Via Times-Picayune:
“Jeff Bower and the Hornets selected Hilton Armstrong and Cedric Simmons in the 2006 NBA Draft, while passing on players such as Rajon Rondo and Paul Millsap.
Both players were disappointments and are no longer with the club.
“In my first year with San Antonio, I was there early to work out, ” said Devin Brown, who played for the Hornets in 2006-07 when Armstrong and Simmons were rookies. “But all the time that I’ve been here, I didn’t see them (Armstrong or Simmons) do that. So basically, they had no development of post moves, and they kind of got thrown into the fire.
“You cannot do that at this level. You have to spend time and work on things because guys are going to take certain moves away, and you must have counter moves. They did a little bit, but not what they should have been doing.”
“I would have been much more satisfied had (they) developed into more effective contributors,” Bower said. “For a young player to be successful, his rate of improvement has to be steady and his opportunity to perform has got to be a continual sign of growth.”
Despite reports about Jordan Hill’s questionable work ethic, many people who have been around the Knicks during practices and workouts, including Tommy Dee, continue to call his work ethic an attribute as opposed to a flaw.
Big men need time to develop, and the ones that don’t develop end up like Hilton Armstrong or Sean Williams, guys who came into the league raw and stayed that way. Whether it be a weak work ethic, a lack of coaching, or both, it’s harder for big men to adjust to the big leagues than guards.
Watch any clip of a Knicks practice, and you will see Jordan Hill in the background working with Herb Williams on his post moves. He started playing basketball his junior year of high school, and came into college an unpolished, no-name, skinny 6’10 big man. He left one of the best big men in college basketball. Check the stats. Every year, Hill improved at Arizona. That was through coaching changes, teammate changes, and Nic Wise as his point guard.
Hasheem Thabeet is raw, Al Jefferson was raw, Derrick Favors, Greg Monroe, and Cole Aldrich will struggle when they come into the league. Rarely, you get a four year guy like Roy Hibbert who comes in as a polished player, but he lacks athleticism or speed. Hill showed tonight that he has the skills. If he continues to work and play, and after tonight, believe me, he will, he’ll be fine.
Its time to start Jordan Hill. Its time to start a defensive minded lineup. The good Lord knows that Du-Du cannot beat his man of the dribble and is forced to roam around like Michael Scott using a GPS.
At least with Douglas, the Knicks get a speedster who can play some all-out defense.
Plus, Du-Du is not going to be here next year, might as well start the future now right? That brings me to my next point: starting Jordan Hill. The kid showed he can play. He made a nice fade away in the fourth to cut the deficit to six and was a defensive presence in the paint; something Lee has never been in his career.
Hill was boxing out, rebounding, and scoring better than Lee in down the stretch. Its highly likely that Lee will not be resigned since somebody out there will offer him a $10+ MM contract, a deal the Knicks would be foolish offer.
As stated in my previous comment, the Knicks have to start an all defensive lineup. That means Douglas at the 1, Hughes at the 2 (I know he has acted like a baby lately but at least he plays defense), Jeffries at the 3, Gallinari at the 4, and Hill at the 5.
I have respect for Lee, but I am resigned to the fact the Knicks will have to trade him, and possibly Chandler, to rid the team of Curry.
Its time for the team to rid the nonsense characters on the team (Robinson, Milicic, Curry,) and start playing guys who actually try on the defensive end.
This guy is one of those losers that made NO COMMENT after nate carried this team in atlanta. he was like, wow maybe i was wrong about nate, ill just wait for him to screw up and ill own him in the comments section just cause i can. just shut up. this is the toughest player we have on the team along with dlee.
I cannot believe you are fooled by a flash in the pan. If you haven’t watched the Knicks since he was drafted, you probably wouldn’t be aware that he cannot play defense and is a hard headed player.
Yes, he erupts every now and again, but he costs the team more games than he wins.
Nate Robinson is an enigma. He plain is. His game in Atlanta was sensational no doubt – don’t ever get that twisted Knicks4lyfe – but he is not worth the long term trouble.
If you like to depend on inconsistent players such as Nate, then don’t be surprised the Knicks are not consistently winning either.
Its about a team mindset. And not all Knicks players are in it to win it.
