Disappointing Loss to Orlando

Knicks still need a piece or two to compete with the elite.

Loss to Miami

Close but no victory.

Twenty-Nine to Go

Knicks beat Bulls on Christmas. Beautiful.

Idle Trade Talk

It appears as if there's a holiday and tragedy time out being called by Denver on any trade talks involving Carmelo Anthony.  The inevitable trade of Anthony somewhere is a grueling exercise.

Anthony appears to want to play for the Knicks but the unexpected success of the Knicks make a trade increasingly unlikely.  The fact of the matter is that many of the early season trade candidates are becoming stars before our eyes.

Wilson Chandler, Landry Fields, Ronnie Turiaf, and Toney Douglas are all players whose market value has soared.  They used to be talked about as throw ins in trade speculation.

It is hard to imagine Fields being traded under any circumstance this year.  And Turiaf and Douglas won't be traded as contract filler.

As a result my opinion has long been that any Carmelo Anthony trade with Denver will be a mixture of acquiring Anthony and someone else on Denver's roster who is an expensive contract whose exit will yield some financial relief for Denver in addition to some nice players.

JR Smith is the most likely candidate.  Billups, Nene, and KMart are all nearly impossible to package to the Knicks.  And such a trade would signal a desire on Donnie Walsh's part to contend this year before Miami establishes a footprint in the playoffs.

Any deal that involves a second contract will inevitably require either Turiaf or Mosgov's contract being included.  This makes the signing of Earl Barron a reasonable priority going into the trading season.

Thirty to go

Knicks beat OKC.  Team effort.  The bench rebounds.

Silly Loss to Cleveland

Embarrassing.

Loss to Miami

Tough Loss to Boston

Thirty-One to Go

Knicks beat Denver in a hard-fought and bitter game.  Stoudamire puts in over thirty for the eighth straight time.

Thirty Two to Go

Beat the Wizards.

Thirty Three to Go

Felton heroics, Stoudamire solid, and Chandler off the bench beats Toronto.

Thirty Four to Go

Knicks beat Wolves.

Thirty-Five to Go

Knicks beat Toronto.  Shawne Williams steps it up!

Thirty Six to Go

Beat NO handily.

Thirty Seven to Go

Knicks beat Nets.  Felton and Amare perfect the pick and roll.

Thirty Eight to Go

After losing to Atlanta yesterday, the Knicks beat Detroit today.

Thirty-Nine to Go

Knicks beat Bobcats.  Felton and Fields are key.  Gallo playing some amazing ball.

Forty to Go

Knicks beat Clippers.  Blake Griffin with monster game to no avail.

Gallo actually earning his keep.

Forty-One to Go!

Knicks beat GS tonight.  Nice game all rounfd by the Knicks.  Some hick-ups along the way but better basketball.

They beat the Kings earlier this week and fell in a close one to Denver just days ago.

Brutal Loss to Houston

And this was the easier part of the schedule.

Again, bad shot selection, porous 'D', and zero leadership anywhere is killing the team.

There are no Words

Another loss, maybe the worst in a decade that was punctuated by embarrassing and humiliating nonsense.

We expected a contender and are looking at the lottery (again).

Mind-numbing loss to GS

THis one was hard to take...  so winnable.

Bucks Beat Knicks

A lifeless New York Knicks team got smacked down early. They probably needed this loss just to bring them back to earth and a dose of reality.

Landry had a putback slam that will be a year-end highlight.

The word for today is unprepared.

Still 43 to go

Loss to Philly - didn't see the game.  Sounds like Mozgov and Fields played well.

43 to Go

Knicks smoke the Wizards.

Best Knicks team in years.

Wacky Lebron Ads

http://www.bnet.com/blog/advertising-business/advertising-as-therapy-nike-8217s-lebron-james-ad-has-more-angst-than-shoes/6356

Basketball psycho-babble at its worst.

44 To Go

Knicks beat Bulls in Chicago.  Gallo shows a pulse.  Amare drawing all the D.  Threes fall like rain.

We needed this win.  Knicks beginning to gel.

Oh, and we finally won a game on national TV.

Worse Loss to Portland

Knicks still showing enough bright spots to feel like this is a break-in phase with this team.

We had a lead that we should have held - a coke in many people's book and a bit of a bad flashback to years past.  I think this team will win a lot of games but they can't afford to let these slip away.

Tough Loss to Boston

Knicks looking very much like a playoff contender.  Lose by four but just barely.

