If KD doesn't sign why not go after a combo of
Bismarck Biyombo and Fournier / Crabbe
Instead of pursuing Noah and Howard who are going to come a lot more expensive
BB is a relentless defender rebounder and shot blocker. Younger and cheaper than above and allows them to pursue a wing like Fournier or Crabbe
BB will do all the dirty work on the defensive end and set the punishing picks for DRose He doesn't need the ball and allows KP and Melo freedom on the offensive end
BB. Center
KP power forward
Melo small forward
Crabbe/ Fournier SG
Derrick Rose PG
Also keeps more cap space available for 2017. I.E. Westbrook
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In comment 13012295 Deej said:
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Im not convinced you use real free cap space on 3 and D guys. Maybe in the cheaper range, sub $10 million. But otherwise I think you try to develop them. You can pay them if you're capped out (S&T, Bird).
I admit this might just be a bias. I could be really wrong here. Also, didnt see enough ATL this year to know how good a defender he is. I havent heard that he's an elite wing defender.
Completely agree with this. 3 and D guys need to be developed constantly. Having someone like Lance Thomas is a huge asset when he's cost-controlled - not so much when you're paying them a decent paycheck and still trying to build a roster.
would have been nice if the front office had locked up Lance or Galloway with at least a team option for this year.
So your complaint now is that they didn't lock up Galloway and Thomas for multiple years at their current rate, which was slightly above minimum salary? Jesus.
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You're glossing over points with your agenda. The Knicks are unquestionably better from an asset mgmt POV. Are the KNicks in good financially shape and do they or don't they have more picks looming then we can ever remember? Simple fucking question. Oh yea and they have the best young player this franchise has sniffed in 30 fucking years.
Don't bother i'm done with you.
I think the issue is- what are we doing with those assets, that money and the best young player in 30 years?
We're still trying to build around Melo's timeline, we're rolling the dice on injured players, maybe signing them to long term deals.
I think every single person is 10000% on board with KP. The question is- are we patient or are we trying another short term fix for the 135252351 time since we traded Ewing?
What exactly has Phil done that is hurting the team in the long term? We have retained all of our draft picks going forward, the cap is clear other than Melo and Porzingis starting next year, and if anything, being competitive this year and letting Porzingis play meaningful minutes will only help his development.
If they go out and hand out bad long term contracts this summer, then yeah you can start to criticize Jackson for not building around Porzingis. Looks to me like he has done a good job so far of putting a team that can be competitive in the short term while still leaving flexibility for the long term.
I never got the whole 'we got to give a GM credit for earning a high draft pick.' It's basically telling someone they did a great job at farting in the wind.
No Sam Hinkie did not do a great job in Philly either.
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In comment 13012383 Aspano! said:
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In comment 13012295 Deej said:
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Im not convinced you use real free cap space on 3 and D guys. Maybe in the cheaper range, sub $10 million. But otherwise I think you try to develop them. You can pay them if you're capped out (S&T, Bird).
I admit this might just be a bias. I could be really wrong here. Also, didnt see enough ATL this year to know how good a defender he is. I havent heard that he's an elite wing defender.
Completely agree with this. 3 and D guys need to be developed constantly. Having someone like Lance Thomas is a huge asset when he's cost-controlled - not so much when you're paying them a decent paycheck and still trying to build a roster.
would have been nice if the front office had locked up Lance or Galloway with at least a team option for this year.
So your complaint now is that they didn't lock up Galloway and Thomas for multiple years at their current rate, which was slightly above minimum salary? Jesus.
I know...it's too much to ask of Phil to do something smart like that.
2) Trading for Rose will lead to signing more guys like Noah, other stop gap type players to multi year contracts that will hurt that same flexibility, and whose timeline doesn't line up with KP.
3) Wont go into the same convo but Grant and Lopez are definitely assets. You'll see how much of an asset Lopez is when Noah is making nearly double what Lopez is. The contracts about to be handed out are gonna be crazy.
