You’re saying the knicks didn’t quit playing when Marbury was on the floor?? Just watch any first half game after Marbury left the team. No one wanted to play with him because if they did what he did they would be on the BENCH.
As far as your “defensive lineup” You’re rigt everyone would pass the ball because only Nate and Crawford can shoot. Balkman and Lee are rebounders and can’t shoot anywhere besides 5 feet from the rim, but they do bring intensity on defense.
If Curry learned low post moves like Andrew Bynum has, or Yao Ming has by working with an allstar center like Patrick Ewing on his foot work, and Zach stops shooting everytime he touches the ball (he’s been better recently) then they would be tough to beat.

This morning Zeke noted how well Zach was passing out of the double team in the first half of the GSW game, but in the second half Zeke said Zach was more concerned about getting his 20 points than passing and so he had no assists in the second half. He suggest this cost the Bricks the game.
That is unacceptable. That is the very selfish play that has been his hallmark. Zeke said if he had continued to pass he might have had a triple double.

Curry had the same problem. He’s thinking he wants to get his own, and complained about not getting the ball down the stretch. But Crawford said that Curry isn’t always as open has he thinks he is and if they had tried to force the ball to him, there would have been more turnovers.
And then there is the D issue, where you can’t have a defensive liability on the floor down the stretch.

Also with Robinson and Crawford at the one and two, the scoring options open up with Curry or Randolph on the blocks.

But this is exactly why the Bricks need to use htese two jokers for scoring off the bench.

Defensively focused teams are by their very nature less selfish. No one can tell me that Lee, Jeffries, Balkman, Crawford and Robinson would be selfish. The ball would move, there would be defensive help in the paint.

I amazed that after this many years in basketball that Zach and Curry need to be schooled on the value of team play.

Since we acquired Randolph Curry’s scoring is not needed to the point where we should be willing to put up with his complete failure to play any sort of productive basketball when he does not have the ball in his hand.

I really am rooting for Eddie to play better on both ends of the court, to improve to the point where he can say make a jump shot in a pinch, rebound, box out, and pass out of a double team (that may be a failure in the scheme of the offense for all I know it’s not like we have Tex Winter on the bench).

James, Rose and Jefferies are better defenders. Not sure what Morris can do since he has played only 5 minutes the entire year. That seems wrong. I suppose I will have to trust that the coach knows what he is doing and assume that Morris is not ready to contribute.

Given the fact that our team has more or less stunk since 2000-2001 I think I will choose to believe that Morris needs to see some daylight so we know what we have when it comes time to resign him.

As to your question…:
Assuming Jeffries responds to more playing time and becomes a competent contributor, then the benefit might be in showcasing him. Maybe he would have value in a trade down the road (or at least he could play himself closer to his current salary).
There are plenty of teams that would like to have a 6’11, defensively-minded player with quickness.
Sitting him on the bench does nothing for his value.
With Curry, everyone knows what he is. I don’t think Jeffries is defined yet.
He had emerged as a decent defender and contributor on the Wizards, which is why Zeke took him. He also was pretty impressive before his injury last year.
But I believe Isiah never gave the guy a shot after the injury.

I see the logic in what you say. But I could use the same argument when you speak of staying with Curry.
What is to be gained, except that Curry makes all the other defenders on the court look bad?

See having a solid defender in the middle is a linchpin for any team.

With Curry in there, there is no defensive continuity and the rest of the Bricks become worse defenders for it.

How many times has Lee looked foolish because Curry’s defense breaks down and Lee either gets jobbed by that player, or when that player dishes to Lee’s guy when Lee comes over to help? How frustrating that must be. It might actually make you reluctant to leave your guy so at least Curry is the one who looks bad. Nobody wants to be a poster.

Secondly, Curry weakens the perimeter defense (which already is weak) because the guards and SFs are more likely to attack the basket because there is a lead foot in the middle who won’t oppose their shots.

This is where Jeffries at 6’11 with 7-footer arms could serve as a fair deterrent. I could see him shoring things up a bit in the middle. And with Lee/Randolph working the boards with him, it could be good. He’s no Camby, but I could see him being a strong weak-side defender as Camby was early on.

It is my contention that Curry being out there harms the development of players like Lee and Balkman and Robinson.
I’d rather have a defensively sound (not great, but sound) team, where my young guys can learn about team D, than one that continues to lose because there is a defensive weak link in your core defensive position…

Frank O.– I give you credit. You were pushing your lineup for a week before it was actually put on the floor. I thought you were over doing it, especially with the Jeffries aspect of it, but there has been no question that the best lineup the Knicks have had this season has been Nate, Crawford, Lee, Balkman, and Jeffries (even though Marbury was your choice over Crawford pre-surgery).

