There was a story earlier this week in the Boston Globe about new Celtic Kevin Garnett's workout regimen at a Vegas gym called Abunassar Impact Basketball, run by noted hoops fitness guru Joe Abunassar.
I got in touch with Joe Abunassar to see if there were any Knicks among the 20 or so NBA players who have congregated there over the past week to prepare for training camp. There are some big names, such as Garnett, Chauncey Billups, Tayshaun Prince, Antoine Walker, Al Harrington, Drew Gooden, Mo Williams and Baron Davis. These dudes spend about six hours a day at the gym doing their thing -- the scrimmages have got to be entertaining -- for a few thousand a week.
Joe told me he has known Isiah Thomas, Glen Grunwald and the rest of the Knicks staff for a long time. He's also worked closely with guys like Jared Jeffries and Renaldo Balkman, both of whom put some time in at the IMG facility in Sarasota, Fla., but there aren't any Knicks out in Vegas right now. Some of them are already in New York, including Eddy Curry.
During the NBA summer league, however, the Knicks used Abunassar's facility for the veterans who came out, such as David Lee, Mardy Collins, Quentin Richardson, Malik Rose, Fred Jones and Zach Randolph. Abunassar raved about D-Lee's work ethic ("The guy can not get enough of the gym") and said Collins was "a worker".
I asked about Richardson, who is coming off the back surgery, but this was back in July when Q was only cleared to start playing basketball. Richardson was only just beginning, so it was difficult to make a judgement (though I remember Q was proud to announce he was dunking the ball like he used to). Abunassar said the team medical staff was monitoring the workouts.
At least we know Randolph did, in fact, make the trip and worked out (for a day). We in the media were hoping to catch him out there, but never did.
Most of the Knicks over the past few weeks have been getting together at the MSG Training Center, several players have told me. The guy I just don't hear enough about is Zach Randolph.
I guess this information is dated and doesn't really reveal much. My bad.
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A little late for this, but Nate Robinson was playing Wii bowling against all comers for charity (St. Jude's Children's Hospital) at the Toys R Us in Times Square this morning (11 a.m.). It was a Domino's Pizza-sponsored event.
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@starbury fan: It's funny you mention that. When I covered hockey, I always made it a point to sit down when I could, unless I was talking to Zdeno Chara, then it was cool. (Hockey note: Chara is 6-9). But with the NBA, it's far more comfortable, unless I'm standing among the media scrum. Then I feel like a freak again. I don't check the height thing, but my colleagues will often compare me to a player to determine height. One of them once noticed that Jared Jeffries and I were closer in height than the numbers (he's 6-10, I'm 6-6) would indicate. I always say his wallet is taller, which makes up the difference.
Comments (48)
hey there, did anyone see the article on msnbc ? it is a list of most overpaid players in the league. Steph is rated #2 ! I'll give u the exact quote:
2. Stephon Marbury, Knicks. Marbury is only 30, but his skills are quickly deteriorating. Last year was a disaster, as Marbury's numbers dipped to their lowest since his rookie season —especially tough to swallow was his 41.5 percent shooting. He is being paid (more than $17 million) to be the leader of this bunch, but he's repeatedly shown that leadership just isn't his thing. Plus, he's been acting like a space cadet lately. SportingNews/MSNBC
Did they watch Steph last year ? His #s dipped cuz he was buying into the team concept more than ever before. No more "all alone" (painted on his sneaks when he was w/ the Nets) attitude. What about his new commitment to defense ? What about playing through injuries ? Marbury may be overpaid but how the heck does he make the list at 2 ? I do admit he is getting a little wacky when u put a mike in his face. Most of the media just HATES him, that all I can come up with.
Malik Rose is also on the list at 8. I agree w/ this one. He has an awful big salary for a guy who doesnt get in every game.
What do you guys think ?
John Q, I agree with you, he's the player everyone loves to hate. Maybe that's why Isiah picked him, because the bad boys were the team America loved to hate in 1990.