Nate Robinson is really not that good. He’s a shooting guard who plays mediocre defense at best. He’s gotten a tad better at fighting over screens and playing the passing lanes (A TAD) but thats it. He’s not a point guard. He’s also kind of childish and stubborn at the wrong times. The work of turning the team around is a war and war is not fun but fun seems to be the only thing he cares about ALL the time. He needs to have that mindset and he needs to understand that his team-mates are depending on him to not keep doping the same dumb things. Some scoring explosions here and there does not make a complete player.
Jordan Hill hopefully has finally earned some playing time. we really need his size. The coaches see everything behind the scenes that we dont see,, so maybe they were right to bring him along at his current pace, but hopefully now he’s ready to get minutes more consistently.
One interesting point someone made…with dantoni’s lack of communication with players and wierd rotations(where some guys waste away on the bench and NEVER play), you have to wonder, how much does that really attract other players to the knicks?
I just want a Point Guard.
The only reason we aren’t seeing more Toney D is it seems like he doesn’t know the offense. A Lot of the times when he is at the point and trying to set things up people are telling him what to do.
i agree,GET A POINT GUARD problem solved.I also say any points scored by david lee are washed by how many points he gives up .PERIOD hell never be an all-star unless he plays at least a little defense
They do have a PG that has good size, agility to drive past his man, and the mindset to play solid, solid defense: Toney Douglas.
If you are worried that Douglas will be overwhelmed playing on a consistent basis, know this: Duhon is already being overwhelmed every single day.
IMO the last few times I’ve seen TD run the point as itzyung alluded to, is that he cannot get the offense set nor has he been able to assist people (put them in good position to score off the pass).
The jury still out for me whether this is predicated on not knowing the offense fluently or whether its more in tune with his lack of passing ability. I’m really hoping its the former otherwise lets ship him and make an enticing offer to someone who will rid us of curry or jefferies (hopefully curry), or lets start grooming him as a 2 with handles.
I hear that big men take time to develop. But have you ever seen a Junior in college lottery pick come into the NBA and get as little playing as Hill. I’m sorry but that is bull.
Thabeet is playing and Jefferson came straight from HS and still averaged 6.7 points and 4.4 rebounds in 14.8 minutes per game. I almost feel like this is more MSG propaganda and it is insulting to the intelligent fan. It reminds me of that momentum we built on that West coast 5 game road trip under IT when we didn’t win a single game but all the commentors were praising the knicks improved play.
Hill is the #8 pick and was supposed to be able to contribute this year. D’Antoni f’d up by not playing him and all intelligent fans on this blog knew it.
As for the D Lee debate, we are talking two different languages. Lee fans will continue to say they love him and his offensive numbers are spectacualr (which they are). Knick fans will continue to want more from him on the defensive end because they realize that is the only way to win a championship (the ultimate goal). If Lee is our best player and our all star he has to make some kind of effort on that side of the floor.
I agree with your DLee comments but as for HIll…..Every player develops differently. Just because one player develops a certain way doesn’t mean that HIll is going to develop that same way. Thabeet isn’t that good. And D Lee is better than Jefferson even with hie ineffectiveness on the defensive end.
I have watched every knicks game since Lee was a rookie and I have to see, this year his defense is alot better than last year. The reason? his rotations are much better. He comes over from the weakside better too. Last year, his defense was horrible. this year, much better. he’s not a shot blocker at all, but he moves his feet and does all the little things much better than at any other time in his career. The knicks should re-sign him next year.
I agree about Hill. Hopefully he will start getting more minutes. He looked a litte more comfortable on the floor llast night at detroit and he played well.
Not sure if this has been addressed elsewhere (haven’t been reading the comments as much lately) but Lee seems to be getting insane amounts of burn.
Not sure if this is because Coach D thinks he’s the most polished offensive presence we have or if this might be a trade bait scenario, but I don’t think Lee should be able to take 10 long jumpers a night, nor should he be on the court 40 + night in night out. I respect that he comes to play every night, but his legs look tired at times and this may be doing us a disservice if we’d like to trade him as I think that stress reaction he suffered 2 years ago was due to similar circumstances (speculation on my part).
That said these last couple games (Tor, Det) have exposed the true core of this team (maybe just the current rotation). We are painfully un-athletic, teams have been attacking us above the rim and we can’t do shit about it. For this reason I think Hill needs to see more burn at the 4 and sacrifice some of al or JJs minutes (more al though as he has made it painfully clear he doesn’t have solid ups).
