Monthly Archives: May 2009
We knew that the Grizz could be a match, and apparently sources are telling the Memphis 
Commercial Appeal that Donnie Walsh is trying to find some action involving Darko Milicic and a late first rounder.
“…The New York Knicks offered to buy the Grizzlies’ 27th pick for $3million, according to a source. The Griz turned down that proposal.
The Knicks, according to speculation, also expressed interest in acquiring center Darko Milicic in a deal that could possibly include Quentin Richardson, whose $9.3 million contract expires after the 2009-10 season. Milicic will earn $7.5 million this upcoming season — the last of a three-year, $21 million deal.
…”No matter what people tell you right now, things change before draft night,” (Memphis GM Chris) Wallace said. “Whatever answers you’ve gotten now, you don’t rest on those answers. You keep churning.”
Ronald Tillery, who wrote this, is said to have serious ties to sources close to the Grizz front office so this is legit. Tillery was all over the Randolph rumors and that trade didn’t go down, as I learned, because the Grizzlies wanted a first round pick in return and Walsh turned them down before shipping Z-Bo’s mammoth contract to LA-LA land.
Two things of note here, one Walsh is trying to obtain more picks and, as we told you from day 1 of the offseason, this team’s roster should look drastically different come October.
Also, I think Q for Darko is a comparative deal for both sides and wouldn’t mind seeing it get done. Sure, Q has been one of the few leaders on the team, but you can expect more veterans on the roster (Nash?) to lead this team next season.
The most interesting thing that I’ve noticed from what’s happened during the NBA playoffs is 
the news that has come from off the court. While advertising dollars have been spent on commercials featuring Kobe Bryant and LeBron James that engulf the television screens, what’s most fascinating is that the play on the court leads us to believe that the much-anticipated match up seems as if it won’t happen.Even though I fully believe that James’ Cavaliers still have every right to represent the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals, fans may not have the chance to end the debate of “Who’s better?” between the King and Kobe. At least for now.
But I’ve been amazed that two NBA greats have already decided that LeBron is the better player. Jerry West, the man in NBA logo who traded for Bryant, went on record a few weeks ago to say that he felt James had surpassed the Lakers legend.
“If I had to have somebody make a last-second shot, it would be Kobe Bryant,” West told The New York Times recently. “But even though it’s hard for me to be objective, because I brought Kobe to Los Angeles, I do think LeBron has surpassed Kobe as a player.”
And what about Oscar Robertson, the man who once mind-blowingly averaged a triple-double for a season, a feat that James himself would one day like to replicate?
“LeBron has been terrific for Cleveland, Kobe been great for the Lakers. But you need help. You need a good, strong bench to win basketball games for you; if you don’t have it, you’re not going to win.”
Which is why LeBron needs to be in New York. I’ve recently asked countless fans what their thoughts are when then think of The Big O. Sure, they can recite the triple-double year, but they have no clue what team that was on. more.
Over at his blog, Marc Berman relays an ear-catching interview from ESPN’s Brandon Tierney’s radio show where 2010 free-agent-to-be Amare Stoudemire states his interest in changing uniforms in fairly straightforward fashion:
“Back in New York, ESPN Radio’s Brandon Tierney had Amare Stoudemire on this morning and reiterated remarks about his desire to play for Mike D’Antoni in 2010 while boasting about being better than Chris Bosh. Stoudemire told The Post similar stuff during All-Star Weekend.
“When Tierney asked Stoudemire if he’s better than Bosh, the Suns forward said, ‘Oooh man, are you kidding me? Ask Chris Bosh that question.’
“So that’s a yes?
” ‘No doubt about it, I’m better than Chris Bosh’
” ‘How serious will you consider the Knicks
in 2010′?
” ‘I will be totally serious about that, I spent a lot of my childhood there, I have a connection with the state, and I also love the entire coaching staff. I think Coach D’Antoni’s doing a phenomenal job with the Knicks, NY’s a great city, I follow them closely.’ “
I follow them closely, ay? That’s nice to hear, although I don’t buy for a second that he was watching Knicks in 60 much last year.
