Now a Warrior, Still A Class Act

Good for David, he really is a class act.

But why even ask his agent questions like that? His agent is an ahole who spends the whole article taking shots at the Knicks because they didn’t want to pay Lee a ton of money after being part of so many losing teams and having a clear chance to improve with a bigtime allstar in Amare.

Man, Lee is a class act, he should really think about getting an agent that can represent him in a more dignified way. His agent has never reflected well on David.

Not a shocker; D-Lee is a decent human being…that b n said, where has this world gone? Or should I say where is it goin now that we praise those who simply does what good parents taught them 2 do? Keep b n u D-Lee!

I disagree. Bartelstein is good people too. If you heard him on an interview, he’s the antithesis of the Jerry Maguire type agents.

As much as I’ve always knocked David on the court, he’s a giving dude, just like his famous grandfather.

Not surprised, he gets it.

“But every fan respects the effort David Lee brought night in and night out, and more importantly, he embraced what the organization had to offer, which at the time that he arrived in New York was very little.”

Someone check on HaS, he might be having an aneurysm.

His “_avi_” signature might serve well for some decent comedy in this thread If he decides to chime in.

It’s a nice story, I’m still glad we traded him though.

This is exactly what gets in my craw though.

Anyone who watched _avi_ play defense (pains me to even type his name in such close proximity of the word) knows he didn’t give an effort on that end of the floor. His image in the media is completely juxtapose to the reality of his play. He isn’t a lunch pail, blue collar, hustle player. He’s an athletic big who plays with a ton of finesse on the offensive end with a consistent jumper, good with both hands finishing around the basket, great rebounder in his area, but he’s a turnstile on the other end of the floor, complete EZ-Pass.

He’s not taking charges, he’s not fighting for rebounds forcing jumpballs, he’s not diving on the floor or into the stands to save a possession, he’s not giving a hard foul and he’s not challenging shots/layups in the paint.

He is the exact antithesis of “effort” or “hustle”, yet any article or reference to his game starts with this adjective. That is why my hate for him is so venomous (that and the fact that I was a big fan of his in his 1st couple years, thin line between love and hate), I’m sure he’s a nice guy to hang with and he’s a great human being off the court as far as being charitable or a philanthropist, but I never want to see that guy in a Knick uniform or on any team I love to watch play if he’s going to dog it the way he has the last 2 years on the defensive end of the floor.

Ugh.

Good luck and good riddance.

same. I knock Lee on the court all the time, and couldn’t have been happier to see him leave from a basketball perspective, but he’s just a class act all the way.

I don’t know Bartelstein so I can’t speak about him like you, but in the article he comes off as a complete ahole and last offseason I also thought he was a complete ahole who made his client look very foolish by demanding all the money he did.

Bartlestein is a douche, but he got his client paid. Still think it’s the worst contract handed out in free agency thus far.

good point. I too hate how he’s always characterized as a hustle player when he’s clearly the opposite of that.

Part of it is that to start his career he was certainly more of a hustle player. While never a defensive stopper, he would come off the bench and take charges and jump around like a maniac for 10 minutes at a time.

I don’t know, I agree with most of what you said. As a fan of a team, you have to separate what one person does on the court from what he does off the court. In Lee’s case, that’s a bad thing imo.

There it is. HaS you finally fully exercised David Lee’s soul from the TKB.

Gonna miss ya Lee.

Yo that new Amar’e Knick jersey is fiiiiire! I might actually buy one.

Great Article, D-Lee was the only true Knick over the past decade. Hate to see him go but in my mind he’ll always be one of my favorite Knicks.

i have to agree with HaS here …. the David Lee of his first couple of seasons threw his body around with reckless abandon .. was a monster on the O glass…
as soon as he developed his mid range jumper, it was all over

Cmon now, he hustled everywhere on the court he was physically able. He’s not physically gifted enough to impact anything on the defense aside cleaning up the glass like a maniac. You don’t avg 11.7 rebounds a game and make an allstar team without hustle.