Steph's D certainly did improved last year. And he became more of a distributor, despite loosing a few assists per game. I'd say his game evolved from the point guard perspective. He ran the offense the way Isiah asked him to run it. I think many of these people write things from the fantasy league perspective (Kamla, Hollinger) --they just look at numbers and write a player off without observing the game.
when you look at stephon when he first came to new york, and the player that we had at halfway through last season, that's almost an entirely different player.
i still think stephon defers to crawford at the end of the game, but that is not a bad thing when you have a clutch performer like Jamal. I was at the game where stephon layed it in at the buzzer in overtime against Okur and the Jazz, and I was at the game against the heat when Jamal got hurt. both were great wins. Nobody knew Jamal would be out "for the season" that game because he and stephon stepped it up in the fourth quarter and carried the team to victory. crawford did not come out of that game after getting hurt. during the train ride home, all the knicks fans sporting orange and blue were talking about how jamal and stephon scored basically all the points in the fourth quarter. nobody knew that victory would basically cost us a playoff berth because crawford would be out for so long.
thanks alan for responding.
jeffries looked pretty darn tall when I saw him, as did d lee.
the nba should have a stricter, more consistent policy about measuring player heights and weights. until very recently, they had zach randolph listed at 215lbs, there is just no way...
and you say malik wears your jacket size? he's listed at 6'7" 255. remind me never to piss you off.
@ JohnQ
I read that article as well. Apparently, this person didn't see Steph last season...he doesn't make that statement if he did. His stats don't begin to tell the story about the season he had last year, which was arguably his best.
If he can give us that same intensity and leadership this season, as someone previously mentioned, everyone else falls in line. If that happens, look out....we're gonna be some joyful mugs in here!!
As far as Malik, as much as I admire his leadership and veteran savvy, he's one of the two lambs I would sacrifice, along with Jerome "snax" James.
Starburyfan FYI
I heard out of Malik's own mouth that he is just a shade over 6'5"... I know many have Jamal penciled in as the 2 in the starting lineup, but I happen to think an instant Offense role suits his skill set and mentality. I feel that Q has more of a defensive mindset and that is important to set a tone and b/c of the many slow starts the team has...as far a the surplus of players I hope a trade goes down to pare the roster(a major one not needed)
Here's a link to the best Knicks blog in the world.
It seems to me that Marbury has been making a great sacrifice to transition himself into the more traditional PG role the Knicks need. This transformation does not come w/o a price, since it probrably was his high scoring and shoot first mentality that got him paid in the first place.
To discard the old habits that might have earned him a lucrative salary but never got him very far-- either in the playoffs or contending for the playoffs-- shows a sign of hoops maturity that was overdue but as many bloggers here note will make a huge difference in making a playoff push and hopefully run this season.
It's correct what Starbury fan observed with regards tot he writer who was to quick to criticize Marbury's numbers last season. What tends to happen with some not all fantasy type/style reporters is that they either don't know when to get out of the dream land stats world they live in or they mistake that world for reality. Intangibles is a formidable part of the game either in an individual player or collectively-- at its highest point its called chemistry.
Last point with the volumes of Knicks haters is that there is a bright line. That bright line is that the Knicks and our players are relevant. Like Iv'e heard before it better to be hated than to be ignored or irrelevant. And also Hatred is the other side of the coin of love (non homo). Once the Knicks start winning and you'll see all the haters drunk on the orange and blue coolaid instead of that no frills hateraide they've been sippin.
A question to those who would love JJ to go. Is there a way we can trade him to the west for a player of equal monetary value but who would have little to no value once released to any other eastern conference for?
Whoops I meant little to no value to any other Eastern Conference Foe.
When Steph called himself the best point guard in the league, the NBA world had a meltdown. Lets see if Chauncey Billups gets flack for saying the Pistons were better than the Cavs last year.
Of course he won't.
Sorry about that earlier broken link to the best blog in the world.
Would've been less lame had it worked. Looo-zzher
Yo guys, that Stephon being overpaid thing is true. Just not for the reasons stated in that article. Its not that Steph is overpaid because he is less productive, it's that his contract comes from the most ridiculous era in NBA history in terms of player salary. It's not his fault he gets paid stupid money. I agree with O&B when he said last year was a transitional year. He put his focus on becoming the kind of PG he never thought he would be. It worked. It just didn't make him look or make his numbers look like he had the kind of impact expected out of a player who is set to earn $17 million.
I, for one, don't care how much he's paid. I do care that he gets his head screwed on correctly this upcoming year and shows the same "fire and desire" (Yes, Clyde) he did last year.