First and foremost, this is a story Knicks fans should feel very, very good about. I have always believed that playing in midtown Manhattan has an allure that means a lot to a lot of these guys, and I think this is reiterated here a bit. Moreover, something we all know but are yet to truly see, part of the success in bringing over D’Antoni last summer was that we got more than Xs and Os – we got his legacy and relationship with players, from both his days in Phoenix (discussions around Nash having a desire to reunite with his ex-coach have and will undoubtedly continue to surface) as well as with Team USA.
That being said, while it is nice to hear that he is interested in changing shades of orange and playing in the House That Ewing Built (sorry Willis) in a couple years, Amare may be playing with fire more than he knows it with these types of comments. Along with the hissy fits he reportedly threw this past season over not being used as the main piece of the Suns’ offensive system, I am growing a bit tired of listening to off-the-court Amare speak, and less amp’d about seeing on-the-court Amare play.
Don’t get me wrong, he is an absolute beast, and in D’Antoni’s system he is pretty much unstoppable. But there is something to be said from taking the classy, professional route in these types of situations, and over the past couple of years Amare has shown more of a ‘me-first’ side than I like in a franchise type player. If teamed with another big-name free agent in 2010, would Amare happily play tag-team sidekick? Or how long of a losing streak would it take until he got all cry-baby on us?
(Because it wouldn’t be fair to write on this and not enter the debate myself, would I take him over Bosh? In a heartbeat I would. I must agree with his “oooh man, are you kidding me” response to the initial question: true Bosh has a nicer outside touch, but Amare is the type of aggressive power player that can change games in an instant, much more so than Bosh.)
While I am admittedly giddy about this type of NY-centric sentiment, for me, that doesn’t get to the core of what is illuminated in this interview. Amare is slowly tiptoeing the line between confident superstar and cocky athlete, the latter of which really has no place inside a changing, maturing Garden locker room.
I am not crossing him off my wish list – not by a long shot – but these sort of antics are worth noting on your scorecard as the Summer of Dreams continues to creep closer…(that being said: so are these)
According to Marc Berman, who is at the pre-draft combine in Chicago,
Donnie Walsh met with UConn center, Hasheem Thabeet last night and is apparently enamored with the 7’3 shot-blocker. As I noted recently, the Knicks finished dead last in shot-blocking last season… and it was not even close. At UConn, Thabeet averaged 4.2 bpg as a junior, 4.5 bpg as a sophomore, and 3.8 bpg as a freshman. Sounds like a match. Right?
Thabeet projects potentially as one of the biggest busts of the draft. There are questions about Thabeet’s tougness and whether or not he will be able to have the same effectiveness defensively once he begins playing against taller and stronger players on a nightly basis. Thabeet will not average 4 bpg as a pro. That is for sure. But can he block enough shots to be an intimidating presence in the paint?
I have said for a while that if Thabeet falls to the Knicks, do not be surprised if Walsh drafts him. Thabeet was a premier shot-blocker in Big East, and unlike other bigs, he is agile and can move up and down the floor. He is not the type to lead a fast break, but he can get up and down well enough to be an effective trailer. Offensively, Thabeet is very raw. He has the tools to get better, but the same can be said for many players. Like I said before, potential doesn’t win championships… production does. Walsh would not draft Thabeet on his offensive potential, but rather his shot-blocking production. If Walsh believes that he can be an effective shot-blocker, then Thabeet can be the pick at 8. However, I highly doubt that Walsh moves up to take him.
We’ve told you countless times that the Blazers will be active, and their hopes are to land 
Andre Miller. Again, look for the Blazers to be active.
“…Trade?
Why not?
The scene should be encouraging to Blazers fans.
Because it wasn’t that long ago that a previous general manager was running the team from Seattle, along with more than a dozen other Paul Allen companies. And now the guy in charge of personnel is walking around the farmer’s market, peeking into strollers. I’m thinking that’s one significant change worth pointing out.