His stat line is a testament to his hustle. Its certainly not his immense physical gifts now is it?

To sum up HaS’s rant, your comments ds2488 and David Lee in two words…Sorry Defender.

Nothing more nothing less. Aside from money, defense…that being the reason he and Amar’e couldn’t coexist, also a condemnation on Amar’e defensive game by the way. I would like to still have Lee, he’s still a very good player.

I think David Lee is an absolute hustling baller. He’s probably the last player above any other Knick in the last 10 years we can honestly say got drafted by us, got in the gym and hustled his ass off AND got better.

Too bad he sucks on defense.

moving along

I know right, 20 ppg 11.7 rebs 3.6 ast .545 fg

It was was all over.

Hating the player and his game on this one fellas…a little too much IMO.

“Cmon now, he hustled everywhere on the court he was physically able. He’s not physically gifted enough to impact anything on the defense aside cleaning up the glass like a maniac. You don’t avg 11.7 rebounds a game and make an allstar team without hustle.”

This is what I don’t get though. How can he be physically able to do all the things that enhance his stats, and therefore his next contract, while suddenly not being phsyically able to do intangible things that don’t show up on the stat line.

I realize it’s tough for someone to do as much as Lee did on offense and be a defensive stopper at the same time, but we’re not even talking about him being a defensive stopper. Just him being a defensive presence who at the very least attempts to draw charges and do intangible things like box out. Heck, the guy didn’t even foul opposing guards.

“he’s not fighting for rebounds”

Are you crazy??? There were multiple times this season where I saw Lee rip rebounds from Gallo and Chandler’s hands. lol.

In all seriousness I agree with every word you said. It’s frustrating because his game is night and day depending on which side of half court he’s on. I would be a Lee cheerleader if he at least gave some effort on the defensive end. He doesn’t even have to be good, he just has to try.

Players like Nash for example. Terrible defender but at least he gives 100%, sacrifices his body and leaves it all on the court.

I hate half his game. I love the other half.

So why did his charges go down every year in spite of playing more minutes? Last year was his lowest total yet. Players usually become smarter defenders and are able to anticipate what their opponent is going to do. There are also scouting reports and game film.

Malik Rose was less athletic than Lee and he would get killed on defense, but he would give it his all. Oakley could barely jump over a phone book, but he jumped all over the floor and into the stands to save possessions get steals etc. Lee was not a hustle player in the least. Athleticism has nothing to do with it. Defense is all about effort and imho you’re wrong about hustle showing up in the stat sheet.

Too bad he didn’t “hustle his ass off” during games and not just in the gym.

I wanted to love David Lee.

I wish him well though.

I think he’ll be successful with the Golden State Warriors.

the only thing that sticks out in my mind about david was being down by 20 on the west coast… he was getting ready for a rebound off of a foul shot telling all the opposing players that he was 1 assist shy of a triple double. Never saw a player so excited before.
Great players lift teams … good bye, you wont even be an afterthought 5 years from now.

Lee is a poof. You like him because there was nothing else to like. We lived through a nightmare. The worst possible decade we could have had and nothing to show on the other side but starting from scratch. David Lee wasn’t Eddy Curry. Yay, I don’t hate him. He got better by learning how to play away from the rim. Good for him. I hope the best player on my team is never anything like him ever again.

That’s his job though. I don’t dislike agents just because he’s trying to get his client the best deal possible. And in the end, he got Lee 80M!

I heard him the day after Lee got traded and he went into length about how good Donnie Walsh was to him and Lee.

“In all seriousness I agree with every word you said. It’s frustrating because his game is night and day depending on which side of half court he’s on. I would be a Lee cheerleader if he at least gave some effort on the defensive end. He doesn’t even have to be good, he just has to try.”

Exactly, SOME effort. ANY effort.

