Harrington could be the Perfect 3rd Piece

by Tommy Dee on November 30th, 2008 at 12:22 pm

When Donnie Walsh made the trade for Al Harrington, and getting the chance to watch him play over the past few games, I hope that love for Harrington’s potential doesn’t blind me in a similar way that it did with former Knick Charles Smith.

Allow me to explain.

When the Knicks moved Mark Jackson to the Clippers for Smith, I felt that at the time playing the 3, Smith gave them such a great advantage, and recalling his career with U of Pitt, I concluded the Knicks got a steal of a deal. And in many ways they did, yet Smith never assumed the role of the team’s third piece behind Patrick Ewing and John Starks. No way do they get to the top of the mountain with Jackson, and Smith, despite playing out of position, combined with Anthony Mason and of course Ewing and Oakley to form one of the best front lines in the NBA.

But Smith never asserted himself in the way that he should of, and that idea was made painfully aware under the basket against the Bulls. Frankly, I think that play is overrated in the minds of Knick fans, Smith had no angle and was trying to get to the backboard with three people on his back. The Bulls interrupted the Starks/Ewing “pick and slip” causing Ewing to have to handle the ball way too far from the hoop. “It’s was layup” is a notion that doesn’t tell the whole story. In essence, Smith’s career with the Knicks was summed up with that play: wrong place at the wrong time. Think about the fact that Smith never averaged 6 rebounds in a season, nor did he ever have a campaign where he took more than 9 shots on average per game for the Knicks. And Smith’s greatest moment was being dealt to the Spurs along with Monty Williams in a cap saving move that brought back JR Reid and Brad Lohaus. The trade allowed the Knicks to rebuild on the fly and add Chris Childs and Allan Houston the next season.

Harrington has a ton of talent, and the reason I lobbied for this trade in July was because of his talent, but more because of his contract. I have a feeling that he’ll be a great 3rd piece come 2010 and that he’ll stay for the rest of his career. I wonder just how many shots that allows him per game. In D’Antoni’s system it should provide plenty, but when teams become championship contenders that 3rd piece often becomes very important, just ask Lebron or ask the Lakers about James Posey or Rajon Rondo when Ray Allen struggled. I just hope that he fits here in a way that Smith didn’t. Make no mistake, they are two different players, Harrington can play on the perimeter and on the block, but for some reason I may be overrating Al in the same fashion I overrated Smith.

Because I wanted them both to be good, maybe to a fault. But in seeing what Al did last night, with a fire lit under his butt, it makes you hope that he doesn’t tease you and disappear some nights. But you can see the Garden can inspire players, and playing against your former team doesn’t hurt, but I really think Al will bring it every night here, and not hide from the lights, which Smith often did.

The point being that the Knicks will garner one, maybe two free agents in 2010, but the most important piece to the puzzle may have been put into place last Friday.
  • thecritic

    I played in a 3 on 3 tourney sponsored by the knicks last year and charles smith was there. I swear, all i could think when i saw him was that blown layup and I hated his guts for it. He could be the nicest guy in the world but i get nauseous just thinking about that play..haha

  • http://www.theknicksblog.com/2009/01/10/knicks-struggling-in-close-games/ The Knicks Blog » Knicks Struggling in Close Games

    [...] as inexperience and an inability to hold leads, and again, a lack of a star player. As you know, TKB loves Al Harrington, but he’s the closest thing the Knicks have to a star player, and that poses a problem, [...]