Zebra fight
Hey Fixers,
It's been a long time, I shouldn't have left you without a strong [comment] to [nodd] to
John Q,
Just more of the same. SM is Public Enemy #1 right now. That guy sounds like someone out of the ESPN mold. If the stats don't add up (20 ppg, 10 apg, yada, yada, yada.), then the analysts says you're game is deteriorating. Garbage. New system, new coach, young players, NO ABOVE THE RIM FINISHERS in the starting 5, plays a part. SM dished plenty times last year to guys like Malik who could not finished. They went to the free throw line, but he got no recognition for the setup.
What I did observe with Stephon is he struggled to FEED THE POST. This is why I like Crawford as the first option off the bench (scorer or point, whatever is needed in the game), and Mardy as the next guard (defender or setup guy) after SM and Q.
No love for Nate this year. His only role should be change of pace guy, and if he proves it in practice, defender of small quick guards (T.J. Ford, Jameer, Bobcats guard). ROLE PLAYER ONLY. His time will come, not now.
Mardy feeds the post like no other guard that we have. And since we are making a commitment to half-court, power-post offense (like the 90s), Mardy has to be in there.
There were so many games when SM was defended by another big guard and it took about 5-7 seconds to feed Curry. That hurts the offense. Unless SM improves feeding post, Mardy is very important.
Q must return to his natural spot as guard. We don't need him at 3. I disagree with that TSN.ca article that someone posted (that Tim Chisolm has no clue, of course; must be paid to trash Isaiah). That writer thought Lee could guard the SF position? Did he watch the games? Lee is a 4 or 5, that's it. Not quick enough for 3.
Balk/Jeffries is the option. I think Chandler would be a better fit than those 2. His shot looked so much better and he guarded well. But he is probably too young to get prime minutes. We will have to wait on him.
Sorry guys but Nate's gotta wait. He cannot get major minutes. Even if we are rotating Zach and EC, they will be first option and Nate will not be able to run pick/roll or 4-wide sets for his OWN shot. He looked good in summer, but his style is not suited for what is being built here.
Steady,
I saw your post about EC's take on Zach. VERY disappointing. If that is true, we will have a problem and Zach might have to be the first guy off the bench.
BARF - you got that right. The League is STILL working off those ridiculous turn of the century deals. How many buyouts have their been? Just players who have crossed our roster - Jalen Rose, Penny, Francis, JYD, etc... Look at Juwan Howard's old contract. The whole game has been passing on these bad contracts from team to team. Zeke has the pockets of Dolan (like Cuban) to carry what guys he likes regardless of the tax. Rose is overpaid because he doesn't play - he doesn't play because the Knicks are going with youth. To the Clippers, to Memphis, a contract like that is death. The reality is, Zeke has the flexibility to take these contracts on and then shine them on to somebody else (hello Randolph). Most of the opprobrium that's heaped on Zeke is because of the cap situation - "look at the salary, and they can't make the playoffs" - so all the writers say in their best CEO speak. But if the owner pays the tax, who cares? And as all these bad contracts show, free agency is no sure thing either - limited market means huge markups on mediocre talent. Honestly, the sign and trade for the Bryant, or Wade, or LeBron, is the way to go for the only players worth the free market mark-up. As far as I'm concerned, rebuilding is rebuilding - the strategy is predicated on what the owner can stomach. So there is no functional difference between flipping big contracts until you get the mix you want, and getting rid of everybody, losing, drafting high, and waiting on a free agent play.
StarburyFan,Orange and Blue,BARF
You guys are All ON POINT- no pun intented-.Marbury adjusted his game for Zeke and the team.He is still able to have a 30/10 average if he had to.He has to get all (especially ECity) invoved.People love to hate the Knicks....and New Yorkers too.Why is that? Marbury had moments last season where he turned it up in the 4th quarter.Many people Diss Steph. He should only be judged by has play, NOT HIS MOUTH......but they need to watch.....the whole season!!!
You all say that Marbury got better last year and there is some truth to that defense wise. But I thought he was always very good ever since he came except couple of instances where he was fighting Larry Brown. Whatever happened to the Knicks past few years was not his fault the rest of the team just sucked. He was always the best player on the floor for the Knicks. What happened last year is that other people like Curry and Crawford and Lee who got better and everybody benefited from that. Thats my take on it.