Of course, Pritchard will make a trade. We’re talking about the general manager who once pulled off an NBA-record six deals on a single day. And we’re looking at a franchise that knows now more than ever that it needs to dramatically improve, quickly grow or decide to make a deal, and raise the talent level in three positions if it wants to play deeper in the playoffs. So we’ve arrived at another Blazers moment in which the off-season breakfast burrito should be — and is — taking a backseat to the basketball.
Portland has five picks (No. 24 in the first, and four second-round picks) in June’s draft. If anything’s become evident this postseason it’s that Orlando (Dwight Howard) and Cleveland (LeBron James) present formidable young, talented obstacles that promise to stay in Portland’s way unless the Blazers do something.
It’s time…”
And you know Donnie has Pritchard’s digits.
Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer writes that Stephen Curry knows what he wants 
despite the difficulties that New York can bring.
“…Curry’s first audition will be with the hometown Charlotte Bobcats, but his first choice – he said this a half-dozen times Thursday – is to be a New York Knick.
The easy response would be to go off on a be-careful-what-you-wish-for rant. How many pro athletes has New York chewed, swallowed and belched?
But sitting there, in a group interview with Curry at the NBA draft combine, I was convinced the skinny kid from Davidson knows precisely what New York is, and he’s ready for it. The Knicks hold the eighth pick in the June25 draft. Curry believes what he is – a scoring point guard – is what they need, and he’s all but shouting his desire to go there.
He loves coach Mike D’Antoni’s up-tempo, Euro-style offense. He’d love to be chosen eighth (about as high as he could realistically expect). And he embraces what basketball in New York entails.
“New York is the most ideal situation right now,” Curry said. “To play in the (Madison Square) Garden 41 games a season? That’s a legacy. How can you beat it?’…’
The question is, will Curry be there? Our boy Jonathan Givony is reporting that Larry Brown may like the kid enough to move up.
“…Larry Brown is reportedly extremely high on Stephen Curry, and may be willing to trade up in order to get him. Apparently he views him as being able to play either guard position, even alongside Charlotte’s current group of point guards, Raymond Felton and D.J. Augustin…”
Via Spot on Hahn
“…This is going to be a very interesting situation as we get closer to the draft. I’m curious to see what Rubio does with his NBA workouts and what teams he may invite to come to his workout. Would he really try to pull a power play against Memphis, even with fellow Spaniard Marc Gasol on the team? Or would Memphis, who already has Mike Conley and a combo guard in OJ Mayo, even want to draft another guard? Oklahoma City has Russell Westbrook, would they move him to the two in favor of Rubio?
What will the trade demands be for teams who may want to move up to get Rubio?
HOOPSWORLD made an interesting revelation:
DKV Joventut does have Rubio’s signature on last season’s addendum to the contract which gave the mop-topped point guard a pay raise. The team is trying to leverage that signature into either 6 million euros this season or as much as 10 million euros next season.
That’s right. Rubio’s buyout actually goes up next season, which means if the situation doesn’t get resolved this year, it probably won’t be resolved next season either. There is a remote possibility that Rubio doesn’t arrive in the NBA until the 2011-2012 season.
The website quotes an anonymous agent saying teams may back off Rubio because of the buyout alone.
I seriously doubt Rubio falls to the Knicks at No. 8 and I’m not sure how the Knicks have the assets to move into a top three spot. However, there could always be a scenario where a team drafts Rubio and then looks to trade him afterward (as the Hornets did with Kobe Bryant). The Knicks could offer David Lee or Nate Robinson in a sign-and-trade, perhaps along with whomever they drafted at No. 8.
It’s all pure speculation at this point. First and foremost, the Knicks would have to want Rubio that bad. And I’m not sure I’m feeling that vibe at this point. We’ll know more after the individual workouts.
