Concrete Jungle Hoops

 The argument on drafting a player based on potential versus production is debated by fans, GM’s, and team personal regularly. At this time of the year we get bombarded with words like potential, ceiling, nba-ready, project, raw, polished, etc. The current makeup of a teams roster plays a huge role into making the decision on deciding whether to draft based on potential versus production. Analyzing the Knicks roster takes about 15 seconds. They have 4 players under contract (Curry, Gallo, Chandler, Douglas) and one of them (Curry) figures to most likely never crack the rotation. With $32+ million in cap space come Thursday, the Knicks will be upgrading the talent on their team in the coming weeks. Every scenario has the Knicks adding veteran talent and instantly becoming a playoff contender next season. Clearly the best case scenario is being able to add LeBron along with a premier big man like Bosh, Amare, or Boozer. It’s with this mindset that Donnie Walsh approached this years draft with a “production over potential” approach.

Being in attendance Thursday night, I can attest to the crowds “desire” for the Knicks to draft the hometown favorite. “We Want Lance” chants filled the theater at MSG as David Stern walked to the podium to announce the 38th pick. Brooklyn-born Lance Stephenson was preparing to be drafted by the team he grew up watching and rooting for. But the Knicks selected Andy Rautins, the sharpshooting Syracuse combo guard. Then with the 39th pick, the Knicks selected Stanford’s high flying swingman Landry Fields. Later on the purchased the rights to the 44th pick and Jerome Jordan, the 7ft Center from Tulsa.

Rautins can stroke it from downtown as well as anyone in the country. He should struggle to defend at this level, but is a very good passer and has a high basketball IQ. All traits which should help him succeed in the D’antoni system.

Fields on the other hand is not much a shooter. He did however lead the Pac10 in scoring while showing a keen ability to get to the rack and finish and sported the second highest vertical leap among draft prospects. His athleticism and quickness translates to a Chandler-like player potential.

Jordan should also be a good fit in this system. A long, athletic seven-footer, who runs the floor, has good hands, is a good passer, and is a very good rebounder at both ends of the floor. He’s also a very good shot blocker and improved steadily each year in college. 

All three players seem to have somewhat limited ceilings. But some seem to believe that all three players also can be NBA rotation players in the not to distant future. If the Knicks succeed with “Plan A” by snagging two max contract players, they are going to need to fill out the roster with minimum salary players who have a chance to contribute sooner rather than later. Looking at the Knicks 2010 draft selections, it seems that Donnie is willing to sacrifice some upside potential instead of waiting a couple of seasons for more talented players to mature and possibly contribute.

3 DAYS REMAINING

Today, when you type the name of any sports team, sports league, athlete,  or any other sport related keyword into the “search” bar of a search engine, there is probably about an 80% chance that ESPN will be the #1 result. There is a 100% chance that it will be in the top 3 of results. ESPN reaches 76 million homes in the United States, and is heard in 21 languages overseas. ESPN has a worldwide reach.

According to Terence Smith, “With a frenzy of cross- promotion, the ESPN brand name is now on four cable channels; the Internet’s ESPN.com; ESPN Radio, with over 600 affiliates; and, since last year, ESPN, the magazine, which already boasts a circulation of 850,000.”

In an interview back in 1999, ESPN President George Bodenheimer claimed “Well, if you consider that it makes net profits of $500 million to $600 million, it’s probably worth several billion dollars– five, six seven billion dollars, maybe more.”

An award-winning sports television columnist for the New York Times, Richard Sandomir said “The phenomenon of ESPN can be summed up in one little ditty: Dah dah dah, dah dah dah. (SportsCenter theme music) The opening theme of SportsCenter, that is one of the best-known little jingles in America.” According to him,  “Because sports news moves so fast now, sometimes newspapers have to react to what ESPN is reporting. We all have SportsCenter on in the newsroom.”

