Knicks Morning News (2018.01.12)

  • [SNY Knicks] GEICO SportsNite: Knicks prepare for Timberwolves
    (Thursday, January 11, 2018 6:03:20 PM)

  • [SNY Knicks] As call-up looms, Trey Burke feels ready for another chance
    (Thursday, January 11, 2018 10:50:53 PM)

    Trey Burke feels like he’s matured since the last time he was on an NBA court, as a callup to the Knicks seems on the horizon.

  • [SNY Knicks] The Knicks have a big fan in Creighton coach Greg McDermott
    (Thursday, January 11, 2018 6:30:37 PM)

    Creighton head coach Greg McDermott watches as many Knicks games as he can, as his son Doug has provided a valuable rotation contributor this season.

  • [SNY Knicks] Daily News Live: Knicks’ struggles continue
    (Thursday, January 11, 2018 6:03:20 PM)

  • [SNY Knicks] Hardaway, Jr. nears return, listed as questionable for Friday
    (Thursday, January 11, 2018 1:25:16 PM)

    Knicks SG Tim Hardaway, Jr. (stress injury, leg) practiced again on Thursday and is listed as questionable for Friday’s game against the Timberwolves in Minnesota.

  • [SNY Knicks] Knicks must finish games better if they want to reach postseason
    (Thursday, January 11, 2018 1:00:54 PM)

    After another close game slipped away from the Knicks, head coach Jeff Hornacek knows his squad needs to get better at finishing games.

  • [SNY Knicks] Jack isn’t about moral victories after triple-double performance
    (Thursday, January 11, 2018 9:28:08 AM)

    Knicks PG Jarrett Jack wasn’t worried about his box score yesterday despite it reading a triple-double.

  • [NY Newsday] Tim Hardaway Jr. nears return, and changes in Knicks’ rotation are expected
    (Thursday, January 11, 2018 7:29:20 PM)

    As the Knicks continue to prepare for Tim Hardaway Jr.’s return, some players should start preparing for a reduction in playing time.

  • [NYDN] With Hardaway set to return, Beasley likely to see role diminish
    (Thursday, January 11, 2018 2:35:20 PM)

    It was fun while it lasted, but impending return of Hardaway Jr. may symbolize end of Michael Beasley Time.

  • [NYDN] Towns, T-wolves showing Knicks how to rebuild around a star
    (Thursday, January 11, 2018 12:02:27 PM)

    When Kristaps Porzingis lines up vs. Karl-Anthony Towns he should take a moment to look at the players surrounding the T-wolves star center.

  • [NYPost] Knicks brace for rotation shake-up as Tim Hardaway nears return
    (Thursday, January 11, 2018 2:40:48 PM)

    The availability of Tim Hardaway Jr. for the Knicks in Minnesota on Friday and their ability to win on the road are pretty much the same. Both are questionable. Hardaway went through another full practice Thursday at the team’s Tarrytown facility. His official listing is “questionable” against the Timberwolves. Hardaway, who last played Nov. 29…

  • [NYPost] The Knicks’ offense has its Carmelo problem again
    (Thursday, January 11, 2018 1:58:29 PM)

    The ball is sticking for the Knicks. And no one can blame Carmelo Anthony this time. Coach Jeff Hornacek acknowledged after practice Thursday the Knicks’ offense lately has become overreliant on Kristaps Porzingis and Michael Beasley. This has led to some predictability and stagnation in the offense with the ball not moving side to side….

