ATLANTA — Hawks swingman DeMarre Carroll, one of the unsung free agents on an unsung team, is not afraid of the big stage and revealed the Knicks will be a strong option for him in July.

The 6-foot-8 Carroll, who plays small forward but often defends shooting guards, is a candidate for one of the All-Defensive teams. He calls himself “Junkyard Dog.’’ He’s from Birmingham, Ala., but has no qualms about playing in New York, saying he knows coach Derek Fisher from working out with him in Woodland Hills, Calif., a few years ago.

According to a source, Fisher is high on Carroll, who had 16 points, four rebounds and three assists on Monday, and the defensive approach he brings to the court.

“Most definitely,’’ Carroll said when asked if the Knicks would be a high consideration.“When guys talk about playing in certain places — they talk about Madison Square Garden and Staples Center. Those two places. New York has a lot to offer but at the end of the season, I’ll let my agent do that. We’ll keep our options and hopefully it will work out for the best.’’

Carroll, who could be had for a starting salary in the $5 million range, has bounced around a lot, playing in Memphis, Houston, Denver and Utah before finding a solid fit in Atlanta’s defensive-oriented program under Coach of the Year candidate Mike Buldenhozer. Carroll says defense is important to him.

Carroll, the 27th pick by the Grizzlies in 2009, says he persevered and Fisher was a past source of encouragement during their workouts.

“Man, I just think it was about opportunity, understanding who you are and bettering yourself,’’ Carroll said. “Three things I focused on. I stayed true to who I was. That’s being a junkyard dog, doing the nitty-gritty things. Once I figured out the gritty work on defense will get me on the court, then I started working on my offensive game. It happened for a reason. If I could tell any of the young guys, stay true to who you are. Everyone wants to be the Kobe [Bryant] and Lebron James but you got to know your role.’’

Carroll’s agent is Mark Bartelstein, who represents three current Knicks — Tim Hardaway Jr., Lou Amundson and Jason Smith.

“My biggest thing is coming in and doing what I do and show people what I can do,’’ said Carroll, who entered Monday averaging 12.4 points, 5.4 rebounds on 49 percent shooting. “I think the team’s been winning and I’ve been playing my part. Basically being a junkyard dog. Free agency, that’s still a long ways. We’re trying to go deep in the postseason. My main focus is to go deep.’’

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Fisher said he was close with Atlanta guard Thabo Sefolosha, who suffered a season-ending broken leg after a scuffle with police in the aftermath of last week’s Chris Copeland stabbing. Sefolosha and teammate Pero Antic were arrested afterward outside a Chelsea club. According to a source, the Players Association feels it has a good case that police were overly aggressive.

“That’s a key guy this team will miss,’’ said Fisher, who played with Sefolosha with the Thunder. “I’m disappointed for him and his family that it happened. It’s very unfortunate. There’ll be an investigation and we’ll find out later down the line what happened.”

Its Berman.... so there is that, but the quotes are telling. He's a great fit.

fishmike wrote:

SupremeCommander wrote:This team definitely needs (1) a perimeter player who keeps his man in front of him and (2) a perimeter player who knows his role. This guy's quotes sound exactly like what I want to hear... Jamal ?Crawford said all the right things too though

hey I liked Jamal, but he was an offensive player trying to do other things. Carrol is a defensive player trying to do other things, and the last couple of years he's become a very good shooter. Very Bruce Bowen like.

I would advocate this type of signing because you can tell he wants to play here... I really value that, at least at MSG. I just don't value the chatter after the Crawful, Big Ol Eddy, etc. experiences. I enjoyed reading his comments -- I just don't value them. We all know NY is the preferred market to drive a player's pricetag up.

I wish I wasn't so jaded

crzymdups wrote:I would love to add DeMarre Carroll. He would be a great signing. Guy defends and can shoot - he's sort of what I hoped Shump would become.

I thought about Shump specifically when I read the "know your role" quote in the article. Shump is a quality player but he actually told the papers that Empire ripped off his life. That is the most absurd prima donna article I've ever read. Made Marbs look like a patron saint.

Would love to have him in the mix. I think he would be a good leader behind the scenes and a selfless role model on the floor. From the quotes in the article he is a grounded individual with the right perspective on the game.

All depends on the cost.

One note of caution, though... how much has he benefitted from the offense Atlanta now runs, and will he continue those offensive numbers with the Knicks? Before the Hawks, he had never averaged over 17MPG- is his shooting improvement due to hard work, increased playing time, and the realization that he was not fighting for a starting role, or does the kind of ball played by Atlanta have anything to do with his success?

Just something that should be considered, I think.

but yes id like to have him here 2

callmened wrote:that was the mandatory statement made by player about to hit free agency in otder to drive the price up

but yes id like to have him here 2

Atlanta has to re-sign Milsap, too, but yeah they have enough cap room to give him a really good deal if they want to.

callmened wrote:that was the mandatory statement made by player about to hit free agency in otder to drive the price up

but yes id like to have him here 2

bingo

we can expect more of this as the season winds-down.

EwingsGlass wrote:I would take him at $5MM all day. That would be my #1 FA choice. Dollar for dollar, you do not get a better add to the rotation. I'm not knocking the Midletons, Kanters etc... but on a cost analysis, if $5MM gets it done here, I would sign it up.

I think it might take more like $8M to steal him from Atlanta.

That's the problem with FA - you usually have to overpay to poach a guy.

fishmike wrote:

crzymdups wrote:

EwingsGlass wrote:I would take him at $5MM all day. That would be my #1 FA choice. Dollar for dollar, you do not get a better add to the rotation. I'm not knocking the Midletons, Kanters etc... but on a cost analysis, if $5MM gets it done here, I would sign it up.

I think it might take more like $8M to steal him from Atlanta.

That's the problem with FA - you usually have to overpay to poach a guy.

I would see that as overpaying, but I also see him as a really potentially key piece. Not *the* piece, but depending on who we get close to that money isnt nuts. Is he as good as Ariza? Does he deserve that kind of money? I think he certainly is and Ariza is at that $7mm ish range. 4 years $32mm? I would like to target the top end guys first but assuming they are off the board that would be doable.

yeah, i think that's what it would take. Ariza got 4yr $32M from Houston, I believe.