D’Antoni has the Player’s future at Heart

Well, no one’s questioning that Mike D’Antoni is a very nice man. But obviously that approach is terrible for a re-building franchise.

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btw: I don’t care how many points Al Harrington scores, he is ALWAYS going to take those last contested 3s that take you out of a close game. You could see that coming from miles away.

Sounds like Mike D is looking out for the vets futures. In all honesty we are not going anywhere this year. The young guys will be around next year most if not all the vets won’t. So I guess why not look out. If he wanted to he could bench them and play the rooks with Gallo and you know what no NBA team are going to want to sign them at all. That would be wrong and he seems to be looking at the big picture with the season practically over. As far as a star, everyone knows that is the peice that can win or lose games for teams. We have players who can have big nights once in a while and have nights where they give up. So here’s hoping 2010 is the miracle we are looking for. And with Gallo we went from the man of the team to secondary player to now a third peice to a team with a bonafide all star ie Lebron or Wade. Although I think Wade may go to Orlando or bring Bosh to Miami. Gallo won’t be better than JR Smith and I will say that. JR can slash, dunk, rebound and if we remember last year carry a team on his back. He can do many things to help a team I don’t see where Gallo can do that.

Oh? So it must have been Dolan that ordered Marbury to be ostracized, to end up being needed, and AI to be derailed in replacing a struggling Duhon? Nice guys finish last? We play to win the game? Jeffries, Duhon for Hill and Douglas is being nice? Now I heard it all, I need a vacation.

Terrible thought process.

We are supposed to be concerned about Larry Hughes and Al Harrington’s next contract? They are making 14 and 10 million dollars this year. What a joke. We should sacrifice young players developments because the coach wants to make sure Larry Hughes can buy a few more bentleys next year.

And “the system looked fine last night”? They gave up 128 points. Melo raped and pillaged the entire team.In what universe is that a sign of a good system, or have we just conceded defense now?

Danillo plays like a 6’3 passive shooting guard, the dude is 7 feet tall. id take j.r smith over him in less than a second.

Why will Gallo be a more efficient player than JR Smith? I’m sorry but I have a hard time believing that yet, JR Smith can create his shot, is a good slasher and can even shoot 3′s off the dribble which Gallo cannot come close to doing yet. Not all of JR’s smith 3′s last night were wide open, he hit a couple off the dribble with a defender on him, where we watching the same game Tommy?
I’m not a Gallo hater at all but how can people on this blog say he will be better than a proven stud like JR Smith when he has done absolutely nothing in this league yet, look at last night, another crap game by Gallo if you ask me.
I like Gallo as a player but when people are already saying he will be better than really good established players it drives me crazy.

There has been no indication in either players’ career that gallinari will be better than J.R Smith. Its just a mythical idea.

Psst, tell D not to be so nice with Gallo and run him into the ground a year after his back surgery like he did with Duhon.

I wouldn’t simply because JR is a felony case waiting to happen.

Im beginning to think some people on here dont actually watch the knicks. Gallinari’s game has consisted of floating around the three point line and shooting. He is a taller version of Sasha Pavlovic with more upside right now. I dont hate him, I actually think he can be very solid on a good team but if you are telling me that you would take Gallinari over J.R smith you have no idea what you are talking about.

Yeah that just makes no sense to me. Al and Larry make an absurd amount of money, and will always find a place to land. While its nice that Dantoni cares for them, thats no excuse to be playing them for rookies when the team is this bad. This is a rebuilding year, and if DW is going to say with a straight face that they are not getting AI because they are developing young guys, then his Coach should not be not playing two important rookies who have proven to be ok in short amounts of time on the court. It would be excusable if the Knicks were fighting for the 8th seed and were a respectable team, but they are just a joke right now and many “veterans” have been a major part of this terrible season so far. The problem is not the system though, it is all on the players. When your team has Buckets and Hughes on it, to go with a ball-stopping Chandler and the worst pg in the league, no coach is going to get that team to be playing efficient, winning basketball. Its just not happening. So at least play the young guys, there is just no excuse for us to watch these veterans all get theirs while our team is a joke.

at the same time though we have a 20 year old with lingering back problems. Id take the better player with the good back, albeit with some felonies.

