The Knicks ended the season strong 18-6 under Woodson.
However, the magic was gone as Lin suffered a knee injury against the Detroit Pistons. He underwent surgery days after and was placed on injured reserve, ending his season.

### Game log

2011–12 game log Total: 36–30 (home: 22–11; road: 14–19) :
December: 2–2 (home: 1–0; road: 1–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
1
December 25
Boston
W 106–104
Carmelo Anthony (37)
Carmelo Anthony (8)
Toney Douglas (4)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
1–0
2
December 28
@ Golden State
L 78–92
Amar'e Stoudemire (16)
Amar'e Stoudemire (10)
Mike Bibby (4)
Oracle Arena 19,596
1–1
3
December 29
@ L. A. Lakers
L 82–99
Carmelo Anthony (27)
Tyson Chandler (11)
Carmelo Anthony (5)
Staples Center 18,997
1–2
4
December 31
@ Sacramento
W 114–92
Carmelo Anthony (23)
Josh Harrellson (12)
Toney Douglas (8)
Power Balance Pavilion 16,175
2–2 :
January
: 6–11 (home: 3–6; road: 3–5)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
5
January 2
Toronto
L 85–90
Carmelo Anthony (35)
Carmelo Anthony (11)
Landry Fields (5)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
2–3
6
January 4
Charlotte
L 110–118
Carmelo Anthony (32)
Amar'e Stoudemire (12)
Carmelo Anthony, Toney Douglas (5)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
2–4
7
January 6
@ Washington
W 99–96
Carmelo Anthony (37)
Tyson Chandler (15)
Iman Shumpert (7)
Verizon Center 16,998
3–4
8
January 7
@ Detroit
W 103–80
Amar'e Stoudemire (22)
Tyson Chandler (9)
Carmelo Anthony (7)
The Palace of Auburn Hills 12,044
4–4
9
January 9
Charlotte
W 91–87
Amar'e Stoudemire (25)
Tyson Chandler (13)
Carmelo Anthony (6)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
5–4
10
January 11
Philadelphia
W 85–79
Carmelo Anthony (27)
Tyson Chandler (13)
Carmelo Anthony (5)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
6–4
11
January 12
@ Memphis
L 83–94
Carmelo Anthony, Bill Walker (14)
Tyson Chandler (11)
Toney Douglas (4)
FedExForum 15,324
6–5
12
January 14
@ Oklahoma City
L 92–104
Amar'e Stoudemire (14)
Bill Walker (7)
Bill Walker (3)
Chesapeake Energy Arena 18,203
6–6
13
January 16
Orlando
L 93–102
Carmelo Anthony (33)
Carmelo Anthony, Tyson Chandler (8)
Carmelo Anthony (5)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
6–7
14
January 18
Phoenix
L 88–91
Amar'e Stoudemire (23)
Tyson Chandler (17)
Carmelo Anthony, Tyson Chandler, Landry Fields (4)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
6–8
15
January 20
Milwaukee
L 86–100
Carmelo Anthony (35)
Tyson Chandler (12)
Iman Shumpert (5)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
6–9
16
January 21
Denver
L 114–119
Carmelo Anthony (25)
Amar'e Stoudemire (11)
Landry Fields, Iman Shumpert (7)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
6–10
17
January 24
@ Charlotte
W 111–78
Tyson Chandler (20)
Tyson Chandler (17)
Landry Fields (5)
Time Warner Cable Arena 16,802
7–10
18
January 25
@ Cleveland
L 81–91
Amar'e Stoudemire (19)
Amar'e Stoudemire (14)
Carmelo Anthony (6)
Quicken Loans Arena 16,760
7–11
19
January 27
@ Miami
L 89–99
Bill Walker (21)
Tyson Chandler (12)
Landry Fields, Toney Douglas (5)
American Airlines Arena 19,707
7–12
20
January 28
@ Houston
L 84–97
Amar'e Stoudemire (23)
Tyson Chandler (11)
Jeremy Lin (6)
Toyota Center 18,051
7–13
21
January 31
Detroit
W 113–86
