Leaving the Station After 30+ Years

It looks like Dolan has had enough of losing.

The Zach Randolph trade signals a return to the Knicks rebuild with a vengeance. Zach is a very nice pick-up. While the NY Press salivates over bringing the Knicks down, Marbury's reaction as a player is indicative that the pieces are coming together.

“It’s finally happening. God’s plan is working.”

I don't know about God's interest in the Knicks but what Isiah engineered, much to the chagrin of bidder Larry Bird, is the acquisition of a top-five NBA PF.

While most fans prayed for Garnett or Rasheed, Isiah upped the ante. In Randolph the Knicks get a younger, more hungry version of that archetypal player. The fact that he's no angel is no big deal. This Knicks incarnation is going to rock. With Randolph and Curry as twin towers under the boards, there will be few questions as to who owns the paint. While neither has been historically impressive on 'D', one cannot help but think that having tag team giants down low will create a multiplier effect on those defensive stats.

I don't think reports are accurate that Dickau and Jones are throw-aways. I think another multi-player deal is in the works that will bring in the final pieces of what may become an eastern conference steam-roller. Dickau, in fact, may become a significant bench contributor over the course of the season.

Isiah has plenty of pieces to play with and Dolan seems to be giving the green light to bulk up. It's starting to feel like a NY team is in the process of shifting gears. There's a rumble happening here, not a prayer circle.

Again, one might expect Kobe, Artest, or Rashard Lewis to be the next target (and Lewis will need little convincing that the Knicks can win). However, it would not surprise me if someone like Marvin Webster gets snapped up by Isiah. Again, a younger prototype of a Garnett-like player. Webster's name has been mentioned frequently in potential trade talks. Other possibilities might include Luke Walton or Rudy Gay in keeping with the unexpected.

As for the seeming glut of players, I'm expecting Jerome James to get a buy out and potentially see Quentin consider retirement if the bad back doesn't recover sufficiently. Just guessing.

Spot Shooter: Allan Houston!?

The Newsday blog is taking this seriously.

Did you happen to see the report in the Daily News regarding Allan Houston's comeback? There have been rumblings of this over the past season, especially each time he showed up at Knicks practicing looking as if he could take the court. It does give the Knicks an interesting option - shooters are always welcome - but it would create even more of a logjam in the backcourt.

- What would you do with Crawford?

- Steve Francis would be buried even deeper down the bench

Perhaps Isiah has a plan to open up some roster spots by dealing players for a pick (He doesn't own a second-round choice). I still don't know if the Knicks buy out Francis. All of the indications I got from people who know what Isiah is thinking say Isiah has no plans to buy out the contract.

Choices, choices

It looks quite possible that Acie Law will be there at twenty-three. If Isiah claims he knew that would happen and that's why he passed on Marcus Williams last year, we'll know the man is on a whole 'nother wavelength when it comes to the draft.

Desmond Conner's Sleeper Draft picks

The Courant's Conner has a couple of unknowns listed first in point guards here and then as an afterthought here.

Wild Card

Jared Jordan, 6-2, 216, Marist: The senior who hails from Hartford was an honorable mention AP All-American from a tiny Division I school, and he knows how to run a team. Surely there will be a question of the level of competition he faced, but a guy named Avery Johnson, who coached the Mavericks to the 2006 NBA Finals and quarterbacked the Spurs to the NBA title in 1999, led the nation in assists for two consecutive seasons and went undrafted out of little ol' Southern University. Jordan became the first player to lead the nation back-to-back years since Johnson. Jordan had 286 dimes - 8.7 a game - as a senior.

...and...

9. Robert Earl Johnson, 6-7, Clinton (SC) Junior College: Who is Robert Earl Johnson? Could go through the night without hearing his name called.

Who is Robert Earl Johnson?

The Ron Artest of the WNBA

Who'da thunk it?

UConn's Diana Taurasi was suspended for two games for inappropriate behavior toward the officials. Just call her Ron-rasi.

The Almost Rans

Isn't it curious that the teams that go deepest into the playoffs expect to be active in the draft and trade market and those that aren't talk about standing still?

