I know the Knicks were without Wilson Chandler last night for personal reasons, but I doubt he would have made much difference. A 101-59 deficit at the end of the third quarter is not just because of one person.
It sounds extremely weird to say this, but the Knicks (at least right now) miss Jared Jeffries. I never thought I would utter such a statement, but they play even less defense now than they did before, which is saying something. Cleveland was able to get to the basket with ease last night and exploit the Knicks' complete lack of size and defensive presence in the post.
Next year, the Knicks will not miss Jeffries' contract. Everybody knows they're going nowhere this year anyway so I'm not bashing the trade, especially since Tracy McGrady has played well. Sergio Rodriguez shows flashes of being able to handle the point guard position in the NBA despite being LeBron James' latest transition block victim, and watching him you can see why he was more highly rated than Jose Calderon a few years back. He just needs some seasoning.
Bill Walker has been a revelation after scoring 21 points last night and proving the Knicks did get something back for Nate Robinson that could be useful in the future, since Eddie House will likely be wearing a different uniform next season. But I digress.
In all honesty, why would James come to New York next season when the Cavs have beaten New York by 47 points combined in their three meetings this season? I understand the first two games were close, but the team that lost by 31 last night is more representative of the supporting cast James would be playing with for the Knicks next year.
They play no defense, particularly on the low block, and have more holes than possibly any team in the NBA. They are set at ONE position assuming they don't re-sign David Lee, and that position is small forward with Chandler and Danilo Gallinari both expected to continue their development. What position does James play again?
The sole allure for James to come to New York outside of it being New York is playing with another max-level player. But does a core of Rodriguez, Toney Douglas, Chandler, Gallinari, Walker, James and say Chris Bosh sound like a championship squad? The Knicks would need more than just Bosh to solve their woes in the post, but James has taken teams deep in the playoffs with less of a supporting cast (and no teammate with the pedigree of Bosh).
Even still, James must be laughing at the Knicks right now. Last night was plain embarrassing and the least the Knicks could have done was shown up, defended their basket and shown James that were worth his time and effort next season. They didn't, and since these teams don't meet again this season, this game will be the last taste of the New York Knicks that James has in his mouth.
If you were him, I'd be spitting out that taste of New York and I don't know if I'd ever try their food again. I definitely wouldn't leave a tip.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
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Hey Tripodi,
ReplyDeleteGreat blog man. I feel LeBron is not going to be going to New York anytime soon, especially even if he did just change his number to 6. I do dislike the media making huge waves of trade rumors going to New York just because he is changing his number and in NBA regulations and rules if you change your number on your current team you will have to pay out of pocket for the number as opposed to if he was traded elsewhere then he would not have to pay anything. LeBron is also changing the number as a result of respect to Michael Jordan and also LeBron's first child's birth date and it was his Olympic number. I am getting a little sick and tired of the trade rumors as to why LeBron would want to leave a team that has led the league in wins the last couple years and going to the playoffs and change that to a scrappy Knicks' team. I just cannot see that happening anytime soon. Keep up the great work.
Your fellow co-host on GSTV,
Ken Hicks