The last quote is what causes the biggest concern for me. What happens when the primary source of breaking news begins to circulate “rumors” instead of news. We see it everyday in major sports with free agency. Our favorite players are often reported to be interested in signing with (insert team here) … according to an “inside source”. OR they are open to the possibility of a trade to (insert city here) …. according to “people close to him”. The general managers are considering trading (insert player here) to (insert team here) …according to an “inside source”. Our local coach is on the hot seat or is interested in the vacant coaching job at (insert city/team here)…. according to an “inside source”. Some of the rumors that are reported as news seem to be as newsworthy as a story one would read in a tabloid magazine while on a checkout line at the grocery store. Stories like… “Michael Jackson Still Alive, Resides on Mars” or “President Obama Admits to an Insider He was Raped by Richard Nixon as a Child” or maybe even “Kourtney Kardashian Claims Abstinence, Immaculate Conception Part II ???” seem to have more factual evidence than some of the crap reported by ESPN to be “breaking news”.

This all comes on the heels of today’s report that Cleveland Coach Mike Brown has been fired. At first, ESPN and SI broke the story calling it “breaking news”. Every other  network then of course followed suit. The only problem was the fact that Mike Brown was not fired. The poor guy probably got a phone call from a friend or family member telling him how sorry they were that he had lost his job. The whole story spiraled out of control. Cleveland owner Dan Gilbert had to call a press conference to tell the public that head coach Mike Brown had not been fired. What a joke.  I just cant imagine a scenario 15 years ago, where the owner of a professional sports team would even have to address such an unsubstantiated rumor. Both networks were battling as hard as they could to get this story reported as “exclusive”. Hours later, ESPN claims that SI broke the story, while they just “reported it”. My reaction … HA HA HA. It’s comical but it’s also sad that modern day sports reporters want to fight so hard to make sure they get the exclusive stories and the “breaking news”, that they don’t even care to check their own sources or confirm the legitimacy of the report. Excuse me, ESPN calls them “Insiders”…… My bad. The fact that some of these guys are even allowed to work in the same building with the likes of Chris Berman and Bob Ley is disgraceful.

This all brings me to my final issue ….. NBA Free Agency 2010. Oh boy, this is going to be a FRENZY. With the biggest crop of talent hitting the free agent market that I can remember, these “Insiders” should have about 700  new claims on a daily basis of “breaking news” and reports that begin with “according to insiders” about where each NBA free agent is headed to play. As a matter of fact, I will predict that LeBron James will have “agreed in principle”  to sign with 3 different teams during some point this summer, according to ESPN’s “Insiders”. All of this doesn’t even begin to dig into the issue of bias when it comes to NY. Many ESPN Reporters (oops) “Insiders”, such as Chris Broussard, write pieces that just scream “I HATE NY!!”. It has been Broussard all week bashing the Knicks and NY, even calling MSG a dump. This all coming from the guy who was a sports writer in Cleveland and left to come to NY to advance his career. It’s just plain comical. His “sources” tell him that LeBron will most likely sign in Chicago and that LeBron does not need NY. Who are his sources? Maybe the same sources used by the reporter who broke the story titled “Elvis Alive and Well on the Moon”. Every piece of publication that contains DIRECT SOURCES indicate increased revenue for LeBron by playing in the media market of NYC. Marketing experts who are not named “John Doe” or “Inside Source” have went on record saying that LeBron can earn anywhere from an extra $15-$20million per year off the court from playing in NYC. Chris Broussard should also note that “my sources” tell me that an $800 million renovation to MSG has already begun. What’s my source of information? A letter to season ticket holders from Hank Ratner, President and CEO of MSG. Probably more credible than your “LeBron sources”, which probably include LeBron’s best friend’s sister’s father’s co-worker’s daughter. LOL!!!!

In no way is this an indication of my prediction that LeBron James will sign with the Knicks. I’m simple saying that the statement “LeBron James does not need the Knicks” is completely false. Does LeBron James need the Knicks to win an NBA title? Of course not. Does Lebron James need the Knicks to become a global icon? Nope. Or even to make countless amounts of money in his lifetime? No. However, the facts clearly point out that LeBron James needs the Knicks to help him earn the MAX amount of PERSONAL INCOME that he can earn over the next 5,7,10 years, and well beyond when his playing days are over.

Okay, enough of that. I promised myself I would not go off on a “Lebron to the Knicks” related rant, LOL. The bottom line is that today’s sports reporters need to be more responsible in reporting news to the public. Sure, sometimes the line between news and rumors can be a gray line. But a phrase that I am reminded of here is “consider the source”. Something tells me that most of these guy/girls are more concerned about getting on the record with a story or prediction that can make them look great if it turns out to be true, instead of making sure the facts are correct and not just an unfounded rumor. All roads lead back to king of the castle…Dah dah dah, dah dah dah. (SportsCenter theme music).