I could care less if he got burned on defense every night or was in someone’s poster getting dunked on a nightly basis, but you’ll probably never see him in someone’s poster because he won’t jump or challenge shots.

Gallinari is slower than Lee and he has to guard 3′s! He gets killed sometimes, but he doesn’t give up on the play and he tries his best. That’s all I ask. Like I said he gave a lot better effort in his first couple of years, but the last 2? No way.

David sure loved his enemies. Punks, now you David haters want to say nice things about the guy!

TWO-FACE LIARS! Wow!

Yeah, taught all his teammates that if you get yours it doesn’t matter if you win cuz you can get paid someday if you have stats.

its very difficult ,watchin on TV,to tellsomeone,that they are not putting forth effort.Its like a guy going home sick,who the hell am i to tell him,he is not sick?who the hell am i to comment on someones lack of effort? for all i know this guy might be trying as hard as he can.Maybe he just sucks on dee

David Lee went away. So Anthony Randolf huh. Turiaf. Azubuike. I am happy to say I could care less if Lee does well elsewhere, he made his money and he never inspired his team to bleed. These dudes have a little growl in them. Maybe not Azubuike in the same way, but he’ll make the other dude work for his stats.

LMAO @ “TWO-FACE LIARS”

I wanted to love David Lee. It doesn’t mean that I did!

I’ve always respected his intelligence and his love for the New York Knicks. And he’s a very good basketball player! Listen I have many bad things to say about David Lee – but I’m happy we didn’t lose him for nothing and I don’t want to twist the knife. I wish him well.

Your opinion on everything D.Lee – disqualified.

Just look at game tape from his rookie and sophomore year and then tell me he was trying the last 2 years.

LOL

Yes, let’s take the high road

clowns actually referred to me as a racist(crazy)….amongst other outlandish things….dudes cant deal with the WHOLE truth then so be it….let’s keep it Knicks basketball you guys(gettin mad because you’z not f’n wit me… trying to get at me another route HAHA..) …don’t get mad at me for calling it spade a spade and telling both sides of the story(others as well to there credit)only cards I’m pullin….not about games…cornballz…….like I said before if it doesn’t apply then let it fly…….please lay off the tough talk square bearz ….particularly in reference to YO SON….your not built like that so please stop….let’s not get personal because your nerves were touched(don’t see how unless…haha….TYPICAL..) because we can get personal and that’s all I really have to say about that…haha…it’s not that serious….I come here in peace…when I do….but mind your manors….YO SON….

lol what the f*** are you talking about?

Sniffing glue again?

http://www.sportingnews.com/blog/The_Baseline/entry/view/72000/mike_dantoni_explains_anthony_randolphs_role_with_the_knicks/#comments

I’m too drunk to understand this but I agree

“The biggest regret was not having a chance to be part of a stable, winning team,” he said. “Forty-nine players and three coaches have come and gone. That’s not to blame anyone, but those were the facts.”

If you can’t see that, the first thing in the mourning you should pour a cup of coffee on your keyboard.
Why would he kill himself every game for YOU? To get approval from HaS?
You have a lot of bad things to say about him? Do you?
For the team that can’t embrace a defense as a concept you surely found your scapegoat.
He is not a great defender 1on1 but he did pretty well in zone, but who cares, right? Because you still watch that old tape of Oakley jumping all over the floor. Playing next to Ewing, Starks, Mason… Compare to Duhon, Harrington, Curry.

If there was a player worth retaining it was Lee.

That was meant as a reply to Yo Son’s comment.

Explains… The key word.

i just want to be done with this publicity hound.. he is completely exorcized from my knick experience.. he is GS’s problem now.

