The Knicks Fix

The weather couldn’t be any better than it is today. Feels like 80 and very dry. So nice some of us decided to walk from the arena to our hotels instead of taking a cab. We have to soak it in while we can. I doubt it’ll be this nice on that Chicago-Cleveland-Detroit swing we do at the end of the month.

One of those afternoons. Not much downtime, so I’m glad I worked out in the morning before the shoot-around. This afternoon, I kept checking until Cablevision’s quarterly report was filed with the SEC, because we were hoping the top secret Larry Brown settlement amount would be on there. It was. He got $18.5 million out of the $41 million he was owed on the contract. I’d say Cablevision/MSG/Knicks got off easy. But then again, Brown got $27.5 million to coach one season.

Though we can’t really claim it as a scoop – though some newspapers like to claim things as scoops even if they aren’t – there was some pressure to bang out a quick story for the website and get it up. It’s just this thing about being first to report something, even if it’s public knowledge. Editors and publishers love seeing Newsday.com credited on the ESPN ticker. I have to admit, it’s cool for a reporter to see it, too.

As far as the shoot-around goes, Isiah Thomas said Steve Francis (sprained ankle) probably won’t play tonight against the Nuggets. In fact, he might not play at all on the trip. Jamal Crawford slides into the starting role. Thomas asked if not having Francis in a way made things easier for him, considering he didn’t have to force feed the Stephon Marbury-Steve Francis backcourt.

Thomas didn’t agree.

“Right now, we’re all looking for if they have like great explosions together or if they don’t play well,” he said. “That’s what we’re looking for. And during the course of a game, if you’re looking for something, over a 48 minute game, two and a half hours in the arena, eventually you’re going to see things that kind of fits what you’re looking for. But I’m not necessarily looking for if they can have success or failure together, I’m looking for if our team can play at a high level and sustain playing at a high level. What I sense from our team, we haven’t gotten to the point yet where we can sustain playing at a high level for 48 minutes.”

I'll check in tomorrow from sunny and warm Houston.