N.Y. KNICKS ~ Necessity is the Mother of Dolan's Motivation

NEW YORK KNICKS:  James Dolan didn't care Isiah Thomas ran his team into the ground.  So why does he care so much now without him?




First...It's Never Easy Saying Good-Bye.

We hardly knew ya but you will be missed.

The Fans' favorite Knicks team over the last eight or nine years has been disassembled before they could even finish a season together.  Since last November till now, this season's Knickerbockers have done everything short of winning a Championship to earn back the respect and admiration of the fans.  Truth is, they only achieved a slightly better than .500 record together, but it was a spirited and entertaining first half (plus) of the season and an effort we were appreciative of, as it made us forget our miseries suffered over the previous decade. 

There were players spread-out across the floor in Knick uniforms that were building fresh, new fan followings.  The two players drafted by the Knicks we enjoyed watching fill-out and mature; Dalino Gallinari and Wilson Chandler will be missed.  No one feels good about trading away one of your own.  And Raymond Felton..., a two year underdog singing, turned out to be a little Super Hero for five months.  Even Mozgov found comfort with the fans.  That's why perhaps the big trade news is leaving Knicks fans a bit melancholy despite the team hooking one of the biggest fish in the NBA.

Last night those guys were traded away for Carmelo Anthony and others.  He and Amare' Stoudemire now comprise a fearsome twosome on the offensive side of the ball for the New York Knicks.  In a star-driven League, the Knicks now have two of them.

Did the Knicks empty out the roster to make this trade happen?  Yes.
Was the price we paid for Carmelo Anthony too high?  No.

Wilson Chandler was a goner anyway.  Raymond Felton was a stop-gap point guard until we had a shot at acquiring Chris Paul or Deron Williams.  So, was Gallo and the rest of the package worth it for 'Melo?  You betcha!  You secure a guy like 'Melo when you can; especially when you can pair him with a talent like Amare' and continue trying to upgrade from there.  You do it because this is what Donnie Walsh has spent the last two-plus years working towards.


DOUBTERS BE DAMNED.   JUST STICK WITH THE PLAN!
Carmelo Anthony is a Knick today because Donnie Walsh's plan was followed.  He asked for two years and that he be judged based on year Three.  If the Knicks wound up not getting Melo, many in the Media were calling for Donnie Walsh's job.  He dumped salaries and freed up Cap space in a miraculously short time.  Yet, some in the Media called that feat simple and easy.  He added short-term upgrades to the roster and turned them into assets.  In Felton's case, the Media kept insisting he was a product of Coach D's system.  He then signed Amare' over the summer.  The Media then said the plan was to land LeBron and that Donnie was lucky to outbid the Suns by a year for Amare's services.  That's wrong!  LeBron was never the plan.  Donnie never said it was.  LeBron was available as a coincidence to the plan.  The Plan was to be in a position to sign Max-Contracts.  And now he has two after completing the trade for Carmelo Anthony with said assets and said cap flexibility.

For Knick Fans, you can start believing it now...., a plan actually came together for us.



There was a ton of speculation as to how much Isiah Thomas played a part in the negotiations to bring Carmelo Anthony here.  There is also rampant speculation as to whether James Dolan was intent on making this deal happen in defiance of Donnie Walsh' working model as the club's GM.  I was one of the skeptics..and still am.  I am not convinced Zeke's days with the Knicks are through.  Regardless,  Donnie Walsh laid many of the rumors to rest when he said he believed Carmelo Anthony was more intent on securing an extension before the CBA expires as opposed to becoming a free-agent.  That meant Anthony would have surely signed a more lucrative extension with the Nuggets or even the Nets than he would have otherwise.  Donnie Walsh believed that to be so...because Carmelo Anthony said so!  That's why Donnie said they signed off on the trade (while he was in Indianapolis and James Dolan in Los Angeles).

The trick now is to build a supporting cast around these two players.  The Knicks have about four years to accomplish this.  By no means is this a finished product just because 'Melo arrives tomorrow.  The need was and still is to play better defense and finding a quality Center to protect the paint.  We still don't have a Center and we certainly won't be playing any Defense now just because it's Tuesday.

The Knicks would be better served by getting Amare' back to his natural position and away from Center if they want him and 'Melo playing through a handful of injury free years together..  Additionally, someone needs to pull down some rebounds for this team.  This team can't even pull down a window shade as presently constituted.  Ronnie Turiaf obviously is not an answer at Center and he shouldn't even be a thought anymore.  You don't pump Regular into a Cadillac.  We've up-graded now and Center should be our next area of concern.