45 To Go

Knicks beat Raptors!  Chandler comes up big.  Fields has nice debut as a starter.

So far Knicks have a better record than the Heat.

My Fearless 2011Knicks Season Record Prediction

I'm predicting a 46 win season for the Knicks in the coming season.

Atlantic

1 Knicks
2 Toronto
3 Philadelphia
4 Boston
5 Nets

Central

1 Bulls
2 Bucks
3 Indiana
4 Cleveland
5 Detroit

Southeast

1 Miami
2 Orlando
3 Washington
4 Charlotte
5 Atlanta

Southwest

1 Grizzlies
2 Mavs
3 NO
4 Spurs
5 Houston

Northwest

1 Jazz
2 OKC
3 Minn
4 Den
5 Portland

Pacific

1 Lakers
2 Suns
3 Sacto
4 GS
5 Clips

I expect Boston's aging trio to break down this year.  The schedule will be tougher on lots of teams whose veterans have clocked long minutes.  Denver, Mavs, Boston, and Spurs all may falter sooner than later and inspire a trading frenzy of veterans moving to teams more likely to contend.

Miami may be a paper tiger.  Wade is brittle, Bosh is timid, and LeBron has no stomach for true competition.  Teams that play hard against Miami will not only win but psychologically wreak havoc with the egos in Miami.

And as Miami is exposed as a house of cards, playoff teams will bulk up come February in the full expectation that a ring is not an entitlement in Miami.

The Knicks are a dark horse team this year.  Stoudamire and Felton are a major upgrade over the Duhon and Lee combo from last year.  While I remain a David Lee fan, the Knicks were wise to change the chemistry.  For all his statistical prowess, Lee's energy did not turn into wins.

Stoudamire on the other hand is a closer.  And Felton, even if he fails miserably, will still be a far better PG than Duhon was last year.

Taking Lee's place at center is Timofey Mozgov, a 7'1" brick shit-house of a player that Walsh miraculously signed out of the European ranks.  Unquestionably, Mozgov has played his way into the status of 'untouchable' by demonstrating that his skills are as rare as hen's teeth.  He's a big man with speed, intuitive basketball IQ, and a work ethic.  Good lord.  And backing him up is Turiaf, a hard-nosed but profound upgrade over last year's clown prince, Darko.

That makes three NBA quality starters.  Let's add a fourth to that.  Danilo Gallo will have a breakout season.  He's played hard and injured in the pre-season and is expected to ratchet up his game a notch this year. If he doesn't, wild-card Anthony Randolph will be competing for minutes.

Finally, Toney Douglas may lock down the two guard position thanks to his tenacious defense and hard-work.  Bill Walker and Landry Fields will be pushing and getting plenty of playing time.

Lastly, Wilson Chandler, the Knicks most versatile player can compete for sixth man award.  He's a rock-solid player who, now that he's healthy will re-establish his trajectory to become an impact player.

The one weakness this team has is at the back-up PG position.  Expect an early trade for Rudy Fernandez or similar talent.

One Word:

Mozgov!

Let Me Count the Ways

The LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, Pat Riley deception is finally over.

History has probably witnessed far more contemptuous acts of self-serving, loathsome behavior but not in recent memory can I remember a more despicable group of social pariahs doing so much collateral damage in pursuit of raw, rabid personal gain.

I was never convinced that LeBron James was sincere in his free agent lap dances that left teams panting for more.  But then, as good a player as LeBron may be, he has always left me feeling like he was a quitter.  If it wasn't handed to him, LeBron saw himself as too entitled to go the extra mile - TO. WIN. IT.

This year's NBA playoffs only reinforced my doubts.

But even a cynic like myself was surprised at the extent and audacity of the ruse that was being played for over two years by these premiere NBA players.  When players, whose wealth allows them to slack until they get what they want, can in wholesale fashion manipulate wins and losses and other-team rosters to align their own personal agenda, a fan needs to ask why the NBA is still considered sport and not a ponzi scheme manipulated by the league's richest and most devious entities.

How is the manipulative behavior of these players, leading one team after another to drastically alter rosters for over two years, changing competitive impulses into fiscal prudence not the same as Wall St shenanigans?  The Knicks front office, sacrificed one talent after another in desperate trades to rid themselves of salary and competitive edge.