Excuses are like azz hoes, everybody has one.

this playing the vets so they can get another contract is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.

It is an insult to the fans of the Knicks who watch the team and pay for tickets to see this garbage.

see this is what I mean…it’s not about being NICE, it’s about having RESPECT for veterans.

i think that it’s a great quality for a coach moving forward and players will want to play for him…

Donnie walsh, totally agree with you man, who cares about the next contracts these guys are going to get on other teams.
These guys all have enough money to last a last time if they have any brains on how to manage money.
We need a coach that plays the best players period, without considering how many years a player has been in the league or if he will get offered a contract next year. This is really mind boggling to me.

Does Tommy Dee ever have anything negative to say about Knicks management or coaching? He’s beginning to sound like the head of the P.R. department.

this doesn’t get talked about much, but the logic behind this is also insulting to the 2010 free agents brains. Its not as if 10 more wins thanks to hughes and harrington is going to dupe Lebron into coming to NY. He fully understands who will be here next year. And to not play/audition those players, when you’ve dedicated the last two years to this, is horrendous. Its even worse if the dumb idea this post is about is the reasoning behind it.

gallo slashed pretty well against the celts…

Ask the young guys or Darko if they feel respected.

JR smith is a “proven stud?” he’s averaged 12 ppg for his career with WIDE OPEN SHOTS.

come on guys…he’ll be able to “create his own shot” when his legs bc NBA ready night in and night out.

Larry Hughes- $13,655,268

Al Harrington- $10,026,875

…. To play basketball in MSG for a year. Hey gang, lets see if we can convince the point guard of knicks information to host a charitable telethon to make sure these guys land on their feet next year.

but if you are telling me that you would take Gallinari over J.R smith you have no idea what you are talking about.

Ah fordham arrogance…love it…keep it coming son.

I disagree…I think gallo is that Smith type to stretch the defense with a star player.

you obviously don’t watch Smith enough.

gallo slashed pretty hard to the rim against marvin williams and the celts…

he’s playing and NBA schedule for the first time in his life man…come on

JR smith 12 PPG career…not 25.

by the way, he doesn’t rebound and shoots way under 40% from 3.

and yes i know what im talking about…thanks

Uh, I work for a rival Network…

“he’s averaged 12ppg for his career with WIDE OPEN SHOTS”
What does that mean? Most of his points are not on wide open shots so what is your point? I know that you know that JR Smith scores a whole lot more points by driving than gallo.
And how much longer do we have to wait for Gallo to get “his legs”, he has been in the league for more than a year now so you have to stop with that excuse as the reason why he has not played well enough.

Did anyone laugh, cry or throw up when D said it? Some one should had farted. Really, I mean; turn it into what it really is.

AGAIN

i think that it’s a great quality for a coach moving forward and players will want to play for him…

Steiker, you seem to be forgetting that his being in the league over a year included him playing around 20 minutes a game while according to Gallo not even being able to sleep at night because of pain in his back and legs. To follow that up, he got back surgery this summer and didn’t start playing basketball until the start of training camp. So yeah, definitely he deserves much more time to get his legs under him. Have you ever heard of the rookie wall? Give the guy a break, hes still managed to be the knicks most efficient scorer with all those obstacles. And Donnie, I usually agree with you on here but you clearly have not been watching if you think all he does is drift around the 3 point line and take open shots. Sure thats the majority of his game but did you watch him dunk on pierce or take nice shots off the dribble in many games or many of his nice passes?

I know how Donnie can show respect to the Vets and the Knicks MAKE SOME TRADES.