Chauncey Billups keeps the plan at point guard the same.  We're just waiting for other players to become available.  He isn't going to give us much defense either, but I have the utmost confidence he can still orchestrate from the point and set-up Amare' and Carmelo with smart professionalism.  That's all I'm really expecting from him.  Let's face it, we haven't been right at point guard since we traded Mark Jackson, so there's no reason for us to start snivelling about it now.



It's a TURF WAR.  It's as Simple as That.

But do you really want to know my unofficial, real reason why Carmelo Anthony is a Knick today?

As I eluded to in my recent post, Knicks-Nets; Tug Of War Spurs Rivalry , James Dolan all of a sudden has an active interest in his team?  With Dolan, it's never that easy.

James Dolan was never one to interfere in Isiah Thomas' affairs for the whole time Zeke ruled his Knicks.  A sexual harassment case brought against MSG, etc...was hardly enough to splinter James Dolan's support for Thomas.  Isiah had run of the ranch.  The only time James Dolan sprung to action is when a proposed West Side Stadium for the Jets was on the City's planning table.  James Dolan and MSG committed vast resources to thwart that from happening and preventing such a Stadium from infringing upon his MSG/Arena monopoly in the area.  Successful at blocking that project, he had no problem letting Isiah Thomas destroy the Knicks for as long as fans kept showing up to MSG with his monopoly intact.  In a city like N.Y. with it's immense population and tourism, not to mention arena events, an MSG void of fans or visitors is hard to pull off.

James Dolan never seemed troubled Isiah Thomas turned the Knicks into an unmitigated disaster.  Never.  The only thing that troubled him was that West Side Stadium and he threw loads of money at that problem.  James Dolan is only recently so concerned about his Knicks because:

ONE:  Like I said, he's a mess without Isiah.

TWO:  Being an owner of a crappy club never bothered James when Zeke was here, so why should he start caring now?  The biggest and real reason James Dolan all of a sudden cares about the Knicks and was seemingly so willing and desperate to trample over Donnie Walsh to get at Amare' Stoudemire; and why he pushed over baby-carriages and knocked over old ladies trying to get at Carmelo Anthony was because of.....

....Mikhail Prokhorov and the threat of Brooklyn infringing on his NYC monopoly. 

It's all Owners really care about.  They are all about the Capitalism aspect of it.  It's all they know and a good businessman can recognize a threat when he sees one.  Another team and another arena within the city limits is why to some extent Amare' and 'Melo are Knicks today.  I'm not saying Donnie Walsh or a good Exec wouldn't have made these moves as Knicks GM.  I'm just merely saying the only reason why James Dolan all of a sudden seems so preoccupied with the Knicks, unlike he was with Zeke around, is because his business is being threatened just like it was when the West Side Stadium talked popped up.  And just like then, he's throwing a ton of money at this problem.  Salary Cap, Shmalary Shnap ~ When Capitalists feel threatened, they throw money at their problems.

It doesn't matter who in the Knicks' Front Office collaborated on the Melo trade.  It doesn't matter if Zeke was in on it or not.  James Dolan the Entertainment Mogul was looking out for his business that's about to be faced with stiff competition.  For James, It's all about paying for a seat at MSG.  He didn't seem to care when the Knicks sucked and he was the only game in town though. 

Prokhorov hasn't spent anything yet.  But from one business man to another, Dolan knows his day is coming.




Mike.BTB

N.Y. KNICKS ~ Knicks Lasso NBA's Best Team

NEW YORK KNICKERBOCKERS:  It's Cool To Be Right Sometimes.  But Tonight, It Was Even Better To Be Wrong.

First, the straight version.

The New York Knicks beat the NBA's Top Team tonight 128-115 and improved their record to 20-14.
The fans at Madison Square Garden celebrated their 10th home win but got to participate in yet another uproarious night against the NBA's elite.

One thing I said about the Knicks still holds true.  If Ray Felton and Landry Fields do not score in double digits together in the same game, the Knicks don't win.  Felton scored 28 and Fields dropped 13.

But tonight Wilson Chandler was The Dude.  He dumped 31 points all over the Spurs.  Amar'e said it best after the game, "They didn't have an answer for him tonight."  But part of that was because Amar'e kept making passes.  He had 6 assists tonight.

Here's another...!  Wilson Chandler and Stoudamire were high rebounders tonight with both getting 9 boards apiece.