In the end, Lebron cliams he has no responsibility for this stuff.  The Yankee cap posing, the assertions that "The [name the suitor team] are not out of consideration!", and the endless flirting and courtship rituals that were all a game within a game within a game - none of this had consequence...  LeBron is an innocent "just trying to find personal HAPPINESS".


Personal happiness that is a manufactured all-star team virtually guaranteed of winning with little or no problem.  This, THIS insulting denigration of the game, he believes will catapult him to greatness.

But forget the Knicks.  What about Cleveland?  Another team that acquired expensive, absurd players who happened to "make LeBron happy."?  Cleveland is left holding the empty contracts like a sad sack.  LeBron's responsibility to that community, "I gave them seven years..."  And they, they were just "witnesses", suckers in a global marketing scheme.

But lurking in the shadows is an even more despicable deceit.  Dwayne Wade, feigning concern for losing quality time with his children due to a divorce, pretended to entertain playing for Chicago.  Yep, jerking their own kids around was fair game too.

Sport has tests for steroid use but what it needs is a test for integrity and character.  Miami has acquired a critical mass of sports scum unlike the world has seen in a long, long time.  May they all get what they deserve.

Dr. C May Sign with Knicks

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KM Mockapalooza Knicks Mash-up 2010 Version 1.0

Potential Eddie Curry draft day trades [in order]:

Curry and a second-rounder for Elton Brand and #2 [D. Cousins] - Knicks assume an albatross contract but assure themseles of a potential All-Star center.

-OR-

Curry and a second-rounder for Monta Ellis and #6 [Greg Monroe]

-OR-

Curry and a second rounder for Al Jefferson, #16 [Saunders] and #23 [Brackins]

-OR Finally, -

Curry and a second rounder for Turkoglu and #13 [Aldrich]

In every case NY assumes long term debt on contracts that strangle the other team.

Otherwise,

NY buys Boston's pick #19 [Saunders]

At #38 NY catches a falling Stanley Robinson

At #39 NY drafts Greivis Vasquez

Wooden Remembered

Donaghy Analyzes Game 1

Donaghy on Game 1

Quick Question

Is the season over yet?

If You Can Move Darko...

Please, Walsh, for the love of god....















MOVE DUHON...

Trade talk 2010

The most persistent rumor going around is something that must be coming out of Houston as a smokescreen. And its the Tracy McGrady, Cook, and Dorsey to NY for Harrington, JJ, Hill, a future #1 and so on (and many variants have 2 #1 picks leaving one way or another).

My major concern with this trade is that the cap space utopians imagine signing a team of All-Stars this summer thanks to losing JJ's and Hill's salary and being able to deep six T-Mac into retirement or a minor contract. I don't buy any of this for a second but it persists because its hard to be against something so absurdly desirable.

Pragmatically, cap space doesn't hurt but I'm a fan of JJ's play this year. Harrington can score points in a hurry. Hill will hold value for years to come. Treating all three of the major components of the trade like chopped liver is not only insulting but foolish. T-Mac is a high risk venture if Walsh and D'An truly believe he's got something in the tank.

Houston is playing its card, such as they are, right. They are acting as though they have no reason to trade T-Mac - how bad do you want him? Bad enough to give us this past year's #8 selection?

Not enough.

How about the 2011 first rounder?

Not enough.

...and so on.

If we're giving up first rounders then Houston better be taking Eddie Curry off our hands at those prices.

On the incoming side, Dorsey, a monster in college, has acted like an entitlement prom queen in the NBA. Brian Cook has settled into a comfortable minor bench player. Neither worth trading for unless you were getting a pre-injuries T-Mac.

If Houston has no use for JJ then take Curry, why waste good JJ on bad judgment? After all Houston is interested in the picks, not the players.

But I think Houston is being shrewd and using high-stress, high-pressure tactics to break Walsh's back. A KM, a fair trade might look more like T-Mac, Cook, Dorsey, and Houston's 2010 #1 for Harrington, JJ, Darko, Douglas and the 2010 Denver second-rounder NY owns.

Houston STILL makes out like bandits.

---

Let's turn our attention to the Luke Ridnour rumors. There was some talk of Ridnour for Duhon which the Knicks should do in a heartbeat but it would have to be for Duhon, a second-rounder and cash to make it worthwhile for the Bucks.

---

Our other PG interest, Augustine could probably be had by giving up Hill. Here, the trade makes sense. Charlotte gets an inexpensive big, NY gets their PG and the trade makes some sense.

---

That brings us to N8.

N8 will accept a trade to Orlando. Denver needs some size. Bass is unhappy in Orlando.