To round out this dissection I’d like to address WIll as he’s not making strides to being a better off ball defender (denying passing lanes, stealing alley passes) nor has he realized that offensively he needs to start pulling up for Js off the dribble, as every team in the league has film study showing that he lowers his shoulder and goes to the rack in the open court. He’s oozing with potential but he can’t seem to understand on court adjustments once you show tendencies in games. Is this relative to his over-coachability as has been referenced by Coach D in interviews, I’m not sure but somethings gotta give cuz he has the physical tools.
*sigh of relief as rant/thoughts are released*
I’m glad Hill is getting some minutes, finally.
Clyde said during a game recently that when he was a rookie he wasn’t always the hardest worker and all he did was shop. I’m guessing Reed put his head on straight. Hopefully any free agent we get next year will be a true leader and show Hill what it means to work hard and earn minutes.
I think the talk about Hill’s work ethic is BULL. He continues to work hard and yet they insult him by putting in Bender instead of him. If he gets his chance believe me he won’t dissapoint us. DAntoni has proven to me that he makes bad decisions on who he plays. Also the 7-8 man rotation is killing us. David Lee looks tired and onlly plays on one side of the court except when he is rebounding. This coach is keeping something special from us. This kids deserves to play.
If you remember what David Lee looked like as a rookie you should be very imressed by what little you have seen from Hill. David would not dare shoot from 8 feet away from the basket. Hill has a 15 foot jumper and he does not hesitate to shoot it. Hill can rebound and protect the paint. His defense and scoring will get better. I am even going to be bold and say that he will be better than david Lee because he will have an all around game.
Jordan Hill needs to play at least 15 minutes per game. He’s a good player guys, the only problem is the fact that he has bad hands.
The Knicks need to trade David Lee with Jared Jeffries or Eddy Curry. If the Knicks are out of the playoff race in february, there’s no doubt in my mind that Lee should be traded in a major salary dump.
Jordan Hill is no David Lee yet – and perhaps never will be – but he’ll be fine and we should all be rooting for him. I hope Mike D’Antoni will give him minutes on a consistent basis from now on.
I think it’s more than Hill’s hands. He leaves his feet way too much on defense and extremely foul-prone. His footwork could use improvement too.
But I absolutely agree with everything else.
Agreed.
Hill is young and dumb at this point of his career but he will grow with the playing time. if he was playing 10 minutes a game since the start of the season he would be alot more experienced. He leaves his feet too much because he has that defensive passion for the game that can’t be taught. He will learn to stay on his feet and use his height with time. He won’t learn anything on the bench. Frye was the same way. at least he got the minutes.
the onlything a player can learn on the bench
is how warm that seat gets..
Hill and Frye are two completely different type players. JHIll is much more athletic, a defensive presence, rebounder and shot blocker than C.Frye.
I meant that Frye and Hill have the same problems with fouling by leaving their feet when Frye was a rookie.
How do you know that HIll has bad hands??
He doesn’t catch the ball cleanly in the post and the ball generally slips through his hands when a rebound is 50/50
i think it’s a little too late for him
i think danni boy killed his confidence
he will be a 12 an 6 guy in this league
with a block
an all jumpshots
cuz thats all he learns from the current coaching staff
the blocks comes naturally from his will
but he might be the best big man jumpshooter next to dirk..
“but he might be the best big man jumpshooter next to dirk..”
(insert Kool-aid reference here)
Little to late for whom??…Hill
You’ve got to be kidding. He hasn’t even played in 10 gms yet
Hill looked pretty solid in today’s game. And if he has the proper work ethic like many have stated, he seems quite likely to become a contributor before the season’s up. I actually think bringing him along slowly is not unreasonable, especially since he started playing hoop later than most–and because the chance to move Jeffries and/or Curry before the trading line is very important to the future of the franchise.
The thing that is killing me, which was mentioned above, is that we REALLY need to get a serviceable point guard. Duhon is simply having too much of a negative impact on the team game in and game out. It’s just not acceptable.
I have been ripping on Duhon all day because he is down right disgusting. In Toronto when the Knicks had possession and a 9 point deficit near the end of the third, Duhon threw it away and DeRozen ended up scoring 4 quick points to increase their lead to 13 by the end of quarter.