  • [NYPost] How Trey Burke has reinvented himself for this Knicks shot
    (Thursday, January 11, 2018 12:50:02 PM)

    Trey Burke, the Jazz lottery pick who fell from grace to the G League, says he’s a lot stabler than the rookie who entered the NBA as a cocky 19-year-old out of Michigan. After attending the final week of Knicks training camp in October, Burke has starred for the Westchester Knicks — and he’s on…

  • [NYPost] Knicks’ collapse is ironically crushing their draft hopes, too
    (Thursday, January 11, 2018 7:49:26 AM)

    This Knicks season is still about the future, so there is nothing more crushing to Knicks brass than losing three times in the final seconds to the Bulls since Dec. 9. When the teams first met in Chicago in early December, the Bulls owned the league’s worst record at 4-20. If the season ended there,…

  • 51 replies on “Knicks Morning News (2018.01.12)”

    Stupid trade machine proposal time! BTW, I talked about Kanter for Melo months before it happened so I’m, like, really good at this.

    Knicks get:
    Shumpert
    Frye
    JR
    [Insert jokes about taking three ex-Knicks back]
    i.e. Cap relief while preserving youth movement

    Cavs get:
    (Or rather take) Noah
    Lee
    KOQ
    Sessions and/or Jack
    i.e. Point guard depth, two very good rotation players, and a flyer on Noah without losing any picks.

    Fascinating trade. I’d do it if I were the Knicks (it’s not a no doubt about it great trade, but it’s enticing enough to go for), but I just don’t see the Cavs being desperate enough to go for it.

    I think we’d have to just release JR in that scenario. A locker room with JR and Beasley will push people over the brink of sanity.

    i think we should try to focus on getting draft picks still… although getting rid of noah would still be fantastic….

    kp is 22.. wily is 23… frank is 19…. th2 25…. most fa’s are going to be significantly older than these guys…. and we still need to figure out what the core is….

    i think even 2nd rd’ers could prove valuable and we may have to settle for that….

    You want a trade that works for everybody?

    CLE receives:
    Lee
    DeAndre Jordan
    CLE sends:
    Shumpert
    Thompson
    Osman

    LAC receives:
    Thompson
    Osman
    CLE’s 2018 1st round pick (I think they still own that)
    LAC sends:
    DeAndre Jordan

    NYK receives:
    Iman Shumpert
    Swap rights on the Brooklyn pick
    NYK sends:
    Courtney Lee

    Who says no? Cleveland gets two starters that instantly boost their defense and offensive efficiency (one guy dunks everything and the other guy doesn’t miss free throws or wide open threes), they move Thompson’s contract, and they keep a lottery pick in the process. I love this for Cleveland because this would be their best team ever and if LeBron, IT, and DJ all leave, they have a bunch of cap space to start over, and they keep a lottery pick to jumpstart the rebuild. New York gets from under Lee’s contract a year early and they get the opportunity to move up a couple spots in the draft. Slam dunk here for New York. The Clippers get a first round pick, a young prospect, and a pretty good center through the prime of his career to play next to Blake Griffin.

    I think this is the trade that Cleveland needs to pursue the most. It fixes their defense dramatically and improves their offense with high efficiency, high IQ role players.

    Cleveland would be foolish to not go all-in on DJ for one last shot at a title. LeBron is gone as hell in July, they have no good young players, and DJ is one of the very best players in the NBA and is consistently that player. They’d instantly become a 65-win equivalent and I think actually have a shot against the Dubs/Rockets, amazingly.

    By the way: Jordan is not a role player. He’s a centerpiece of a perennial 51- to 57-win team. He’s a star player a la Chandler. But yeah, hE dOESN’T sCORE pOINTZZ.

    Odds are that their draft picks will be more Anthony Bennett than Kyrie Irving, so why not unload them for another title run?

    I’m with you 100% Jowles. DJ is a top 10-12 player in this league but his usage rate categorizes him as a role player in many eyes. Cleveland I think would be foolish to not go grab him and Courtney Lee from us because those two guys essentially fix their problems overnight and give them their best best at beating the Warriors.

    I like that trade a lot. Its a lot of moving pieces but definitely a good one for everyone involved. Shumpert expires this year right? Would be super weird to see Shump back for a mini reunion.