LINK HERE

New York Magazine’s Will Leitch & Ira Boudway wrote a good piece about the ongoing Lebron to the Knicks saga. The section titled “If You Want to Make That First Billion Before You Turn 30, This Is the Place to Do It” is my favorite part of the article. With today’s worldwide exposure of NBA athletes many people believe that Lebron can not increase his off the court income by playing a big media market like NY. Fortunately, that is not the case.

The question is not whether you can get national, even global, exposure playing in Cleveland. The question is whether you can get more in New York. And the answer is a resounding yes, especially if you win. Listen to Vince Gennaro. He did marketing for Pepsi for years and is now a sports-revenue consultant. The prospect of you as “the centerpiece of the resuscitation of one of the marquee franchises in sport” is dizzying, he says. According to him, if you won a title with the Knicks, “the income opportunities would be boundless. It would be staggering.” Nike sales, he says, would “spike enormously.” You’ve done some slick commercials in your day. We especially enjoyed the Nike “Chalk” spot featuring Lil Wayne and some clever variations on your pregame talcum-powder hand-drying ritual. But check out the Nike ad, up above, that digo, a New York creative shop, already made for you. That work for you?

Steve Stoute, the marketing guru behind Translation LLC who lined up your recent deal with McDonald’s, is understandably bullish on your ability to make money from anywhere, but even he acknowledges that “access to money is driven by proximity.” He believes the city’s private-equity crowd would open their wallets for just about anything with your name on it. And we’re not just talking endorsement deals. Name a venture you might like to try—restaurants, nightclubs, a fashion label—and you’ll find the best in the business waiting with open arms. Sonny Vaccaro, the man who persuaded Nike to sign Michael Jordan, told us that if he had “a new shoe company and $200 million to spend on an athlete,” he would give it all to you as a Knick, that he’d “be crazy not to.” Vaccaro, admittedly, is prone to hyperbole (and Nike might have something to say about that deal), but one levelheaded NBA agent we spoke to estimated you’d take in an extra $20 million a year playing here. Gennaro said it best: “You can’t beat the combination of great player and great market.”

Let’s not forget that Lebron has made it very clear that one of his off the court goals in life is to be the richest athlete of all time. When Lebron and Warren Buffet had a private lunch last year, I’m pretty certain he was not advised that remaining in Cleveland would help him achieve his goal.

“We’ve Already Picked Out a Pretty Sweet Place for You to Crash” is also great. Bron should fit in perfectly nestled between C.C. and Puffy.   51 days- Let the Countdown Continue !!!

It’s probably not healthy to hold a grudge for 15 years. But to be honest, I don’t care!! We all remember the “Benedict Arnold” style exit of Pat Riley following the 1995 playoff series loss to the Indiana Pacers. Weeks before that soft finger roll ever even left Ewing’s fingertips Pat Riley had already secretly agreed to take over the Miami Heat as coach and GM that next season. He went on to transform that team into a mirror image of his Knicks and start a rivalry that created memories which most of us still hold dear. Despite PJ’s Brown’s bench clearing brawl in the 1997 playoffs which led to half the roster being suspended for the final two games allowing Miami to come back to take the series in 7 games, the Knicks pretty much owned that rivalry. They went on to eliminate the Heat the next 3 seasons in gut wrenching fashion. However, after 2000 the rivalry died out mainly due to the ineptitude of the Knicks. Riley went on to draft Dwayne Wade and win another NBA championship.

Now, in the summer of 2010, Pat Riley faces a tough task. His franchise superstar who has won him 1 ring already will be declining his player option for 2011 effectively making him an unrestricted FA. Unlike Lebron James, Wade has gone on record saying that he wants to remain in Miami and rebuild this team. He is basically begging for some help on the court. The team’s next best player, Michael Beasley, has been a mess with off the court drug problems and has been called out multiple times by coaches and commentators for his lack of effort. But Pat Riley has put the team in a good position for the upcoming summer by creating enough cap space to resign D Wade and still bring in another Max contract player. That is the main reason why I have stuck to my belief that D Wade is not leaving Miami. Off the court, he lives in a vacation town. He’s the king of South Beach. While an argument can be made for LeBron’s need to get out of Cleveland (voted the worst city in America), I just can’t rationalize a need for D Wade to switch cities. He’s a single, rich, superstar athlete living in a city filled with gorgeous women and many affluent celebrities. The weather aint too bad either. LOL