It has been apparent for over a year and probably much longer that Garnett wants nothing to do with the Knicks. And it appears he has reconsidered his unwillingness to play in Boston. If he winds up in Boston, the Knicks will be in an unenviable position of watching a Danny Ainge team roar by them next year.

And what's with Phoenix and Dallas becoming the teams that big name stars suddenly check off as favored destinations? Winning is everything. Now that Dolan has tightened the purse-strings, NY will have to win with over-hyped youth, cast-aways, and lady luck. Unless we have a fortuitous summer, the Knicks may be stuck in medicrity for yet another year.

I think Dave Checketts had it right. Spend the money. This is New York, not Peoria and the bottom line is that you can't afford to lose in the Big Apple. If another mediocre year ensues, somebody will need to approach the commissioner to advocate for the sale of the Knicks away from the Dolan cable empire. It just may be bad chemistry.

And, having watched Bruce Bowen and others, rough it out during the playoffs one has to wonder why the Knicks are still running the show as if it were a charm school. Trading for a couple of enforcers on the court looks like best practice if you expect to win. Much as I love the sixties and early seventies Knicks, new times require new thinking.

Assuming Kobe Becomes a Knick

I can't help but wonder if Marbs, Kobe, Curry, and remainders could go Tripadelic while in their prime years matching or surpassing Riley's Jax's feat with Shaq and Kobe in LA.

Could happen.

Update: I was trying to avoid using the triplet phrase that's copyrighted by Pat Riley (I think). This blog has the lowest priority of a few that I'm responsible for so I'm usually doing it last and tired. My apologies. The sentence came out reading as though Riley had something to do with LA's three titles in a row when all I wanted to pun upon was the copyright.

Is the NBA salary cap hurting local charity?

When I read NY Post articles like this one, STEPHON: I'D BE OK WITH KOBE by Marc Berman, I can't help but wonder if the salary cap as an instrument of fiscal policy is worth it.

When I see players like Marbury, love him or hate him on the court, opening his heart and wallet to aid vital community organizations - one has to wonder if satisfying the appetite of owners for quick profit isn't hurting the league more than helping it.

If the big salary players become local philanthropies, this generates a goodwill fan base that the organization would spend far more to buy. Yet, in the NBA, teams in big cities with big needs are punished for compensating players appropriately. Let's face it, NY has far greater charity needs than say, Memphis.

Secondly, when NBA teams used to bid for college talent, the ante went up. The kid making big bucks was given the attention the club thought he deserved and even a Memphis suddenly created a buzz. Now the buzz is that the team that sucks gets rewarded for losing.

Maybe the good old days really were better.

From Berman's piece:

June 17, 2007 -- Stephon Marbury opened his wallet to New York City policemen, firemen and teachers yesterday and opened his arms to Kobe Bryant becoming a Knick.

In an appearance yesterday in Marbury's hometown Coney Island, he announced a series of $1 million donations then addressed the brewing Bryant saga, saying the NBA would benefit greatly if Isiah Thomas secured the Lakers' star.

Yesterday, Bryant met with Lakers owner Jerry Buss in Barcelona, Spain, with the L.A. Times reporting Bryant restated his trade demands. The report said Buss warned Bryant a trade would be a long-term process.

"Hey, I'm not opposed to it," Marbury said with a laugh. "I want to be clear-cut. I'm not opposed to it."

Presiding over opening ceremonies at the annual Stephon Marbury Basketball Classic at Surfside Gardens, the Knicks point guard said he believes the NBA could use a jolt after the Spurs swept to their fourth title in nine years in the lowest-rated NBA Finals.

"New York would be dynamite for [Kobe]," Marbury said. "This would be someplace where basketball would become the biggest and highest of the high for the NBA. It will help the game in a tremendous way because that would give New York that solidification . . . where you look at the Knicks as, oh, man, that's the team again. There's still a search for that team that people want to follow."

The Kobe Watch - The Rain in Spain...

Kobe wants out and it makes sense. LA is going nowhere and Buss is sounding like Chip Stern preaching "patience". Kobe is not a young man anymore tho he is still a franchise. But Kobe knows full well that his star-status is melting faster than the arctic icecaps. It ain't the same without Shaq and it ain't the same being treated like a lecherous villain. Kobe's LA days are in the rear view mirror whether he stays or not.

