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“…What made the benching all the more conspicuous is that three days earlier Robinson scored 22 fourth-quarter points against the Magic at the Garden. Orlando had no answer for Robinson…until D’Antoni gave the Magic one.
“It is a coach’s decision,” Robinson said. “He knows what he is doing. I’ve had plenty of DNP’s before in my career so it is nothing new.”
The benching was Robinson’s first since Dec. 17, 2007, when Isiah Thomas had had enough. D’Antoni, who according to sources was against the Knicks re-signing Robinson over the summer, has been critical of his behavior in recent weeks. Robinson drew the ire of his coach last month when he shot at the Nets‘ basket as time expired in the first quarter.
On Tuesday, D’Antoni was upset when Robinson was called for an away-from-the-ball foul on the Suns’ Goran Dragic that was borderline dirty. Asked if those plays factored into the decision, D’Antoni said: “I’m not going to sit here and explain everything. Why didn’t I play Darko (Milicic) today? You didn’t ask me about that. Why didn’t I play Marcus Landry the last game?
“We can go through the whole line. I don’t think I’m going to sit here and explain it. It’s just something…. We’re trying to build a winning group.”
Robinson’s coaches in New York – from Larry Brown to Thomas and now D’Antoni – have all wondered if Robinson sees himself as anything other than a circus act. He has won two slam dunk contests, and no teams offered him a contract when he became a free agent last summer.
“It could be a lot of things, who knows?” Robinson said when asked if he knows the reason when he was benched. “Only God knows…”
Nate also aired out some frustration towards our buddy Alex Kennedy of hoopsworld.
The key point made by Frank is that this is now the third coach who has been affected by Nate’s antics, making the guard the common denominator. What I don’t understand is that the guy got ZERO offers from anyone in the league this summer. People can talk about the economy all they want, but Nate would have been a relative bargain. I mean there was a market for Brandon Bass and Jarrett Jack. Why don’t these guys just suck it up and play hard for another contract?
Nater SAID he didnt go out and whore himself around the league like D Lee did. And Lee didnt get any offers after making a concerted effort to get an offer sheet.
Nate wanted to stay a Knick and Told Donnie this on July 1.
Nate’s aggressiveness and emotions needs to be harnessed. If the coach gives up on him it is on the coach for not harnessing the talent before him.
So why didnt any of these shills ask the coach why he didnt play Darko? A 7 footer bodying up against Howard early may have gotten DH in foul trouble. Instead MDA just ran out the same line up he put out against the run and gun Phoenix suns.
Lack of preparation.
The Coach gave up this game.
How is it on the coach for nates immaturity? He is a clown, a circus act, and D’Antoni flat out doesn’t want him and I don’t blame him.
And a lot of teams would have loved to have Lee, just not at the price he was asking.
I don’t think anyone really wanted Nate Robinson that much if he signed for a dollar.
that is all speculation by you. No facts.
speculation the D’antoni doesn’t want nate? I thought it was clear and I have read multiple place where people said D’Antoni didn’t want nate.
Speculation that noone wanted nate? yea, but its also clear that there weren’t really any teams that were interested.
And I can almost guarantee you that just about every team with cap space would have signed lee for a 1 yr deal at 2 mil. Not so for Nate.
Look, Nate has had some problems with every coach he has had. He is a talent but he also is a bonehead and a circus act, and that is not speculation, that is fact. Sometimes its not about talent its about doing things the right way.
Nate acts like a clown and somehow its on D’Antoni. I don’t get it
have you heard D’Antonis ay he didnt want Nate?
I heard him say he was the type of player that would be perfect for his system..
Writers have said it without any supporting facts..
So if Nate acts like a clown in a winning locker room it is an asset but if he jokes around and lightens the mood on a losing team he is a cancer?
I do remember him saying he was the perfect player for the system, and I think that was before he ever coached a game for the Knicks. And yes it is my opinion that D’Antoni doesn’t want Nate. Do you think he wants him?
I wouldn’t call it an asset if he were to act like a clown in a winning locker room.
And it is completely different if you are winning or losing.
-You don’t self promote the way he does when you are down 15 in the 4th quarter and you are 3-13.
-If you are up 15 in the 4th its not the worst thing.
I remember seeing a few weeks ago a receiver from the rams celebrate after scoring a TD in the 4th Q down big. Is that ok? no and he got blasted for it, but if he was winning nobody would have a problem with it.
If you act the way Nate does when you are losing it gives off a strong impression that you just don’t care that much
i think one can easily turn it around and say Nate was TRYING to get the crowd and his team mates back int the game as being down 14 in an NBA game is by no means insurmountable.
If they were down 30 with 2 minutes to play that is similar to being “down big in the 4th Q of an NFL game” to borrow your analogy.
Is that why after he scored he started yelling to the crowd and nearly let his man slip wide open to the basket?
so now we are gonna bring up Nate’s Defense when NO ONE on this team plays Defense.
nah seriously, stfu oak and anyone who thinks nate is a circus act.
This guy plays with more heart than Harrington, Hughes, and Duhon put together.
Yea he’s a clown at times, yea he does things that hurt the team. but if he was a fuck!n circus act like u say, he wuda called out his coach and made beef in that post game interview.
this guy is the closest guy we have to the 90’s team guys.
mike _’antoni needs to learn to stop being ignorant and play with a normal sized team , not a 6 foot nothing center in Lee , and players like Brick Duhon who shoot 30 footers when they feel like it.
bottum line, even though nate isnt my favorite player and he does stupid things, you have to respect his effort and his heart and competitiveness. You can go jump off the empire state biulding when ur done reading this cuz u obviously have issues with guys that play hard.