Carmelo Anthony (25)
Tyson Chandler (8)
Carmelo Anthony, Iman Shumpert (6)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
8–13 :
February: 10–5 (home: 7–3; road: 3–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
22
February 2
Chicago
L 102–105
Amar'e Stoudemire (34)
Amar'e Stoudemire (11)
Iman Shumpert (8)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
8–14
23
February 3
@ Boston
L 89–91
Carmelo Anthony (26)
Amar'e Stoudemire, Tyson Chandler (11)
Carmelo Anthony (6)
TD Garden 18,624
8–15
24
February 4
New Jersey
W 99–92
Jeremy Lin (25)
Jared Jeffries (10)
Jeremy Lin (7)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
9–15
25
February 6
Utah
W 99–88
Jeremy Lin (28)
Jared Jeffries (8)
Jeremy Lin (8)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
10–15
26
February 8
@ Washington
W 107–93
Tyson Chandler (25)
Tyson Chandler (11)
Jeremy Lin (10)
Verizon Center 17,376
11–15
27
February 10
L. A. Lakers
W 92–85
Jeremy Lin (38)
Tyson Chandler (11)
Jeremy Lin (7)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
12–15
28
February 11
@ Minnesota
W 100–98
Jeremy Lin Iman Shumpert (20)
Jared Jeffries (8)
Jeremy Lin (8)
Target Center 20,232
13–15
29
February 14
@ Toronto
W 90–87
Jeremy Lin (27)
Amar'e Stoudemire, Tyson Chandler (9)
Jeremy Lin (11)
Air Canada Centre 20,092
14–15
30
February 15
Sacramento
W 100–85
Landry Fields (15)
Landry Fields (10)
Jeremy Lin (13)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
15–15
31
February 17
New Orleans
L 85–89
Amar'e Stoudemire, Jeremy Lin (26)
Amar'e Stoudemire (12)
Jeremy Lin (5)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
15–16
32
February 19
Dallas
W 104–97
Jeremy Lin (28)
Tyson Chandler (10)
Jeremy Lin (14)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
16–16
33
February 20
New Jersey
L 92–100
Jeremy Lin (21)
Landry Fields (11)
Jeremy Lin (9)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
16–17
34
February 22
Atlanta
W 99–82
Jeremy Lin, Steve Novak (17)
Amar'e Stoudemire (10)
Jeremy Lin (9)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
17–17
35
February 23
@ Miami
L 88–102
Carmelo Anthony (19)
Tyson Chandler (9)
Jeremy Lin, J.R. Smith, Baron Davis (3)
American Airlines Arena 20,197
17–18
36
February 29
Cleveland
W 120–103
Carmelo Anthony (22)
Tyson Chandler (15)
Jeremy Lin (7)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
18–18 :
March: 9–8 (home: 7–1; road: 2–7)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
37
March 4
@ Boston
L 111–115
Carmelo Anthony (25)
Tyson Chandler (14)
Baron Davis (7)
TD Garden 18,624
18–19
38
March 6
@ Dallas
L 85–95
Amar'e Stoudemire (26)
Landry Fields (10)
Jeremy Lin (7)
American Airlines Center 20,605
18–20
39
March 7
@ San Antonio
L 105–118
Carmelo Anthony (27)
Amar'e Stoudemire (11)
Baron Davis (8)
AT&T Center 18,581
18–21
40
March 9
@ Milwaukee
L 114–119
Amar'e Stoudemire (27)
Amar'e Stoudemire (11)
Jeremy Lin (13)
Bradley Center 18,717
18–22
41
March 11
Philadelphia
L 94–106
Carmelo Anthony (22)
Tyson Chandler (12)
Jeremy Lin (7)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
18–23
42
March 12
@ Chicago
L 99–104
Carmelo Anthony (21)
Tyson Chandler (10)
Jeremy Lin (8)
United Center 22,863
18–24
43
March 14
Portland
W 121–79
J.R. Smith (25)
Amar'e Stoudemire (8)
Baron Davis (10)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
19–24
44