The papers say Chicago or New York. And they structure some pretty compelling Chicago trades to consider. Chicago could destroy the chemistry of their team by trading Gordon, Deng, and others. But I have to ask if that's what Kobe is really looking for - playoffs in Chicago.

Kobe may be looking for the thing Sprewell found in NY and would find nowhere else - personal salvation. NY needs Kobe and Kobe needs NY. It's not about sneakers, it's about the Big Apple and it's about evening the score with Shaq. Shaq won with Miami - that's got to sting. And sitting out the playoffs for months... That can't be sitting well either.

Chad Ford, in full Chad Ford Knicks-hater gallop, pooh-poohs what the Knicks can offer LA for Kobe but destiny may be guiding this transaction. If Shaq could hand pick his destination, it would be profoundly insulting of LA to deny Kobe that same courtesy. The choice is up to Kobe and no one else.

And if that's not true then the disconnect between Kobe and the LA management is cancerous.

Laughable LA Trade Rumors

Over the past few days, there have been Jermaine O'Neal trade rumors to pacify Kobe who wants out.

First, a report that Odom and Bynum are too much to give up for O'Neal! Then the laffer of the lot that Kwame Brown had to be part of the deal!

Oh, wait, there's one more punch line; Denver refused a Camby for Kwame deal straight up! No shit, Sherlock.

Is Scott Layden running the Lakers these days?

Kwame Brown trades - hmmm - no way I suggest trading Jerome James for Kwame Brown uh, uh.

Odom is kind of a sad story though. Talented guy who always landed in the wrong place at the wrong time. If LA is rebuilding it is hard to imagine Odom hanging around much longer either. LA is melting down.

Walton may bail out.

Jackson might just call it a career as well. Will he want to hang around developing a winner. It could take a decade or more. Highly unlikely, IMO.

Larry Brown to Sacto?

Perfect fit, great owners and the nucleus of a winning team. If it happens I wish him the very best.

Worst Playoffs Ever?

Good grief, thank god it was a sweep. Unwatchable basketball.

Genarlow Wilson: Two Years and Counting, Boycott Georgia

This story is just bizarre. Genarlow Wilson has already served two years in jail for what everyone except a handful of vindictive prosecutors now acknowledge as a misdemeanor.

The CNN story, Last minute appeal in teen sex case sparks outrage is rich with detail.

Monday, acting on a petition filed by his attorneys, Monroe County Superior Court Judge Thomas Wilson ruled that Genarlow Wilson's punishment was cruel and unusual and voided it on constitutional grounds. The judge reduced the sentence to one year and said Wilson should not be put on Georgia's sex offender registry, as the old law required.

Wilson's attorneys hoped to use the ruling to free him from state prison. But shortly after it was handed down, Baker announced he would appeal the decision, a move that keeps Wilson behind bars.

In a statement announcing his decision, Baker said he filed the appeal to resolve "clearly erroneous legal issues," charging that the judge did not have the authority "to reduce or modify the judgment of the trial court."
'The ultimate abuse of power'

Baker also said prosecutors in Douglas County had offered a plea deal that would reduce Wilson's sentence, possibly to time already served, and place him in a program for first-time offenders.

Once his sentence was complete, his conviction would be removed from his record, and he would be taken off the sex-offender registry, the attorney general said.

But Bernstein said Wilson would not accept the proposed deal because it would still require him to plead guilty to a felony with a 15-year sentence, which would hang over him until the sentence had been served.

"That's the ultimate abuse of power as a prosecutor," said Bernstein. "I want this child out. Enough already."

Bernstein said Wilson's attorneys are now trying to get him released on bond while Baker's appeal makes its way through the courts; but, so far, they have not been successful.

Are there any adults in Georgia? NBA players need to boycott all games in Atlanta until this kid is set free. Likewise businesses need to cancel convention plans.

Enough is enough. And a very distasteful example of black-on-black violence that crosses economic boundaries. Sad.

Some Insight into the Celtics Draft Strategy

There's a very good new basketball writer at the Courant, Desmond Conner. Today's column, Draft Or Trade, Celts Will Get Help is very interesting. In part;

They've held a couple of workouts for players who could help them right away.