2) Trading for Rose will lead to signing more guys like Noah, other stop gap type players to multi year contracts that will hurt that same flexibility, and whose timeline doesn't line up with KP.
3) Wont go into the same convo but Grant and Lopez are definitely assets. You'll see how much of an asset Lopez is when Noah is making nearly double what Lopez is. The contracts about to be handed out are gonna be crazy.
You think Noah will make close to 28 mil per year?
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In comment 13012457 djm said:
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You're glossing over points with your agenda. The Knicks are unquestionably better from an asset mgmt POV. Are the KNicks in good financially shape and do they or don't they have more picks looming then we can ever remember? Simple fucking question. Oh yea and they have the best young player this franchise has sniffed in 30 fucking years.
Don't bother i'm done with you.
I think the issue is- what are we doing with those assets, that money and the best young player in 30 years?
We're still trying to build around Melo's timeline, we're rolling the dice on injured players, maybe signing them to long term deals.
I think every single person is 10000% on board with KP. The question is- are we patient or are we trying another short term fix for the 135252351 time since we traded Ewing?
What exactly has Phil done that is hurting the team in the long term? We have retained all of our draft picks going forward,
not second rounders.
O'Quinn? And as it's been stated a million times, when everyone has cap space, cap space is not really an asset.
If they go out and hand out bad long term contracts this summer, then yeah you can start to criticize Jackson for not building around Porzingis. Looks to me like he has done a good job so far of putting a team that can be competitive in the short term while still leaving flexibility for the long term.
in order to be competitive in the short term, we're going to need a LOT more than what is currently on the roster. I'm hoping for good players on smart deals. Let's see what happens this summer.
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point is 100% valid. Phil was not putting together a "tank for a high pick" roster and anyone who claims otherwise is lying to themselves. Great pick but that wasn't the plan. To "pick high".
I never got the whole 'we got to give a GM credit for earning a high draft pick.' It's basically telling someone they did a great job at farting in the wind.
No Sam Hinkie did not do a great job in Philly either.
Hey I'll never take credit away from a GM/president making a great pick. Even if Phil 100% deferred to Gaines or whomever, props to him for putting a guy in position to recommend such a strong prospect. That said there is 0.00% argument to be had that Phil went into the 2015 season with the plan being "let's tank and get a high pick". It's just not true. He didn't trade for a 33 year old Jose Calderon and 34 year old Dalembert to tank. The 2014-2015 Knicks did not have good talent, but to start the season that was not viewed as an awful roster. Most expected us to challenge for the playoffs.
Melo, JR Smith, Shumpert, Dalembert coming off a solid season, Calderon (before we knew he was shot), Amare, Jason Smith coming off a solid season etc etc
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In comment 13012415 giantsfan44ab said:
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If the outcomes were on a normal distribution curve the probability of him returning to that player is all the way in the right tail.
The fact is he's not that player anymore and I don't think that's even fair to say he still has the MVP caliber player in him. But if the second half of last season shows anything, he still has top 10 PG potential in him.
Sorry I meant month, not season. Last season, second half included, he only had one month of TS% above .500
That's not even true. His TS% was .526 in January, .508 in February, .511 in March. The only times it was under 50% was when he was wearing the mask, and in a small 3 games sample in April.
I wonder what happened down the stretch because in his last 7 games he shot 33.3% from the field and 20% from 3.
Link - ( New Window )
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1) Trading for Rose bumps KP to the third option most likely. I have trouble seeing how a guy like Rose will lead to MORE shots for KP unless he dramatically changes his game. This is irrelevant to how well he plays- he's not Chris Paul, thats not his game.
2) Trading for Rose will lead to signing more guys like Noah, other stop gap type players to multi year contracts that will hurt that same flexibility, and whose timeline doesn't line up with KP.