The irony and sadness of losing Lee, a guy who brought 100% hustle every night, never complained about being forced to play center, a devoted team guy and self-made all-star who was barely a rotation player with any shot when drafted, and a thoroughly good guy who unfortunately had no knack for defense which is a must for any Knick big man starter, caps the pathos of the entire last 8 years. I hope we never see anything like that again. Unfortunately, he is going to a team which is even more of a mess and is rebuilding with a crazy old tired coach and little hope for the playoffs. I’ll bet his fat paychecks won’t feel that good.

Would you guys sign Jeremy Lin?

My vote: Yes

say what you want about D.Lee but not to many guy’s avg 20 & 10 in the league..

his problem was that he shouldn’t be the star player on a good team, to me he has a 6th man kinda game ..He can make plays happen and you don’t have to run one play for him to drop double digits night in and night out..

Lee was playing w/ the Knicks on awful teams, I hope he gets a chance on a contender one day..

Class Act-Yes
Max Player-NO

Lee vs. Amare’ = Amare’

If only his teammates would’ve showed up we might have won some more games Nate Eddy excuse me.

See my posts in the other threads.

I’d love to have him to the Knicks, but the Lakers want him too. I don’t see him going to the Knicks over the Lakers (he’s from Cali) unless the Knicks pay him more and/or promise him more playing time.

I don’t think you’ve seen either of these dudes on a daily basis and hope they come to work like David Lee did. Lol its funny I bet half the people in here (def not you HaS dont worry) were loving his progress and praising him, now he’s chopped liver.

I disliked his game him for the same reasons you all do, but it wasn’t without lack of effort. That used to mean something for Knick fans.

Did somebody just call him a “Publicity Hound” Lmao! That comment smells like “publicity hound” fodder.

Fact is, that no D playing, scrappy, soft screen setting, ambidextrous layup finishing, 0.5 bpg having, nasty dunking white dude was the only thing worth watching the last few years…and not overdue it, but he wore that Knick Jersey with pride.

_avi_ <<<<<this stuff aside, David Lee was a good Knick. Quit hatin

oh ok. I did not hear about that. Well that’s nice I guess.

I agree, agents jobs are to get the most money. But sometimes I guess I just don’t like the way they go about doing that.

there’s no way a player will be asked to play summer league ball when he is going to receive 11+mil in his last year…there’s no agent in the world that will allow his client to play summer ball when he is making 11+mil in a contract year(I don’t think especially when he is injury prone)….the connection I made with brokebackmountain was in reference to NY reporters asking your head coach evaluation of gallo’z game/health….he stated he didn’t have a clue but hope that he was improving and that he better be because there is depth at his position… what ever that may be…it’s been reported that some of the new guys(Amare, Randolph) with ILL WILL, were going over basic formalities of the style of play that they will relay on the court this up coming season…stop talking reckless lil dudes and stay in your lanes before you get at me ….I bowl strikes over here…you still playing with bumpers…..

check the eddy post….they were being mean spitfully towards me and it wasnt nice at all….it keeps saying my comments are awaiting moderation and it wasnt even that long….id ont even know if it’s even posting…..just saying….I was reffered to as a racist and they went to far…..

after you typed all that did it say that your comments were awaiting moderation…….

I’

good lookin homie……

Seriously? What in God’s name are you talking about? I feel like you’re always defending yourself from a comment someone posted like 8 threads ago because you can’t let go of anything.

PS: One period is enough dude; just try it one time and see how you like it, please.

You really go to lengths to get the last words (if you can call what you write words) in don’t you? Just can’t let go can ya?

“the connection I made with brokebackmountain was in reference to NY reporters asking your head coach evaluation of gallo’z game/health….he stated he didn’t have a clue but hope that he was improving and that he better be because there is depth at his position”

So D’Antoni saying he doesn’t know what Gallo’s up to means Gallo is a gay cowboy? What connection is there to Brokeback Mountain?