Start with two-time national champion Joakim Noah of Florida and ACC rookie of the year Brandan Wright of North Carolina. The two big forwards worked out Monday morning at the team's practice facility.

Last week Noah's teammate, Corey Brewer, was there along with Florida State's Al Thornton, both talented wing types, though Thornton could play the power spot, too.

That was thought to be it in terms of who was coming in for personal workouts until Danny Ainge, the team's executive director of basketball operations, said Monday he is expecting to bring in Al Horford, another Florida big man, next week.

With the exception of Thornton, who played on some struggling teams, you're talking about guys who come from premier college programs and know how to win.

That's good, but there's more.

Some mock drafts have the Celtics taking Yi JianLian (pronounced YEE JE-ann LEE-ann), a mobile and athletic 7-foot, 240-pound player from China. He's intriguing to the Celtics. They were once believed to be enamored with him, but restrictions on his workouts - teams basically have to go where his workouts are to see him - could be an issue.

But a more fluid Yao Ming?

Over a two-day period last week after the predraft camp in Orlando, Fla., Ainge said teams, including the Celtics, saw about 35 players compete through four sessions each day, and he estimates that by the time the draft comes, he will have seen the top five players the team has ranked at each position. That includes Georgetown's Jeff Green, the Big East player of the year, whom Ainge is expected to go see as early as this week.

There's also a steamy trade rumor involving the Suns' Shawn Marion if the Celtics decide to give up the No.5 pick. The Matrix goes to Boston and Theo Ratliff and possibly Tony Allen or Delonte West to Phoenix? Wow. That would be a huge win-win for the Celtics. Imagine Marion with Paul Pierce and Al Jefferson. Marion is involved in other trade rumors - to Chicago or Minnesota - but getting Ainge to comment on a trade rumor is like trying to ask Osama Bin Laden for his cellphone number.

"I don't comment on trades," he said.

What about the logo?

Koz, I agree on the uniforms 100%.

But let me just say that the current Knicks logo sucks. Can't we have a design contest right here to come up with something better? I'll be more than happy to use it on this site.

How about:

Tradition

Bring back the classic 1968 home whites and away blues. Sure, they can be fitted to today's liking of length and bagginess. Just bring back what's right! Let's get back to what works.

PS: If we could then fit Kobe in those threads, even better!

The Winds of Fortune

I believe Isiah had planned on staying the course this summer. But the meltdown of numerous teams during the playoffs may make this the most raucous and unpredictable off-season in almost a decade.

The Lakers are imploding. Kobe is looking in the mirror and asking whether he'll ever win another ring. The Lakers have nothing to trade to improve the team around Kobe. Jax is a great coach but he's not a magician. They seem to be pursuing Marcus Camby as a fall-back should they fail to acquire O'Neal. And Jackson did not sign up for a rebuild nor has he ever shown an aptitude for rebuilding.

The Celtics are also desperate to win. They've been rebuilding for ten years and need another one this year.

Likewise, Indiana, Sacramento, Houston, and Miami are in the rear-view mirror.

All of which means that a lot of troubled but talented players will be cut loose at bargain basement prices.

If Dolan and Isiah hold their noses and open the wallet a crack, the possibility exists that some combination of Kobe, Rasheed, Artest, Odom, and a few other Knick-wanna-bees will finally get their wish primarily because nobody else can afford the price-tag or be willing to risk the attitude adjustment.

Would Houston accept Francis, Crawford, Balkman, and NY's #23 to sent McGrady and Alston to LA to route Kobe to NY?

Or might Detroit grant Rasheed's wish to go to NY with Detroit's #15 pick for Malik Rose and Jerome James?

Or will Sacto take Q for Artest straight up?

One can't help but speculate that a lot of talent is in play and very, very available. And next year's Knicks may bulk up fast.

It's Getting Legs

The Kobe to the Knicks speculation is gaining steam.

But Kobe holds a lot of cards. His no-trade clause means he can veto any deal, and the Lakers will not trade him to a West team.

That leaves the 15 teams in the East, and only two of them - Chicago and New York - are comparable in market size to Los Angeles. Kobe won't downsize his market, with the possible exception of Chicago.