March 16
Indiana
W 115–100
Tyson Chandler, J.R. Smith (16)
Carmelo Anthony, Tyson Chandler, Landry Fields (7)
Carmelo Anthony, Jeremy Lin (5)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
20–24
45
March 17
@ Indiana
W 102–88
Jeremy Lin (19)
Tyson Chandler (9)
Jeremy Lin (7)
Bankers Life Fieldhouse 18,165
21–24
46
March 20
Toronto
W 106–87
Amar'e Stoudemire (22)
Amar'e Stoudemire (12)
Jeremy Lin (10)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
22–24
47
March 21
@ Philadelphia
W 82–79
Amar'e Stoudemire (21)
Amar'e Stoudemire (9)
Jeremy Lin (5)
Wells Fargo Center 20,470
23–24
48
March 23
@ Toronto
L 79–96
Amar'e Stoudemire (17)
Tyson Chandler (11)
Baron Davis (8)
Air Canada Centre 19,800
23–25
49
March 24
Detroit
W 101–79
Amar'e Stoudemire (17)
Tyson Chandler (17)
Landry Fields (4)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
24–25
50
March 26
Milwaukee
W 89–80
Carmelo Anthony (28)
Carmelo Anthony (12)
Baron Davis (7)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
25–25
51
March 28
Orlando
W 108–86
Carmelo Anthony (25) Iman Shumpert (25)
Tyson Chandler (9)
Carmelo Anthony (6) Baron Davis (6)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
26–25
52
March 30
@ Atlanta
L 90–100
Carmelo Anthony (36)
Carmelo Anthony, Tyson Chandler (9)
Baron Davis (4)
Philips Arena 18,389
26–26
53
March 31
Cleveland
W 91–75
J.R. Smith (20)
Tyson Chandler (12)
Baron Davis (5)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
27–26 :
April
: 9–4 (home: 4–1; road: 5–3)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
54
April 3
@ Indiana
L 104–112
Carmelo Anthony (39)
Tyson Chandler (14)
J.R. Smith (4)
Bankers Life Fieldhouse 17,042
27–27
55
April 5
@ Orlando
W 96–80
Carmelo Anthony (19)
Tyson Chandler (12)
J.R. Smith (9)
Amway Center 19,098
28–27
56
April 8
Chicago
W 100–99
Carmelo Anthony (43)
Tyson Chandler (16)
Iman Shumpert (6)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
29–27
57
April 10
@ Chicago
L 86–98
Carmelo Anthony (29)
Tyson Chandler (15)
Baron Davis (6)
United Center 22,131
29–28
58
April 11
@ Milwaukee
W 111–107
Carmelo Anthony (32)
Tyson Chandler (11)
Landry Fields (6)
Bradley Center 15,534
30–28
59
April 13
Washington
W 103–65
J.R. Smith (23)
Tyson Chandler (15)
J.R. Smith (6)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
31–28
60
April 15
Miami
L 85–93
Carmelo Anthony (42)
Carmelo Anthony (9)
Carmelo Anthony, Iman Shumpert (5)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
31–29
61
April 17
Boston
W 118–110
Carmelo Anthony (35)
Carmelo Anthony (12)
Carmelo Anthony (10)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
32–29
62
April 18
@ New Jersey
W 104–95
Carmelo Anthony (35)
Tyson Chandler (10)
Mike Bibby (8)
Prudential Center 18,711
33–29
63
April 20
@ Cleveland
L 90–98
Steve Novak, Amar'e Stoudemire (15)
Toney Douglas (9)
Toney Douglas, J.R. Smith (6)
Quicken Loans Arena 19,349
33–30
64
April 22
@ Atlanta
W 113–112
Carmelo Anthony (39)
Amar'e Stoudemire (12)
Baron Davis (10)
Philips Arena 18,158
34–30
65
April 25
L. A. Clippers
W 99–93
J.R. Smith (21)
Iman Shumpert, Amar'e Stoudemire (7)
Mike Bibby, J.R. Smith (5)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
35–30
66
April 26
@ Charlotte
W 104–84
J.R. Smith (22)
Josh Harrellson (9)
Mike Bibby (13)
Time Warner Cable Arena 16,023
36–30 :
2011–12 season schedule :

