2015 NY Knicks offseason thread, Los Almighty appreciation thread

Quick question, and I might get flamed for even asking. Do you guys think pippen was a "superstar" in every sense of the word?

Or just a really really great player?
 
you go boy said:
the pistons won in 04 with no superstars and GSW and the mavs won with 1 superstar so you can win with less... the thing is you need depth on your team to win and thats the bottomline
Click to expand...

Ehh gsw won with 1 superstar, but they had more than a few better than average players. Even though Thompson didn't play you can't ease off him. Green is the Swiss Army knife, iggy is a former all star and is the SG/SF version of green, bogut is a better than average center, and Barnes was the X factor. Not to mention they had a deep bench and everyone that played, contributed. The cavs weren't gonna win even with a healthy kyrie.
 
 [h1]Isiah Thomas — yes, that Isiah Thomas — is Liberty’s Mr. Fix-it[/h1]
By Marc Berman

August 1, 2015 | 9:13pm

Modal Trigger
isiah.jpg


Liberty president Isiah Thomas has been a significant force behind the team's 12-6 start this season.Photo: AP

Isiah Thomas is having a better first year as a Garden team president with the Liberty than Phil Jackson did with the Knicks.

Thomas, whose May 6 hiring was met with reams of controversy, has unruined the Liberty, who possess the Eastern Conference’s best record at 12-6 — their best start since 2001.

The Liberty, who staged a recent five-game winning streak, host Seattle on Sunday at the Garden on Becky Hammon Day. She will be inducted into the “Ring of Honor.’’

Past the season’s halfway mark, Thomas has tried to repair his image after sinking the Knicks. Hammon, the Spurs assistant coach, played here during the glory days — when the franchise made three of its four Finals appearances (1999, 2000, 2002).

Thomas, the former Knicks president and coach, has kept a low profile with the media, fearing journalists will ask him about the Knicks, or his involvement in the Garden’s 2007 sexual harassment trial. Thomas hasn’t commented on the WNBA’s decision to postpone his ownership bid until after the season.

In a statement to The Post, Thomas said of the Liberty’s resurgence: “I’m happy with the way our team is playing. Our team has incredible chemistry, it is a very close-knit group, and I think that shows on the court. It is great to have had so much early-season success, but there are a lot of games left and I know Coach [Bill] Laimbeer, his staff, and the team are focused on improving every day.’’

So is there anything to the Isiah Effect? Secretly, behind the scenes last fall, Isiah saved former “Bad Boy’’ teammate Laimbeer’s job after two straight losing seasons (15-19, 11-23). For nebulous reasons, Laimbeer, who had won three WNBA titles, was let go last October. Thomas brought back the WNBA’s most decorated coach.

Laimbeer said he believes Thomas has increased the team’s urgency by putting the franchise in the limelight and under scrutiny by Garden executives. Owner James Dolan, who had mulled selling because the team loses money, has attended four games.

“It’s just Isiah’s presence with the franchise,’’ Laimbeer told The Post. “He is engaged with the Liberty. You can’t underestimate what that has done for our players. The last couple of years the front office was something out of the blue. Now everybody knows the Liberty is here.The onus and pressure is on us to perform. That’s good for us. We’re thriving in that environment. We know people are watching us and we’re performing like we’re supposed to.’’

Part of the flagging interest was the Liberty being bounced from the Garden during the three-year transformation.

“I didn’t see [Dolan] for two years,’’ Laimbeer said. “It wasn’t on his radar. It had been a long time the Liberty had won anything. I understand it to a point. We had to make ourselves relevant. He made us relevant by the move he made with Isiah. Now we’ve made ourselves relevant by our performance on the court.’’

Garden attendance hasn’t increased since Isiah’s arrival — averaging the same 8,900 through eight home games. But that could rise if the Liberty become playoff forces into late September.

“Basketball is in his passion and it’s pointed at the Liberty,’’ Laimbeer said. He’s in with his two feet. He watches all the games, comes to all games at home, chats on the phone with me, goes to coaches meetings sometimes, helps with sponsors, tickets sales. This is his business.’’

The Isiah issue can still be toxic. Jackson has stated Knicks general manager Steve Mills — not Thomas — is his heir apparent. But the harassment-trial link isn’t as easily dismissed. Even Hammon, who coached the Spurs summer league team to the title in July, wouldn’t comment in Las Vegas on Thomas’ hire, fearing whatever answer she gave would be picked apart.