In the immortal words of Micheal Ray Richardson—THE SHIP BE SINKIN’.
Hey Tommy–where’s the recap of last night’s game?
Uh…two posts down?
do you read anything we post here or just jump right into the comments section?
biggie i agree with you..mda is not a leader he just play his fav players. At this point no one is gona come nyk in 2010..Nate is like the only player that has heart for playing..also TD..the rest are slow and dead..
MDA IS ALSO A HILLBILLY NOT BECAUSE WHERE HE IS FROM BUT THE FACT HE JUST TOO STUBBORN TO CHANGE HIS OLD WAYS..AFTER GAME AFTER GAME OF BLOWOUTS..STILL WANA RUN THIS STUPID SYSTEM…LETS PUT A WEAK PF AS CENTER FOR 35+ MIN AND A SF AS A PF..COME ON..2010 IS GONA BE ANOTHER BIG FAIL…and sorry if i messed up on spelling or grammer..
I think D’Antoni still thinks he is coaching the Suns and expects other teams to have to match up to our roster as opposed to him playing players (Darko, Nate) so that we can match up with our opponent.
The key difference is that the Suns had Nash, Amare, Marion, Diaw, Barbosa and later Jason Richardson and Shaq. The Knicks have a starting linuep that inludes such stellar names as Duhon, Jeffries, Hughes and the all mighty David Lee at starting Center. No one fears or is going to adjust to that lineup so Mike D needs to start playing Darko against Dwight Howard or putting in Nate against bigger but slower teams like Orlando, who without Jameer Nelson, have no one with the speed to stay with Nate (and Anthony Johnson or an older J. Wlliams ain’t cutting it).
Could have used Curry too. Where is Curry?
Fluid in his left knee. Day-to-day.
i was thinking the same thing. We can play well against teams who play with two PF instead of a center but if we play against a team who plays big we cant compete. DAntoni still can’t understand that David Lee is not playing well against true centers. PUT A DARN CENTER ON THE FLOOR ALREADY!! Now Nate had his chances and he is becoming a distraction. He is one of my favorite Knicks but if Tony Douglas is developing I won’t complain. I rather it be Duhon though.
ANOTHER THING THAT DANTONI JUST DOES NOT UNDERSTAND IS HOW TO DEFEND OTHER TEAMS. ORLANDO’S OFFENSE IS BASED ON GETTING THE BALL TO HOWARD AND HOPE THAT THE OTHER TEAM IS STUPID ENOUGH TO DOUBLE TEAM HIM SO THEY COULD GO WITH THERE EXCELLENT PERIMITER GAME. IF HE WOULD PLAY A CENTER ON A CENTER HE MAY NOT HAVE TO DOUBLE TEAM. THAT IS CHECKERS NOT CHESS. IT IS THAT SIMPLE. HE DID NOT PREPARE THE TEAM FOR THAT.
AND WHY IS WILSON CHANDLER SHOOTING JUMP SHOTS AGAIN. HE IS PLAYING SO SOFT. HE WAS DRIVING TO THE BASKET DRAWING FOULS JUST A DAY AGO. THE BOY IS BRAIN DEAD. WE NEED TO TRADE HIM.
surprise, surprise, tommy supports management on this one…
explain something to me though, you people talk about showboating, why can harrington get away with hanging on the damn rim TWICE, AND IT COSTS US GAMES, and D’antoni says nothing, but Nate gets in the doghouse for shooting after the buzzer when it wouldn’t EVEN COUNT?
Why can duhon, lee, and harrington miss countless defensive assignments for a coach who has a reputation for not stressing defensive, but Nate misses a couple of defensive assingments, and he’s benched indefinitely?
theres a bit of an inconsistency, if you really being honest…
It looks to me like Dantoni is picking on this kid at the expense of giving us the best chance to win
I agree with you, D’Antoni has been very inconsistent with the way he handles his players, especially with Nate. Isn’t it the job of the head coach to manage the different personalities/egos and make it work?
Nate definitely gives us a better chance to win every game. He’s our best guard and probably the best 4th quarter option we have.
there is inconsistency but the CONSTANT is that THREE COACHES have had issues with nate.
which shows you that there is more to it than what you guys see…
i remember when nate threw the cup of water at Z-BO.when the KNICKS first got nate.it was rumored that the entire team could’nt stand nate and his constant yapping.i woulda thought by now they wouldve gotten rid of him just cuz hes a pain in the ass
wasn’t it zbo who threw the cup at robinson?
moreover, tommy is right on this one, none of nate’s coaches have thought that much of his exuberant demeanor. so much so, it’s a constantly in the sports pages. you know a guy has some issues when multiple coaches are talking to beat writers about him.
nate is just a big stat player on a bad squad.
who are we talking about?
a senile Larry Brown and brain dead Isaih Thomas?
I’m not a blind truster of management, or anybody for that matter, so i can only go by what I see and what I see, is a kid who started his career off crazy and immature, and who is SLOWLY maturing but is being victimized by his past…
seriously, THIS SEASON has Nate done anything seriously worse than anyone else on this team? does he deserve to be singled out for his “trangressions” any more than Harrington or Duhon?
The kid leaves it out on the floor every night more than anyone else on this team, and IMO that should hold more weight than him shooting the at a basket in a dead ball situation
Nate Robinson is a lot like Eddy Curry — you might think he’s good because he can score, but the rest of his game is terrible. His decision-making is awful, he has no brain, and he cannot be fun to play with. Hopefully D’Antoni starts to bench him, and more importantly, Duhon and Curry.