I think NY will sign T Mac next season anyway so Houston might as well trade for him and get a Nate/Lee/maybe Chandler out of it yea they have to take on Curry or Jefferies but its worth it to get a young talent out of it.

I say T Mac for 6-7mil next season if not the Mid-Level exception.

HUH?

he’s 21 and still getting stronger. This is the NBA, right? 82 games.

WOW.

JR smith is a “proven stud?”

I think he’s a great role player…

you guys love to blow things out of proportion…

I said I respected it…I’ve also screamed for the young players.

but keep reading what you want to read…

lol.

Gallo’s game consists of floating around the arc because that is the offense.

That is why, if you watch the game, the 3 and 4 spot on the arc on one side and the 2 spots on the other side. Duhon only plays with Lee and Hughes. Chandler gets ignored almost as often as does Gallo.

Often you have four players on the arc and, usually, Lee in the post. Are you saying that all the players have just chosen to float around on the arc? That is the offense. No cutting through the paint because that ruins the Duhon-Lee pick and roll. Lee just never pitches it out and he is efficient down low.

Gallo and the others are playing the way they’ve been told to play it. Gallo just won’t break the play the way the expirings do because he is team-oriented and they are self-oriented.

D’Antoni has to back the vets or lose them more than he has already. They are playing for the next contract, not for him. He’s covering their behavior with his comment.

Last night for the first time they started some cutting and allowed Gallo to take the post on a couple of plays, but it does no good to spot Lee on the arc because the league knows he has no shooting range.

One possession does not a career make, Tommy. For every one flash he has shown, there are two or three times he has dribbled a ball of the defender’s or his own foot. There’s great with plenty of ugly in between. Will he be better than JR Smith? I agree with you on that one. Was he the best draft choice? Eh. I think Gordon would’ve fit this system better, but time will tell. I think he’ll be a pretty good one.

(I honestly do worry about the back. I have one from football, and it’s not fun. Do they think the stiffness will go away permanently over time because of the surgery? That’d be real good news.)

the problem is you are citing individual games where gallo slashed. your not saying, he slashes. instead its against the celtics that one time and that instance against marvin williams. The slashing seems miraculous when it actually happens. And 12ppg for career seems pretty arbitrary. Hes scoring 16ppg today, this season, which is what we’re talking about.

He doesn’t rebound that much, like most shooting guards… Yet he only averages two less per game than our 7 foot power forward?

i dont respect anything about this asinine idea of MDA playing the vets so they can get paid next year.

“I respect it” would be about the farthest thing away from what most fans would think about it.

The players certainly dont see it that way or they would be showing effort every nite in order to justify their next contract. They obviously dont respect D;Antoni given what they put out on the court on a consistent basis.

they are DIFFERENT players…more EFFICIENT means that he can be a great 3rd option scorer who can benefit from a star and stretch the court…

you’re comparing their skills. I am not.

so all the washed up has beens who want a one year deal so they can try to pump up their stats and not have to practice hard will be lining up to come here?

great.. 2010 here we come.

AGAIN, THEY ARE DIFFERENT PLAYERS…Gallo will be the third option on a team with a star or 2 who can stretch the floor and benefit from playing with a great player or 2.

He’ll be a better 3 point shooter, already is, thus he should be more efficient.

you guys are funny.

Yeah Great point Boots. I think any young player would drift around the perimeter on this team and in this system. It is predicated on the pg making plays for others and ball movement. Does anyone honestly think that an unproven 21 year old would be able to get the chance to make plays on a team that has a pg who can’t create for others, Buckets, Hughes, Nate Rob, and Wilson. I mean seriously, has there ever been a time when one of those guys has touched the ball without putting their head down and chucking.