Thomas pushed to draft Cal point guard Brittany Boyd, and has helped her become a key contributor on one of the league’ s most potent benches.

“He’s showed her court awareness, how to read the defense,’’ Laimbeer said of Thomas role in Boyd’s development. “He’s educated her on how a point guard in pro basketball needs to operate.
”
Click to expand...
When I say that Berman and the Post are even worse than Isola, this is exactly the kind of **** I am talking about, Isola is a blind hater and a troll, but at least it is better than the Dolan propaganda that is Marc Berman. 

This is phase 1 of a Dolan operation that will slowly but surely try to get Isiah back in charge of the Knicks within 3 years if Phil doesnt work out. There is literally no other reason for Isiah to be here and the first sentence in the ******* article even says that Isiaih is doing better with the Liberty in his first season than Phil did with the Knicks.
mean.gif


The NY media is a ******* joke, and the worst part about it is that they actually have power. None of the **** is helpful to the team between Isola trying to drive Phil and Melo apart to Berman trying to help Dolan get Isiah back in good grace with the NYC fanbase. God forbid we have an even keeled reporter in NY who isnt driven by his own personal agenda. 

I mean it all starts and ends with Dolan when it comes to NY, because in his lunatic mind you are either with him or against him. Which causes the formerly intelligent/rational Isola to become a vigilante troll because he refuses to play to Dolan's demands, and others like Berman trying to spin whatever the **** Dolan wants him to in order to stay in his good grace. **** is ******* sickening to watch.

It wont be an overnight process, but expect more and more of this Isiah bull **** to come from The Post until he eventually becomes a legitimate candidate for the Knicks due to stories like this about how much he has changed and what a good job he is doing with the ******* Liberty. 
mean.gif
 
 
Last edited:
Did we really cut Ledo to save a couple Gs just to sign Vujacic for $1.35 mil? How the **** do you sign Sasha for more than the vet min.
mean.gif


I have been and will continue to give Phil the benefit of the doubt until I see his vision on the floor, but giving Sasha more than the minimum sounds extremely fishy to me when you already lost Ledo, Shved, and Ndour this summer due to financial reasons and there were other players out there you could have had for that kind of money.

Dude has been out of the league for 5 years now and wasnt even good before that, 
mean.gif
 
 
Last edited:
Nuggets To Waive Kostas Papanikolaou

AUG 1, 2015 5:54 PM 

Kroenke_Josh_den_130531.jpg


The Denver Nuggets will waive Kostas Papanikolaou.

Papanikolaou's deal worth $4.7 million is non-guaranteed.

Papanikolaou was acquired from the Houston Rockets in the Ty Lawson trade.
Click to expand...
Wouldnt mind trying to bring back Papa Knick if we could afford him 
nerd.gif
 
THE GR8EST said:
Nuggets To Waive Kostas Papanikolaou



AUG 1, 2015 5:54 PM 



Kroenke_Josh_den_130531.jpg




The Denver Nuggets will waive Kostas Papanikolaou.



Papanikolaou's deal worth $4.7 million is non-guaranteed.



Papanikolaou was acquired from the Houston Rockets in the Ty Lawson trade.
Click to expand...

Wouldnt mind trying to bring back Papa Knick if we could afford him :nerd:
Click to expand...
Haven't followed his career at all is he any good?
 
NyDunkhead said:
THE GR8EST said:
Nuggets To Waive Kostas Papanikolaou



AUG 1, 2015 5:54 PM 



Kroenke_Josh_den_130531.jpg




The Denver Nuggets will waive Kostas Papanikolaou.



Papanikolaou's deal worth $4.7 million is non-guaranteed.



Papanikolaou was acquired from the Houston Rockets in the Ty Lawson trade.
Click to expand...

Wouldnt mind trying to bring back Papa Knick if we could afford him :nerd:
Click to expand...
Haven't followed his career at all is he any good?
Click to expand...
His shooting numbers are ugly but from the limited times I've seen him, he rebounds pretty well and seems to understand how to move the ball also. I've seen him make some very smart passes. He's pretty active too, finds a way to be all over when defending.
 
I watched him a couple times this past season for the Rockets. He looked solid. I think he would be a very solid addition if we could get him.
 