Also,
I'm not sure EC is going to be ready for camp. How could he be? Held at gunpoint in your home with your wife? That has to be tough to focus on basketball when you AND YOUR WIFE were victimized in that fashion. He's probably going to need a couple months, say January, before he can focus.
Wuddup fellow posters.
I recently went away for a month and damn has this blog blown up while I've been gone. I see a lot of names that used to be resigned to the Post blog and a lot of childish bickering. Glad to see thats changed here.
I think Steph is gonna be just fine this year. Yeah, it seems he's gone a little nutty, but nobody could ever question his desire to win, and now he's got more tools to do so than he ever has before in NY. I also expect a tremendous bounce-back year from Jeffries. I don't know why, but I've been saying it all summer so I'm sticking with it.
Oh, and for most of the past month I was in Italy, my first year there. I now think Steph is a little less crazy for wanting to play ball there. I had the time of my life, beautiful country, beautiful people, and fabulous food. So maybe dude knows what he's talking about after all.
Oh, but what is the deal with the term "Fixers" here? Is that a self-prescribed collective name for the commenters here, or am I missing a reference?
I agrre with Adam L about Jeffries having a bounce back year. I would start him and have Q off the bench to supply outside shooting. If you have Lee, Balkman, Collins, and Jeffries all off the bench then you don't have a outside shooter. furthermore, I love Crawford and Marbury in the backcourt together because the compliment each other well and they love playing together. So the line up:
Zach
Jeffreys
E-city
Crawford
Marbury
Bench Players:
PF/Center- Lee/Fat James
Sf- Balkman/Chandler
SG- Q-rich/Nichols/Jones
PG- Collins/Nate
We would have lots of energy in Lee, Balkman, Nate. Outside shooting in Q, Nichols, Chandler and Nate. Big bodies in Jerome(trade him please)James. Have Rose as an assistant coach after he decline his bloated contract. Dickau and Jones are keepers until the trade deadline.
Let me echo the sentiments that SM is the most hated athlete on the Knicks by some idiots who call themselves Writers. The guy is a good PG that was very good last year, because he was a team player.
@Zdiddy
I would change the SG to Q, only because he plays much better "D" than Crawford. Crawford could be used for fire power off the bench. As you stated, we need a scorer with Lee,Balk,Collins. The bench would have a good balance of "D" and shooters. We need a better stopper for R.Allen.Kobe,C.Bulter,DWade,Lebron...you know the rest.
"I see a lot of names that used to be resigned to the Post blog and a lot of childish bickering. Glad to see thats changed here."
I take that to mean me cuz other than Orange & Blue (i think) I haven't seen anyone from the Post. When I was there, it was fiery and intense and only when I got tired of it did it spiral out of control. Go there now and try to strike up a conversation. Crickets. Unless you want to rub elbows with the Destroya, BigPay or get double talked to sleep by karma. It might have appeared like childish bickering to the laymen, casual snoop...but it was a requisite tactic in order to get a discussion out of the crowd. It's like pulling teeth in there. If they aren't talking Becky Hammon, they're talking UFC schedules and upcoming honky-tonk festivals. Straight buffoonery.
As the host goes, so goes the blog. HA!
Anyway, other than that, the term "Fixers" comes from the name of the blog- Knix Fix. Not very clever or creative, but effective nonetheless.
Pull up a chair. Strike up a conversation. Jump onto a discussion. But please try to leave the other blogs out of it. They have become the "people we do not speak of". (Forget the movie reference, but trust me its good. lol) Especially Spermy Bermy.
By the way, I just wanted to josh the blog. Doesn't mean I love them any less.
I'm out for the night but I read this article and a portion of it towards the end caught me by surprise. Here's an excerpt:
"As I read that story, I felt sick to my stomach. It had to be Eddie Griffin, right? Very tall, muscular physique, train accident. I forwarded it to the original guy who’d called me, who wrote back and pointed out that the black shorts with white stripes were probably the official adidas practice shorts every NBA team started wearing last season. That made me feel a little worse."
Here's the article.
BARF, don't take it personally man. I wasn't singling you out, just the nature of SOME of the comments over there. But no, I don't think you're the only one. I know I've been seeing BX in MD, and live in NJ..., and some of the other names for longer than this blog has been dominant. At least I think so.
Anyway, I agree with your THE VILLAGE sentiments, those we do not speak of. For a second I thought it was a Harry Potter Lord Voldermort reference, but I'll leave that one alone as I just let the geek out of the bag.