3) Wont go into the same convo but Grant and Lopez are definitely assets. You'll see how much of an asset Lopez is when Noah is making nearly double what Lopez is. The contracts about to be handed out are gonna be crazy.
You think Noah will make close to 28 mil per year?
From the way people are talking about this cap situation, I absolutely would not be surprised if Noah gets well above 20 per year.
The only long-term move Phil made prior to the 2015 draft was the Chandler-Calderon trade. What other move could possibly be considered a "win now" move?
If anyone is going to kill Phil, they must first acknowledge that the biggest problem the team had is not having 1st round picks in 2 of the past 3 seasons. It would be one thing if that was Phil's fault, but those picks were traded before he took over.
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point is 100% valid. Phil was not putting together a "tank for a high pick" roster and anyone who claims otherwise is lying to themselves. Great pick but that wasn't the plan. To "pick high".
I never got the whole 'we got to give a GM credit for earning a high draft pick.' It's basically telling someone they did a great job at farting in the wind.
No Sam Hinkie did not do a great job in Philly either.
Wait 3 years before you decide on what Hinkie did and didn't do. They're future is 10 times brighter than ours.
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point is 100% valid. Phil was not putting together a "tank for a high pick" roster and anyone who claims otherwise is lying to themselves. Great pick but that wasn't the plan. To "pick high".
The only long-term move Phil made prior to the 2015 draft was the Chandler-Calderon trade. What other move could possibly be considered a "win now" move?
If anyone is going to kill Phil, they must first acknowledge that the biggest problem the team had is not having 1st round picks in 2 of the past 3 seasons. It would be one thing if that was Phil's fault, but those picks were traded before he took over.
So trading a rookie for a 27 year old high risk/high reward type player isn't a win now move?
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point is 100% valid. Phil was not putting together a "tank for a high pick" roster and anyone who claims otherwise is lying to themselves. Great pick but that wasn't the plan. To "pick high".
The only long-term move Phil made prior to the 2015 draft was the Chandler-Calderon trade. What other move could possibly be considered a "win now" move?
If anyone is going to kill Phil, they must first acknowledge that the biggest problem the team had is not having 1st round picks in 2 of the past 3 seasons. It would be one thing if that was Phil's fault, but those picks were traded before he took over.
Win now? Win now and "tank" are 2 totally different things. The 2014-2015 Knicks were projected by EVERYONE to challenge for the playoffs (as they should have). Totally revisionist to suggest there was a plan to tank for a high pick. Who is killing him? I'm stating facts.
I'm also surprised at what Phil said the other day about trying to build around Melo. Doesn't this seem like a change of direction?
Although if something major happens, you can just tank like last year and nab a top pick before loading up on cap space for next season ala Spurs with Tim duncan
"WILL THE NEW YORK TEAMS MAKE THE PLAYOFFS? WHICH WILL BE BETTER IN THREE YEARS?
Ziller: I could see the Knicks being a late playoff seed because of the offense and Carmelo Anthony, assuming the two things fit. The Nets continue to watch Brook Lopez with one eye closed, but I'd argue they upgraded at head coach by hiring Lionel Hollins. In three years though, the Nets might be in a strip-it-down rebuild as those fat contracts expire (and possibly under new management), while the Knicks should be putting the finishing touches on Melo's final runs at the trophy."
WHO WILL MAKE THE PLAYOFFS?
Ziller: In order of my predicted seeds: Chicago, Cleveland, Washington, Charlotte, Toronto, Miami, New York, Detroit.
Flannery: Chicago, Cleveland, Miami, Toronto, Washington, Atlanta, Charlotte, Brooklyn.
Bleacher Report
9. New York Knicks: 36-46
CBS
31-51 33-49 29-53
I'm also surprised at what Phil said the other day about trying to build around Melo. Doesn't this seem like a change of direction?
Is this sarcasm? This FO, including Phi, has been building around Melo since Melo was still in Denver.
