Just for fun, I’m interested in what grade you give Isiah Thomas for trading Kurt Thomas to the Suns for the rights to Nate Robinson and Quentin Richardson.

At the time the Knicks wanted to get younger, and did, with the acquisitions of Q and Nate. Kurt played his best along side Stephon Marbury in the pick and pop. They were automatic. Kurt had a manageable contract and gave the Knicks some snarl.

After it’s all said and done…

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Via ESPN Chicago

Thiobodeau also said Larry Johnson had been interested in becoming a Bulls assistant, but that’s no longer a possibility.

Maybe the Knicks can hire one of the greatest college players of the past 2 decades as a consultant.

Via KnicksTweets

Larry Johnson, the former No. 1 overall draft pick, is interested in (an assistant coaching) job and visited the team recently.

Johnson has a history with new Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau. Johnson played for the New York Knicks from 1996-2001, while Thibodeau was on the coaching staff working under Jeff Van Gundy. Since retiring in 2001, Johnson has not held any formal coaching jobs.

Jeff Van Gundy, who, Tibodeau worked for here, called LJ the “greatest teammate” he’s ever coached while on the air with us on TKB Radio. It would be no surprise to see him end up with his former assistant coach.

Francis is attempting to jump back in the NBA with Miami. It’s a tremendous longshot, but Francis is working out and focused.

Via Slam

Steve concedes. He finally relinquishes the truth: Both the Houston Rockets and his own ego play huge roles in him being inactive today. It began with Jeff Van Gundy replacing Rudy Tomjanovich as the Rockets’ head coach in ’03. Van Gundy quickly replaced Francis as the team’s offensive focus in favor of Yao Ming. Francis’ freestyling, run-and-gun game was of no interest to Van Gundy, and after a season of PG/coach head-butting, Steve-O was traded to Orlando. Though rough for him at first, Disney World became home to his second-best statistical season (21.3 points, 7 assists, 5.8 rebounds). In the middle of the ‘05-06 season, Steve was bounced to the Knicks, into the middle of the Larry Brown nightmare. In ’07, Francis found himself back on a Rick Adelman-navigated Rockets team. “They ain’t start me [and] that rubbed me the wrong way,” says Steve through a jaw full of shaving cream. “I’m playing behind a guy that wasn’t drafted—Skip To My Lou. You can’t put a three-time All-Star on your bench. So [I decided] if I’m getting x-amount of dollars, I’ma fall back and just get my money for my kids.” more.

As a fellow Terp, I was always a huge Francis fan. Sadly, Knicks fans never got to see the real Steve Francis due to injury/miss constructed roster. He and Marbury were the same player, they could never have worked since both were ball-dominators, let alone be the next Pearl/Clyde (loud laugh…). Francis ruffled too many feathers in his career, and it overshadowed his career. Fair or unfair, his run in with Jeff Van Gundy was a turning point in his career in many ways.

I went to Maryland with Francis and he was easily one of the most dynamic guards I’d ever seen. His combination of power, skill, speed and athleticism at the guard position was like few who have ever played the game. I watched him try to dunk on Jamaal Magloire in person at Rupp Arena that missed- it would hit the back rim and flew to half court. Had it gone down, we’d be able to find it on YouTube as one of the sickest dunks ever.

11 years later

Mike Vaccaro in my opinion, and his piece today is another great read…

“…3. What if the Knicks hadn’t traded Patrick Ewing?

It seemed as if there was a Higher Authority at work. The Knicks initially arranged a four-team trade in August 2000, but when it fell through, Jeff Van Gundy visited Ewing to persuade him to stay. Ewing believed New York had turned on him. The Knicks were under no obligation to deal Ewing, but a few weeks later they did anyway in a complex deal that also involved the Lakers, Suns and Sonics.

So: a) If the Knicks don’t trade Ewing, they have him for the 2000-01 season, a year they won 48 games without him. With him? Do they likely beat the Raptors in the playoffs? They had the year before. And you have to believe they would have had a chance at knocking off the Sixers in the next round. And then . . . well, who knows? b) At the least, Ewing’s $16 million would have fallen off the cap and c) The never-ending spiral of bad players and bad contracts might have been broken before it ever started with the likes of Glen Rice and Luc Longley. And d) maybe Van Gundy doesn’t resign the next season, and e) maybe Isiah Thomas remains a harmless character we only know from a distance, and f) maybe the Knicks never bottom out as completely as they did…”

He also talks about Belichick and the freak Duaner Sanchez injuries and their proverbial “what ifs.” As a Mets fan, there is no doubt in my mind that the Mets would have won the World Series had Sanchez stayed healthy. As far as Ewing, it’s been documented in this space, that the way he was handled was the beginning of the organization’s crumbling for the last decade.

While we’re reading the Post, Peter Vecsey gets on Mike D’Antoni for not keeping Rajon Rondo after he was drafted in Phoenix. More fodder for the anti-D’Ant-ites. Oh, and D’Antoni is the reason for Boston’s push to the Finals.  Not Paul Pierce or the Celts defense, it’s more Nate Robinson.

Gotcha.

Vecsey fails to mention that Rondo could have been a Knick but Isiah Thomas chose Balkman a spot before. Oh, and the player that the Suns took in 2007?  Rudy Fernandez, whom the Suns got a boat load of cash for (they’re small market) from the Blazers. They also got cash for Rondo. That cash was used to resign several key pieces including Steve Nash, who plays Rondo’s position. Small market teams with solid cores give up mid-to-late first round picks in exchange for cash all the time and Rondo couldn’t shoot a lick coming out of college. Of course, the Knicks are hoping to jump into the 1st round in June’s draft.