But let’s back to the on the court issues. What if Riley fails to lure a big name to Miami to pair along with his horse? Where does that leave D Wade? For arguments sake let’s say Lebron resigns, Amare resigns, Boozer goes to ChiTown, Joe Johnson, Dirk, and others resign with their respective teams. Now here’s the key. The one guy who I believe is the most likely to move in FA is Chris Bosh. What if the Knicks are able to lure Bosh early on in free agency? We all know D Wade WILL NOT commit to resigning unless he knows there are deals in place that will significantly upgrade the talent on Miami’s roster. Even if Bosh were to resign in Toronto let’s do a quick comparison of the Knicks’ and Heat’s rosters as if Wade was sitting as a FA. I think that clearly the next best player is Danilo Gallinari. You can even argue that with Beasley’s future status unknown in Miami, that Wilson Chandler is the next best player after Galo on both rosters. And this is not even taking into account if the Knicks were able to sign Bosh. Another option for D Wade would be his hometown Chicago Bulls. But the Bulls already have a ball dominating guard in Rose and are in desperate need of an offensive interior threat.

Being able to sign D Wade away from the Heat would effectively cripple the Miami organization. Pat Riley recently told season ticket holders “Our goal is to be a dynasty”.  That’s a pretty BOLD statement from a GM who has 4 players under contract for next season. D Wade responded with  “I’m looking forward to continuing to build and being with some great players next year, continuing to beef up our roster.” Bottom line is that Wade WANTS to stay in Miami as long as Riley is able to get him some help. My only response to that is …………………………. “We can’t always get what we want Dwyane”.

With LeBron continuing to light it up on a nightly basis, Shaq looking like he has discovered the fountain of youth, and Jameson+Mo Williams + crew doing their part, the hopes of the Cleveland Cavaliers getting bounced before the NBA finals grow slimmer and slimmer. I’ve stated before that I believe anything short of winning the East increases the chances of James bolting what was has been voted “the worst city in America”.  I truly believe Donnie Walsh when he says that he has many options and that this summer is not “LeBron or Bust”. However, it’s time to start thinking about plan B … and C… and D for that matter.

The Knicks are going to have money to spend this summer and in the summer of 2011 barring a trade. They should be competitive over the next two years. But we did not need to trade the #8 overall pick in the 2009 draft along with multiple barely protected pick swaps in exchange for cap room just to make sure that this team becomes competitive. This is all about landing a “FRANCHISE PLAYER”; the type of player who makes your team a championship contender year in and year out at the start of training camp almost on his own. Lebron and D Wade fall under that category, while Chris Bosh, Amare Stoudamire, and Carlos Boozer do not. But for argument’s sake, let’s assume the Knicks are able to sign one of the players from that second group. Then what’s next??? The next crop of players start with Joe Johnson, Rudy Gay, and others. All are nice players who I would like to see in NYK orange and blue but not at the price that they are probably going to command. With so many teams having cap space you can count on these guys getting overpaid by someone. The only other player who falls in that category, or at least very close to it, is Carmelo Anthony. Melo has an ETO(early termination option) in the summer of 2011 and will most likely become an unrestricted free agent. Out of the the top tier NBA superstars right now, Carmelo could benefit the most from the media coverage and bright lights of NYC. Melo is somewhat overlooked in the national media in comparison to LBJ and D-Wade and a change of scenery to a major media market would propel his career on and off the court. I’m all for going after Carmelo, as long as Donnie finds a way to put a competitive team on the court next season. Finding the best possible mix of talent at the right price this summer while keeping enough cash in reserve to be able to afford a max deal for Carmelo next summer could be very tricky. That would require keeping $6-$8 mill of 2010 cap space unspent and letting Eddy Curry’s contract expire after the season. Multiple attractive offers are expected to be proposed to the Knicks in exchange for Curry’s contract come February 2011. And if the Knicks are in contention for the playoffs at that time Walsh may decide to add another piece via trading Curry, therefore killing all chances of signing Melo.