Tommy I hear what u sayin in regards to the vets. Sitting them may send the wrong message to other players, especially after they did an awful job with the Marbury situation. So I think Mike is tryin to repair his image as well as the Knicks. But if u feel that a couple of drives to the hole 2 dunks and multiple strips from other players when he tries to dribble past opposing defenders is better than JR Smith then I guess you have Knick colored glasses on. Gallo is passive stays around the 3pt line and can’t guard a light pole. JR can. But let’s take it to another level do you feel Gallo will be as good or better than Hedo Turkoglu or Rudy Gay?

“They obviously dont respect D;Antoni given what they put out on the court on a consistent basis.”

uh, exactly. That’s what i said:

Get after me if you want, and of course feel free to continue and question the coach’s rotation and decisions, but my thing is there have been several games this year where the players haven’t shown the same amount of respect for the coach by playing hard, and that’s very much on them..

AGAIN, GALLO and SMITH ARE DIFFERENT PLAYERS…Gallo will be the third option on a team with a star or 2 who can stretch the floor and benefit from playing with a great player or 2.

He’ll be a better 3 point shooter, already is, thus he should be more efficient.

CAn he be as good as Rudy Gay? Or Turk?

he’s 21…he’s got a lot of room for growth.

Tommy Im with you on this one man. I like JR Smith, but he has been in the league for 3 or 4 years now and has not improved much past the point of inefficient streaky bench scorer. Gallo has been in the league for not even a full year now(Im counting games hes actually played) and has shown good potential for improvement. THe guy is 21 and coming off back surgery, and was projected as a PF but doesn’t have the muscle to play that position yet so he is stuck guarding much quicker players, of course he can’t guard anyone. Yes as of right now JR is a better player, but Gallo needs to be given more time and is already more efficient of a scorer than JR ever was. Therefore, I believe he will be bettter than JR when given time to properly develop and hopefully put on 10-15 more pounds so he can guard his natural position.

Good shit Donnie Walsh , EXACTLY!!!

I respect D’Antoni’s respect for the veterans, I understand that they’ll have to get some pesto next summer.

But Toney Douglas has to play, Chris Duhon just isn’t good enough, period.

The major problem is Donnie Walsh’s reluctance to clear the logjam at the 4 spot. Either David Lee or Al Harrington has to go in my opinion, the fact that Jordan Hill is collecting DNP’s is disgraceful. James Harden – for example – is not a starter in OKC but he’s coming along slowly (but surely) because he plays at least 20 minutes everynight.

if and when they do that they should sit ..

No two ways about it.

If the coach said play hard and you’ll get minutes I would respect that.

If any coach says Ill play the vets cause they need a new deal next year I think i’d fire him.. hypothetical of course..

What about Darko? Cause he is talking about going back to Europe next year he gets no burn this year? That is just silly beyond belief.

Who cares about the vets?

This season is a wash, we have to first teach and then find out if the players on the roster for next year can play.

We already know Jefferies cannot play.
We already know Curry is what he is and when he plays we know what we have…..not much.

So let them find work somewhere else and let’s find out if Douglas can play the point, if Chandler has what it takes to be a true SF who takes the ball to the basket and can put up 20 a game. He has the athletic ability and the shot. Let’s see if Gallo is a PF and if Hill can play center, he is close to 7 feet tall and has great athletic ability.

So put in a team of Hill at center, Gallo at PF, Chandler at SF, Douglas at point and rotate Hughes and Nate at the 2 until we can make a trade for a young SG who doesn’t cost a lot of has an expiring contract. To fill out the rest of the team get some D leaguers and send everybody but Lee home so they can rest up for next season playing somewhere else.

Let’s see if these guys can play. We are going to lose anyway so why not. Out of respect for the veterans at the expense of our future, that makes no sense.

That’s why D’antoni stinks and Donnie isn’t much better, sorry they just proved it by D’ant making those asinine statements. That has to be the stupidest thing I ever heard in professional sports.

i can’t say I disagree…but players around the league, I believe will respect a coach who cares about players.

but i understand your take on the “right way to lose.”

either way they aren’t very good.

i said as much the other night with the rooks. they play HARD and vets should sit.