[h1]  [/h1]
[h1]The Phil Files: Turning to the future[/h1]
15m  - NBA  LANGSTON GALLOWAY  +2 more
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
i

Rafa Alvarez

  • Charley Rosen
Charley Rosen, author of 18 books about basketball and a former assistant coach under Phil Jackson in the Chinese Basketball Association, spent a day with Jackson in every month of his debut season with the New York Knicks, during which the Hall of Fame coach-turned-executive talked frankly about his roster and his new role as team president. Read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4  and Part 5. Check back next week for Part 7.
Date:  March 23, 2015
Knicks' record:  14-57

Phil Jackson sits at the same round table in the same ritzy private suite in which we'd met just before Christmas. The room is still ringed with uncomfortable-looking metal chairs, and a monstrous TV screen remains affixed to the far wall. Even the buffet is similar.

Many of Jackson's thoughts about his team, even three months later, are likewise familiar.

"I was especially unhappy by the way we lost to Philadelphia last Friday," Jackson says, referencing to the 97-81 defeat  at the hands of the 17-win 76ers three days earlier. "When Philly's defense aggressively denied the wing entries, we failed to counter by using our automatics. What was supposed to happen was the center flashes to the high post, receives the ball from a guard, then passes to a wing who's perfectly set up for a back-door cut. None of this happened. Nor did the centers make back-door cuts when they were overplayed in the low post. At this point in the season, these failings are bothersome."

Jackson then goes into specifics on several of his players: "Alexey Shvedhas been a pleasant surprise," he says about the 26-year-old guard acquired from the Rockets at the trade deadline. "You never know what he's going to do every time he has the ball, but he's tricky when he gets to the hoop and he's an outstanding interior passer. He's an erratic shooter because his release is a little low, so most of his misses are front-rimmers. Also, he's not very strong so the slightest bump can derail him. It'll be up to him how hard he wants to work on his strength during the offseason. But he's certainly a welcome addition."

Despite a protracted stretch of poor play, Jackson remains a fan of Lance Thomas. His up-to-date evaluation of Quincy Acy, a player he was "really enthusiastic" about in the preseason, wasn't quite so positive: "He does work hard, but too often he looks to shoot a jumper. It's like he wants to see if he's hot or not."

Travis Wear  is progressing, "but he's overly cautious with the ball because he's so afraid of making a mistake."

Langston Galloway  hasn't made a full recovery after "running full-speed into the rookie-wall."

Jackson is happy that Andrea Bargnani  is finally back in action after missing most of the season's first half and playing reasonably well. "He's such a good shooter that defenders have to bite on his shot-fakes," Jackson says. "Even so, when Andrea does drive he almost always moves in straight lines. He rarely, if ever, executes any kind of change of direction. And he gets hurt because he can't avoid the resulting contact."

Jason Smith  elicits Jackson's most direct comment: "You can tell by his demeanor that he's not happy coming off the bench. He was pressed into a starter's role because Andrea was out, but since he's been coming off the bench, Jason hasn't been shooting well and is much less active on defense."

While Jackson admits that Shane Larkin's play has improved, he's still unhappy with one critical aspect of the smaller guard's game: feeding the pivot. All of Jackson's championship teams featured a center who could use his big butt to establish and maintain low-post position. But Smith, Bargnani and Lou Amundson, lacking the same posterior mass, are obliged to use their arms and elbows to seal off their defenders.

Overall, because of injuries and bench players having to play starters' minutes, "a lot of the guys are worn down, and much more often than not we simply don't have enough juice to be competitive for 48 minutes."
With losses mounting, Phil Jackson and the Knicks front office began sizing up the incoming draft class. Getty Images

With the present in disarray, Jackson turns his attention to the future -- specifically the numerous unrestricted free agents who will be available on July 1 and in the upcoming draft. It's no secret now that the Knicks' success -- and Jackson's -- entirely depends on the choices he makes in the offseason.

"This will be a very top-heavy draft," he says. "There are lots of guys I really like.D'Angelo Russell  from Ohio State. Jahlil Okafor  from Duke. And a bunch of guys from Kentucky: Devin Booker, a 6-6 guard; Willie Cauley-Stein, a 7-foot forward who played wide receiver in high school and loves contact; and of course Karl-Anthony Towns."

The widely held assumption is that, should the Knicks secure the top pick, it's a tossup between whether Jackson would go with either Okafor or Towns. However, after recently watching Kentucky play and witnessing one of their practice sessions, Jackson has this to say about Towns: "For sure, he's a better defender than Okafor, but even in the limited minutes he got during the season, Towns was always in foul trouble. Also, he's not very core-strong. Plus, his big feet will make it difficult for him to maneuver through heavy traffic in the paint. I think in four years Towns will be a better NBA player that Okafor, but Okafor is more NBA-ready right now and we need help ASAP."