BARF and Adam L:
I am actually new to this whole blogging thing. I was on the post circuit for a while but agree with BARF's comments regarding how conversations on the Post "spermy bermy's" blog would spin out of control into the realm of stuff not even related to basketball.
On a different point I checked out some number cruncher line that had our beloved Knicks with the same regular season record as last year. It's in the following link.
http://www.sportprojections.com/nba_projections.html
Overheard on the radio that Allan Houston is about 95% sure about returning the the NBA and will be holding private work outs with certain teams. According to the radio report the Knicks interest is mum.
they say they did formulas, but was their formula for picking Boston as #1 in the East as simplistic as
KG + Ray Allen + Paul Pierce = NBA Finals
?
Hollinger and Kamla must have helped them crunch those numbers.
Call me a playa hata, but I haven't seen that team ball yet and we know that they still have a few pieces missing to make a serious run.
Reminds me of when GP and Malone went to the Lakers. My coworker was handing them the trophy before they even played their first game together. I knew that it it was a little more complicated than that, but he was like "I don't care what you think, if Shaq and Kobe and Malone and GP are on the same team, it's over."
Funny how wrong he was about that. I knew it at the time he said it, but let him have his own opinion about it.
there are a lot of variables involved here. offensively, lets give them the benefit of the doubt. they have three of the best scorers in the business. how will doc rivers handle the pressure of knowing his team has to produce? how will he manage three superstar's egos possibly clashing when shot attempts aren't there? how hard will it be to have a dominant record in the atlantic with so much competition in the atlantic now, NJ, NYK, Tornto? Philly don't want to be walked all over either.
the celtics and knicks have one thing in common: all the key players on each team don't know what it is like to really win in this league. they been called all-star caliber players, but how many cumulative second-round appearances from both teams? how many total nba finals appearances from both teams?
i'm bracing myself for these season previews. i've never heard of that website, but even some of the more reputable names will be dogging isiah and co. i'm betting it won't be the only one that has new york at the bottom of the atlantic.
but the games have yet to be played.
Bloggin from Oklahoma City!
I walked around yesterday and realized this city deserves a NBA ball team after looking out for New Orleans! It seem like it has a lot of good fans as I noticed a lot of Hornet bumper stickes on cars here! Also from what the people say around here that the Arena was almost sold out every game, impressive for such a small market!
Keepin it "steady" as I'm waiting for some roster news from my Knicks! Check you guys out later!
Orange and Blue
Thanks for finding that......either they are wrong or WE are in trouble. Most of us feel that we are at least BETTER than last year especially with Zack on board. Why don't they see it as we do?I can't take another below average year.This is not printed in GOLD, we still have to PLAY the games!!!.......I know we are much better than Philly.
Starburyfan, DLT:
Right I was taken aback by the prediction and where they placed the Knicks. I understood from your previous posts on this blog that you were rightfully frustrated with lesser teams passing the Knicks in the standing last year. For my part I sincerely believed that had the slew of injuries not hit key players on this team, the Knicks would have hit about 40-43 wins last year. But that was not the case and our fate last year is now the topic of speculation.
However, this year I believe I have cause for optimism. Namely: the Knicks have addedd a bonafide 20 and 10 guy with a swagger lacking in last years principle post up player. Additionally the articles I've read over this summer regarding the players on our team gave me the impression that many players our intent on improving on last years dissapointing effort and on improving on the aspects of their game where they are deficient.
With regards to Boston winning the Eastern Conference, the key questions have to do with their depth and what that lack of depth will mean for their superstar players. Namely will they have to be out on the floor longer than necessary because of a suspect bench? If so how much will the Celtics big three have in the tank in order to make a playoff run?
I see alot of back and forth over who should be in the starting five from SaipanKnickster, HarlemBoyinMD, D L T Knicks, and zdiddy. I tend to be on the side of those who would prefer to see Q at SG and Lee coming off the bench while either JJeff or Balkman man the SF spot. I tend to agree with the argument that the Knicks would benefit from a more defensive minded player like Q at the start of the game. In addition his three point shooting ought to compliment our post centered offensive at the get go. Lastly, although Q's is in good health he would benefit from not having to bang up against bigger 3s, which would save him from any further wear on his chronic lower back problems. I'll go with JJeff at the 3 and since our bench will likely consist of DLee, Balkman, and or Nate or MC, a true scorer will be need hence Crawford coming off the bench. Don't forget that coming off the bench does not necessarilly mean that either Crawford or Lee won't see significant playing time especially around the close of games, rather Crawfords talents as a free range scorer who gets stronger near games end will benefit from working with the second team since he won't have to share the ball as heavily with Ecity or Zach.