This trade works straight up; Hill to Denver, Bass and Lawson to NY, N8 and Petro to Orlando.

Now it might require some cash and a second rounder or two to make this work in reality but hey we're only speculating.

I Love NY

There's a report out on RealGM that asserts that Tracy McGrady if bought out would make his way to NY.

For over ten years free agents in their prime have avoided signing in New York. There's always one excuse or another but few players in their prime care a whit about coming here. Oh, they'll blow smoke up our asses about NY being in the mix but its always just a leverage mechanism.

But when those players lose their hops, reach a point of being overpaid that would make a decent man blush, they always turn their sites to NY. One last big score. A paycheck and a rush no one else anywhere on the planet can offer.

And so the media entertains the notion that trading or signing Tracy McGrady is both possible and desirable. In basketball for the Knicks such talk is the equivalent of a Biblical sign that the season is shot and the slide back into basketball hell is just a few games away.

Knicks fans addicted to cap space illusions of grandeur will argue that he's a rental and comes off the books. True enough. But if the cost is existing expiring contracts, who cares? We'll be trading functional, useful players out to contenders and get what may be no more than another Mobley contract to hang on the wall.

The media is reporting considerable turmoil among the players. N8 swearing at D'Antoni during a timeout. D'Antoni trying to unload Harrington as a bad influence on the younger players. And so on.

Walsh may be a good steady businessman but the Knicks like Bill Murray's character in Ground Hog's Day are once again in turmoil, in crisis, with no hope in sight. Walsh, bless his heart is a nice man but his nose for talent; Duhon, Milicic, Harrington, the resigning of N8, D'Antoni, and so on is a grim reminder that while the media is selling a shopping spree this summer any analysis of the available players on the market who the Knicks have a legitimate shot at signing is indistinguishable from a discount bin of bench warmers.

As someone on another blog said, "At least Isiah was entertaining." With Walsh, there is a drone of progress that is no more exciting than waiting for the mail to arrive.

February Chill

The Knicks losses continue to pile up and while the dreamers dream of LeBron or Wade, the reality is that our chances of signing a bonafide talent this summer diminish with every passing day.

As a pragmatist, I see a sharp drop off in talent among FAs after the top 5 or so. Of the available Point Guards, none are more that low-end starters or second-stringers on good teams [Lowry, Foye, Ridnour, Blake, or Sergio Rodriguez].

None of them project out as game changers here. While anything is better than Duhon, marginally better is not a solution.

And I've lost faith in the cap space solution primarily because while it ensures a snow ball's chance in hell of signing LeBron, it delivers us to the doorstep of long-term mediocrity yet again with many casting an eye on who will be available in the 2011 NBA draft.

I find that prospect unacceptable.

The following recommendations come from the Occam's razor observation that whether or not Lebron comes we're really building around David Lee, for better or worse.

If I were GM, I'd be pursuing the following trade lines [some mutually exclusive of others:

Boston is reeling. They have multiple needs that the Knicks can fill and no cap space in sight. They've been losing and are realistic enough to know they cannot beat Orlando, Cleveland, or the Lake show.

Al Harrington, JJ, and N8 give he Celtics much of what they're lacking. It also give those three a nice opportunity to compete for a ring. In exchange the Knicks get Ray Allen [an expiring], Marquis Daniels [rent-a-PG], and Boston's 2010 #1 [a late-first rounder].

There are numerous good things that are by-products of such an exchange for both teams.

Jose Calderon and Sonny Weems for Mobley and Toney Douglas. This trade lands a capable PG and a nice SG prospect. The trade saves Toronto money and lands them a very capable and inexpensive PG backup in Toney.

Eddy Curry and Toney Douglas for Samuel Dalembert

Acie Law and Nazr Mohammed for Mobley. Charlotte needs to clear salary for purchase.

The need for a decent PG cannot wait.

The January Meltdown

The Knicks just lost ugly to the T-Wolves. This follows losses to the lowly Wizards and only slightly less dysfunctional Raptors. All three games should have been wins.

With just two a a half weeks left to trade players, the Knicks need to act now to salvage any hope of a playoff run. And one must acknowledge that Walsh and D'Antoni have not necessarily made wise moves since taking the reins of the Knicks. Oh, yes, there is cap space a plenty but not a lick of common sense or flexibility.