Yesterday against the Pistons, Duhon looked overmatched when trying to make his pick and roll passes. Everything he does is telegraphed because he works at an embarrassingly slow pace. Its not really his fault because he was always that way. Age has just caught up with him to make him even slower.
If you are a slow PG in a fast system, you won’t make it.
Yes it was good to see J Hill get some burn. It’s about time but lets not go crazy let him develop at his own pace.
i’m not gonna lie
it will
BE GREAT
when i see darko
playing an guarding the paint.
can i dream?
yes i can.
Hill earned more time that’s the way it should work.Cudos for Herb’s work with the kid,he needs to cut his hair is getting in his way of his game IMO on certain situations.I like his block and his energy alot tonight ,it’s the only thing we got out of this game is maybe we found a player.The guy has a natural stroke,his fade in the lane is sweet.He seems to have lost the deer in the headlights look and now looks alot more comfortable.I would start him.His defense is very wellcomed.
More importantly than Lee’s value, Gallo & Hill’s potential is what the HELL are we going to do about the PG.It’s embarrassing that we still have to keep running Duhon out there.
Any chance Denver is willing to trade Lawson for Chandler?
EQ now why on earth would you even bring up Chandler for Lawson?? Chandler is the better player. I can’t see Lawson for more than a backup at best. But I do agree that the team needs a point guard. That’s why I am always lobbying for the Knicks to trade some of their expiring contracts for a young guard because I feel that Lebron isn’t going to be coming to NY so lets use some of those contracts for young players and then sign one free agent besides D Lee
Forward is a position of strength for us with Gallo, Hill, maybe Lee and Lebron.
Chandler’s been playing well, but I find him to be easily replaceable.
Please dont trade chandler, he’s still really young and he’s getting much better.
You know what?? ok, i’ll tell you…If jeffries could dribble better, he could play point. He would be a non shooting point guard but he could run the offense, he’s smart enough. Eventually he could learn to make a layup and he would be a top 5 Densive PG. Just dreaming
EQ I thought Hughes made some nice passes while running the point tonight ,he was removed because his offense was off but he gives you defense and nice passing I can live that, without the O if he can give the other two for now.
I like Hughes as well only because he’s the only other player other than Lee that actually passes the ball to Gallo.
But we still need a decent PG to play at least 25+ minutes
Again, as many on here have been pleading for for a while now, JHill needs to be playing. I don’t care if hes a bust or not to be honest, but he is one of the better options we have down low. I truly hope Dantoni has come to his senses with this ridiculous Bender situation and will now give Hill those minutes. I think the starting lineup for the rest of the season should be the one we saw at the end of the game, with Nate, Wilson, Gallo, Hill, and Lee with Douglas, Jeffries, and Landry getting the rest of the minutes. Yes I know, I have intentionally left out Duhon and Chuckets, because neither one of them deserves any minutes right now to be honest. I’d like to get rid of crybaby Hughes, Darko, and those 2 so we can use the roster spots to acquire young guys who will actually work hard and have a chance to improve. I know this is all a pipe dream though, but its still nice to hope for and think about.
Oh that should be changed to regardless of if Hill is a bust or not, of course I care that HIll is not a bust and hope he is a good player.
Yep, I believe Hill needs to play NOT for the purpose of this year but for the purpose of whether he should be in our plans for next year and etc.
During trading time and off season, we will have to decide what direction to go with this team and hopefully we have a master plan ready to implement.
I do know one thing in that imagine the expressions on Lebron animation character in those commercials if Al Chucketts is still here chucking up shots and not passing. That Kobe character will have to close his ears from the profanity!
I have been a huge jordan hill fan since last winter an was pumped when he fell to 8 for the knicks, yet miles makes some good points…hill showed 2 (that i saw i’m not a scout) post moves that he didn’t have during the summer leagues…the kid is talented and has only played 5 years of basketball…based on how much better he looked tonight compared to the summer league vs much worse talent, maybe d’antoni was right in not playing him…he seems to have improved whatever the knicks are doing, and i trust d’antoni to bring him along at the right time….after all he isn’t here for this year, he is here for the future.
I hear ya but I strongly feel that when a bad teams #1 pick in the draft can’t get on the floor in what should be a rebuilding year, it’s a problem!