I still think the Knicks should in the worst case be around 500. But in the best case scenario I could see them being aroung a mid 40 win team this season.
Harlemboy:
The following link discusses Ecity's predicament this summer and offers and interesting take on the perception of the Black Male athelete.
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=granderson/070904
Happy hunting to all the Fixers
What up Fixers!
I often have to laugh when reporters questioned how much an athlete should make in their respective sport. I wonder why there isn't a rating on how much the owners make and which owners are overrated (I guess you can't bite the hand that feeds you; it's called no access)...
Some reporters still see athletes as Coliseum Gladiators (I'm not referring to you AH, because you're BOMB)...
How can anyone judge another Man from the side lines when they have not walked in his shoes...Steph is a 20 point - 8 assist man per yearfor his carreer until last year, and very few BBALLERS have done that, and yes I will admit, he has been prone to Hoof-and-mouth-Disease,e.g., "I am the best PG in the League." Thin line between arrogance and confidence, and when the wins don't support the rhetoric, you're labeled with the A word, and leave yourself open for the alligators to snap at your ankles, and if they snaplong enough, off with your head--DEAD MAN WALKING...lol
I was just wondering why our President, The Leader of the Free World is not held to the same standard, but I guess that is a discussion for another day.
Stephon is growing up and finding new purpose in his life, and because of his benevolence in creating an affordable sneaker and the exposure that comes with that sort of unselfish act, the enormous good feeling of doing something IMPORTANT ot help others less fortunate, it was a tad easier for him to make a sacrifice for the sake of the team last year, because sacrifice #1 was not gouching the public for a pair of sneakers justotput lots of extra money in your pocket.
ANd,working for the common good makes any man or woman feel free and vital, and all of this has carried over and he's now more open to new things and new ideas than ever beofre. Steph's not crazy fellas; he is evolving, and I believe we will see continued growth, sacrifice, commitment, and most of all LEADERSHIP from Stephon this year. He now realizes there is more to life than Basketball, and he is creating that life after basketball, and he will play his role and assume his position, the proverbial window of ooportunity is closing, so he must take advantage of THIS MOMENT...
Fixers, I suggest you continue to search and find as much information and Intel regading our BELOVED KNCIKS, but I would caution all of you not pay to much attention to their predictions, because they are merely opinions, and you know what they say about them...LOL
WE ARE BBALLERS, and our minds and eyes are not lying to us about this team. 1-17, they have talent (okay maybe JJ is a stretch, but he'll do for now). The talent and the hunger is evident, and their Maestro IT has beaten the odds all of his life and he has won where ever he's been. And, despite the press and the naysayers and his most ardent critics, he's still standing tall. IMPRESSIVE!
We've got a good TEAM Fixers and in a couple of weeks they will roll the balls out and training camp will begin, and BBALL action will trump words.
LET THE GAMES BEGIN. I THINK WE"RE IN FOR A HELLUVA RIDE
Guys I appreciate where your hearts are at and that you're true fans but at the same time please. You want Jeffries starting with Crawford coming off the bench? Are we on planet Earth now?
An unstoppable and unguardable fiend of a player who can explode for 50 vs a bricklayer with an uncanny ability to blow defensive assighments? Are you effing serious?
Let me preface this by saying I have no idea how isiah is going to manage the minutes, who starts, ect.
Here is my guess as to who starts. it's not necessarily what i think is the best lineup, just what i think isiah would do. Of course, I do not know Isiah... Q is coming off back surgery, and i hope he is 100%. If Q is 100% recovered, I definitely think Isiah would start him.
PG Stephon
SG Jamal
C Curry
SF Jeffries
PF Randolph
Bench
PG Mardy Collins
SG Nate Robinson Chandler
C Randolph Morris
SF Quentin Richardson Renaldo
PF David lee Malik
hypothetically speaking, what do you guys think if Mardy and Jamal started? Or Jamal and Q? Do you think Isiah would ever bring Marbury in off the bench?