But it’s NY so it must be D’Antoni’s fault.

Former Knick and Yale graduate Chris Dudley earned a victory in the Oregon primary.

“…Make no mistake: Oregon is governable,” Dudley said, getting his biggest cheer of the evening when he referred to Kitzhaber’s infamous remark near the end of the Democrat’s last gubernatorial term that Oregon was ungovernable. “Eight years ago, when Oregon was in recession and desperately needed a leader, John Kitzhaber said that Oregon couldn’t be led, that the state he was elected to serve was ungovernable. I disagree.”

Dudley went on: “As your governor, I will never throw in the towel and I will never quit on Oregon, because I know you won’t either. Together, Oregon won’t be ungovernable; we’ll be unstoppable…”

He’s no push over…

Hey, it worked for Betty White.

So I’ve started a facebook page for Knicks fans who think the organization should hire Charles Oakley in some capacity, whether it be coaching, community relations or anything else. Join the page and pass it on to a friend. Let’s see if we can get 10,000 friends.

I think like me, many of you believed in everything Oak stood for on the court.

And once again, we thank Oak for coming on TKB Radio last night to share some memories and thoughts on the current Knicks.

Oak’s Twitter Page.

Also, sounds like Rice Balls has secured Oak for tomorrow’s show.

Finger point to nysportspace for the head’s up.

Some who think SkyWalk may think it’s cool it’s named after Kenny…AKA #34 (pre Oakley) AKA #7.  Although, some fans may still be pissed they passed on:

Karl Malone
Ron Harper
Dell Curry
Arvidas Sabonis
Mark Price
Rodman
Nate McMillan
Jeff Hornacek….in order to draft Sky at 5 in the first round of the 1986 draft.

You get the point…see the rest of the picks here.

Via RealGM:

“…The cost of renovating Madison Square Garden will be between $775 million and $850 million and the final phase is scheduled to be completed in October of 2013.

One of the unique upgrades in the plan is construction of a skywalk that will hang from the roof of the building and be open to fans to watch the action from above during games…”

Obviously, there’s a fear in a sense from Knicks fans when they think about the Russian Nets owner, but bottom line is that a star with current (despite past wretchedness) ownership, MSG is absolutely the World’s Most…

I have a pretty good feeling that they have plans to try and trump the Brooklyn project and this seems to be a pretty decent start, no?

If you’re willing to pay.

And this is coming from someone who, friend’s honor, HAS NEVER PAID FOR A SINGLE KNICK TICKET IN HIS LIFE…well, maybe one.

Via ESPN-NY

“…If I had it to do all over again,” said Ewing. “I wouldn’t have requested a trade.”

Who knew that a simple yet firm demand, made in 2000, would still be haunting the Knicks today? The franchise brass certainly didn’t. Neither did Ewing, who today serves as an assistant to Stan Van Gundy on the Orlando Magic bench. Speaking before Game 1 of the Magic-Charlotte Bobcats series, Ewing made it clear he still feels bad about leaving New York. In retrospect, the trade of Patrick Ewing caused the same impact as the drafting of Patrick Ewing. Just as the Knicks saw their fortunes soar when former general manager Dave DeBusschere pounded his fist at the draft lottery on the pivotal day that enabled the Knicks to get Ewing, his trade subsequently prompted plenty more clenched fists pounded for altogether different reasons…

In order to trade Ewing, the Knicks had to take Luc Longley and Glen Rice and other lumps of coal; nobody was giving them expiring contracts or talented players for someone who eventually reminded folks of Willie Mays in his final days with the Mets. The Knicks, charging $1,000 for those courtside seats, were in mortal fear of rebuilding in New York, as if their fans wouldn’t understand the reasons for it.

So they swung the deal and spent the next 10 years rebuilding…”

There are many different angles to this story depending on who you talk to. It is true, as mentioned in this very article, that Ewing felt disrespected by the NY media who almost seemed to wait to hammer him for years of being surly towards them. Some writers suggested the FANS thought the Knicks were better off without Ewing.

In December of 99, Ewing hit a big shot against the Raptors that took the Knicks to 17-10 and 6-1 in his return from injury. But I guess they were better without him. No one can question the decline, but the burial was far too soon.

Throw in the Mark Messier factor as well. The Rangers felt that Messier had gone past his prime and decided not to negotiate all that hard with Mess and his father Doug. That led to the infamous Joe Sakic contract signing, which was matched by the Avalanche. Messier would return for big money, and around the same time, Ewing wouldn’t be given an extension. Many had speculated it was the Garden brass’ decision to make amends with Messier because he had won a championship.

One more year. Really, just one more year. That’s all it would have been.

It didn’t take long for fans to realize that even an aging Ewing still made the Knicks a playoff team.

Forget the cap ramifications, that whole situation really left me bitter, considering all that Ewing did in a Knicks jersey. Whether the team was better without him or not. They would have been better with him against the Spurs in the 1999 Finals, that much was obvious.

I know Ewing has to take his share of blame, and reading this makes me feel a bit better. He knows he should have handled things differently. But his emotions, built up by years of coming so close followed by having to hear that he was done and the team should move on without him, I can, always did, understand his frustration.

It’s been a long time ladies and gents, here’s hoping for a successful new beginning.