### Standings

| Atlantic Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div | GP |
| y-Boston Celtics | 39 | 27 | .591 | – | 24–9 | 15–18 | 8–6 | 66 |
| x-New York Knicks | 36 | 30 | .545 | 3 | 22–11 | 14–19 | 8–6 | 66 |
| x-Philadelphia 76ers | 35 | 31 | .530 | 4 | 19–14 | 16–17 | 7–6 | 66 |
| Toronto Raptors | 23 | 43 | .348 | 16 | 13–20 | 10–23 | 7–8 | 66 |
| New Jersey Nets | 22 | 44 | .333 | 17 | 9–24 | 13–20 | 5–9 | 66 |
Eastern Conference :
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
| 1 | z-Chicago Bulls | 50 | 16 | .758 | – | 66 |
| 2 | y-Miami Heat * | 46 | 20 | .697 | 4.0 | 66 |
| 3 | x-Indiana Pacers * | 42 | 24 | .636 | 8.0 | 66 |
| 4 | y-Boston Celtics | 39 | 27 | .591 | 11.0 | 66 |
| 5 | x-Atlanta Hawks | 40 | 26 | .606 | 10.0 | 66 |
| 6 | x-Orlando Magic | 37 | 29 | .561 | 13.0 | 66 |
| 7 | x-New York Knicks | 36 | 30 | .545 | 14.0 | 66 |
| 8 | x-Philadelphia 76ers | 35 | 31 | .530 | 15.0 | 66 |
| 9 | Milwaukee Bucks | 31 | 35 | .470 | 19.0 | 66 |
| 10 | Detroit Pistons | 25 | 41 | .379 | 25.0 | 66 |
| 11 | Toronto Raptors | 23 | 43 | .348 | 27.0 | 66 |
| 12 | New Jersey Nets | 22 | 44 | .333 | 28.0 | 66 |
| 13 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 21 | 45 | .318 | 29.0 | 66 |
| 14 | Washington Wizards | 20 | 46 | .303 | 30.0 | 66 |
| 15 | Charlotte Bobcats | 7 | 59 | .106 | 43.0 | 66 |

### Player statistics

| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
| Carmelo Anthony | 55 | 55 | 34.1 | .430 | .335 | .804 | 6.3 | 3.6 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 22.6 |
| Renaldo Balkman | 14 | 0 | 8.2 | .500 | .222 | .727 | 1.9 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 3.0 |
| Mike Bibby | 39 | 4 | 14.3 | .282 | .318 | .750 | 1.5 | 2.1 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 2.6 |
| Tyson Chandler | 62 | 62 | 33.2 | .679 | .000 | .689 | 9.9 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 1.4 | 11.3 |
| Baron Davis | 29 | 14 | 20.5 | .370 | .306 | .667 | 1.9 | 4.7 | 1.2 | 0.1 | 6.1 |
| Toney Douglas | 38 | 9 | 17.3 | .324 | .231 | .846 | 1.9 | 2.0 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 6.2 |
| Landry Fields | 66 | 62 | 28.7 | .460 | .256 | .562 | 4.2 | 2.6 | 1.2 | 0.3 | 8.8 |
| Dan Gadzuric | 2 | 0 | 6.5 | .000 | .000 | .000 | 2.5 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.0 |
| Josh Harrellson | 37 | 4 | 14.6 | .423 | .339 | .615 | 3.9 | 0.3 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 4.4 |
| Jared Jeffries | 39 | 4 | 18.7 | .410 | .188 | .681 | 3.9 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 4.4 |
| Jerome Jordan | 21 | 0 | 5.1 | .515 | .000 | .800 | 1.3 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 2.0 |
| Jeremy Lin | 35 | 25 | 26.9 | .446 | .320 | .798 | 3.1 | 6.2 | 1.6 | 0.3 | 14.6 |
| Steve Novak | 54 | 0 | 18.9 | .478 | .472 | .846 | 1.9 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 8.8 |
| Iman Shumpert | 59 | 35 | 28.9 | .401 | .306 | .798 | 3.2 | 2.8 | 1.7 | 0.1 | 9.5 |
| J.R. Smith | 35 | 1 | 27.6 | .407 | .347 | .709 | 3.9 | 2.4 | 1.5 | 0.2 | 12.5 |
| Amar'e Stoudemire | 47 | 47 | 32.8 | .483 | .238 | .765 | 7.8 | 1.1 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 17.5 |
| Bill Walker | 32 | 8 | 19.4 | .398 | .319 | .850 | 2.5 | 1.2 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 5.9 |