    Then if we could just find a way to unload Kanter, we could then look to resign KQ and have Noah, KQ and Willy be the center rotation (with KP as well) for next season. Noah’s minutes would be restricted enough that I think Willy would still get PT every game and some games might even start or be the primary back up if Noah is out. Also dumping Kanter AND Lee this year means we could probably resign McDermott as the back up SF/sometimes starter. I like McDermott as our second unit SF.

    Yeah I think picks is definitely what we should focus on. And I think second rounders are a lot more valuable these days than they used to be. There are far more prospects every year than there used to be because of the euro wave. Having an extra second rounder or two allows you to pick some euro stash projects and all you need is for one of those dudes to hit and you’ve made out like a bandit.

    @5 I think the Clips would have to get the Brooklyn pick in that scenario. I’d be thrilled we got Cleveland’s 1st round pick for Lee.

    EDIT: Cleveland can’t trade their 2018 pick bc they traded their 2019 pick to Atlanta

    I don’t think the Clippers are getting enough back for Jordan in that scenario unless they’re really in love with Osman.

    It kind of sucks for us that Lou Williams is having such a good season. Any team that wants to trade for an off guard/wing will undoubtedly look at him before Lee. He’s dirt cheap and expiring.

    The fact that it’s so hard to find a taker for Lee really goes to show you just how shitty the vast majority of mid-tier free agent signings are. He’s having as good a season as you could reasonably expect him to have and yet it’s still pretty clear that no one wants him. I hope to no end that I’m wrong but I’m afraid this deadline is going to look a lot like last year’s for us.

    @ 11 – I would not be so sure about that. 95 percent of NBA trades happen right before the trade deadline. Its rare for a trade to go down earlier in the season. I think it was more common a few years ago but it feels like the last 5 years or so the trend is for all teams to try and “compete” till the deadline and then those few weeks before the deadline teams become either buyers, sellers or teams that are staying pat. The sellers then go into tank mode for the rest of the year and the buyers and teams that stay pat are the ones that are going to the playoffs or still trying to make the playoffs.

    So I don’t think the lack of chatter about Lee or any other player has anything to do with them (not yet at least). Its because pretty much all of the trades these days happen in that period right after the all star break.

    I like the idea of working out a trade with Cleveland. There’s history between the teams, and Lee + KOQ would really help them. I can even see Noah being a useful small-time player in the postseason.

    We need them to forget about Jordan, though. I think they will. They can’t get Jordan without that Brooklyn pick, and I think they really want to keep that.

    They have very few assets, though. All we can really get back is cap relief. I would insist on not taking JR under any circumstance.

    Cavs get:

    KOQ
    Lee
    Noah
    Thomas

    Knicks get:

    Osman
    Shumpert
    Frye
    Thompson

    …and look for a third team to dump Thompson on.

    We’d essentially get rid of all of Phil’s contracts in one fell swoop, and all those players (even Lance) could be of use to Cleveland.

    http://www.espn.com/nba/tradeMachine

    I think we should have been looking for a way to play Noah 10 mins a night for the last month. The only way we are ever going to get out from under his deal is if he proves he is healthy. And, Cle might be a team to take a win now flyer on him….hell, they traded 2 1sts for Mosgov.

    No thank you to taking back ex Knicks JR, Shump, and Frye. Once was enough, plug in some other filler or get another team involved.

    I’m not too worried, even Lebron GM isn’t dumb or desperate enough to make that trade (see @1).

    I hope I’m wrong, but I don’t think anybody is taking Noah off the Knicks’ hands unless they, too, get to unload a really bad contract back. I don’t know that Shumpert qualifies.

    Surely Cleveland will do something. As others have noted, they really should look to get DJ, but if the Clips demand too much, maybe a Lee and OQ platter would do. I’d target Osman and swap rights on the Brooklyn pick along with whatever contract(s) match up (Shumpert makes sense there).

    I just can’t imagine them wanting Noah or LT in any deal.

