The Knicks Fix

Little blurb from Hoopsworld re: Gordon -

"Ben Gordon Seeking Goofy Money

This week I heard something that almost made me fall out of my chair laughing. I was told Ben Gordon's camp believes he's better than Allen Iverson and therefore deserves to be paid accordingly.

I still chuckle reading that last sentence out loud.

There's no doubt Gordon has some skills, and the six-year $61 million the Bulls are reportedly offering seems more than fair. However, Gordon wants a deal in the neighborhood of $80 million over six years."

Wow. Alan - you still want to be a GM in the NBA? These guys are out of their minds.

-The author of that Globe article that quotes an NBA Source on Marbury also asserts Gallinari will be Rookie of the Year. Interesting coming from a non-homer.

--If Crawford will indeed opt out after this year, does that mean we trade him or let the salary be gone?

Willis - if Gordon's teams had won much, with him seeming like anything more than a one-dimensional and inconsistent shooter, he might be worth what the Bulls were originally offering. At 61 over 6, I'd want a solid starter on a good playoff team. I can't see a more replaceable type of "good" player than the undersized streak shooter capable of putting up 17-21 ppg on a 30 win team. Its amazing how poorly some GM's seem to understand cap management. If you're going to sink over 20% of your total cap into one player, it had better be a player you can win with. How does paying Gordon more money than last season improve the Bulls wither on the court or in terms of flexibilityin future moves? I think it can be hard for teams to let a guy go, but you can make the lottery without being capped out, and Gordon has proven he's not lifting a team into the playoffs.

Crawford is another one of these guys (less undersized than Gordon). The problem for the Knicks is that they don't have a decent 2 guard behind him (remember when people used to defend Isiah for the deep talent pool he was accumulating?) In an ideal world I'd love to see Crawford headed elsewhere, but a replacement is necessary. And not a Gordon type making big money for similar underwhelming results.

This just in,

Cavs Talking To Knicks About Big Man, From Real GM!

Aug 17, 2008 11:01 AM EST
Ever since the Cavaliers landed point guard Maurice Williams, there have been rumors that they are talking to the Knicks about a big man, according to The Morning Journal.

New York has a number of big men on the roster, including Eddy Curry, Jerome James, David Lee, Zach Randolph and Malik Rose.

i assume 95% of fixers would trade zbo's 3 years for wallyworld's 1 year?

touching once again on the euro dollar effect on the future, there is going to be massive salary inflation, and in the absence of a renegotiated cba/cap, getting under the cap isn't going to mean too much in two years. thus to put all of our eggs into a 2010 strategy seems like fool's gold to me. we need to build a TEAM, assembling the right role players. we need to play "moneyball", and find hidden value in players. everyone seems to think that you can't win without a superstar, but how many rings do iverson, nowitski, mcgrady, yao, redd, arenas, kidd and mello have between them? and look at the teams that have been the international/olympic champions in the past decade: not many household names on those rosters.

Only thing I want to read is Berger's formal indictment for impersonating a writer. The guy is worthless.

Maybe, but at least berman has the balls to put his biline on what he writes. You're a sad worm, throwing spitballs from the cover of anonymity.

Ken Berger, Howard Beck and Alan Hahn are by far the best Knicks beat writers there are. The only people I know that take cheap shots at them are Bermanbury lovers. You know the ones that put Marbury ahead of the Knicks team year after year.

Marc J Spears from the Boston Globe, wrote about our Knicks today?
While I hope both his opinion's are true (1. Marbury played his last game as a Knick) (2. Gallinari is going to be a Super Star and ROY over Greg Oden) What in the hell did he see in Gallanari's LONE Summer league game for him to make such a Statement? Who among you agree that I would Give up the entire Knick squad for Oden and 11 D-Leaguers? Here's part of his Article;

D'Antoni's challenge will be a roster that pales in comparison to those of Atlantic Division rivals such as the NBA champion Celtics and the improved Raptors (adding Jermaine O'Neal) and Sixers (adding Elton Brand). The Knicks' key returners include Crawford, Lee, slimmed-down swingman Quentin Richardson, hopefully slimmed-down big men Zach Randolph and Eddy Curry, and forward Jared Jeffries. Point guard Chris Duhon was New York's key offseason signee. Talented but troubled guard Stephon Marbury, however, has played his last day in a Knicks uniform, according to an NBA source.