To BLT and Pdizzy FYI we come from DN blog not the Post. And personal comments come with us. OK? :)
Rush,
Having Crawford start weakens the D in the first line up. Its that simple. JJ looks like hes been putting in the work this off season and wont be burdened by an early misdiagnosed injury as he did last year. Crawford is more suited to be the primary ballhandler and shooter for the 2nd unit. He doesn't have to start anyway he can always finish.
Do not agree sorry. Qrich is a better and smarter defender then Jeffries and Balkman is too so if D is your concern he is 3rd in line. At the same time Q gives you all other skills in 3 point shooting rebounding and a post up game. You guys don't realize how good of a 3 Qrich is. He is a defensive stopper who can guard 2s and 3s. He plays people like Kobe and Lebron and is effective against them. Wake up. Jeffries is tall and thats all like Clyde says, he has no game.
Q is the man. If he's 100% recovered from back surgery I agree with you rush.
To add to the above this is why I don't stress about Artest. As much as I like him he is at best a very marginal improvement over QRich. A little more size and strength but skillwise Qrich is better. Besides we have plenty of size up front as it is and we could use more outside shooting and Qrich is a better shooter. We have a lot of options but unfortnatly I dont see a future for Jeffries.
As far as Crawford, if you did not see the difference after he went down last season you weren't watching it right. Just do me a favor this season and watch how other teams guard him and what happens when he comes out. He always has a guy right on him and another waiting to jump in at any time. Without him its an open floor out there and Curry is tripled teamed. It took the Knicks around ten games to adjust to hime being out with Nate and Collins stepping up.
I'm not sure if it is here or at the other spot where Cooley asked for opinions on what style defense the knicks shoulds play. On an overall I want to reserve my full judgement until I see a few pre season games. I am very concerned about out first team defense as Curry, Randolph, Crawford and until last year Steph are not known for lock down D. Curry had horrible instincts for blocking shots. Randolph is a good rebounder however and rebounding is a part of D.
The second unit if easier for me to figure out. I have often wondered why teams did not attempt to play the pressing style Red Holtzman used with his Phil Jackson led second unit. Pitino ( think it was him) did it a little with Sidney Green up front.
Lee could be Phil Jackson pressuring the out of bounds pass. Balkman and Collins could get plenty of steals, Morris showed some shot blocking ability in summer league and could be in back. Balkman, Lee and Morris rebound the ball. Maybe 8 to 10 minutes of this stuff to chance tempo some times. Get some easy hoops.
Fixers,
Like Peaceman, I'm out and about but in the Sunshine state. The Shaq split is ALL THE NEWS. I'll peep in from time to time for my FIX.
When media and pundits talk about "value" and price for the player, remember to look for the veil of hypocrates. These guys, themselves, often can't play a lick of ball. If you're not playing, you can't know the value of waking up at 5:00 am to eat b-fast and then be in the gym by 7:00 am.
Sports has gotten too fantasy-like today. People only look at stats for their fantasy league team selection as opposed to the contribution of the player to his team's overall success or what coaches call the intangibles. Don't let them goad you into that nonsensical bulwarky.
KFL
rush
In defense of Jeffries, it is worth mentioning that Q couldn't hit the broad side of a barn his first year in NYC. His first year with the knicks was absolutely dreadful in every respect. Q came back with a vengeance last season. Just like Jared Jeffries last year, Q had a sideline story that messed up his game on the court, and Q was able to bounce back from it this year--that is, until chronic back problems forced him to shut it down for x amount of games.
I think Jared Jeffries obviously deserves another shot. Some players can't play in NYC, too much pressure, but Jeffries definitely had a lot going on last year with the early injury and the suspension he got for being a true knick in the brawl.
I guess Isiah said players will earn their spots in training camp. If that's true, nobody's spot is safe. Okay maybe Randolph's spot, but Isiah should look at the young talent he's assembled and come up with a starting five that plays well together, not the best 5 players statistically. You had that kind of "cohesiveness" during the brawl with the six or seven that were still eligible to play. Isiah needs to find that again. Hint: you can't develop really good team chemistry if you have a 10+ player rotation. Nobody will get acclimated with everyone playing 24 minutes a game.