There is a role for Nate off the bench when the other scorers are getting a rest (like Von Wafer last year), but he shouldn’t play more than 10 mins a game. If he grows up, he can turn himself into Eddie House. If he keeps thinking he is Supernate, he should find himself a nice team in Europe.
Duhon should not play more than 0 minutes per game.
If Nate is such a loser then send him home and buy him out.
Period..
end of story..
4 million bucks.. thats a rounding error
how about the coach yucking it up with NAsh DURING the game? Is that acceptable?>
during free throws, yeah i think its acceptable
whaaaa? buy him out? why? just cause he’s benched doesn’t mean you boot him off the team. injuries happen. he’s not my first choice for playing time but he has a role.
Honestly, I’m not that upset that Nate’s been benched since he’s not part of the future. I just want Douglas to get the minutes.
Now if we can bench JJ as well and get Hill in there.
On a side note, even though Gallo only made 5 of 14 shots at least he was aggressive and got another 7 rbs and took 10 FT.
Lets look ahead to the future, it’s the only positive we can take from this season
can some one teach Gallo how to box out after a free throw?
Herb? are you reading this?
Not just after a free throw, period. He is a disgusting rebounder in traffic. His rebounding stats are really inflated if you look most come when there is no one around.
I’m not expecting Rodman when it comes to Gallo, but I do expect Hill to be more of a dominating rebounder. Our future 4 & 5 is most likely Gallo & Hill. So Hill needs to be a big time rebounder to allow Gallo to do his thing.
Honestly, I’m more worried about Hill’s rebounding. He was getting killed on the boards last night. It worries me because college rebounders translate well to the pro’s, but he seems to be struggling with positioning and is lacking in hustle plays.
Gallo will never be a plus 10 rbs, but he needs to be a plus 8 rbs player. Im not concern with Gallo learning to box out, he seems to work hard on improving. His rb numbers have been gradually improving over the past few games.
the point was we can EASILY point out flaw in the game of ANY player on this team.
Im kind of miffed by this Nate is not part of the future stuff. Even the Nate HAters agree that on a GOOD eam he would have a role playing 15-25 minutes a nite and providing energy off the bench at a cheap per year cost.
So we blame all the losing on Nate’s “Antics” while we are A-OK with Chandler chucking up countless threes and no one playing ANY defense or giving ANY effort and a coach who just stares blankly off into space and continually runs Lee out there at Center when he is clearly overmatched while the 7 foot Serbian sits on teh bench.
Oh.. and wasnt Milicic supposed to be “perfect for this system” as well?
Milicic sucks he doesnt deserve to be out there. Hill should be the one guarding Howard not him. I rather have Lee D howard than Millicic. Just because Milicic is 7 foot doesnt mean he can guard Howard. Millicic is soft.
Nate while a very good guy, has worn out his welcome. He hasnt progressed like we hoped. He is not a cancer, but his lack of maturity is something that can rub off on younger players. We should try to trade him, let him start over and hopefully be able to mature somewhere else. TD is nate with defense so we already have an upgrade. The biggest problem is there is no leader in this locker room to hold guys accountable. If he was on a winning team, the leader of the team would be able to hold him into check.
Your right they both were suppose to be good for the system, but Nate never progressed like the team hoped and Millicic didnt even try when he was playing and had a chance to grab a hold of spot. Both are on the players not on the Coach.
TD can’t score like nate.
“Even the Nate HAters agree that on a GOOD eam he would have a role playing 15-25 minutes a nite and providing energy off the bench at a cheap per year cost.”
Not a hater, but I doubt you’re right. I think he benefits from our collective team suckage, on a better team he might not see the court because of his prodigious liabilities.
Maybe D’Antoni thought Nate wasn’t being serious enough…but I think that he’s trying to bring out the best in Nate. He is young and we still haven’t seen the very best out of him. I still think Nate has a future in NY and a DNP can only make him stronger.
Mike D is a player’s coach. He carse about his vets and wants them to have a career after their contract expires. That’s why he is so popular with all the players around the league. Just ask Darko and Nate.
BTW, why does this post say “Nate out indefinitely” ? Maybe i missed read the article, but it doesn’t say anything about that. For all we know he might play 30+ versus the Hawks on Friday.
After the Nets game, I thought he was toast, but he still kept playing.
Can we get an answer? Why does it say that Nate is suspended indefinitely?
isn’t that what “indefinitely” means?
he’s not suspended. doesn’t say he is…
I really do not mind Nate being benched…the guy has driven me crazy watching him for 3 years, but D’Antoni better be consistent if he is going to start benching his vets.
I think Donnie is going to have to do something to break up what is happening here with Lee, Nate, JJ, Al or Duhon’s crappy play. Maybe nothing drastic as drastic, but a change is necessary.
Right now I get the feeling the team and D’antoni are about to explode.
They did explode the other night, putting it all together and destroying the team with the best record. Remember? And then the next night they played the 2nd best team in the conference and lost. That’s was expected. The panicing, nitpicking and angst on this blog over a crappy team with no stars is pretty amazing. Most players on this roster will be gone next year. Why get all worked up about games this year?
Why would u want to bench a player that’s probably our second best scorer on the team because he’s a basket case? Who cares! We resigned him. We didn’t have to, but we did for a reason. Cause he can score. Get him in the game. I’m hoping this DNP will at least be an eye opener to Nate and he can mature a little. I still think Dantoni is wrong. You can’t bench a player with fresh legs who ripped the magic over the weekend on a back to back game. Dantoni is a female. He doesnt even tell Nate why he’s benched. And he want to talk about Darko? Darko doesnt have the ability to do 20 a game like Nate! What a freakin smart ass.