PS: Can I get a link to where D’Antoni was asked this? I actually just haven’t seen this interview, and I’d like to see what he has to say.

ahahaahhaaha I cant let go of anything look who’z talking…….I stepped out so I just wanted dudes to know that I saw what was said when I was reffered to as some kind of racist…I didn’t appreciate that at all…..your funny when talking about not letting anything go..hahaha woow of all people to talk….and

…………………..

is what I do…seen you try to do it your darn self…..dont start fauci….

YO SON I haven’t responded to you much lately because your posts are generally incoherent and long run on rants I can’t understand. Trust me, I am not holding onto any random argument I ever got in with you, because chances are, I couldn’t understand your rebuttal. I just like to read people’s thoughts on Lee when it’s a Lee post and not have to read anger posts from multiple threads ago. It sucks someone called you a racist, and, while it’s not the same thing, did you not call Gallo “brokebackmountain” which is a movie about gay cowboys. That can only be viewed as some sort of derogatory comment my many I would assume.

they asked him during a summer league game digging for links is not my thing….I have no reason to lie….the brokebackmountain thing was a joke to his hurt back from his first summer league game.. of all games at that…haha…you guys know that I really like gallo..stated this many of times….you guys just O D way too much……woooow that’s why guys were catching feelings earlier….. you really thought I was reffering to him as a gay cowboy….wtf…ahaha explains these strange names from out of no where talking reckless….hahah…I wasn’t trying to clown gay people or gay cowboys…chill……..

I go to lengths to get the last word…fauci you have some nerve……I barely post anymore……..majority of the time I let you dudes talk reckless and have your fun….

oh, HaS…you think D. Lee didn’t hustle and play defense?

just you wait until your new overpriced, one-dimensional free agent hits the court.

you havent responded to me lately because I havent been posting but when I did you did except earlier today….and my so called rants wouldn’t be as long if the WHOLE story was told………

Well brokeback mountain is a move about gay cowboys dude its not a movie about guys with bad backs…I get it now, but you could probably find a better nick name for the kid.

“I go to lengths to get the last word”

Well you came here to post a response to a comment from like 7 threads ago, so I apologize for jumping to conclusions, but it seems like you’re having trouble letting go.

I saw the interviewon tv dueing one of the summerleague games,but he did say “he better be in shape cuz there is depth at his position”

when it says your comments are awaiting moderation does that mean they are not posting it because it’s to long….meanwhile I see post longer then mines and there being posted……

nobody asked EDDY CURRY to play summer league! thats a bunch of bullshjit

they asked EDDY to come out VEGAS ,meet his new teamates and practice in the gym with them…he said “I’LL BE THERE”but didnt show up.thats all

they gotta force eddy curry to be the towel boy or something, no way should they let him sit on his ass eating burgers for the remainder of his contract

“Now a Warrior, Still A Class Act”

“This is a pretty awesome story by Harvey Araton that will be featured in tomorrow’s New York Times.”

wheres, Isiah Thomas featured story on how he saved the day.… that was 1 of thee most noble act a Knick has ever done for this organization since Reed came out walking on the court on 1 leg…considering how he was treated when he left and still to this day….. but yet no articles or post in appreciation of him actually doing something to save a lot of peoples jobs….1 of the biggest attributes in NY sports History…did he not show to be more then a class act in his efforts….some small fine print is not enough especially when it’s followed by half azz stories about the past ridiculing him…….haha……

My Yagoogily: (movie reference)

Lee, despite the the deficiencies in his game, (which we on this blog know all too well), is a very good player in many respects. But the most important part about his tenure here is that he developed more than any knick i can remember in recent history. he will never be a defensive presence, so asking him to be our only big man and anchor in the paint was a lot, with no other length or athleticism in front court. But when it came down to it, He was the only player we got to see make such an amazing transition. he may not be the ‘blue collar’ player people paint him as, but you cannot deny that he must’ve worked ridiculously hard to become the player his is now. Those skills don’t show up out of the blue.