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really hope they resist chasing "names" that are ALWAYS injured. Rose + Gordon + Noah + Melo (who tends to get dinged no knock on him) sounds like an upgraded team on paper but also potentially an absolute disaster. Even KP seems to get dinged a bit. I'd avoid stocking up on fragile players.
Although if something major happens, you can just tank like last year and nab a top pick before loading up on cap space for next season ala Spurs with Tim duncan
Yet in this case you'd be stuck with guys like Noah (could easily really be in decline mode) or Gordon for multiple years going forward. Rose goes down, so be it. Locked into guys multiple years can really hurt. Eric Gordon isn't very good AND is injury prone. Terrible combo. Because he was a high pick he somehow has "big upside" only he's going to get his 10-15 million per for multiple years.
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In comment 13012480 DanMetroMan said:
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point is 100% valid. Phil was not putting together a "tank for a high pick" roster and anyone who claims otherwise is lying to themselves. Great pick but that wasn't the plan. To "pick high".
I never got the whole 'we got to give a GM credit for earning a high draft pick.' It's basically telling someone they did a great job at farting in the wind.
No Sam Hinkie did not do a great job in Philly either.
Wait 3 years before you decide on what Hinkie did and didn't do. They're future is 10 times brighter than ours.
You don't get props for losing and tanking. No one ran out to give Balyor kudos for sucking so long to constantly land great picks.
Drafted 3 centers in 3 years in the lottery. Philly is looking to dump Noel and/or Okafor now.
I'm also surprised at what Phil said the other day about trying to build around Melo. Doesn't this seem like a change of direction?
It absolutely is. More than willing to believe he got a directive from above to field a competitive team. Too many "un-phil" things happening all of a sudden. Moving away from the triangle, trading away a big for a small when Phil has always loved frontcourt players, rolling the dice on a big-name PG when he talked down the idea to anyone who would listen. Something's not kosher.
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Because those guys were talked up as big steps in the 'right direction.' If they weren't then were they bad moves?
I'm also surprised at what Phil said the other day about trying to build around Melo. Doesn't this seem like a change of direction?
Is this sarcasm? This FO, including Phi, has been building around Melo since Melo was still in Denver.
Nope. I thought they wanted to trade Melo. So when did this change?
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In comment 13012491 Mason said:
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In comment 13012480 DanMetroMan said:
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point is 100% valid. Phil was not putting together a "tank for a high pick" roster and anyone who claims otherwise is lying to themselves. Great pick but that wasn't the plan. To "pick high".
I never got the whole 'we got to give a GM credit for earning a high draft pick.' It's basically telling someone they did a great job at farting in the wind.
No Sam Hinkie did not do a great job in Philly either.
Wait 3 years before you decide on what Hinkie did and didn't do. They're future is 10 times brighter than ours.
You don't get props for losing and tanking. No one ran out to give Balyor kudos for sucking so long to constantly land great picks.
Drafted 3 centers in 3 years in the lottery. Philly is looking to dump Noel and/or Okafor now.
You don't get props for losing and tanking? Hmm how did the team that just won the championship build their current roster? How did the Wolves, who just landed the premier HC available, get their current assets? These teams that have tanked have sure gotten a lot of props and turnaround in perception by coaches and free agents.
Just because philly has been vocal about it doesn't mean they've been doing anything unique.
Just because they're trying to trade those players doesn't mean they're giving up on them. They've identified the players they are going to build around. Heck, two of them haven't even played a game in the NBA yet. But they have control of both those players for another 6-8 year if they extend them. That's a big window to get the right trade to solidify the rest of their roster.
Win now? Win now and "tank" are 2 totally different things. The 2014-2015 Knicks were projected by EVERYONE to challenge for the playoffs (as they should have). Totally revisionist to suggest there was a plan to tank for a high pick. Who is killing him? I'm stating facts.