Still, arguing Jeffries over Curry at center is really just arguing for several more wins over the next 40 games. At the end of the year is it really going to make a positive difference? Curry isn’t going anywhere for a while (and he certainly isn’t going anywhere if he’s not even starting). Jeffries, though probably an improvement over Curry for the rest of this year, is hardly the center of the future. There is no real benefit to starting him, or even playing him significant minutes. Arguing Balkman and Lee makes more sense because they could, presumably, be the players we build around. Jeffries doesn’t fit that mold. If we want to see a new center get significant minutes, how about Randolph Morris, since by Feb. 21 the Knicks are going to have to trade him or watch him walk (or even J. James, who may be hungry to prove himself now that he’s healthy (and when Jerome James is hungry no one can stop him…))

Rhetorically: Characterized by overelaborate or bombastic language that is pretentious, insincere, or intellectually vacuous.

Yup, but just to help the “trolls” see how silly they are.

1) Clyde:
As JoeV has astutely pointed out, the Knicks are incapable of tuning out Clyde’s constant, indefensible berating of them. Eddy Curry cries himself to sleep every night, hoping that in the next broadcast, Clyde will complement his tremendous footwork and shotblocking.

2) Don Marbury:
Stephon was playing Lebron-calibre ball before the untimely death of his father. This emotional shock cause Marbury to have a nervous breakdown, and unfortunately, Nate Robinson has been too slow and too poor of a shooter to compensate for the loss of Stephon. Luckily, Mardy Collins is here to save the day.

3) The Fans
The constant booing at the garden has gotten to the Knicks players, who have chosen to spite the fans by giving zero effort. Their massive seven figure salaries don’t count for anything; they only want to be loved.

4) Herb Williams
Isiah has made countless brilliant trades and installed a foolproof, cohesive strategy. However, Herb Williams’ overpowering negative influence has caused the team to play poorly. The Knicks try desperately to follow Isiah’s sage advice, but with Herb undermining Isiah at every turn, the Knicks just can’t get on track.

5) Renaldo Balkman
The Knicks were playing at a championship level until Balkman came to town. His lack of hustle and poor per minute production have poisoned the Knicks selfless play. Even, Z-bo, the league’s posterboy for pass-first offense, has been infected by Balkman’s selfishness.

6) The Salary Cap
If not for the stupid salary cap, Isiah could just go out and spend more money on free agents and trade for high-$, high-value superstars that will be the cornerstone of the franchise for years to come, like Marbury was. Tracy McGrady and Vince Carter, here we come!

7) David Stern
Isiah has had countless blockbuster trades that would have immediately saved the Knicks, ready to go, but the commmissioner doesn’t think it’s in the league’s best interest to have a premier franchise and top market be a good team. Stern figures that if he conspires to keep the Knicks at the bottom of the league, other small market teams will have more opportunity to compete.

8) The Frozen Envelope
The Knicks would have been so much better off had Stern not rigged the 1985 Draft Lottery. Having Patrick Ewing lead the team for over a decade spoiled the fanbase. If we had been lousy for all those years, then we would think the 2007-2008 Knicks are great by comparison. Plus, we would have collected so many draft picks, but then again…Isiah would have traded them away by now.

9) Anucha Brown Sanders
The Knicks back office vixen clearly distracted Isiah and Dolan from excelling at their jobs as they tend to do. If she had just kept quiet and let Isiah and Dolan go on emotionally abusing their employees, then Jerome James would be averaging 20 and 10 right now.

10) Kevin Pritchard
The GM of the Jailblazers tricked Isiah by sending him a video montage of Z-bo scoring at will in the post. He edited out all the long-range bricks and any play involving defense. Isiah saw this and immediately offered the Knicks 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011 first round picks for Z-bo, thinking he was Hakeem the dream reincarnated. Pritchard, being a nice guy, didn’t want to embarrass Isiah, so he only took a few role players off our hands. Clearly, Kevin Pritchard is to blame for the Knicks sucking, because he deceived Isiah.

Needless to say, Isiah, Dolan, and the starting lineup are doing a bang-up job, and are in no way responsible for the state of the team. Someone has to clear up this mess and JoeV is just the man to do it.