    Don’t the Knicks historically do the reunion thing just before the players retire? Q-Rich, Kurt Thomas, Camby, Tim Thomas. I’m sure I’m missing a few.

    Talk to me about JR, Shump and Frye in 2-3 years when they’re ready to use NY as a layover to Beijing.

    I just can’t imagine them wanting Noah or LT in any deal.

    Nobody wants them with their contracts. You make them the cost of acquiring Lee and KOQ. But they are more than sunk costs. They could help.

    Lance is not as terrible as we make him out on this board. He’s not of value to us, but he’s a 41% three point shooter over the last three seasons and he plays very good defense. Right now, he’s more valuable to the Cavs than Cedi Osman. Cedi Osman is unlikely to play a single minute in the postseason. Lance could at least give them competent spot minutes as their 9th man.

    Cleveland is pretty much the only team that would consider this because of their unique position. They need to improve now but will probably tank next year. The Cavs would be significantly upgrading two starting positions (C & SG), slightly upgrading a low bench position, and getting a wild card in Noah. And they get to keep that pick they’re enamored with.

    Would they be better off with Jordan? Of course. But they don’t want to pay the price.

    I want to note that I meant 65-win equivalent when LBJ is playing 44 minutes per game as LeFuckYou Playoffs LeBron. DJ at 32 mpg probably makes them a 57- to 60-win team.

    minny is playing really well right now…it’s kind of funny – they have five players averaging over 33 minutes a game…work em thibs, work em….

    it’s so weird – most of the players/coaches on the team say the right things to the media – it’ll be interesting though is they take the whole move the ball – stop with the iso plays to heart…

    would like to see more (or at least some) kanter in the fourth…our small lineup with kp at the five late in games hasn’t been working so well lately…

    hopefully timmy will come back tonight…the knicks really need a shot of “something” to get their mojo back…if he does – i’d like to see kp’s minutes lowered more than beasley’s…

    and, less lance is usually a good thing…

    30 – 33 mins per game for Timmy have to come from somewhere. Lance has averaged 22 over the last 10 games, hopefully that’s 22 of them. Beasley has earned his time, but I can see his 24 being cut to 20. Where is the other 4-7 coming from? I hope it’s not Ron, but I fear it will be. It should be from Jack.

    Just finished a discussion about Lonzo Ball on twitter and apparently he’s an above average-elite defender by any metric. He’s the literal reincarnation of Jason Kidd and we have people arguing that higher draft picks (and the higher chance of moving up in the lottery) aren’t worth the abstract benefits of winning more games. Lol. Please for the love of God tank for a 5-10% increased chance of getting Doncic.

    somehow or another lonzo is starting to get that fugly shot put looking shot of his to fall…it’s kind of amazing…we’ll see if teams start closing out on him faster now that his shot is starting to fall…

    it looks like his shot should hit most opposing players straight in the chest when he shoots…

    when he fills out physically and gains another 20 lbs or so – he’s going to be a handful to deal with around the basket…

    same thing for ingram…

    He’s the literal reincarnation of Jason Kidd

    All due respect to Lonzo, I’d be shocked if he has as great a career as Jason Kidd. I still think Kidd gets lost in the discussion of greatest PG’s, he took a Nets team to 2 straight finals with Hall of Fame teammates like Kenyon Martin, Richard Jefferson and Kerry Kittles. To this day one of the smartest players I’ve ever seen on a court, I’ll never forget the time he saw an opposing coach wandering onto the court and purposely dribbled into him to get the coach a T. Just brilliant.

    NBADraft.net has Doncic going 6th in the draft. The Knicks are currently 5 games out of the 6th spot with 40 games to play. This is not impossible.

    Even if we get to the 8th seed, we’ll have a 10% chance at a Top 3 pick.

    Six of our next 10 games are against teams that are below us in the standings.

    @Brk
    @Mem
    @Utah
    @LAL
    @Pho
    vs Brk

    If we can somehow lose 5 of them, I will start getting excited about the tank.