I am happy with the direction we went though; Amare is obviously much better and with him here there was no place for lee; i would much rather have a 21 year old million dollar randolph than Lee in his prime given the position we are in, but he was a joy to have on the team and hopefully the assets we received in return will produce for us. The end. Good luck.

you believe everything that you read?

YO SON!

…………………..Bloop!!!! shut your pie hole.

David Lee improved offensively more then any player I think I’ve ever seen. He’s a good guy but it’s too bad he was so bad on defense. If Lee was at least average on D, he would still be here imo.

Class act? Okay, fine, maybe he’s a nice guy in the real world, but I have never seen anyone steal rebounds from his teammates off of missed free throws like Lee. Homeboy did one thing this year: get himself paid! He lobbied like crazy to be an All Star, padded his points and rebound stats at every chance, but did no little things that don’t show up too prominently in the stat sheet (play D, hustle, bang). I finally get to stop screaming “box out, David Lee!” this coming season. Yee ha.

“oh, HaS…you think D. Lee didn’t hustle and play defense?”

I don’t “think” I saw him my own eyes and he “didn’t hustle and play defense”. Like I said check the game tape from his rookie/sophomore years and compare it to the last two seasons. If you watch it objectively you’ll see the difference. Like I’ve said I started out a big time Lee supporter.

If the Knicks had a more well-rounded coach in the fold who made defense a priority I would absolutely love the Amar’e signing (I know they overpaid and it’s uninsured, but as a bad team we were going to have to overpay free agents), but I never looked forward to a reuniting of _’antoni and Amar’e. So I wouldn’t exactly call Stoudemire my new overpriced, one-dimensional free agent, but I’m hoping for the best and preparing for the worst.

Lee’s a good man.

His agent is a bit of schmuck, and the writer a bit ridiculous for putting in conotations of disloyalty for taking Amar’e over Lee when Walsh gave Lee more than necessary last year and did work out a nice trade for him (and us).

Amar’e is a better player and is coming off as a good person himself. And, really, it wasn’t Amar’e OR Lee.

It was Amar’e + the Golden State 3 (and a 2nd rounder and $800K more in cap room) OR Lee. That move had to be made.

Still, the dude is solid on the court at PF and off it, so I’m sorry to see him go.

“He is not a great defender 1on1 but he did pretty well in zone, but who cares, right? Because you still watch that old tape of Oakley jumping all over the floor. Playing next to Ewing, Starks, Mason… Compare to Duhon, Harrington, Curry.”

No, I didn’t have to look at tape of Oakley, Mason or Starks. All I had to do was look at the way he played in his rookie and sophomore campaigns.

It cracks me up how some of you make excuses for him and say “the coach doesn’t want his best player in foul trouble so he tells him not to play defense (if _’antoni ever actually endorsed this he should be fired)”, “why should he kill himself for a team who didn’t want to pay him” or “Why would he kill himself every game for YOU?” or even “why should he play defense when no one else is”. What a joke.

A player should play defense for himself. He should take pride in stopping his man and giving his best effort on both ends of the floor. He shouldn’t do it for me or the Knicks (although fans and the organization pay his salary), but he should want to do it for himself.

worse that Darko and Travis outlaw?? #cmonson…lol..

Great story, class act all the way. Hope he has great success out west.

Dave’s a good dude. A lot of people don’t realize how much a little gesture means. It really goes a long way. I wish him the best in GS…

Exactly

I’m not sure if anyone will read this but:

“He should take pride in stopping his man and giving his best effort on both ends of the floor.”

And he did, to the best of his ability to defend at 5. What you wanted him to do is to defend the paint from the opposing wing players or guards: take a charge or block the shot. Which is a major talent. He doesn’t have that talent. Recognize it. It has nothing to do with willingness. Defense is a team effort, and you can be Best Defensive Player of the year multiple times and never win a ring, because team around you can’t make a stop.

Now that’s a great idea! I’m sure that the player’s union would raise hell though. It just seems like such robbery…

please ignore this guy. blog is much better when he’s not around.