Walsh is Defining the Word Patience

by Tommy Dee on September 6th, 2008 at 12:51 pm

So it appears that the deal is on the man’s table. It’s a deal that is better than the one he passed on with the Clippers. At that time, many desperate fans wanted to dump Randolph’s contract and couldn’t believe there was an actual taker.

Donnie held firm.

I, for one, would not have made the Clipper deal either, but, like those fans I am desperate to rid Randolph’s contract, I think it’s move one. That said I believe Donnie thinks so too and over the past few weeks we have learned a few things about Donnie the executive and negotiator, and they are worth noting.

  • Unlike his predecessor, Donnie will not make a deal for deal’s sake. Can you imagine walking into this mess, your hometown team, with your career in early in its 4th quarter
    and not wanting to rush into doing something? Walsh has done the exact opposite and clearly has a plan. We know about the cap, but what comes with it, is making sure to find takers for a huge chunk of this roster while identifying which players to hold on to.
  • That said, he did make one swift decision and that was on Balkman, and what he did was a very smart move, despite what fans of Taz think. He traded Balkman for roster flexibility and cap space followed by exchanging the Ghost of the Phantom for Ewing Jr. all the while adding another second rounder. Even if Ewing doesn’t pan out, it doesn’t really matter, the team would never have re-signed Balkman so to get a young player with NBA potential and a 2nd rounder for a free agent whose stock would have plummeted even further, is a very productive move, albeit not a sexy one.
  • Which leads us to the Randolph situation. What Walsh is doing here is continuing to build Randolph’s value. Make no mistake, Randolph’s is a franchise-killing contract. And he has his issues, we’ve heard that his house recently has looked like the location of a Cheech and Chong movie, without all those trailers, pesky actors and cameras. Granted plenty of players smoke weed, that’s not breaking news, but Randolph’s off court issues make him less desirable to a franchise than his strapping contract. Players in this league get paid that much to win, but more importantly to LEAD (see Garnet) not just to put up solid numbers. So, if the rumors are true, and we know they are, Walsh has broken the deal down into getting back a potentially impressive big man who has to showcase for another contract, and a decent bench player with a bad contract in exchange for paying a big chunk of Z-Bo’s remainder.

I’d bet anything that Donnie would have already agreed to pay a chunk of Z-Bo’s deal in exchange for Walker instead of Jaric, or if the Grizz were to include a young guard, Lowry or Crittenton, along with Jaric – hence the holdup. Right now the Grizzlies are being smart and trying to gauge Walsh’s desperation, but Donnie hasn’t shown any and there is no reason to believe that he will. Both teams need to deal, so I’m sure something will happen, but you can bet it will be in the Knicks’ best interest and at worst an even trade on the surface.
  • KnickFaninMD

    I’m torn as well. To me:

    Pluses: Dump Z-Bo’s contract, another piece in the puzzle to compete for 2010 FAs, resolve the Curry-ZBo situation, addition by subtraction? by keeping offense more fluid. Jaric may flourish in MD’s system. Darko may finally contribute in this league.

    Minuses: Adding two guys who may ride the bench for two plus years. Doubts that Darko can ever really contribute. Continuing concern that Knicks will actually get worse. Is this the best deal the Knicks will ever get for Z-Bo? Feeling that Curry is the guy who needs to go (but know that won’t happen). Z-Bo will be an All-Star next season and/or can be a monster with D’Antoni.

    I’d feel better if the Knicks swallowed Darko and hoped for the best – but got one of the nice point guards and/or a 2nd rounder. I wouldn’t feel too bad if Walsh held out for more at the risk of killing the deal in order to get something positive other than a salary dump.

  • http://searchhotgoodsblog.info/2008/09/06/terry-pleads-for-supporters-patience/ Terry Pleads For Supporters’ Patience | All Football

    [...] Walsh is Defining the Word Patience [...]

  • http://www.handicappingthenba.com/trade-speculation-randolph-to-memphis/267/ Trade Speculation: Randolph to Memphis | Handicapping The NBA

    [...] Tommy Dee of TheKnicksBlog.com offers a good look at Donnie Walsh and the tough decisions he has to make about the Knicks [...]

  • The Kid

    This is my 1st time posting on your blog and I really like this blog. I’m not that big of a Knick fan since I always pull for the Celtics but I always want to see NY do good since I live here.

    A couple thoughts I think Donnie Walsh is a good basketball mind, I wouldn’t call him great, but I feel he absolutely should have traded Zach Randolph as soon as possible. There is nothing that he can do that will make Zach Randolph more impressive or build his value going into the 2008-09 season.