Again, no chance a team would take Rubio if he weren’t around. Any team before the Knicks would use his rights as leverage in a deal before letting Rubio to slip. The questions are, as Alan mentions, how bad do the Knicks want him and can they make the best offer?
I’m not sure they can.
Got an interesting email from Mike from whatifsports.com, a site dedicated to going above 
and beyond the game. Mike broke down the Knicks before and after the the Zach and Crawford trades and came up with some interesting info.
“…I wanted to evaluate the Jamal Crawford and Zach Randolph trades. At the time I was disappointed but looking back realize those trades were necessary for cap space and probably improved the team. But probably is not strong enough. Using our award-winning basketball engine, I took the Knicks opening day roster (minus Marbury and Curry) and simulated them against the eastern conference playoff teams five times each. I than did the same with the current Knicks roster.
I have attached a spreadsheet with the scores for each little series. The current Knicks roster fared significantly better than with Crawford and Randolph. The difference in point differential overall between the two teams is +67. The current Knicks have a +5 margin over the Pistons in 5 games, while the Crawford-Knicks have -2. This is the only series won, and the best both teams did by far (which says something about Detroit).
I also faced the two teams against one another in 20 games and they split 10-10. The current Knicks hold a +2 point differential in total…”
Interesting look at the break down if you’re a numbers guy. Me, I just wanted that money off the books.
Donnie Walsh, obviously campaigning on the “Take Eddy Curry Please 2009 Tour” visited
the Knicks center’s workout and apparently came away “impressed” according to Curry’s tweets . Although, what else do you expect him to say?
“…While in Chicago yesterday, Walsh visited another Curry — Eddy.
According to Eddy Curry’s twitter blog, Walsh watched one of his
workouts and was impressed. The Knicks are hoping Curry drops 30 pounds
this summer. Walsh did not return phone messages….”
Berman also notes that Stephen Curry is still the front runner for the Knicks (I think it’s Holiday!) and that they are showing some interest in other players.
“…(Stephen) Curry has emerged as a front-runner for the Knicks, because the
club’s top focus is selecting a scoring, playmaking guard. Davidson
coach Bob McKillip told The Post two weeks ago an intermediary told
Curry’s father, Dell, the Knicks were leaning heavily toward taking
Curry, but a report the club gave a guarantee was inaccurate.USC shooting guard Demar DeRozan and explosive point guard Brandon
Jennings, who leapt from high school to Italy last season, also are
drawing interest from the Knicks…”
Long-mentioned, longtime assistant coach Tom Thibodeau will apparently have to wait for 
another situation to earn his head coaching job.
Thibodeau, the defensive mastermind with the Celtics, was an assistant on the Knicks for 7 years.
“…Boston assistant Tom Thibodeau was the architect of the Celtics‘ resurgent defense and could significantly help Philadelphia’s which
ranked 14th overall in efficiency. Thibodeau, however, is also known to be more of an X’s and O’s guy and a little gruff around the players. In
Boston, his style works because there is a veteran presence and he doesn’t have to repeat instructions to Eddie House, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen. On a younger team, such as Philadelphia, he may not have that luxury…”
Plenty of fans have asked me why the Knicks wouldn’t overpay to bring Thibodeau back to NY to become what Dick Harter was for Pat Riley. Riley, who knew defense but was far more ShowTime than ShutDown before coming to NY, made sure he had his “master of defense” on his bench from the moment he arrived until the championship finals in 1994. And it worked, Harter was brilliant.
Thibodeau remained loyal to the Knicks staying here after Van Gundy left, so I can imagine he can return, and it seems as if he’s not getting a head coaching job anytime soon.
I would imagine he’ll be in Boston for another year or two, and if he’s still available, maybe Donnie Walsh reaches out.
After all, during his tenure with the Knicks, he helped the team set a then-NBA
record by holding 33 consecutive opponents under 100 points in the 2000-01 season.
But you have to be careful there. He’s already won a championship and after 18 years as an assistant you can bet his first goal is as head man.