Another draft-eligible player Jackson likes is Emmanuel Mudiay, a 6-5 point guard who opted to play in China in lieu of college. "He was hurt over there," Jackson reports, "and he didn't play long enough to bond with his new teammates, but the kid is a team player and very talented."

In addition to watching hours of tape throughout the season, Jackson says he has also done lots of what he calls "intel work" to prepare for the draft.

"It's of vital importance to try to discover the ethics of a player," he says. "What's important to him? In what direction does he want his pro career to go? Is he a leader or a follower? Is he coachable? What's the size of the universe he lives in? In the case of Mudiay, he has a needy family so he needed the immediate money that he could get in China. That tells a lot about the young man's priorities."

Depending on how the ping-pong balls bounce, Phil could also choose to trade down. "It's conceivable that we could trade picks, still get a guy I like, and also get a player who's already an established star, plus another young player who might be on the verge of stardom. There are, and will be, plenty of possibilities."

Even so, Jackson says the game plan en vogue in the NBA will greatly influence the free agents he will investigate. "Screen-roll and screen-pop with stretch-4s are all the rage. That means, on defense, big men must be able to either switch or step out and stop the guards from penetrating. Guys like Chris Bosh  and [Nerlens] Noel can. Guys like David Lee  and Greg Monroe  can't. So finding someone who is able and willing to fit our specific needs is more important than just having lots of salary cap money to spend. Plus, the kicker is that we can't do anything in the free-agent market until we're sure that either Marc Gasol  orDeAndre Jordan  are available or not."

Jackson will also be seeking a guard who can get to the hoop. "Wes Matthewswould have been perfect for us, but it's a player's recovery from a severe Achilles injury like the one he suffered that is always problematic."
In addition to the private room, there was one more all-too-familiar circumstance that was evident at Madison Square Garden this night: The Knicks suffer another loss, this time a 103-82 defeat to the Memphis Grizzlies.

Jackson, however, remains optimistic.

"There are many examples of a team that went from sh-- to Shinola in a short few years," he says. "Like the Celtics when they added Larry Bird, or the Magic when Shaq and Penny Hardaway  got there. So there are plenty of reasons for Knick fans to keep the faith."

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/13347986/phil-files-part-6-turning-future

Oh and now Isola is dissing Knicks fans on twitter saying that opposed to Mets fans, we accept losing. Despite Knicks and Mets fans essentially being the same fan base. This dude ******* sucks 
mean.gif
 
Last edited:
Wow Isola is a dirtbag for that one. I've watched both teams and their incompetent management struggle for all these years. Only difference is that I can afford to go to Citi Field regularly. :lol:
 
Last edited:
So I was just reading the Knicks Blog article about the best Knicks at each position, and one of the links in the article led me to an old article about Willis Reed speaking about Ewing after he got traded to the Sonics that I have never read before. One of the quotes from the article (when Reed was working for the Nets):
"I work for the New Jersey Nets, but I'll always be a Knick," Reed said. "I'll be a Knick fan. I'll be a Knick player. They can't take that away. That's part of my life. My mom had come to visit me after we had won a big game with the Nets. I said, 'Hey mom, you see we won tonight?' She said, 'Yeah, the Knicks won tonight.' 'Oh no, Mom, the Nets won.'

"She thinks of me a Knick. And that's OK. That's a good thing to be. People will appreciate Patrick more after he leaves than when he was here ... But he'll be a Knick. To me, he will always be a Knick."
Click to expand...
Captain 
pimp.gif


That ******* quote should be hung up and framed at MSG somewhere. Willis always knew what it was all about.

EDIT: Just realized it was a Wojnarowski article back when he was working for the Bergen Record 
laugh.gif
 
Last edited:
Why is Isola always getting brought up in here, we all knew his a certified Knick hater... so lets not give the man anymore play u dig? :lol:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest News

View All News

The ultimate sneaker enthusiast community.

Site contents may not be incorporated into AI training data or any other derivative works without prior express written consent.

Links to participating merchants may generate referral or affiliate commissions that help support our community. See our policies for details. NikeTalk is NOT affiliated with Nike Inc. in any way, shape, or form. All opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of Nike, Inc.

© 1999-2024 NikeTalk.com

Share this page

Back
Top Bottom