I still don’t know if hillis the answer but I surely would like to see him develop and get used to the speed of the NBA game. Even if his skills are not up to par now, Hill can play defense and we can surely see his IQ and attention to details by playing!
i think he should play too but that means taking away from lee/jeffries minutes (trade bait hopefully) i’m not saying he is the answer im just saying he had 2 post moves the other night that he didn’t have this summer, that shows improviement which everyone should be happy with
I have seen enough from Hill to know that he is not a bust. He will be a good role player or a solid starter. The problem with Hill is the coaching. If he was playing for another team he would get the playing time and everyone would be saying we should of picked him up. He is on the right team at the wrong time with the wrong coach.
2011 please give us a defensive minded coach. Mark jackson, Ewing, scott Skiles, anyone who plays with a traditional center.
+1
I had reservations about the pick from the start, but once we made it I was hopeful in Walsh’s eye for big man talent ( he got excellent players like Dale Davis, Antonio Davis, Jermaine Oneill for very little while at Indiana). Hill’s per minute stats are actually quite good so far, in very limited minutes.
So all along, I’ve been preaching patience; when I was growing up it was fairly common for players to not play much their rookie season and develop by watching. So I tried to look at the last 10 drafts and find a player like that as an example to yall – surely there must be a similar high pick big man who didn’t play much their first year and took off in subsequent years. Unfortunately I couldn’t find even one! So what started as an exercise to calm down all you doubters has left me a doubter too – can anyone else think of a good example?
Let’s hope Hill starts getting some time – if he doesn’t get much this year there’s not alot of recent precedent for success…
About Duhon, yes he played terribly last night, and has been terrible the last few games.
Unfortunately, as Duhon goes, so go the Knicks. I don’t think there’s any other player on our roster who is such a barometer. When he plays bad we lose. When he plays half decent we have a chance.
A lot of people here are calling for Duhon to be benched, but who would you play instead? As I see it there’s noone else on our roster who can distribute the ball adequately. We’re stuck with him unless we make a trade.
Douglas and Hughes. Hughes can pass but his shooting is very suspect. Not much margin for a Kenny “the Sky” Walker line drive model!
The last time our rookies got major minutes was the 2005 season. With a starting roster of Marbury, Crawford, Richardson, Curry and a veteran, Isiah found the time to give Frye 24 minutes, Lee 17 minutes and Nate 21 minutes. Each played in average of 67 games. Result of this player management: a 23-59 season. We may wind up with a 23-59 season this year, but is this really our goal? Why not play the most effective lineup and try to make the playoffs? Your thoughts.
The difference between Lee-Frye-Robinson and we’re asking for Hill is : 62 minutes and 15 minutes. 47 minutes difference.
Apples and oranges.
And Hill could help this team.
Mucha: are you saying that if Hill gets 15 minutes a game that will give the Knicks a shot at the playoffs? I assume you are going to give each of the present rotation 3 minutes less playing time? Is that the plan?
Will David Lee play 48 minutes everynight?
Is Al Harrington playing well?
Are Jared Jeffries’ intangibles untouchable even if he couldn’t make a lay-up and guard his man to save his life?
Is Jonathan Bender an NBA-caliber player?
You get it.
I never said that Hill will single-handedly lead the Knicks to the playoffs, don’t put words in my mouth. But he can clearly help this team and he showed why yesterday. You CAN’T tell me that Jordan Hill isn’t good enough to play for the Knicks, maybe you had never seen him play in college but he’s a good player.
I think we agree. It has been frustrating watching most of the games. Hill is going to get more minutes because we need him. Hoping that the veterans would overachieve is not happening on a regular basis. Harrington, Hughes, Robinson, JJ and Duhon are not making this team better on a regular basis. Hill will hopefully learn by playing. Same goes for Toney Douglas. Douglas may have to develop his point guard skills on the floor and not just in practice. I know you disagree but I still beieve Lee is a big contributor who will be a keeper.
I think Lee’s a big contributor.
But the Knicks can’t resign him if they can’t get rid of Jeffries or Curry, which hasn’t been done!
As we have discussed before, Lee cannot be signed until July, what value does he have as an expiring contract? Moving JJ and or Curry is looking less and less likely. I would rather sign Lee and find a serviceable PG and wait for 2011 when we will be free of JJ and Curry. How about Andre Miller?
http://www.theknicksblog.com/2010/01/13/fan-trade-thread/
Read it – you’ll get the answer. Lee’s cap hold is $10.5 million.
the reason we won 22 games that year was because Marbury, Curry, Crawford, Q Rich never played a lick of defense and Q Rich/Marbury were at each others throats.