Look at that roster now and see if that sounded like a playoff team (definitely hindsight, but that roster doesn't read like a playoff team in any era). I'm not going to kill Phil because JR Smith embarrassed himself on and off the court, Iman Shumpert showed zero improvement, and THJ inexplicably fell off the map. It's not as if he signed over the hill players to massive contracts for the sole purpose of making a playoff run.
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In comment 13012423 Enzo said:
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In comment 13012383 Aspano! said:
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In comment 13012295 Deej said:
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Im not convinced you use real free cap space on 3 and D guys. Maybe in the cheaper range, sub $10 million. But otherwise I think you try to develop them. You can pay them if you're capped out (S&T, Bird).
I admit this might just be a bias. I could be really wrong here. Also, didnt see enough ATL this year to know how good a defender he is. I havent heard that he's an elite wing defender.
Completely agree with this. 3 and D guys need to be developed constantly. Having someone like Lance Thomas is a huge asset when he's cost-controlled - not so much when you're paying them a decent paycheck and still trying to build a roster.
would have been nice if the front office had locked up Lance or Galloway with at least a team option for this year.
So your complaint now is that they didn't lock up Galloway and Thomas for multiple years at their current rate, which was slightly above minimum salary? Jesus.
I know...it's too much to ask of Phil to do something smart like that.
No. The problem is that this thought process is basically the NBA FA equivalent of "THE TEAM SHOULD HAVE JUST TRADED DOWN." There are two sides to contract negotiations.
Firstly, why would any player lock themselves into a multi-year minimum deal? Even without a huge cap jump, there's absolutely no upside for the player to do that. Which is why minimum deals are usually one year in the first place.
Secondly, considering there was a HUGE cap jump, why would a player potentially lock themselves into a shit rate? Even if they barely play, they can sign another minimum deal for more money the next year.
This logic makes zero sense. You're faulting the Knicks FO for not having its "prove it" players not lock themselves into contracts that would effectively strip them of any potential upside for them if they were to play well.
I hope your job doesn't require any type of negotiation aspect, because you'd be laughed out of any meeting with this type of mindset.
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Win now? Win now and "tank" are 2 totally different things. The 2014-2015 Knicks were projected by EVERYONE to challenge for the playoffs (as they should have). Totally revisionist to suggest there was a plan to tank for a high pick. Who is killing him? I'm stating facts.
Look at that roster now and see if that sounded like a playoff team (definitely hindsight, but that roster doesn't read like a playoff team in any era). I'm not going to kill Phil because JR Smith embarrassed himself on and off the court, Iman Shumpert showed zero improvement, and THJ inexplicably fell off the map. It's not as if he signed over the hill players to massive contracts for the sole purpose of making a playoff run.
Again we are arguing 2 different points. My point is Phil did not go into that season with the goal being "lets be really bad and get a high pick". That roster looked like a mediocre roster with a chance to challenge for the playoffs. It looks terrible now because Dalembert went from decent to finished (there were even some saying Dalembert represented an upgrade at C (Calderon was coming off 1 down season that many expected him to bounce back from). I can honestly say I don't remember a single Knicks fan on here, optimist, pessimist (and everything in between) that was saying "wow the roster is awful, we won't even challenge for the 8 seed". Also, Melo missed 42 games and looked like crap for much of them
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In comment 13012514 DanMetroMan said:
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Win now? Win now and "tank" are 2 totally different things. The 2014-2015 Knicks were projected by EVERYONE to challenge for the playoffs (as they should have). Totally revisionist to suggest there was a plan to tank for a high pick. Who is killing him? I'm stating facts.
Look at that roster now and see if that sounded like a playoff team (definitely hindsight, but that roster doesn't read like a playoff team in any era). I'm not going to kill Phil because JR Smith embarrassed himself on and off the court, Iman Shumpert showed zero improvement, and THJ inexplicably fell off the map. It's not as if he signed over the hill players to massive contracts for the sole purpose of making a playoff run.