I said it.

We are not blowing things out of proportion it’s just that I don’t see what there is to respect about it. lol

hey Heri,
a little birdie told me that your desecrating this place too.
how many aliases have you used so far in here?
let’s see Otis Jackson, GreatScott, Tyrone Jax…. to name a few.
Is Leonard here too with his braces? lol

look at the bright side, Knicks have a better record than the Nets as we speak. ha ha ha ha

all together now….
“In the Navy…..

i just think there are better ways to show players you care than not holding them accountable for their on court actions and being OK with guys lowering their head and driving or jacking up countless threes so that they can pump up their stats and get paid AGAIN next year.

Its kind of hard to side with a Larry Hughes needing to get paid when he is at the end of a 70 million dolar contract.

Reminds me of when Sprewell turned down the 36 mil cause he had to feed his family.

Ok Tommy you are right about they are different players. But the Knicks org. and marketing dept. made this year about Wilson and Gallo and I even heard on more than one occasion that this is a breakout year for them possible all stars. Now Gallo may just be a taller version of John Paxson on the Bulls championship team? So we picked a sharpshooter who is better suited to being the 3rd wheel not good at all. And hearing from my fellow Knick fans about the logjam I feel we can do a couple of things, trade Lee or Al with whatever else is needed for T Mac or see what we can do to get Rudy Gay. Gives Hill some light to show what he can do and be and not what people hope or assume he can be.

Tommy, I agree with you. You are just trying to give us an inside look. Besides, the Vets need to feel respected. We need them to help make our record at least somewhat respectable. You have also said you’d love to see the kids play more. I think you are right, as a reporter, to give as many sides as possible! Not just the angry-fan side, of which there are many.

You are positive on the Knicks, usually, and I enjoy that, especially when you do work for MSG’s rival. Also, I appreciate you are one of the only bloggers who actually mixes it up with the blog commenters. You’ll get into an internet war with them. Awesome. Don’t let the trolls get to you, Tommy! Keep fighting the fight!

Cheers and go Knicks.

The truth is that none of the youngsters have proven they should get starter minutes. Out starters our terrible, we all know that. But let’s face it, our rookies are just that, normal rookies. We have no Brandon Jennings’ or Dereck Rose’s.

We’re trying trying to make trades (or at least I hope so.) D’antoni can’t exactly say “we’re giving these guys playing time to trade them.” We need to unload some players and get a draft pick. Since starting Douglas and Hill probably won’t net us any wins anyway, giving them starter minutes before the trade deadline will probably hurt us more than help us.

Of course it’s ridiculous because it’s probably not true. We’re playing the vets to trade them, but D’antoni can’t exactly say that.

On the subject of both Rose and Jennings, they have not been playing well at all lately. It just goes to show you that young players are very inconsistent, and people need to chill out with the game by game evaluations of their future.

the only vet you can say that about is Curry and JJ.. and they arent on the last years+++++

why would we want to trade the expirings? other teams that want them just want them cause they are expiring. not cause they can still ball.

We;re not going to trade Jeffries or Curry on their own. Our expirings will be paired with Jeffries and Curry. We’re also trying to get a pick, at least I hope so.

im not sure Donnie is so keen on adding another guaranteed contract for next year.. A #1 would require a guaranteed contract..

Id be all for it but all signs point to that not happening.

gillinari is so far from being better than smith.

if a players doesn’t want to be good
no1 can help him

this feeding of other players energy i don’t buy

there is alot i don’t buy like
other players make other players better

that sounds like kids are playing

it’s all on the player what he want to be an what the coach sees
some players are good but until they get that chance no1 will know..

the p.g is the main position but if he doesn’t have players to pass it to then he will have to score for himself=marbury’s career an iverson..

it’s about a situation sometimes players go into bad 1′s..

just food for your thought..

obviously the money aspect is all relative. hard for fans to relate to…

i think it’s more they’ve earned the rite, as veterans, to continue to show you can still play.

it’s a unique situation.