## Playoffs

The Knicks finished in seventh place on the year with a record of 36–30 after an up and down season. Knicks rookie guard, Iman Shumpert, tore his ACL and was estimated to be out for 7 months. Landry Fields took his position at Shooting guard in the starting lineup. On May 6, The Knicks snapped the 13 consecutive playoff losses streak, which was an NBA record. During the game, Baron Davis injured his right knee and missed the rest of the playoffs. The Knicks were eliminated in Game 5 of the first round to the Miami Heat.

### Game log

2012 playoff game log Total: 1–4 (home: 1–1; road: 0–3) :
First Round: 1–4 (home: 1–1; road: 0–3)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceSeries
1
April 28
@ Miami
L 67–100
J.R. Smith (17)
Carmelo Anthony (10)
Carmelo Anthony (3)
American Airlines Arena 19,621
0–1
2
April 30
@ Miami
L 94–104
Carmelo Anthony (30)
Carmelo Anthony (9)
Baron Davis (6)
American Airlines Arena 19,621
0–2
3
May 3
Miami
L 70–87
Carmelo Anthony (22)
Tyson Chandler (15)
Baron Davis (3)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
0–3
4
May 6
Miami
W 89–87
Carmelo Anthony (41)
Amar'e Stoudemire (10)
Carmelo Anthony, J.R. Smith (4)
Madison Square Garden 19,763
1–3
5
May 9
@ Miami
L 94–106
Carmelo Anthony (35)
Tyson Chandler (11)
Mike Bibby (6)
American Airlines Arena 19,754
1–4 :
2012 playoff schedule :

## Awards, records, and milestones
### Awards

* On February 2, Carmelo Anthony was named a 2012 NBA All-Star Game starter for the Eastern Conference.
* On February 13, Jeremy Lin was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week (February 6 though February 12).
* On April 27, Carmelo Anthony was named Eastern Conference Player of the Month for April.
* On May 2, Tyson Chandler was named Defensive Player of the Year for the 2011–2012 season.
* On May 24, Carmelo Anthony was named to the All-NBA Third Team for the 2011–2012 NBA season.
* On May 24, Tyson Chandler was named to the All-NBA Third Team for the 2011–2012 NBA season.
* On June 21, Jeremy Lin was awarded The Epic Award due to the performance he had against the Lakers in this year's first annual NBA Social Media Awards.
* On June 21, Jeremy Lin was awarded The Social Breakout Award due to the highest increase of fan across Facebook and Twitter in this year's first annual NBA Social Media Awards.
* On June 21, Landry Fields was awarded The Snap Shot Award with the photo he took of his couch where Jeremy Lin slept during the season in this year's first annual NBA Social Media Awards.

### Records

* On May 3, the New York Knicks set an NBA worst 13 consecutive playoff losses in an 87–70 loss to the Miami Heat in Madison Square Garden.

### Milestones

* On January 18, Carmelo Anthony scored his 15,000th career point in an 88–91 loss to the Phoenix Suns.
* On April 26, Steve Novak finished the season shooting a league-leading 47% from three-point range.
* On April 26, Tyson Chandler finished the season shooting a league-leading 68% from the field.

