Let's draft our fourth star keep willy (on a great contract) and use the other #1 to draft our 6th star (by which time willy will have turned into our version of McHale and our 5th star)

TLover wrote:Willy G could be that 4th star if given the opportunity. So no I wouldn't make that deal.
Keep draft picks and develop your own.

Im really not quite sure what his upside is. Also I can't comment on Portlands commitment to Plumlee. Seems redundant to have Willy and Plumlee. Both offensively not great away from the basket.

sidneydeane wrote:We dont need a 4th star and cj wouold be a bad fit. Better off with Lee especially defensively.

CJ a bad fit?? CJ isn't a bad fit for any team especially the Knicks. I would love to get McCollum and i just brought him up for a trade i would make to get him in another thread like a week ago. This trade that Briggs made up would never happen but i'd give up a hell of a package to get him if we could.

His salary bumps up to $24M next year...reaches $29M by 20/21. What impact will this have for our roster flexibility in the future? If you like Rose, you might not be able to afford him if you bring on McCollum

Excellent offensive player who benefits from an offense tailored for guards. Seems like more of a combo guard.
Pretty short...closer to 6'3" than 6'4" WITH shoes, and his wingspan is only about 6'6."

Are Blazers even interested in moving him? Seems like they made a major commitment to him, and are going to keep him and Lilliard as the foundation of the team. They would want much more for him. As much as I like Willy, he has still not proven himself enough to be a centerpiece in this type of trade.

Not going to happen.

GustavBahler wrote:If the Knicks are going to go this route of surrounding Melo with aging vets while he still has some game left in him, then we do need more firepower. Waiting on Willy and the other yoots to be higher level players is fine with me, but if we're going to be patient, lets go the development route while adding some vets on short deals, with KP as the main focus.

Otherwise if its going to be Melo and what he has left in the tank, Phil should think real hard about bringing back Rose and his neverending health issues. Same goes for Noah if he doesn't play like a starter consistently.

There is going to be a lot of cap room to attract players. Melo wasnt enough to attract blue chips FAs, but the combination of Melo, KP, the improved bench, and the recent draft picks, might get the Knicks a second look.

This roster (if healthy) might get us to the second round, up to the conference finals, which is great. Still, I believe Phil might be able to field a better team by trade and free agency this summer while Melo is still an elite scorer. Would like to see Phil try to build a legit contender with a shelf life of more than a season, maybe two. If thats the best window we can hope for however, we still need more firepower.

We should be able to continue to build with this current group. Melo should age gracefully, and KP's improvements will override Melo's slight yearly decline. Rose can be resigned this summer for 4 years, and should be fine. That will take up the remainder of his prime and will expire when he is 32. I think Rose will remain at this level from 29-32, which would be his age during a new contract. We must draft well the next couple of years. Target players who can fit a specific role around our Big 3. Find talent where we can. If we are smart, we can continue to build on this group over the next 3-4 years, then regroup when Rose expires, Melo is done, and KP is just entering the early stages of his prime. Hopefully we will have drafted well over these next few years and have surrounded him with good talent.

Knixkik wrote:

GustavBahler wrote:If the Knicks are going to go this route of surrounding Melo with aging vets while he still has some game left in him, then we do need more firepower. Waiting on Willy and the other yoots to be higher level players is fine with me, but if we're going to be patient, lets go the development route while adding some vets on short deals, with KP as the main focus.

Otherwise if its going to be Melo and what he has left in the tank, Phil should think real hard about bringing back Rose and his neverending health issues. Same goes for Noah if he doesn't play like a starter consistently.

There is going to be a lot of cap room to attract players. Melo wasnt enough to attract blue chips FAs, but the combination of Melo, KP, the improved bench, and the recent draft picks, might get the Knicks a second look.

This roster (if healthy) might get us to the second round, up to the conference finals, which is great. Still, I believe Phil might be able to field a better team by trade and free agency this summer while Melo is still an elite scorer. Would like to see Phil try to build a legit contender with a shelf life of more than a season, maybe two. If thats the best window we can hope for however, we still need more firepower.