Again we are arguing 2 different points. My point is Phil did not go into that season with the goal being "lets be really bad and get a high pick". That roster looked like a mediocre roster with a chance to challenge for the playoffs. It looks terrible now because Dalembert went from decent to finished (there were even some saying Dalembert represented an upgrade at C (Calderon was coming off 1 down season that many expected him to bounce back from). I can honestly say I don't remember a single Knicks fan on here, optimist, pessimist (and everything in between) that was saying "wow the roster is awful, we won't even challenge for the 8 seed". Also, Melo missed 42 games and looked like crap for much of them
They didn't go into the season trying to tank. They thought Dalembert could be serviceable at the 5 (he wasn't), thought Melo would have a strong year (he got injured in the 2nd game of the season I believe), and thought Calderon would have some effect in the backcourt (his year basically ended in the 7th game). I mean, the season didn't start off as an extreme disaster - they beat Cleveland in the second or third game of the year.
That's complete bullshit. How many of these so called building block players were signed long term or had a lot invested in them?
Just because Phil said he expected the Knicks to compete in the playoffs doesn't mean invested heavily in those players.
Phil has done a pretty good job here. There were plenty of ways he could have fucked this franchise like so many before him have done. The Knicks were all but impossible to fix overnight just fucking admit that. They might be good sooner than later I know that's impossible to believe.
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point is 100% valid. Phil was not putting together a "tank for a high pick" roster and anyone who claims otherwise is lying to themselves. Great pick but that wasn't the plan. To "pick high".
That's complete bullshit. How many of these so called building block players were signed long term or had a lot invested in them?
Just because Phil said he expected the Knicks to compete in the playoffs doesn't mean invested heavily in those players.
Phil has done a pretty good job here. There were plenty of ways he could have fucked this franchise like so many before him have done. The Knicks were all but impossible to fix overnight just fucking admit that. They might be good sooner than later I know that's impossible to believe.
What in the hell are you talking about? Do you just ignore what people write to posit whatever it is you are going to say? The 2014-2015 Knicks roster was NOT a "tank for a high pick roster" what does that have to do with being building blocks or long term pieces? What does that have to do with "investing a lot in them". The Knicks roster was built to win games, NOT to have a top 5 pick. They were awful and the outcome was different than expected. Truly strange response.
um, things went badly VERY quickly. By the end of November they were 4-14. And then they only won one game in December.
Great, Phil said the Knicks would be good and they weren't. The Sixers say they wanted to suck forever and they have. Good for them. Should we canonize the sixers front office because they admitted they sucked every year? Who the hell cares. The Knicks were always a work in progress and anyone fan with a clue would know that. The Knicks weren't winning an NBA title early. They weren't winning the division early.
Ill say it again. Phil has the Knicks headed in the right direction. They have all their picks, money, a young franchise player and they still have Melo. They could have done a lot worse these last few years which means they did more than good than bad. A lot more.
I didn't think he was an upgrade, but I hated Chandler so much because of the previous season that I didn't give a shit who played center as long as it wasn't Tyson.
Even if Phil thought that roster was going to compete, I'm not going to kill him because it ended up being an abomination for 1 simple reason... he didn't pour a bunch of resources into it hoping for a winner. He basically made 2 trades, one centered around a malcontent who needed to go anyway. And I'm not particularly hung up on how they got KP. I'm just glad they got him because it wasn't exactly a no-brainer that KP was going to be a star.
He says this and you guys kill him for that.
Great, Phil said the Knicks would be good and they weren't. The Sixers say they wanted to suck forever and they have. Good for them. Should we canonize the sixers front office because they admitted they sucked every year? Who the hell cares. The Knicks were always a work in progress and anyone fan with a clue would know that. The Knicks weren't winning an NBA title early. They weren't winning the division early.