    NBADraft.net has Doncic going 6th in the draft

    Then you should stop reading nbadraft.net

    I think Doncic goes at lowest #3, barring injury or some truly mind-boggling NCAA tournament performances from the top 5 college guys.

    Here’s a question: How much would you give up to trade up to #2 or #3 (assuming that KP is off the table as he will be) in order to draft Doncic? I’d give up Willy, this year’s first, a 2020 first, and our CHI 2nd. Is that enough (I think so, if we’re at 6-10 when it’s all said and done)? Is it too much (I don’t think so, the kid is a S U P E R S T A R in the 2nd best basketball league in the world)?

    “I don’t know that just because someone lives in a hut, that doesn’t mean that isn’t a good person, that that person can’t do better, that person isn’t capable of being great. And just because it’s a hut – whatever that means – doesn’t mean it’s not a home. God doesn’t put anyone someplace permanently. I am a living testimony to that. If I grew up in a shithole, I am proud of my shithole.”

    well said masai ujiri…well said indeed…

    @31

    Ujiri is one of my favorite people in sports. What a guy.

    It’s not about being a good person, it’s about: can you support yourself? Or are my tax dollars going to support you?
    If you can support yourself I’m all for an open door policy. If not, sorry okay bye. We have enough native born deadbeats living off the state as it is.
    And for you snowflakes with your bleeding hearts, there’s nothing stopping you from sponsoring a needy immigrant out of your own pocket.

    and he plays very good defense.

    Lance Thomas is not a very good defender. He’s not terrible, so he stands out among terrible defenders, but he’s mediocre. He just gives maximum effort, so it looks like he’s really engaged out there and that makes it look like he’s doing more on defense than he really is. Plus, he does have the occasional excellent game on defense, that’s definitely true. He has his moments.

    @33
    Just curious. So, are there a lot of “snowflakes” on this board? Who are you referring to? Geo? Silky Johnson? Masai Ujiri?

    @29
    Yeah, unless something very surprising happens, Doncic should go well before 6. FWIW, I’m holding on to hope that the Knicks will end up in the top 10, but getting to the top 5 will likely require some serious lottery luck.

    Yes, the board leans highly prog/snowflake, which is cool and to be expected for a predominantly nyc group.
    @35 as long as jowles has carte blanche to insult everybody who disagrees with his politics, I’ll proceed with my comments unless politics is banned on here. Thanks for demonstrating what a snowflake is for 36 by the way.

    why even let in guys from our shithole bench full of handout player options and four year deals to admitted drug users. what we need is guys from Toronto’s bench and more hatred. Toronto once had andrea bargnani and now they don’t, many people don’t know that.

    I just saw the opponent and wondered who’s gonna deal with Towns. I just hope he doesn’t dunk KP.

    hahahahahahaha…ptmilo – how do you even think some of this stuff up – too funny 🙂

    I have similar rhetorical intensity when talking about the rise of white-nationalist fascism in this country and the astronomical value of low-volume dunk-and-defend guys who shoot .670 TS%, so I apologize in advance to anyone that I have to set straight on this board. You’re bad and you should feel bad.

    just cuz i have no good filter – gotta be honest jowles – for the first few years i followed knickerblogger i read all your posts in the voice of roy bean…not that i have any clue what he may have sounded like – but, i always imagined it to be more like the tough and grizzled character from larry mcmurtry’s streets of laredo then that weird paul newman potrayal…

    well, there it is…

    I sound and look more like Judge Holden than Judge Bean. Plus, I never wear a shirt.

    @45 you’re a stereotype of a stereotype who just mouths the day’s talking points. The ultimate woke white liberal who lives in Portland and probably works in academia.

    Fyi in case you missed it— Sessions was waived today and Shams announced Trey Burke was signed. So there’s that.

    @48

    Because naming people who disagree with an extreme neoliberal / austrian / whatever view of the world “snowflakes” is definitely not stereotypical!

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