Milicic just don’t bring any offense, and thats what D’Antoni is looking for as the bottom line. And don’t bring JJ as an example – he is there as per general manager order, to cultivate interest – no more, no less. Darko however still need to straighten his act and decide who he is going to be when he grows up: player in Sabonis or Divac mold or another forgetful name on the NBA map?
WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON WITH THIS ORGANIZATION WTF
Why does Mike D think he has the luxury of benching a major scorer on this team, you need all the help u can get this is retarded, if its SO bad trade Nate asap because we know D’Antonio is not going anywhere because of his “Offensive Genius” that has him 4 – 15 this season and I thought this guy was a “Players Coach” Nate, Marbury, Curry all players last time I checked, interesting that’s all i can say.
hey everyone who has been complaining about no discipline from the coach,has finally got some
Until last night I thought it was dumb for D’Ant to play N8 and risk an injury at the end of the Suns blowout …. now I realize that was the beginning of the “punishment” of Lil Him that continued with the benching against a Magic team that still hasn’t stopped him since last Sunday … Yes N8 still goes over the top from time to time, but it seems that D’Ant must have a whipping boy & hold grudges (hello Mr. Marbury) against someone each year. I guess D’Ant called Miami to tell Q-Rich that N8 wouldn’t play instead of speaking to N8 man to man. N8 said after the game that Coach 7SOL didn’t tell him he wouldn’t play & didn’t say what he was doing wrong after the Suns game … the players aren’t the only ones in that locker room who have bad traits.
And if I was covering the Knicks, I’d ask D’Ant why he didn’t paly a guy after every game. What arrogance he showed in responding to questions about a key cog in the rotation by saying “why not ask why I didn’t play Darko or Landry” … who’s the immature & childish peson with those kind of responses ?
That bs might work in the “valley of the sun” but it won’t get this team or coaach to the “canyon of heroes” around these parts!
There is a time for clowning and a time to be serious and professional.
Nate doesn’t understand the difference. He also doesn’t respect authority. You can see it when he does something stupid and starts arguing with the coaching staff instead of sitting down, shutting the fuck up, and trying to learn something. He’s like a terminal child. He may be a lovable and talented child, but he’s still a child. D’Antoni is trying to get him to grow up, but Nate refuses.
Dad just sent the kid to his room without dinner and told him he can’t watch his favorite TV show.
We wont truly know what happened between Mike and Nate, but lets be honest here and I think it was posted by I think Chris or Myles that did we as fans help create Nate to what he is known now as Kryptonate. Did we ooh and ahh when he gets a steal and tries to go down the court and dunk the ball on a 7 footer and either miss or get it blocked. He won the slam dunk contest twice once in which the majority of people felt Andre should have won and the second time when D Howard basically handed the Dunk title to Nate when he allowed Nate to dunk over him. He plays with a chip on his shoulder, he feels he is one of the top players in the league. I remember him saying he feels he can make the All Star team. He has been a Knick for a good couple of years and hasnt matured yet. Fights with Q Rich, Zach Randolph, arguments and fits with IT, LB, and now Mike D and Herb Williams of all people. He scored in a game when it was over and the D was lax and we should be up in arms that he didnt play again like if he was going to duplicate that again. We set the bar too low as Knick fans. Remember the Knicks marketing team promoted him basically as the show, the entertainment with the big poster of him from the Slam Dunk Contest on MSG. So yea he will have a big head and ego, yea he is going to think he is above everybody ie Twitter. We just have to face facts if Mike didnt want him and Donnie said lets just keep him so we can put fans in the seats and entertain the masses I find it embarrassing if that was the reason for resigning him and Nate I would have hoped he learned that if the only offer he got during the offseason was from overseas and if other players love him so much I guess why didnt they lobby for him. CP3 who we would do anything to get do not like Nate as we all know. So my solution is buy him out, we cant trade him for much of anything so rid yourself of the headache if he is a headache if not then its no reason to DNP coaches decision.
Can’t cover the sky with your hand. Will Nate be the next player ostracized?
N8 is already being ostracized …. the coach is ALWAYS right … N8 said so himself last night “he knows what he’s doing” … so trade Nate, buy him out, take him out back & water board his ass while you’re at it … the coach (especially this perfect coach) is always right ! only exception is when a superstar player ( see Magic, Patrick, MJ, Kidd, and, maybe soon LBJ) has an issue with the coach … then, miraculously, the coach is not right ALL THE TIME !
Nate Robinson was complaining like he had to carry the world on his shoulders at one point during the Kings game (I believe) – after Mike D’Antoni gave him the Chris Brown treatment. Nate Robinson and Larry Hughes were (apparently) talking about it after the time-out but Hughes clearly shrugged like “Hey you know what the deal is, you know you’re wrong”.
I DON’T like D’Antoni’s attitude towards Nate Robinson. Obviously D’Antoni doesn’t like him and doesn’t hesitate to embarass him in front of his teammates. Which is “wrong”.
But Nate Robinson is a headcase. And he’s a huge waste of talent. If the doghouse makes him understand that he has to be more serious, then D’Antoni’s decision might be legitimate. We’ll see.
Yeah Mucha your right. Give this move some time, although I am very against it when Duhon and Hughes are playing this poorly. Why wouldn’t Dantoni and DW want to see if maybe Nate can play a pg in this system(I know this seems pretty ridiculous). The truth is, this team really needs a spark and I would rather see anyone else in the league then Duhon at this point. Why not just give Nate a shot? Duhon and Hughes are both done after this year, Nate has a chance(I know its a very small one) to stick with this team. WHy not see what he can do and if he doesn’t fit then its crazy to not try and get his value up a little instead of just letting him walk for free. This is jsut insanity that on a team this bad guys who may be part of the future are getting pushed aside for these horrible, no-effort veterans so they can get killed every night.