Oh wait!  Here's another...  No GALLO tonight!  He's hurt.  Remember?

WAITER?!    Some Crow please?

I believe in my last Knicks posting, I said Tim Duncan was going to put on a clinic in MSG tonight.  I was questioning if the Knicks would have an answer for the Big Guy.  I said he still has a whole-lotta Ball in his big body.

The Knicks didn't just have an answer, they took the NBA's best team, at the moment, completely out of their game.  Coach Pop was upset!  

But I couldn't be more happier being so wrong, not necessarily about Tim Duncan, but about the Knicks' chances tonight.

How about these guys..huh?!



Mike.BTB

N.Y. Knicks: "The Stretch" is Over; How Ya Like Me Now?

NEW YORK KNICKERBOCKERS: 
The Media dubbed this "THE STRETCH".

So what do you think about 'em now, Knick fans?


If anything, we were entertained; and I think that's understating things..  There were definitely moments, plays, quarters, very good halves and some complete Basketball games over the last eight scheduled match-ups dubbed The Stretch that truely excited, and during the home games, shook the roof.

We held our own to start things off on the right "Chuck Taylor" against 'Melo and the Denver Nuggets.  Maybe seeing how well the Knicks played them will dissuade him from ever signing that extension with Denver.  We followed the Nuggets game with a gripping Regular Season Classic that put everyone through the ultimate high and disappointing low with a last second thriller against Boston that had everyone feeling good about the Knicks despite losing a very exciting, near-buzzer beating contest at the Garden.  And who wasn't feeling even better about our situation during the first half against the Heat?

OK...So the next six quarters weren't as good.  The second half against the Heat and the entire game against the Cavs kinda sedated fan enthusiasm a bit.  Actually, that Cavs game was rather disappointing.  Don't ya think?

But the Knicks returned with wins against Oklahoma City and Chicago before we got singed by the Heat again for Christmas.

If I remember all the scuttlebutt correctly, I recall the experts saying if the Knicks could manage a 3-5 record over That Stretch, it would have proved the Knicks indeed made real strides.  Anything above 3 wins and the Knicks would have to be considered as a legitimately competitive playoff team.  They were all calling this a litmus test to see how they stacked up against the League's better teams.

Well?  What do you think?  We went 3-5.  Who's saying they went 3-4 with a push against Boston?

We beat Denver when they weren't at full strength.  They didn't have Kenyon Martin (he's one of my favorite players) on the floor but their best player was.  So it was a victory well earned.  Wins against Oklahoma City and the Bulls were, I think, appropriate.  We've handled the Bulls and Derrick Rose quite well this season.

Are you going to give the Knicks an E for Effort against Boston?  I'm willing to.  C'mon, just compare that game to any game prior to this season and going back ...how long?  The Celts didn't have all their guys for that game like the Nuggets didn't.  Is a win just a win?

Was getting BURNED by the Miami Heat twice expected?  Be honest...it was right?  Sure it was.

The only real point of contention I think we will all agree on was that no-show against Cleveland.  It will stand out as the low point, for me anyway, of the last 8 games (including tonight's game with Orlando).  What would the high point be?  You know what?  They did a lot of things well worth mentioning.

There's no denying the Garden was electrified during the Boston game.  We lost, but we got OUR HOUSE back in order.  MSG became a mecca again that night.  And like I said, that first half against Miami on our court was furious too.  Is that odd I picked two games we lost?  No.  It just shows we are doing things correctly, more often.

Tonight, the Refs kept themselves front and center.  They ruined what could have been a great game-within-the-game between Amar'e and Howard.  But instead of letting them play and the fans getting to enjoy a great match-up,  Stoudemire remained in foul trouble all night.  Amar'e was playing with five fouls while Howard still only had three called against him by the fourth quarter.  Both he and Howard were served with Technicals in the first half also.  Incidentally,  Howard and Amar'e are one and two in the League receiving Techs.

After Amar'e received his third foul in the first half and had to take a seat, we found Wilson Chandler and Shawne Williams playing center?  Really?  Don't get me wrong.  Wilson Chandler is winning-over more and more people everyday, but he's no center!  Tonight he was carrying the Knicks.  We have to give him that.  But then Shawne Williams at Center?