Once the Bulls cobbled together enough salary to match Bryant's ($17.7 million plus a 15-percent trade kicker if he's dealt before July 1), Kobe wouldn't be any closer to contending for a championship than if he'd stayed in L.A.

The Knicks could offer young players (Channing Frye, David Lee, Nate Robinson, for example), the 23rd pick, and a starting point guard in Stephon Marbury. The Lakers would have to include one other contract to make the numbers match.

Right now, the deal-killer for the Lakers would be Marbury, whom Jackson would not take. But if the Lakers traded Bryant, do you think Jackson would come back next season?

"New York should be on the phone right now," the Eastern Conference assistant said.

The Knicks could offer Bryant the only media market bigger than Los Angeles, plus an elite post scorer in Eddy Curry. Last time I checked, Kobe won three championships with an elite post scorer.

As for Bryant's trade kicker, which would scare almost every other team in the league? Jim Dolan would have three words for that: "Cash or check?"

A long shot? Yes, in every sense. But if the Knicks want to go from ordinary to elite with one move, this would be it. It would mean the kind of basketball being played in Cleveland, Detroit and San Antonio these days would return to the Garden again. Only better.

I'm okay with a Kobe trade but I have to ask if he's not all done?

How the Lakers Affect the Knicks

John Hollinger of the NY Sun claims, Lakers May Throw Wrench in Knicks Off-Season Plans.

For those who have been living in a cave for the past two days, Bryant's trade-me-no-wait-don't plea has implications that will affect the 'Bockers. On the pipe-dream side, there's the possibility that Bryant could become frustrated enough to consider a jump to New York in 2009, when he can opt out of his current contract. That's both a long shot and a long way away, plus it would require two more years of salary discipline by team president Isiah Thomas to keep the Knicks under the cap — yeah, right.

However, Kobe's tirade indirectly affects the Knicks in a more important way: He puts the Lakers in pursuit of many of the same players. The entirely legitimate part of Bryant's lament is that ever since the Shaquille O'Neal trade, the Lakers have wasted the prime years of his career because they've been too scared of their own shadows to pull off a trade. Call them the anti- Knicks, if you will. Most obviously, they passed up a shot to acquire Jason Kidd in February when it wouldn't have even cost them that much.

And he concludes...

The lack of tradable contracts similarly eliminates the Knicks' hopes of obtaining most of the other players listed above. If they can't get O'Neal, New York's pursuits in the trade market are likely to be limited to the same guys they've chased ever since Thomas came to town: faded pseudo-stars, overpaid mediocrities, and other assorted castoffs who have fallen out of favor in other NBA cities.

One player in particular fits the mold. File this one under "it's crazy, but it just might work," but of all the players I listed above, the one guy New York has a realistic shot at is Artest. He's from Queens, he wants to play here, and he'd be willing to play for Isiah. Obviously, there's a big risk here — the Knicks have a young locker room, and adding Artest to an already somewhat volatile mixture could be a recipe for disaster.

Additionally, I'm not sure Isiah is desperate enough to try something like this yet, not after getting a contract extension in March as a reward for owning the East's no. 8 seed for an entire day. Remember, he's seen the "Artest Experience" first hand, and there's no reason to live through it again when he's got such a cushy gig right now.

However, if the Knicks start slowly this fall, all bets are off. Artest's salary is small enough — $7.8 million this year — that either a straight-up trade of Crawford, or a two-flakes-for-one deal that hands over Robinson, Jerome James, and a draft pick (lottery-protected, please), would satisfy the league's salary cap requirements.

In the meantime, expect plenty of smoke and little fire. Other than a possible O'Neal deal, New York doesn't have the goods to pull off a big-time trade unless it's for a whack job like Artest. You'll hear plenty of rumors this summer about the Knicks pursuing trades for big-name stars, but without better chips it will be all strictly entertainment for their beleaguered fans. O'Neal was the one quasi-realistic trade possibility, but with the Lakers now likely to bid against the team, it adds one more daunting obstacle to the Knicks' hopes for an off-season upgrade.

I happen to think Artest is a great fit assuming the trade is right.

I miss Steve Gilliard

See link.