Ok…I have been reading this blog for a while now. I have only commented twice. Both times I have commented I have received positive praise from others on this blog. Both times I commented it was because I was sick of something that was going on on this blog. Here I am again…
This time I want to discuss comments that I keep reading here…
I am SICK of hearing that Dantoni should play different players or how our coaching sucks or how Walsh made horrible draft picks or how out players cant play D or how the system sucks or how players hats Dantoni or how Dantoni is a moron or how we have horrible management, etc etc.
I am even MORE SICK about how people treat Tommy. I have never met Tommy and I only know him because of this blog…I have seen his big apple tv stuff and listen to him when he is on with Rice Balls. I know nothing of who he is personally. All I know is that he is NOT a shill of management. He gives his opinion on the team everyday and posts news items as well as giving some sort of analysis. Then he has to listen to posters on this blog who complain that he agrees with everything Dantoni or Walsh do and he should get paid by them etc etc.
Its disgusting. Not because you dont have the right to say these things–of course you do–its because the people who are complaining and calling names are DEAD WRONG.
Yes the NBA is a business…but the teams dont make money if they are in the bottom 5 every season…unless you are a team in a big city…then you make money anyway…Boston, LA, NY…the fans will come and see the games and the teams will make money…hand over fist money…so these teams have to acquire WINS to please fans………
This season is about changing a culture…not about how many minutes Jefferies gets or how many 3 pointers Chandler takes in a game. Its about 2 things..
1- TRADING AWAY BAD CONTRACTS
2- FINDING OUT WHO WANTS TO BE PART OF A REAL NBA TEAM
Dantoni is a REAL NBA coach. NBA players trust him, professional coaches from all around the world respect him, and players want to play for him…
The NY Knicks are NOT the Spurs or the Trailblazers or the Jazz…the fans expect to win ALL THE TIME…
ITS NOT POSSIBLE RIGHT NOW…we have had something like 7 different coaches in the past 10 years…we made the playoffs ONCE in that time (barely)….what about teams who keep coaches like the JAZZ or the SPURS? How many times have THEY made the playoffs?
We know THOMAS sucked it up…we know LAYDEN sucked it up…we know that the team and the organization is in shambles recently
WE ALSO KNOW THAT DANTONI IS OUR COACH AND OUR PLAYERS ARE NOT GOOD AS A GROUP.
I AM SICK OF HEARING PEOPLE COMPLAIN ABOUT playing time AND rotation AND the coaching staff
We all know that they arent good and Dantoni and Walsh could have made and could make different decisions about drafting, playing time and rotation….
THIS IS CALLED REBUILDING BECAUSE ITS NOT FINISHED YET!!!!!!
when you build a team you take the players you want and get rid of players you dont…..
Get rid of Jefferies and E City’s contracts…..get rid of players that DAntoni doesnt want to play for him (Nate, Darko, etc)
Its hard for me to watch the games too…but I dont rip the coach and the Writers on the blog because of it…….
this is to all the commenters like HaS out there (sorry I dont know HaS but i’m sure hes a nice guy):
SHUT UP AND WAIT….BE PATIENT…WATCH AND ROOT FOR GROWTH…DON’T ROOT FOR FAILURE SO YOU CAN COME ON HERE AND BRAG THAT YOU WERE RIGHT THAT DANTONI SUCKS!!!!!!
Bout damn time somone spoke the truth!! Preach brother preach!!!
Tommy, i know you, your a good dude and I don’t mean to berate you, but I would like to see a more objective analysis of the team, specifically management. I understand we have a plan, and we should stick to it but we also are off to the worst start in franchise history…something even the vilified Isiah Thomas doesn’t have on his record…be fair.
Kat, you as much as anybody knew me from nykfp and I was more than supportive of isiah the first few years…then the deterioration began and then I, as we all did, realized that we were in sooo deep that it would take a miracle to dig us out.
not a year and a half…
and happy holidays my brotha…
likewise, homie
WOW! Man I’m famous. What a joke dude. You call my name out of al people? I’ve stuck up for Tommy more than once and even commended him on doing a good job. I don’t appreciate being told to shut up either, you’re not my father. As you stated above “Not because you dont have the right to say these things–of course you do” I have a right to express my opinion whether you agree or not. I don’t know what gives you the authority to proclaim or declare who is “DEAD WRONG” and only those who agree with you are right. That’s just plain muttonheaded.
If you are “SICK” of reading posts on this blog read the articles and go back to being invisible. I for one won’t miss you.
Oh, and in response to this “this is to all the commenters like HaS out there SHUT UP AND WAIT….BE PATIENT…”
EAD and GTFOH
Peace.
I am very sorry that I mentioned HaS’ name when I commented earlier today. I truly did not mean to offend.
I read every comment on this site because I really want to know what Knick fans are thinking. I just moved away from NY for the first time in my life and I have no access to MSG, the NY Post or Newsday or walking the streets of the greatest city in the country.
I love this site because I get access to articles, opinions and ideas from professionals as well as other homegrown real New Yorkers. I go to all the games at a bar near my new place in California have to listen to the owner rip on me every time I walk in that place (hes a huge Boston fan–with a MA license plate tattooed on his inner arm!).
As far as MY opinions go…
I am sick and tired of hearing from people who believe that the problem with this team has something to do with how it is run at the moment.