It is no secret that Chris Duhon is not playing NBA quality basketball. Yes, he's a friend of Obama. Yes, he's a nice guy. We wish him luck wherever he's going - just get him out of here. He is single-handedly dragging the Knicks into the abyss.

Ditto for Nate Robinson. His window for adding value has come and gone.

And may Walsh be smart enough to move Milicic so that he can brood elsewhere.

Mike James of the Wizards has indicated a desire to play for the Knicks. A Darko plus cash trade for James works and hurts neither team. Of course broader possibilities exist but something that simple can help.

And sending Al Harrington, N8, and Jeffries to Boston for Ray Allen and Marquis Daniels allows some good guy Knicks a chance at a ring and gives the Knicks a chance at the playoffs without adversely affecting cap space.

And how about Mobley and Jordan Hill for Carlos Boozer?

Bring It On

I have refrained from commenting on the wins and losses of the recent past mostly to avoid getting too excited by a streak of games that seemed to indicate that the Knicks were playoff bound.

What we have seen, though, unlike in other years is a genuinely competitive Knicks team that quite honestly everyone wrote off as a renmtal team. These guys barring some serious impairment are playoff bound.

And I must say that last night's defeat of an angry (having gotten ripped off by Cleveland for two losses), talented Atlanta team n their home court is more than just an amazing victory. I think it signifies that this Knicks team may not be just one and done in a playoffs series.

Last night's game was surreal in the intensity of competition. Atlanta wanted to crush the Knicks and the Knicks down by 13 at the beginning of the fourth quarter not only went on to tie but to crush Atlanta.

This was the one of the best games the Knicks had played in a decade and it may be a turning point for the team.

Looking Ahead

From the calendar year's end, we can say with certainty that the ECurry/Darko experiment is a total bust. Drako appears to be a head case and Curry just a heartless tease.

Jonathan Bender, OTOH, is a mild pleasant surprise. A minor addition at this point but a welcome contrast to Darko and Eddie. Eddie is untradable until next season. Darko may have value in a larger deal as an expiring contract.

Duhon, despite some adequate recent outings is an unpleasant disappointment. What he does well he compensates with slow, dull poor play and lousy judgment. He is the darling of D'Antoni's (and no one else's) eye and therefore, in this writer's estimation, not likely to be traded but a party will be celebrated the day he's gone.

To date Lee is the team's MVP with honorable mention going to Jared Jeffries whose surprisingly strong play makes him a player this writer would hate to see traded, cap space be damned.

Wilson Chandler is playing fine ball. Time to trade him before his bubble bursts.

N8 and Al want to be here. Ho hum.

Gallo is turning into a fine BB player - a strong second fiddle to dLee.

Jordan Hill is trade bait.

Toney, an improving pine brother.

Larry Hughes is another player who I would love to see stick after this season ends. He's playing poorly at the moment but brings a lot of game to the game.

D'Antoni and Walsh are tiresome.

The 12-20 record is a slight disappointment, We should be closer to 18-14 but that's life.

-------------------------------------------------------------

Bold predictions:

I expect T-Mac to get bought out in Hou and sign with the Knicks.

By the end of the trading deadline, Stephen Curry will be a Knick.

Gambling with the Game

The biggest story of the past year has not been about "amazing" happening because OMG it sure does happen. And the way it happens is through gambling.

david Stern has spent the last year promoting legalized gambling on games which is probably the sanest way for the government to get a piece of the action it is currently not getting a penny from.

But the larger shadow of gambling that casts a pall over the game are incidents like the one on Christmas eve, in which newspaper reports allege that Gilbert Arenas not only had a stash of guns in the lockeroom but other teammates did as well.

And, as if that incredible story wasn't enough, Arenas allegedly drew a gun on Teammate Jarvis Crittendon who was angry about an unpaid debt and Crittendon did what any civic minded citizen would do, he quickly drew out his own gun. This Roadrunner/Wiley Coyote - life is stranger than Saturday morning cartoons - satire fortunately ended in the two of them being investigated by the Feds.

And why not. Imagine the potential havoc that could play out if an unbalanced fan or player enters the locker room, discovers a handy weapon, and decides to shoot up the place and disrupt the officials who are manipulating the game's point-spread. That would piss off a lot of people.

Yes gambling is the past decades most reoccurring story for the NBA. If it's not Charles Barkley's debt, the Charles Oakley collection agency, referees who've rewritten the record and standings for who knows how many teams, now its locker room showdowns.

My, my, my. I'm willing to bet the next decade has got to get better than this past one.