Biggie: I know the team did not play defense in 2005? How do you want to play Hill to tighten up the defense? As a starter? Off the bench? D’Antoni is trying to win games, yes?
I want him to look at Lee and do the opposite on the defensive end. Whether Hill has developed his offensive skills to compete nightly and adjust to speed of the NBA is debatable. But make no mistake, Hill or any player can make an effort to play defense.
We need a low post presence in the paint….one that is not watching that is!
Agree wholeheartedly. The Knicks need to start implementing a defensive culture because every sports fan knows defense wins championships. The Knicks just have too many players that do not play D. Duhon, Lee, Robinson, and Harrington (although he used to be a great defensive player in the beginning of his career) do not play defense.
When half of your eight man rotation does not play defense, there will be serious consequences to the team mindset.
Jeffries and Douglas are solid defensive players who constantly apply pressure. Chandler and Gallinari are good players who provide a shot blocking presence if put at a corner position, but they are primarly the 2 and 3 on the floor and are spaced more towards the perimeter on defense.
When Will and Gallinari switch to guard the 4 or 5 in the zone, they display excellent interior defense.
Its just said that Lee cannot learn from Jeffries’ prime examples of help defending and apply them himself in the paint.
Some people are actually arguing that the reason Douglas is not playing is because he doesn’t know the offense. NEWSFLASH: Duhon has no idea what the hell he is doing out there either.
The reason Douglas is not playing is because of D’Antoni’s selfish notion that its about giving veteran’s their due.
Jordan Hill outplayed Lee during crunch time last time with his solid defense and scoring and Duhon was relegated to the bench because he is awful.
At least Douglas has potential to be a better PG. We already know that Duhon has already reached his very, very low ceiling.
Memo to D’Antoni: Its about trying to win, its not about playing veteran’s just because they have been in the league longer.
I think that Donnie Walsh now realizes that he signed the wrong coach,and D’antoni realizes that he signed with the wrong team.It will become more obvious,when its time to rid themselves of David Lee,and thats when the power struggle will really begin
Speaking of “Jordans,” I saw a piece that stated that the Lakers’ Farmar is an expiring $1.9 million, and that they might be willing to move him.
Farmar for Nate? Since Nate is a base-year slot, would the numbers work? Farmar would be worth a try at point.
Re: Last night’s game. I’m in Florida and stuck watching the stream, which makes it tough to comment during the game (BTW: any tips on laptop settings to make things less herky-jerky?).
For two games, I’ve seen a collective shooting slump. Fatigue or law of averages catching up with the team? Afew more shots falling wouldhave made them different games, IMHO.
In an effort, I believe, to be able to play as a 4 in the offense, Lee has been shooting from farther out with mixed results. In the current offensive scheme, if he shoots from farther out, no body is in rebounding position. Is Lee taking shoot opportunities away from Gallo and others by shooting from the top of the key and father?
Someone made a comment last night about losing two players when Lee goes to the bench. How true. There was a short period of time when Lee was sitting while Duhon was playing; twice, Gallo ran the P and R with Duhon and was wide open on the roll. Duhon ignored him and pitched it to the outside. Why can’t Duhon run the same P and R with Gallo?
I noticed during a time-out that Galo is noticeably taller than Hill. More than an inch. Gallo’s shoulders were way higher than Hill’s.e
Someone mentioned that finally we had a post-up player in Hill. Remember, we also have one in Darko ( Curry is another case), but there is no roll for a post-up player in this offense, only “pick” players. Unless you count the rare back-to move off a backdoor cut as a post-up?
Is it time to allow Gallo to spend more time down low on both ends of the court? I’m tired of watching him defend on the arc, race down low to help rebound as a big should, and then be the only guy to run out and look “burned” when the ball goes inside to outside. Shouldn’t our smalls be out there defending so that he can play like a big?
Just my impressions, of course.
PS: Any tips on improving streaming would be appreciated. Thanks again.
Farmer is making $1.9 MM. In order for a trade to work, the Lakers can only take in 125% pluse $100,000 dollars of the total outgoing salary, which is $1.9 MM in this case if the Laker’s trady Farmar solo. 125% plus $.1 MM of Farmar’s current salary is $2475000.
