The Promise of 2010

Let’s cut the bullshit – we (the Knicks) were never going to win with last week’s roster.  The new look Knicks have definitely been fun to watch, definitely play with heart, and definitely score a ton. But, for all their positives, they were never going to win it all.  Our best chance of winning has always been to try to dump some toxic contracts and rebuild the team using free agency. Trading Crawford and Randolph for Tim Thomas, Cutino Mobley and Al Harrington accomplishes this, putting the Knicks in a position to be legit players in the summer of 2010, which is arguably the most talented free agent summer ever.

Yes, at the start of the season I blogged that It’s a New Day for the Knicks and I stand behind every word.   For years we lived under the psychotic regime of Isiah Thomas – a man with a goal (win the championship) but no plan.  Coaches and players came and went, quality of play went down, caliber of players became increasingly worse, and fan loyalty faded.  Our only hope was a fresh start. So, Isaiah was fired and Donnie Walsh was brought in to clean this mess. His first step was bringing in a coach that players actually respected.  Mike D’Antoni instantly won this respect by benching the two biggest drama queens on the roster – Curry and Marbury.  The players responded and have made the Knicks one of the surprise teams of the season. In fact, even though it’s still very early in the season, the Knicks have played so well that D’Antoni is an early candidate for Coach of the Year.

Sadly, regardless of how many points we have scored or games we have won, the roster has always been flawed – full of toxic contracts from the Isiah Thomas years.  Donnie Walsh’s logical second step was to get rid of these toxic contracts by trading for players whose contracts expire in 2010. Remember, the goal has always been to win the championship. It wasn’t happening with the current roster, so Donnie looked to the future and made a plan. This plan, of course, revolves around the year 2010.  Why 2010?  2010 = LeBron.  2010 = Bosh and Wade.  With enough money, 2010 = Lebron + Bosh.  N’uff Said.

I won’t focus much on Bosh or Wade. It’s not that I don’t think they are amazing players – I do. Wade is the only one in the group with a ring and is a top five player on anyone’s list. But Lebron is the best player in the league and still has room to grow. He is a once in a lifetime athlete who makes everyone around him better. Think about it – the Cavs made the finals 2 years ago, beating a very strong pistons team along the way, all because Lebron outplayed everyone. He was just that good then. Today he is even better. The ass whipping he got in the finals that year was also fantastic for his development as a player. It showed him that he can’t do it all alone and forced him to figure out how to make his teammates better. As I wrote the other day, I hope he wins it all this year and then is unsuccessful in defending his title. That will make it easier for him to leave the state he loves. The rumored $50 million dollar “bonus” he gets from Nike won’t hurt either.

So, where do we stand for the next 500+ days?  The players we lost were good.  Randolph and Crawford were playing very well this season and were giving us a reason to turn on MSG on game night.  With the exception of Harrington, the guys we got back aren’t that good and even Harrington is just ok.  So, with no real expectations on them, the next 2 seasons should be all about developing Wilson Chandler, Chris Duhon, David Lee and Nate Robinson into better ball players. Figure out whom to resign, show Lebron that there is some talent on the team, and then pray to the basketball gods that he comes to the Knicks.

Some Half Blog, Half Amazing musings:

· The wizards fired Eddie Jordan just days after I called them the most disappointing team in the league. I think I am going to have to add “being psychic” to skills section of my resume.

· The Knicks play the Cavs tonight – I expect Lebron to get a HUGE round of applause.

· PJ Carlisimo got fired. I haven’t heard of any players that like playing for this guy. In fact, Sprewell hated him so much that he choked him. Maybe, just maybe, the writing is on the wall that this guy shouldn’t be a head coach.

· Greg Oden was annihilated by Shaq the other night. Oden still has a LONG way to go.

· In 30 minutes last night, Mike Conley had 2 points, 1 steal, 2 assists, 4 rebounds and was 1-6 from the field with no FT attempts. AWFUL. What exactly does this guy bring to the table for the Grizzlies?