## Injuries, surgeries and disciplinary actions

* On January 21, Josh Harrellson injured broke his right wrist against the Denver Nuggets after falling on it in the first of 2 overtimes. He would have successful surgery 3 days later. He had to be sidelined for 6 weeks.
* On February 23, it was announced Iman Shumpert could not participate in the 2012 Slam Dunk Contest due to left patella tendonitis. He had sat out the 2 games following up the announcement and one game after the announcement. He returned the first game after the All-Star break.
* On March 4, Bill Walker underwent left elbow surgery to remove tissue. He missed the next 5 weeks after the surgery.
* On March 21, Jared Jeffries left a game against the Philadelphia 76ers. An MRI later showed that his surgically repaired right knee had been inflamed. Following the MRI, the Knicks announced that he would be out for 2 weeks.
* On April 1, Jeremy Lin underwent surgery to repair a torn meniscus and was out for the season.
* In Game 1 of the first round series against the Miami Heat, rookie Iman Shumpert tore his left ACL and his lateral meniscus, missing the remainder of the season.
* After a Game 2 loss in the same playoff series against Miami, Amar'e Stoudemire cut his hand as a result of punching the glass casing of a fire extinguisher in the locker room area. As a result, he missed the third game of the series after having surgery on his hand.
* In Game 4, Baron Davis tore his ACL, MCL and had a partial rupture in his patella tendon and was out for the season.
* J. R. Smith was fined US$25,000 by the league for posting an inappropriate picture on his Twitter account.

## Transactions
### Overview

| Players Added Via draft Iman Shumpert Via free agency Mike Bibby Jared Jeffries Jerome Jordan Baron Davis Dan Gadzuric Jeremy Lin Steve Novak J. R. Smith Via trade Tyson Chandler Josh Harrellson | Players Lost Via trade Andy Rautins Ronny Turiaf Via free agency Derrick Brown Anthony Carter Roger Mason, Jr. Shawne Williams Shelden Williams Waived Renaldo Balkman Chauncey Billups Bill Walker Chris Hunter |

### Trades

| June 23, 2011 | To New York Knicks Draft rights to Josh Harrelson | To New Orleans Hornets Cash considerations |
| December 10, 2011 | To New York Knicks Tyson Chandler (sign and trade) Draft rights to Ahmad Nivins (from Dallas) Draft rights to Georgios Printezis (from Dallas) | To Dallas Mavericks Andy Rautins Future second round pick (from Washington) To Washington Wizards Ronny Turiaf 2013 second round pick (from New York) Cash considerations (from New York) 2012 second round pick (from Dallas) |

### Free agents

Additions :
| Player | Date signed | Former team |
| Jared Jeffries | December 6 | Re-sign |
| Mike Bibby | December 11 | Miami Heat |
| Jerome Jordan | December 15 | BC Krka |
| Baron Davis | December 19 | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| Steve Novak | December 21 | San Antonio Spurs |
| Jeremy Lin | December 27 | Houston Rockets |
| J. R. Smith | February 17 | Denver Nuggets |
| Dan Gadzuric | April 20 | Texas Legends |
Subtractions :
| Player | Date signed | New team |
| Derrick Brown | December 9 | Charlotte Bobcats |
| Roger Mason, Jr. | December 9 | Washington Wizards |
| Anthony Carter | December 12 | Toronto Raptors |
| Shelden Williams | December 13 | New Jersey Nets |
| Shawne Williams | December 15 | New Jersey Nets |
Many players signed with teams from other leagues due to the 2011 NBA lockout. FIBA allows players under NBA contracts to sign and play for teams from other leagues if the contracts have opt-out clauses that allow the players to return to the NBA if the lockout ends. The Chinese Basketball Association, however, only allows its clubs to sign foreign free agents who could play for at least the entire season.
Played in other leagues during lockout :
| Player | Date signed | New team | Opt-out clause |
| Ronny Turiaf | October 17 | ASVEL Basket (France) | Yes |