Isiah Thomas knew Jared Jeffries' career stats when he signed him as a free agent. washington did want to keep him by the way, they offered him the same deal. Jeffries has basketball skills that do not translate well statistically, but I know the guy can ball. He wouldn't have been picked over Zach Randolph as Mr. Basketball of Indiana if he couldn't ball. something we haven't seen on the knicks is that he's a playoff performer, he proved that in his final two years with washington. Very much like balkman, Jeffries is a difference maker.
It's true that it would be tough to see Crawford off the bench. What is the alternative? Last year's starting 5 had Q at the 3. He did a great job but it is not his natural position. On some nights, the SF position is a guy that is 6'10" shooting 3's (Rashard Lewis, Chris Bosh). Q did a great job on LeBron, but it is like watching Starks guard Jordan. Starks had great heart, but he was significantly SMALLER than Jordan. Disadvantage: Knicks.
The small forward position in the NBA has evolved from a 6'6"-6'7" slasher, scorer, finisher (Marion, Pippen, Gerald Wallace) to include taller, thin, perimeter, drive-to-the-basket-with-crossover jump shooters (Novitizki). Q has a big heart but he is at a disadvantage in terms of his size.
We also have an excess of guys who plays SF (Balk, Jeffries, Chandler). Nichols also is listed as 6'-8". We don't need Q at 3.
This is probably the 5 you suggest:
Marbury
Crawford
Q. Richardson
Randolph
Curry
This lineup consists of 5 SCORERS. Unbalanced. 1 defensive specialist (Richardson). 1 major rebounder (Randolph). Defensive Liability at SG (Crawford). Undersized SF (Richardson). No shot blocker or leader. With this lineup, our steals leader (Crawford) was 85th in the league last year.
We cannot win with this starting lineup. MAJOR DEFENSIVE PROBLEMS.
Orange and Blue,
Thanks for that article. Totally agree. A black man that weighs 300 pounds will never be perceived as a victim in our society.
Jeffries may deserve another shot but not in the starting lineup. I just don't think he is a smart defender he overreacts in zone D and a lot of times you see him get beat off the dribble because he lets people go which ever side they want instead of forcing them into coverage. Just watch Q and his positioning, nobody drives on him because they have no open lane to go through, he always forces people to go where another defender can step up and double.
I agree. He was trying to do too much. Could be that he was trying to do too much, trying to be defensive specialist that he was signed for and cover for everyone's problem.
I just think we should give him 20 games. If he stinks it up, we move on. It's hard to shine with a broken wrist, fitting in on a new team, being constantly anyalyzed in front of New York city, all of that.
I remember him coming out of Indiana. He wasn't a star, but he held his own. Check out his draft analysis:
http://sports.espn.go.com/nbadraft/tracker/player?playerId=18352
I agree w/ everything Harlemboy said. well put. Thats just what I've been trying to say.
Fixers,
Harlemboy in Md, very well said, you nailed it on the head, and you laid it out for everybody to see in black and white.
A lineup consisting of five scorers makes very little sense...NO BALANCE
A power game is predicated on sound defense and a brusing post game ( and like Kevin said, rebounding is a BIG part of D too), which opens up the floor for three's and mid-range shooters and drives and dish, and offense rebounds...
In every sport even boxing, great offense does not work without great D...
It ain't rocket science fellas!
The problem with starting Q in the back court with Steph is when the other team apply full court press we would not be able to advance the ball. Q is without a doubt a better defender than Crawford, but he cannot dribble the ball to save his life. Therefore, we would have 3 guys (Curry, Zach, and Q) that cannot handle the rock. Teams would press the hell out of the knicks every game. Secondly, Crawford is way better than Q or Steph at feeding the post and giving Curry those easy alley oops. The only thing Q does better than Crawford is defence. Crawford and Steph have to play together because they compliment each other very well.
I agree with the guys that say Q sould not play the small forward position this year. His surgically repaired back might not hold up against the pounding from those stronger players.
By default, I think JJ should start at SF with Balkman and Chandler backing up.
Therefore Crawford should start, with Q, Nichols, and Jones off the bench.
Curry and Zach starting with Lee, R. Morris, James backing them up.
Steph at point with Collins and Nate backing him up.
This is our best chance to be a balance team that maybe able to make the playoffs.
I can't wait for some Knicks basketball. Knicks fan for life.......
There is no "maybe" in makeing the playoffs! The only question is how far we will go with what we have at this moment!
Artest or bust 2007-2008!
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