The truth is that the team has had more than a FEW people running the show in the last 10 years. I think that you need more than two hands and two feet to count the number of GMs, Head Coaches, and Assistant Coaches that have walked through the door of MSG whose goal it was to “Win a championship”
DUH
Everyone wants to win a championship and everyone thinks that they are doing the right thing when they make any decision. I believe that GMS truly thought it would be a good idea to trade Ewing away, trade for Eddy Curry, Marbury, and trade away Z-Bo and Crawford. I truly believe that coaches thought they were doing the right thing when they planned their games around a 7′ center who couldnt rebound, block shots, play defense or pass when double teamed, when they decide to play Duhon when it is obvious that he doesn’t give the team anything on the court, or sit Nate because they dont like his attitude (more than one coach by the way).
In reality–without talking about the day to day decisions that a GM and a coach make—I would like to make a statement:
WE NEED MORE STABILITY!!!!!
As of right now we have a well respected, trusted, and experienced GM in Donnie Walsh and an experienced, loved, and GOOD coach (won coach of the year, averaged 50+ wins in PHX, coached champions in Europe, won the Gold in Beijing with the 15 best basketball players in the NBA give or take a Dirk or a Ginobili) in D’Antoni….
WHY THE HELL WOULD YOU WANT TO CHANGE?
As fans we can be GREAT for the team..coming to the games, rooting NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS, sticking up for our favorite players, and being the loudest, strongest and most hardcore fans in almost ANY TEAM IN SPORT IN THE US!!!!
HOWEVER, we can also be impatient, rude, and WRONG more than other fans around the US. Do you think Portland fans call for the head of their coach after 1 year? There is a reason that Sloan has been the coach of the Jazz for 20+ seasons.
So lets ALL (not just HaS) take a break from RIPPING and MAKING FUN of all the players, GM and coaching staff on this team…
Other than our draft choices (I am not saying they are bad choices at all!!!), Walsh has made positive moves in getting rid of bad contracts and D’Antoni is moving in the right direction by playing the players who listen to him and play to the best of their abilities and actually playing Jefferies and Curry in a way that might POSSIBLY make them attractive to another team. What do you want him to do? Wave a magic wand and turn Gallo into Bird, Chandler into Pippen and Lee into Kevin Garnett…NOT GONNA HAPPEN!!
Live with what you got and hope for the future, fellow Knick fans…thats all we got right now…theres nothing more to do except watch the games, hope Duhon gets a chronic ankle injury, hope Nate gets a labotomy and Lee learns how to take a charge…its not that hard to dream…
again…I am sorry that I singled out HaS….there are alot more of you out there who think that there needs to be constant change if we’re not winning games….ALL WE NEED IS CONSISTENCY AND CAP SPACE!!!!
Coach Jackson is the best because Pippen didn’t get to him after refusing to play at the end of the game for not given the last shot. He coached Rodman and now Artest.
Heri – Do you know what happened after the “Pippen didn’t play” game? Coach Jackson brought his team together in the locker room and said (and I paraphrase a little), “We as a team have a problem…and you all have to figure it out.” And he LEFT THE ROOM.
When he came back Pippen apologized to the team and the coach. My take away is that Jackson had already created a TEAM FIRST mentality (w/o Jordan) and when the chips were down he was able to count on the character and community of the team to right the ship. Got that story from Coach K…
D shouldn’t be fired, but weaknesses to winning in him are being seen, just like his management of defense and a seven man rotation draining his players in Phoenix, in the late rounds.
I don’t like Walsh saying he had his day in the sun. Walsh has no ring.
I’m not saying Walsh or D should be fired, but the record should be better. Meaning negativity exist among the players and management. We can’t talk as if life is grand with the Knicks.
Heri, I understand that the main goal of a gm should be to win rings, but if someone doesn’t win a ring its not like their career or accomplishments mean nothing. I can look really fondly back at those older knicks teams that were perennial playoff contender and call that a really bright time. Same goes for Walsh as we KNicks fans know, he had a great team that he put together and they battled every year in the playoffs and made their fans proud. Judging gms and coaches by whether or not they have won a ring just seems crazy to me since few people really have. Is Jerry Sloan not a winning coach? Are Stockton and Malone and Barkley not great players? Its interesting because a few ago they were askign the guys on Inside the Nba if they would rather be like Robert Horry with rings as role players on great teams or to be an all-time great but not to have a ring. I forget all the answers but it is still a really interesting discussion.
Even D is frustrated with the record, meaning he knows the team has under archived. There’s a percentage that gos to the players in the under achievement, but a percentage also gos to the coach.
mike D is the fool..
I don’t think Walsh would say he had his day in the sun as he sits without a ring during his interview, why say it now?
Could Walsh have said it under frustration of being held back by Dolan? Ewing can say it because he’s retired. Walsh is working, being paid and ring less. It shouldn’t apply if winning a ring is the ultimate.
what up heri i see u found the blog..
You don’t have to win a ring to be a successful GM in the league. A ring is the ultimate fantasy for players and fans, and coaches, but being a GM is all about the business, and if you think DW hasn’t had a successful career and been a good GM for many years than you don’t know anything about the NBA.
Nate is an asshole, and we won’t see what’s going on behind the scenes but you have to understand he obviously deserves it, and he knows EXACTLY why he was benched, no matter what he says.
If you really think D’Antoni just like having a player to chastise, and nate was just the unfortunate victim of MDs reckless abondon, than you are delusional.
