On an evening in which Jamal Crawford and Stephon Marbury performed competently, the tandem of Eddy Curry (above) and Channing Frye provided some strength at center and overall, the Knicks showed a rare bit of tenacity on defense…New York still proved themselves to be utterly hopeless during the final moments of a close game.
I can’t groan too much about Crawford taking the ball to the hole in the final seconds — the possibility of drawing a foul seemed high enough, were it not for Baron Davis stripping the ball. And Davis’ 12 assists did plenty to kill the Knicks when he clearly didn’t have his touch from the field.
Other than being startled to see that Penny Hardaway is still alive, I don’t want to fall prey crazy exaggeration. I realize the Knicks don’t really have 6 guards who can’t run the offense, but it often feels that way. Much has been written about Larry Brown’s early attempts to establish a rotation and figure out who is capable of what, but would it be unfair to suggest that the preseason should’ve provided such an opportunity?
For an old guy with serious health issues, Brown made a hell of a move for the tunnel once the buzzer went off. I’m pretty sure Larry could take Jerome James in a 100 yard dash, though such a contest would be far too risky. For James, that is.
I think LB can put a competitive team out there. Cheesy as it sounds for mr “PLAY THE RIGHT WAY” (I loath this term – i get it, it’s just so arrogant to apply to pro sports), barring trades I want to see this starting lineup: steph (1) Jamal (2) Trev (3) AD (4) EC (5). first with two fouls (almost always EC) move steph to 2 bring in nate to see if he can hang at 1. if trevs playing well leave him bring Fry at 4 and eith morve AD to 5 or try Jerome ( if healthy or otherwise the young kid center (?)). Steph needs to divide equally his scoring time and playmaking if it can be regulated. Nate Rob will succeed if his teammmates realize that they need to help compensate for his weaknesses (ie not being able to get a shot off yet) by keeping him composed on the D end. I think the knicks have legit options at every position. I’m actually dissapointed in Brown’s coaching and rotations (not something I thought would be an issue despite my reservations about LB). Let Steph ( who I am not a fan of) play his game…when he’s uninhibited he is a 20 and 7 guy – his game is ugly ( AND SELFISH (LOOKING at least) but he’s a terrific scorer and a really fine passer. I truly don’t buy into the “he doesn’t help teams win” thing. They’re not generally losing cuz he didn’t bring it (except when he misses free throws). I’m no Steph fan but its so easy to scapegoat him as “all that’s wrong with the Knicks”. His aquisition provided great lifeblood to a club that needed it, and everyone involved knew the trade-off. This is NYC, just don’t give me something boring. At 0-5, the kicks are about to, just kind of sad no? On a personal level: Can Robinson play in this league? I’ve long had doubts. He’s fun, but WHO can he defend? I hope he figures it out…that’s the only 1st round pick I had a college class with (i had high school classes with Reece Gaines of Milwakee, who will likely be out of the league next year…god could he command the english language). But I want Lil Nate out there more. He fucks up but he works and works and he’s an NYC gem. Isn’t it easier to forgive Nate Rob’s transgressinons at this point than Stephes? Marbury is not a team leader of championship quality, and the Kincks deserve that.
Gabe,
Nate hasn’t seen enough playing time yet for his transgressions to really be labelled as such — the jury is still out on what he can accomplish at this level. As far as Marbury is concerned, the selfish/unselfish thing has less to do with, I think, his shot selection and how he passes the ball and more to do with how rarely he shuts anyone down defensively. Steph averaging 20 and 7 is fine, but not if his counterpart does far better.
All of that said, I am totally confused as to what trade value Marbury has, unless it is for another player whose contract has proven onerous. As cited elsewhere, he’ll present a cap challenge for another team, and it is hardly a Schwab-stumper that Steph’s last 3 teams (Minnesota, NJ and Phoenix) all became contenders shortly after dealing him.
I do like your proposed starting lineup, however, and am fairly confident that Larry Brown can eke 32-33 wins out of such a team. Which is the crux of the problem, really. Tommy Hoops and I were discussing this just last weekend —- MSG’s reluctance to totally suck for a year or two and seriously rebuild has created an endless cycle of teams that might contend for the 8th spot in the East if very lucky, but certainly not good enough to advance further (and not shitty enough to improve substantially in the draft). Though then again, at 0-5, perhaps Thomas and Brown really know what they’re doing.
re: the tradability of Steph, I think this is going to be REALLY tough. he’s making so much money over the next four ( I pay decent attention to this stuff and was still schocked to see those numbers again). Basically, he’s the highest paid/least desirable guard I can think of (really – who else could it be, who else boasts such a combination of indignant self-satisfaction, unproven ability to win, and impressive but seemingly unmanageable skill?) At least Allen Iverson seems to recognize that he needs to score 30 and dish 8 for his team to have a chance – and is often able to make that happen. When is the last time Steph even talked about making his teammates better? As far as basketball cliches go, “playing the right way” makes me wanna set LB, Dean Smith and UNC ablaze in the fiery furnace of their dirty frat house. But “making my teammates better” HAS to be the mantra of a great PG (or certainly it should be for “the best point guard in the league”). Steph is an undersized two who can pass a bit. He’s a selfish, poor decision-maker with an awful contract. New Yorkers will not be pleased with the value he can command in return. That’s the major problem. I agree with Zeke’s decison to bring him in – he brought a lot of fans back into the fold, gained (dare I say) some street support they needed. But Marb became someone who would HAVE to work out, have to fit in, have to play well cuz anyone making $72 Mil over the next four, and who is universally regarded as a cancer, well, in the immortal words of the criminally underrated Kleenex Girl Wonder (check out their album “Ponyoak” if you can find it), he “ain’t goin’ anywhere soon”. Not unless Isiah has his bags packed as well (and he might double check the condition of his luggage anyway). Frankly, and I know L Brown got people excited, I’m tired of him too. He wore me out with this last Cleveland-Detroit-New York shenanigan. This group is going to tune him out fast…And I can’t blame them. His coaching decisions have my questionable already and as CTSB asked somwhere, why the fuck can’t he figure these rotations out yet? He’s supposed to best the best coach in the world…god Zeke shoulda talked to Chuck Daly.
I believe Daly is having a wonderful time making public appearances as Albert Finney (who in turn, runs Chuck’s basketball camp, just to see if anyone notices).
assuming the Knicks are serious about trading Marbury, the trick is finding a swap-partner that has some equally expensive, damaged goods. Fantasists keep mentioning Steve Franchise, though I think lowering the sights to someone of Carlos Boozer’s caliber is more likely. But really, if there were _any_ takers, don’t you think Marbury would’ve been traded before the season started?
I agree their can be _no_ truly interested parties…And people are also mentioning a Steph for Jalen Rose swap – Toronto getting a name player again (no disrespect to Chris Bosh)and the Knicks a couple fewer years on an equally horrible contract. I’d be OK with that, but seriously, who would play point guard? Too bad Skip To My Lou Alston’s been shipped already – I’d love to see Isiah make another terrible cred move before he gets shitcanned.