We should be able to continue to build with this current group. Melo should age gracefully, and KP's improvements will override Melo's slight yearly decline. Rose can be resigned this summer for 4 years, and should be fine. That will take up the remainder of his prime and will expire when he is 32. I think Rose will remain at this level from 29-32, which would be his age during a new contract. We must draft well the next couple of years. Target players who can fit a specific role around our Big 3. Find talent where we can. If we are smart, we can continue to build on this group over the next 3-4 years, then regroup when Rose expires, Melo is done, and KP is just entering the early stages of his prime. Hopefully we will have drafted well over these next few years and have surrounded him with good talent.

Dont those back issues worry you at all? Projecting an even close to a healthy Rose beyond this week is foolhardy, let alone 3-4 years from now. Melo will age as gracefully as his body will let him. He will always have that stroke, but the ability to get an open look will diminish.

I would rather Knicks operate under the assumption that Melo has one, maybe two good years left after this. Believing he will age gracefully like a fine wine, will remove that sense of urgency. Would like to see a legit run at a title while Melo can ball at this level. This team as constructed, will not get us there IMO.

Still glad that we dont look sorry anymore, for the most part. At least not on offense.

GustavBahler wrote:

Knixkik wrote:

GustavBahler wrote:If the Knicks are going to go this route of surrounding Melo with aging vets while he still has some game left in him, then we do need more firepower. Waiting on Willy and the other yoots to be higher level players is fine with me, but if we're going to be patient, lets go the development route while adding some vets on short deals, with KP as the main focus.

Otherwise if its going to be Melo and what he has left in the tank, Phil should think real hard about bringing back Rose and his neverending health issues. Same goes for Noah if he doesn't play like a starter consistently.

There is going to be a lot of cap room to attract players. Melo wasnt enough to attract blue chips FAs, but the combination of Melo, KP, the improved bench, and the recent draft picks, might get the Knicks a second look.

This roster (if healthy) might get us to the second round, up to the conference finals, which is great. Still, I believe Phil might be able to field a better team by trade and free agency this summer while Melo is still an elite scorer. Would like to see Phil try to build a legit contender with a shelf life of more than a season, maybe two. If thats the best window we can hope for however, we still need more firepower.

We should be able to continue to build with this current group. Melo should age gracefully, and KP's improvements will override Melo's slight yearly decline. Rose can be resigned this summer for 4 years, and should be fine. That will take up the remainder of his prime and will expire when he is 32. I think Rose will remain at this level from 29-32, which would be his age during a new contract. We must draft well the next couple of years. Target players who can fit a specific role around our Big 3. Find talent where we can. If we are smart, we can continue to build on this group over the next 3-4 years, then regroup when Rose expires, Melo is done, and KP is just entering the early stages of his prime. Hopefully we will have drafted well over these next few years and have surrounded him with good talent.

Dont those back issues worry you at all? Projecting an even close to a healthy Rose beyond this week is foolhardy, let alone 3-4 years from now. Melo will age as gracefully as his body will let him. He will always have that stroke, but the ability to get an open look will diminish.

I would rather Knicks operate under the assumption that Melo has one, maybe two good years left after this. Believing he will age gracefully like a fine wine, will remove that sense of urgency. Would like to see a legit run at a title while Melo can ball at this level. This team as constructed, will not get us there IMO.

Still glad that we dont look sorry anymore, for the most part. At least not on offense.

Injuries can happen to any player at any time. I don't think Rose can be judged on the back injuries. Any time you spend big money on a player, you are gambling on their health. There are very few players in the league with a clean injury slate as it is. I don't want to move towards an increased sense of urgency, because i don't see a big window of opportunity yet. When we are ready to compete for a title, KP will have to be ready to lead the way. I don't think we are there yet. We might be closer than initially thought, but the last thing we need to do is jump the gun like we have so often. We need to just enjoy the improvements that are going on right now. We are in a great position with draft picks, young pieces, and ways to improve. Melo's prime is over, but he can still take over games and will age well if we aren't allowing him to do a lot of heavy lifting. Rose is a gamble, but unless another reasonable replacement comes up this summer, we almost have to reign him. Finding a player to do what Rose is doing for us now will be almost impossible.