At the start of the season, the consensus was improvement like 40 wins. I agreed even though there was not a big improvement talent wise, the players familiarity with one another as a unit would produce more wins. So far I and the consensus are wrong. There just isn’t enough talent on this team. You can change the coach or change the genral manager but there just isn’t enough talent. Why do I hear that the players don’t play hard. They play hard but not very well. I hear that D’Antoni is a bad coach because he does not play Milicic? How many coaches have failed to play Milicic? Maybe Milicic doesn’t play well enough? George Carl feels sorry for D’Antoni because his team has no talent. I don’t feel sorry for D’Antoni? D’Antoni believes he is a good coach. Walsh believes he is a good general manager. In time both these guys believe they will prove their critics wrong. I agree.

you’re the one who initiated the comparison in your post though?

Smith is better than Gallinari right now. Why? He doesn’t have stiff back. I think Gallinari’s trying to hide it because he’s hungry.

But I think a healthy Gallinari (hypothetical assumption) > JR Smith

Carmelo Anthony is a stud by the way, I can’t believe some of you guys didn’t want him.

its been a rough year to be walsh. Watching Jennings look like a future perennial allstar, his two lottery picks look mediocre, and still have eddy curry and jeffries staring you in the face. He can still salvage something if he gets rid of at least one of those two and nets some picks.

tommy, riddle me this…..how do you know gallinari’s career or impact on any team will pan out better than that of a Vladimir Radmonovic?….i mean they both are the same size, same expectations, same athletic ability, and same skill sets as far as shooting. I think the whole Dirk v.2 search is getting old and tiring…everybody expects soemthing out of the “tall earopean who ca shoot”…..some GM’s need to give it a rest, bevause the results are the same for the most part.

and i definitely agree that JR is NOT a stud but at the same he is better than Gallinari at every aspect of the game(maybe except shooting) so i dont know how on earth you hold gallinari to such expectations…..i have actually watched smith from his charlotte days and even in the EBC tournament….the guy is a game changer and can make a difference on both sides of the floor and plays with alot more intensity than gallo…..you guys love shooters so much go sign kapono or roger mason to 5 year deals…sheesh

In reference to what Smith does for the nuggs as their 3rd option…he benefits from space created by billups and Melo.

but no, not to compare their skill sets.

on a great team, Gallo, today, would be a solid 3rd option.

obviously the answer to your first question is I don’t. Neither do you.

gallo would be a great 3rd option on a playoff team…right now. Just like smith is. Gallo is comfortable in NY, whereas Vladdy has been traded 100 times.

So if you want to play the whole big Euro guy’s are stiff that’s fine by me. I’ll take a guy who can bury jumpers without the luxury of playing with someone who can actually create space FOR him.

He’ll be able to get his own shot as he gets older, I believe.

honestly tommy, i dont think gallo really gets that much of and edge over vlad…IF any at that. i mean everybody went gagga over gallo hittin 8 threes earlier this season……vlad has done the same. if anything their careers seem to be starting out the same way……and vladdy has been traded 100 times for a reason tommy….because sometimes you have to live with the fact that players “are what they are” not what you think they will be. the kid attempts over 7 threes a game…7! ….im sorry if i dont see any versatility whatsoever.

i mean they want to “develope” then try hitting the gym harder and putting in extra practice time where your game lacks. i guess jennings was able to “develope” while playing in europe with all that play time huh?…no, practice and dedication spelled any success he is having so far straight out the gate.

i honestly dont think just by giving rookies all the play time in the world and and free reign to “do them” is everyone’s recipe for development. you can give gallo all the minutes in the world to hoist shots, now he’s better?….its almost no different from mediocre players thriving on a lowly and loosing franchise but would be no better than a 6th man on an actually good team.
i have nuthin against the kid but im juts sayin

donnie:if DW didn’t believe he could turn the Knicks around, he would have stayed in Indiana or retired. He didn’t take this job to tarnish his reputation. I believe he is smart enough and experienced enough to find a deal. As to Jennings, I am sure this is not the first player he could have had and didn’t. It’s a game of percentages. You got to be right more than you are wrong. Not easy watching this process.