I think D’Antoni’s major flaw this season is that he isn’t getting the rookies enough playing time, particularly hill (especially given our lack of depth.) I guess he just values experience more then we do as fans. Other than that, all these complaints and calls for him BEING FIRED are absolutely ludacris and make me hesitate to even read the comment section of this blog anymore.
Dont take this as a personal attack Jeff.. I respect you and your contributions. You provide a ton of good comments.. and you are not the only one to make this statement ..
but…
to say that an NBA who has not won a ring can call himself successful is just a losers attitude. The point is to win Championships. Could you imagine if a Yankee or Cowboy or even Celtic executive said the same thing? Sports is about winning the title. Not doing a decent enough job to stay employed for 30 years.
Im stunned by Donnie’s comments. It shows to me that he is using this gig as a retirement package and doesnt have the real fire to bring home a championship a high school basketball program because he just doesnt get it..
peace.
^^ last sentence got deleted.. but you get the idea.. he should be teaching High school if winning chips isnt what he is about and how he wants to be judged.
I know a lot of you are Donnie lovers and will try to spin the comments
Is Donnie a respected old soul of the NBA? Yes.. Should be be content with what he accomplished in Indiana? If he is then he doesnt have what it takes.
And the pressure on teh coach comes from one place ultimately.. HIS BOSS> If Donnie gave the job to a rookie coach who sucked and said he had a two year free pass then he would he fine..
Im letting the SI article slide b/c it was basically an MSG puff piece.. Im with Donnie though July 1 for what its worth.. Hate some decisions and the coaching choice is becoming an issue.. Certainly anyone could have given us soon to be 4 wins in our first 20 games.
i heard that on wfan,CHARLES BARKLEY told MIKE that LEBRON AND WADE will not be signing with the KNICKS. does anyone have any info on this,cuz i didnt hear it myself?
danni boy is the worse coach in this league..
that’s real talk
danni boy been gave up on the players
he doesn’t try anything.
darko the only center an bigman defender the knicks have an he don’t play anymore
that says the guy doesn’t care about running only runnin up the score..
Tommy, after what we have seen so far what is your prediction for the Knicks record at the end of the year?
Your 2010 FA signing predictions?
And who do you see the Nets getting their first win against?
Lets change the subject around here.
i can tell you now the Nets first win comes Sunday..
No doubt about it.
The Nets MAY wind up with more wins than us bu it will be close.
But we still got a shot at Lebron.
an for those that say phil or some other good coach can’t make this team better.
lmao…
danni boy is a 1 dimension coach.
One reason that Jackson is a better coach than D is because Jackson has proven the ability to win with the good, the bad and the ugly.
Dee is right when he said we don’t see behind the scenes, but he is failing to realize we saw enough of Pippen and his refusal to play when denied the last shot, or Rodman and now Artest. Jackson can deal with it and D seems to be weak with it.
I’m not talking about D or Walsh needing to be fired. But, I write it like I see and feel for it. They still should be given plenty of sand in their hour glass. They should finish this season and start the next.
Has Walsh given up on winning a ring? He still gets paid to work and really have his day in the sun.
Great comments by SAM516. Walsh, D’Antoni and Tommy are professionals and do not deserve the constant criticism they have been receiving. As to Nate the Great, D’Antoni’s job is to develop his players and that is what he is doing. Nate is clearly a work in progress. Hopefully, D’Antoni will succeed in giving him some maturity. He could be a useful Knick in the future if he just grows up. Patience. Go Knicks
Just some tough love from the coach…
and it’s the player’s job to adjust…
coaches I remember hearing could never win a championship here.
Davey Johnson
Bill Parcells
Joe torre
Joe girardi
Tom Coughlin
Jeff van gundy
Mike D’antoni
thanks
the real Winners on that list (Davey, Parcells, Torre, TC, Girardi) have a few things in common.. A I dont give a F@#$ attitude and an ability to manage players and the media.
D’Antoni is well liked by some.. Unliked by others.. His relationship with the media is still honeymoon.. I dont think he has the tell it like it is attitude that the winners above have.
…all of them are thoroughbreds!
I see the tough, I don’t see the love…
D’antoni seems to just flat out not like Nate, but that shouldn’t affect his coaching decisions…the team could’ve used Nate last night.
Kat, you as much as anybody knew me from nykfp and I was more than supportive of isiah the first few years…then the deterioration began and then I, as we all did, realized that we were in sooo deep that it would take a miracle to dig us out.
not a year and a half…
and happy holidays my brotha…
new regimes need to be given the time to succeed and a year and a half just isn’t that much time.
we all know what the plan is…
In a year and a half we should have a good idea if the regime can handle New York — the boiling pot of media, fans and history.
We are at a year and a quarter.
Ive made my call that the coach cant stomach NYC. Donnie knows what it is but has been in Indiana for three decades or more… But we are joined at the hip to him because of Dolan’s ineptitude.
With the record what it be, are the players the only ones that need to adjust?
For if you can’t criticize such record, how could you root?
The thing I think most of us is missing is that are we gonna be patient and hope Nate matures? Is he a franchise player that we just cant do without him?He is a grown ass man, young but over 21 and making money. Why does Mike D have a responsibilty to nurture or just outright play him becuase he is our best scorer which doesnt say much for our team. What I am not understanding is if Nate is so great why no one wanted to touch him during the offseason? Does anyone honestly think that a team will trade for Nate this year? And once this season is over how many teams does anyone think will jump at the chance to sign him? I read that someone said he is being haunted by his past actions, that is partly true but shooting at the wrong basket, fouling that player from the Suns, arguing with Herb Williams and pounding his chest when we are down double digits. IMO he is on the verge of being blackballed if he dont get it together real fast like before the All Star break.
good point on herb, one of the best guys around.
screamed and cursed at him…unacceptable.
the bottom line is that professionals will play for mike based on his existing reputation in the league, which is vast.
and it’s why they drafted 2 mature players in hill and douglas.
mike’s not a baby sitter…neither was riley by the way, he suspended mason numerous times…and nor should he be.
these guys have had zero success in this league from a winning standpoint….ZERO and their going to question an NBA coach of the YEAR?
see ya.