Let's be happy with the way this stretch of games went.  There were an awful lot of positive things to converse about.  But this stretch was also a reminder Donnie Walsh still has some work to do.  Of course, my biggest hang-up is not having a legit center.  But something has to give.  Ray Felton and Amar'e need help from this bench.  That's Donnie's job.  This team needs another piece...obviously.  I said it once before, I Tweeted it tonight and I'll say it again now. When Ray Felton (14 points) and Landry Fields (zero points) do not score in double digits together, the Knicks do not win. Period.


Donnie has gotten us to this point; to the point where apathy isn't welcome at the Garden anymore.

Does Donnie Walsh have something brewing for the very near future or will a move have to wait till the deadline?  Both are fine by me.  Donnie Walsh deserves as much credit for the last eight entertaining games as the players and Coach D does.  Put the "L's" aside for a sec on this one.  Yes, more moves must be made but we all saw the Brand is much better.

Back to the litmus test?  The Knicks-Magic game just went final.  Knicks lost 112-103.  The Knicks got as close as 2 points with 4:10 to go.  But the Magic maintained a 10 point lead on the Knicks for most of the night.  If you want to connect Stoudemire's foul troubles with the Magic 6, 8 and 10 point leads, I'm definitely game for that.

I think The Stretch turned out to be an accurate barometer of who the Knicks are and where they are as a team.

We could very well be on-par with Denver and we have a couple of wins over the Bulls now.  I'll say we are better than the Thunder, and if it weren't for too many whistles, Amar'e and Howard may have banged bodies towards a closer score.

Are we as good as Miami or Boston?  No.  But we did show if they aren't careful, we can give them a lot of problems.  I also think we proved we can now "talk without laughing" about securing one of the eight playoff spots in the East.

Next month, the New Year gives us a little dose of the Western Conference.  That means the Lakers and Spurs.  I'm a big Tim Duncan fan, and I'm dying to see if we have an answer for him.  Quite honestly, I think there's still a lot of great Basketball in his big body and I feel like he's going to put us through a clinic.

I welcome you to prove me wrong Boys!


Let's Go Knicks



Mike.BTB

N.Y. Knicks ~ Wild Seventies and Crazy Eights; Knick Win

NEW YORK KNICKERBOCKERS: 
"Crazy Eights and Scoring Like The Wild Seventies"
* Amar'e Stoudemire sets a Club Record.

The New York Knicks started their eight game journey through the rest of December against the NBA's first division with a tough win against the Denver Nuggets in a game that got a little chippy.  Denver Center Hilario Nene antagonized the Knicks all afternoon, not only backing 'Melo's 31 points and 13 rebounds with a pounding 26 points, 8 rebound, 2 blocked-shot performance of his own, but he also shared in some wrangling between him, Turiaf and Amar'e Stoudemire as elbows were flying freely.

Amar'e Stoudamire composed his play and temper enough to stay in the game after a possible Tech-Foul could have been called against him and possibly ending his day prematurely when he and Nene locked high elbows.  But he smartly ceased engagement and stuck around to drop 30 points.  With today's thirty point effort, Amar'e Stoudemire set a N.Y. Knicks' club record for most consecutive games scoring over 30 points by doing it for the eighth time.  He was fittingly given today's game ball.

Behind Ray Felton and Wilson Chandler's 12 points in the 1st quarter, the Knicks got off to a fast start and "sustained and maintained" their play through the next three quarter on their way to a gritty victory.  The Knicks won their eighth consecutive game today; 129-125. 

These scores are starting to look a little "late-1970s'ish" aren't they?  Oh, you don't remember those days?  OK, it was the opposite of the "1990's-like", low scoring, grappling defensive games.  Oh, you don't remember those days either?

If you're only now turning twenty years old, take my word for it.  Life is a cycle.  Eventually, everything that's old is new again at some point.  But if you see a pair of  "bell-bottoms"....run!

Next up...Boston Celtics.  We need a big man in the middle.  That's my biggest thing.  Win or lose, this game will expose that fact...I think.  Don't take that as a complaint.  I'm cool.  Everything comes in time.

Actually the biggest problem I have right now with the Garden being such a hot spot this afternoon is, as I type, The Garden is being re-configured for tonight's Rangers game against Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals.  That means a bad ice surface, crazy bouncing pucks and unfortunate bounces.

Ugh!

Bring on the Celtics!  Let's Go Knicks!


From an earlier post today:
The next stretch of games will a truer test of where we are.  I'm Not Talking About The Knicks; I'm talkin' about you!
http://thebrooklyntrolleyblogger.blogspot.com/2010/12/ny-knicks-gut-check-time-but-not-for.html




Mike.BTB