Ill say it again. Phil has the Knicks headed in the right direction. They have all their picks, money, a young franchise player and they still have Melo. They could have done a lot worse these last few years which means they did more than good than bad. A lot more.
Again... HUH? Who is blaming anyone for anything. Enzo stated Phil was "lucky" to draft Porzingis. People interpreted that as meaning he got lucky choosing Porzingis when what he meant was the plan going into the season was to compete for the playoffs and it turned out the Knicks had a pathetic season. Where have I even criticized Phil Jackson on this entire thread? By stating going into the season his eyes weren't on a high pick but rather the playoffs?
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because of he expected to win games that first year. What difference does that even make? Ok fine they sucked, that's phil's fault. Fine. But you know damn well that the Knicks were a mess seconds before PHil got here.
Great, Phil said the Knicks would be good and they weren't. The Sixers say they wanted to suck forever and they have. Good for them. Should we canonize the sixers front office because they admitted they sucked every year? Who the hell cares. The Knicks were always a work in progress and anyone fan with a clue would know that. The Knicks weren't winning an NBA title early. They weren't winning the division early.
Ill say it again. Phil has the Knicks headed in the right direction. They have all their picks, money, a young franchise player and they still have Melo. They could have done a lot worse these last few years which means they did more than good than bad. A lot more.
Again... HUH? Who is blaming anyone for anything. Enzo stated Phil was "lucky" to draft Porzingis. People interpreted that as meaning he got lucky choosing Porzingis when what he meant was the plan going into the season was to compete for the playoffs and it turned out the Knicks had a pathetic season. Where have I even criticized Phil Jackson on this entire thread? By stating going into the season his eyes weren't on a high pick but rather the playoffs?
Lmao.
Seems like you have a permanent target on your back for whatever reason.
The Atlanta Hawks’ free-agent priorities are re-signing forward Al Horford and swingman Kent Bazemore, but the Hawks are also trying to wedge their way into the Kevin Durant sweepstakes, according to league sources.
Who knows how true this is but the rumor is Chris Paul would then join him in Atl in a year. I find this very hard to believe.
I'm sick of people bashing Phil because of this so called idea that Phil went all in on the 2014 season and failed miserably. You might not be saying that but you're implying it to a certain degree. And I didn't even give him credit for landing the high pick. I gave him credit for making the right pick.
And maybe Phil knew all along that 2014 team would sink after the Chandler deal and he had intentions of picking high in a deep draft all along. Or maybe he moves up in that draft if he had to. Who knows. All I know is the Knicks have a GOLDEN opportunity here over the next 2 years to dramatically improve and it's as clear as day. Hopefully it works out. That's all I am saying.
but Thomas was given more than the min. In fact, Phil gave him a $1.2 million raise from the previous season. Why go for more than the min if you're not getting something (e.g. a player option) in return?
Thomas and Galloway were not "prove it players". Thomas was barely in the league and Galloway was an undrafted FA. They had zero in common with Afflalo and Williams.
I'm sorry if you're unaware of what other GMs routinely pull off in trades and signings.
I'm sick of people bashing Phil because of this so called idea that Phil went all in on the 2014 season and failed miserably. You might not be saying that but you're implying it to a certain degree. And I didn't even give him credit for landing the high pick. I gave him credit for making the right pick.
And maybe Phil knew all along that 2014 team would sink after the Chandler deal and he had intentions of picking high in a deep draft all along. Or maybe he moves up in that draft if he had to. Who knows. All I know is the Knicks have a GOLDEN opportunity here over the next 2 years to dramatically improve and it's as clear as day. Hopefully it works out. That's all I am saying.
Again, I didn't say Phil Jackson gave out big contracts or invested heavily in the players he brought in. I said he was trying to compete for the playoffs with the players he brought in. That's not some mortal sin. But when the season begin in October Phil had his eyes on potentially being a playoff team, not some brilliant plan to land a 7'3 kid from Latvia.