But the future of the franchise is building around Gallinari, a rookie from Italy selected sixth overall in the June draft. The well-rounded 6-foot-10-inch, 210-pounder has superstar written all over him. He has the Broadway Joe looks and could end up being the 2009 Rookie of the Year. Yes, over Portland's Greg Oden, Chicago's Derrick Rose, Miami's Michael Beasley, and Memphis's O.J. Mayo.

"I would say the most likely buyer is probably some group headed by Jim Dolan, personally, because Jim seems to get a lot of pleasure out of those particular assets," an expert in the field of sports and media transactions told Newsday.

This is pure speculation from this sports "expert." Need more than an opinion. The article gives no more concrete information than having an expert review the Owner's behavior with respect to his previous transactions. That's like looking at Warren Buffet's portfolio and knowing what stock he will purchase next. If it were that easy...

No story here. Need more evidence, Mr. Berger. All we know is he asked his investors their opinion of selling the Knicks. He could really be tired of you guys.

Everyone in the media has the story that Marbury will be cut. I suggest to you bloggers that these are execs hoping they can a talent like Marbury for free, thus continuing the legacy of our stupidity of a franchise.

Let's go Knicks.

I always enjoy reading your blog and the comments after them, Alan. I also really enjoy the Yankees Blog, but it appears that the new procedures put in place to limit the trolls have killed it off. Any chance of you having a word to those responsible for the change to get things back to the way they were or to relay this info to Kat O'Brien, who runs the blog? I'm unable to post at all on that site. Thanks.

Pete - you are spot on as usual. We've got the same dimensions as Gordon twice in Roberson and Robinson. While I have to give Gordon props for being able to deliver and having a knack many players don't, like you say, there's a million of them out there.

As the league continues to go with larger and larger players, there will continue to be a role for the little jet like players, but the purely shooting 6 footer will never be more than situational. I think similarly, as 4's and 5's continue to evolve into long, face the basket players utilizing speed off the dribble, the Powe, Bass, Millsap type guys will be a niche as well - thick, strong players that are quick enough to stay with those scorers, with the mentality to defend and knock their man off of his equilibrium. Another reason it would have been nice to wrangle a second pick this past draft to get Dorsey out of Memphis.

Thanks for the PR job Hahn! You wrote it exactly the way I told you. Well done!!!

Now if we can only get the Knicks to win a few more games next season, I will be able to raise ticket prices and Cablevision rates again -- I must keep up with all those sexual harassment suits.

Keep Rockin'

Jimmy D.

What pleasure has Dolan been getting from his Knicks ownership? If it is so important to him, you'd think he'd have made an effort to run the franchise in an classy and professional fashion.

Hey Alan, any word on that Eddy Curry sighting at Ben Gordon's charity event?... Just curious about his status and how his summer has been. To me he's one of the biggest wildcards coming into this season. I really would like to see him do well, and I think if he can come into camp in shape and stay healthy we have a good chance of being competitive this year.

Hey Alan, what happened with that story from yesterday about the Knicks speaking with the Cavs? Who was the big man they were talking about? Was it Curry, James or Zach?
It's kind of funny how I can't find the story any longer.
Would you happen to know about the discussions? Does the story have any legs to it?
They can't be talking about trading Curry right?
It has to be Zach for someone like Wally and an extra piece right?
Does anybody know anything about this?
This is really important to us fans.
If anybody knows anything....please let me (us) know.
Thanks Fixers.

Ben - I agree about Curry as a wildcard. He seems kind of sensitive or fragile in that if things aren't going smoothly for him he goes into a funk. I think with him, the Knicks need to recognize his strengths and limitations, since he is not going to fundamentally change as a player, define a consistent role for him, and stick with it. He's a huge body with good hands who can score in the post. He's nimble on his feet for his size - maybe he could be a decent pick and roll option. He'll never be a defender or rebounder beyond those balls that practically fall into his hands. So recognize that from the outset and use him accordingly - I'd only say its a priority to move him if the Knicks plan on jerking his minutes around or hope he'll become something that he isn't. I don't think he is ideal, but with a defined role and realistic expectations, he should be a more useful player than a number of others currently on the roster.

@ Peace. Oden is a big gamble with his injury history. If you are building your team around a guy, you probably want someone who can stay more healthy than Oden has been in his one year of college and last year. He is almost like Baron Davis or Bill Walton early in his career where he just couldn't stay healthy. I would def trade for him but I wouldn't count on him being a Patrick Ewing like savior.

Side note: Theo Ratliff is still out there. He is the type of shotblocker and rebounder you can put in for some spot minutes and defense. Hey he is better than Malik Rose. Too bad we blew that mid-level but maybe we can get him for the veteran's minimum.