Therefore, a straight up deal for Nate wouldn’t work because Nate is $1.525 MM over the limit since he is due $4 MM.
Unless the Laker’s have a trade exception, they cannot take Robinson.
The problem with Nate is that even though he signed the one year deal for 4 million, he is a base-year player and can only be dealt for 2 million in return. Does LA have to be able to take back 4 mil? Is that your point? If so, can the Knicks add in Mobley, for instance, and take back other expirings? Farmar, Morrison, and waiveable fillers?
Just trying to figure out how to get a decent/good PG on a basis that won’t wreck the plan.
I’m thinking Steve Blake or Raymond Felton taking a discounted contract for around $3-5 MM to be the starting PG is the Knicks is the best route right now. And if the Knicks sign LeBron, use that as leverage to make them sign for even less.
Obviously people take the great showing by Hill as an opportunity to bash the coach rather than praise the development of the player.
“Memo to D’Antoni: Its about trying to win, its not about playing veteran’s just because they have been in the league longer.”
Are you serious? Do you think D’Antoni plays these vets because he owes them something? All the guy says is he’s trying to win. He has showed he is willing to bench veterans, even the team’s most popular player, if they are not playing hard. The guy clearly just wants to win.
If you guys have been following HIll like I have throughout the season, you’d see how much this guy has improved since the beginning of the season. You’d also know that the guy makes A LOT of mistakes that are ugly and embarrassing.
Last night for the first time, Hill earned crunch time minutes because he rallied the team to make it a ball game again. But, if he gets frequent crunch time minutes when the pressure is on and everyone is watching and he makes a dumb mistake, the media and fans will never let it down. It’s a knock to young guy’s confidence, and Hill’s effectiveness will depend on his confidence. When he comes into games, he likes to shy around the perimeter, but when he gains confidence, he goes down low more and tries to use some muscle. I mean, people still talk about Luis Castllo dropping that fly ball earlier this season. Imagine it’s the fourth quarter and Hill lets a pass right to him fall into the stands. Or he grabs a ball in the post and it somehow flys 20 feet up in the air immediately after he touches it. I have seen the kid do things like this many times.
Just enjoy the flashes you get. Next year, he’ll be ready to contribute. The one thing I was worried about was this kid’s lack of a post game but he was SPINNING AND WINNING last night. He was beasting Villanuaver in the post. He had a couple of really, really nice moves. He also was extremely affective in altering shots on defense and grabbing some boards in limited minutes, even though he was playing a lot of perimeter D on Villanuaver. The kid is gonna be a player, he has definitely earned some minutes.
But, don’t for a second think that D’Antoni is saying, SHIT! Why haven’t I been playing this guy all season? Because he knows what the guy can and can’t do and all of the DNPs and extra practice time have been in anticipation of his eventual presence in the lineup.
Good Post. I agree with that assesment. so is Hill finally gonna get someminutes now? Did his showing earn him some minutes going forward?
“Memo to D’Antoni: Its about trying to win, its not about playing veteran’s just because they have been in the league longer.”
“Are you serious? Do you think D’Antoni plays these vets because he owes them something?”
The coach actually said it himself. Seriously.
I think Charles thought I was making an assumption. Unless you haven’t been watching the pregame and postgame shows of the Knicks games lately you would have known that D’Antoni actually said he plays vets for the aforementioned reason.
There is a difference between what D’Antoni is saying and what he is doing. Other than Duhon’s 3 point festival against the Hornets awhile back, he has done absolute jack.
Yet, D’Antoni still puts him out there everyday. Maybe you don’t recall, but I remember D’Antoni saying that its the job of the rookie to take the position from the veteran. That is completely nonsensical. If the vet is putting on a selfish showing or is regularly struggling, he needs to benched and replaced.
Well, that has been Harrington and Duhon for more than the past month. Remember when Harrington spent Christmas day practicing at MSG under the advice of his mom because he was playing so poorly? Well he still hasn’t played any better, is becoming the new Zach Randolph black hole, and was still getting minutes ahead of Hill until last night.
Myles just posted a critical article on Duhon’s lackluster play proving the point “why isn’t Douglas playing?” Duhon isn’t setting up any of his teammates anyway, so why not just start Douglas, who actually has a future in NY. I’ve been saying at least Douglas does one thing we know consistently: playing hard defense.