Many possibilities exist, but Plan A remains clear. Looking at the Detroit Pistons 2009 offseason is a prime example of the pitfalls that can follow when overpaying for non-elite players. However, having too much money to spend and not knowing what to do with it is a problem that I gladly look forward to having. I’m pretty sure most of you agree with me on that one.     70 days and counting !!!

Certainly, a lot has been made this year of coach D’antoni’s falters. Odd rotation choices, personal vendettas against players, and horrific end of game play calling on the offensive end, have been among the reasons that many fans have been calling for danny boy’s head after only two short seasons, even with a roster full of players, who for the most part have been concerned with where their next contracts will be coming from. Playing for this team for the last two seasons was sort of like being in basketball purgatory. But perhaps the biggest turn off for most fans has been the fact that his players have played with what has been called “a lack of accountability” on the defensive end of the floor.

Personally, I have never big a huge fan of this coach, even when he was in Phoenix. However, I refuse to bury him until he actually fails with some talent. I mean after all, is that not the “fair thing to do” ??

We all know “The Plan”. I would say that the majority of fans have agreed with the concept of the plan. Clear as much cap space as possible for the summer of 2010 while remaining somewhat competitive. Unfortunately, the second part of the plan gets an “F”. Despite the lack of a point guard or interior threat for two seasons, the team has played very well offensively over the last two seasons. On the other hand, the defensive end of the floor has been downright disgraceful, especially for fans like myself, who were treated to watching the 1990′s knicks scrap and scrape on a nightly basis.

Maybe it’s just me, but there seemed to be a double standard from coach to player. David Lee’s “el matador” defense has been the focus of much discussion this year. The number of times this season that this coach has benched, disciplined, or even looked upset in the direction of David Lee for missing a defensive rotation or giving up an uncontested layup, is equal to the amount of supermodels that I have dated in my lifetime …….

But why is it that D Lee or Al Buckets go about their lack of effort with no response from the coach, while Danilo Gallinari, Toney Douglas, and Wilson Chandler have felt the wrath of  D’antoni? Double standard much? Or could it be that the coach knows who his horses are going to be next season and beyond? We have seen T Doug and Ill Will yelled at and even subbed out on multiple occasions for blowing defensive assignments. And how many times have we seen Gallo take the heat from his coach? Anyone else recall the small segment MSG did recently during a game broadcast where the Coach was mic’ed and was shouting defensive instructions to Gallo followed by a “there you go”, “good job”, etc etc ?  Personally I can not recall a single time when he yelled similar instructions to his “All Star”, who happens to be a far inferior defender than the Rooster. Could it be mainly because he did not want to alienate his best and most consistent offensive player, or was it simply the fact that he knows D Lee stands a slim chance of sporting orange and blue next year?

Toney Douglas, Danilo Gallinari, and Wilson Chandler seemed to have responded. All three players seem to play with “accountability” on the defensive end of the court. All three players have done nothing but improve in every facet of the game since they first stepped on the court to play their first NBA minutes.  It’s probably not a coincidence that these players are also the only ones who are under contract for next season. (PS: dont mention Eddy Curry.. I try to pretend he does not exist.). Could Mark Jackson or Avery Johnson forced this team to play better defense over the past two season?….. Sure.  Could another coach have recorded more wins over the past two seasons with this roster? I’m really not sure. What’s to say that David Lee and Al Buckets buy into what another coach is selling? What’s to say that David Lee just is not a good defensive player and has a rift with a different coach? For all his faults and my lack of belief in his “system”, I am willing to give Mike D’antoni a fair chance here in New York with talented players.

The past two seasons have been filled with “what if’s”. As fans of this team, WE DESERVE competitive basketball again. Maybe it is my New Yorker “sense of entitlement” speaking. I just don’t care anymore. I don’t care what the ESPN national media or the fans of the Cleveland Cavs say about us NY’ers and our “sense of entitlement”. We deserve for basketball to once again be relevant in this city. It isn’t called “The City Game” for nothing.

Thanks for reading and I hope my first article was enjoyable. I look forward to the feedback and much discussion over Free Agency. LET’S GO KNICKS !!!!

All the latest news/rumors/opinions from the Madison Square Garden Hardwood coming to you soon.

Feel free to comment and share your opinions and views on our stories about local hoops within the “Concrete Jungle Where Dreams Are Made of “.