Obviously if it doesn’t work two years from now the team re-evaluates.
But you have to have that coach in place July 1….d’antoni represented our country in China.
oh come now.. he was the assistant coach of the Olympic hoop team.. not the US Ambassador
If anyone repped the US it was the players and Coach K.. MD was a piece but its not like he was carrying the flag in for the US.
the economics & the fact that both Lee & Nate were RFAs were the main reasons no one tried to sign them last summer. When N8 is unristricted next summer, he WILL get offers and you can bet Tiger’s alimony checks on that! I see him as a good fit & a spark off the bench for the Nets … then he can haunt D’Ant 4 times a year because whoever the Net coach is (Mark, Patrick or Thibodeau I hope) will not bench Lil Him after he scorches the Knicks on both sides of the Hudson.
PS, let’s see who gets more offers come July between N8 and
Du-NON …that s/b interesting …
Agreed Tommy, the only player I see that may come in 2010 is Lebron everybody else I have a great feeling will go elsewhere. As much as I dont like the D at all on this team but after hearing you on the Knicksblog radio you said something that was eye opening. Which was the 3 different factions in the locker room. The group that dont want to be there, the group that knows wont be there and the young guys/rookies that will be there. Thats as toxic as it gets and at times you see it on the court. Nate has been built up as the star attraction by the Knicks and thats how he is acting. Which is its all about him. The marketing and the fans play a part in his ego being so big.
so where is the coach to bring this whole mess together?
surely the Ambassador to China can motivate these “factions”
My problem with Nate is that for each basket he scores there will be an exchange where he goes under a screen and allows a wide open three instead. I dont like Nate much, but he is a useful player in spurts, especially like last night when both Duhon and Hughes didn’t show up. We need to be trying to get Nate’s value up for a possible trade, not playing non factors and crappy players like we do. Whatever, at this point I would welcome Nate starting instead of Duhon, who has done the impossible, which is to say that he has become more unwatchable than Jared Jeffries. There, I said it. I can not watch Duhon continue to walk the ball up in Dantoni’s 7 seconds or less offense, which obviously doesn’t work when your pg is slower than most centers and can’t even get up the court in 10 seconds. Just give Nate the reins to the offense, and tell him to just run like crazy. thats my suggestion at least.
Wow how much better is Blair than Jordan Hill if hes in the rotation on the Spurs and Hill can barely get off the bench on the Knicks.
Please trade Jordan Hill for a Lottery Pick and draft Greg Monroe
It’s called baby sitter? Well, being a great baby sitter has simply given coach Jackson more rings than D and Riley combined.
FIRE MDA
Heri,
Greetings.
so your so right about Coach D and of course about Rubio.
that’s why i always read your postings. do you think there’s a chance that Coach D will not be here next year?
cheers.
So WHAT IF.. July 1 comes around and Lebron stays home, Bosh goes somewhere else, Wade goes to Chicago and we end up with Joe Johnson as our max player cause MDA has a boner for him from PHX days?
we cool with that?
Biggie i wouldn’t be happy with a Joe Johnson as our max player/big chip. As a number 2 yes, but anything less than Lebron would be a let down of major proportations. That’s when fans will ask for Miike and Donnies head.
That Hoopsworld article is great. They have thrown the players to the Wolves and no one should feel sorry for D’Antoni. He knew what he was getting into and his coaching has been abysmal. The proof is in the inconsistency in preparation and some of the silly rotation decisions he makes which make it clear he is not trying as hard as he can to win. Disgusting.
Nate was the only sign of life against the Magic, scoring 17 in the fourth quarter a few days ago. What is he doing that is so wrong? Is he doing something wrong in practice we haven’t heard about? I’m not getting it. So, now MD’s excuse is that Toney’s good play in Orlando is what kept Nate on the bench? But I thought Nate did something wrong, so it can’t be Douglas’ play? Now, MD realizes Douglas’ play? Didn’t Douglas score 21, 23, 15 before being benched? Notice how he is doing the same thing to Nate as he did to Marbury. But then again everyone thinks Marbury was the bad guy. Of course Nate does stuff that people don’t agree with, but is he cutting out on practice? Critizing management? Doing harmful things to the team? No.
Where is Duhon in this whole thing? He is the reason for this mess. MD is acting like Duhon is doing something so great that Douglas and Robinson needs to be benched. I’m not comprehending. See everyone wants to talk about the bad job Walsh is doing, but Walsh gave some pieces to work with. How about MD using those pieces like a Landry, Milicic, Hill and Douglas, mix them into the rotation and see if there is a difference, if not, management can go from there? That’s the only option they have because they’re not winning. See these mouth bloggers like Isola and Berman don’t ask MD the real questions about the youngs, but instead drift off into other topics.
One last thing, the Knicks veterans are the ones getting blown by these other teams and do get yelled at by MD, but when rookies are in the game, playing their hearts out, MD is going biserk on them instead of doing that to the veterans a two quarters ago when they were losing by fifteen. I hope he is doing that to the rookies because he knows that they are the future and he trying to instill a winning mentally with that core, because if not you’ve got to ask how he truly feels about his young players.
*Blowned out. Pause. lol