Gallo looks like he hasn’t caught up to the NBA game yet and still plays a European game. I will not judge him until the end of the season because this is, in essence, his rookie year. The one thing that bothers me, though is that he is not being aggressive enough in demanding the ball. He is not moving without the ball either. He just parks at the 3 point line and waits for Duhon or someone to pass him the ball.

Again, I will take a guy who can get his shot without anyone creating space for him.

he’ll learn to create space off the dribble as he gets stronger. He has a completely different skill set than vladdy.

it’s why i hate comparisons…

I believe that you just “nailed it”.

Surround Gallo with some “real” talent, and he would look much better, and make his teammates look better as well.
Duhon cannot break down an opponents defense and pass to Gallo enough.
I can count the number of times that Nate an Al have passed the ball to him.
It seems to me that he is deferring to the veterans out of respect for the pecking order.
In my opinion he probably has a higher BBall IQ than anyone else on the team.
Remember, he was a go to guy in the Italian league.
Next season is when we really begin to see him develop, assuming that we have a successful offseason.

When I looked at the standings this morning, I just couldn’t help thinking…….
What if the Nets get a top three draft pick this June, have a higher likelyhood than ever to move to Brooklyn in a couple of years, and have plenty of cap room this summer, with Devin Harris, Courtney Lee and Brook Lopez on their squad already?
I am hoping that none of the available superstars consider the western bank of the Hudson, as opposed to 33rd and 7th.

Just thinkin’
Although they are the “red headed step children”, they sure do appear to have a better headstart to the future than we do.

I’ll die wearing blue and orange, but this does concern me.

Any opinions out there?

I honestly think Miami is the biggest threat and will be (hopefully OUR) the biggest rival of an LBJ team in the East.

Dear God…

19.5% of the Season has been completed. We still have 80.5% to go. What’s the deal with some of you people?

The rooks will get their playing time down the road. It’s early on the season, let them work stuff in practice. Like somebody said, we have no Brandon Jennings, James Harden or a Kevin Durant. We have projects, it is what it is. TD needs to work on his playmaking skills, Jordan Hill needs to work in all his game. If you ask me I don’t see why the need to rush things. The idea is to get better in the future… we are a work in progress. Down the road the kids could get their playing time… right now is just not the time. Jordan Hill has a Personal Fould 15 seconds before he checks into the game. Toney Douglas needs to learn how to run the team before being handed the keys.

And Gallo? Come on. The kid has it in him. No, he might not be Dirk 2.0 but the kid knows basketball. You try to work your way back to any playing level after 1 year off and coming back from surgery. Guys, the jury is still out for Gallo. None of us can predict the future. But let’s be REAL in the present. He is 21 years all. At that age, he has to adapt to a new enviroment in his personal life. He has to adapt to the NBA game from the Euro Game. He has to do all that with the KNICKS in NEW YORK. And to make things better, he has to do it while recovering from surgery.

This stuff TAKES TIME. We won’t know Gallo’s full potention until like a year from now or so. Maybe the kid is lacking his confidence to attack because he is afraid he might injure his back again, just like he injured it in the first place. Why the need to burn him so quickly? I’m all for letting him take baby steps until he reaches his full potential.

Cut the kid some slack. He might be a bust, a 3rd option or Dirk 2.0, but we won’t know this year… so please be more reasonble with the kid’s situation.

i wonder if steph marburry feels the respect.but seriously isnt he supposed to be trying to win games?

i wish d’antoni and walsh would just respect us fans and put out at least a semi-pro team on the floor