I agree that franchise players don't grow on trees. The are very hard to get. But what does that mean? Does that mean that you don't try to get one. Does that mean you get rid of all your picks, go over the cap so you can't sign a franchise free agent. And acquire untradeable assets so the only guys you can trade to acquire franchise talent are the young guys on your roster that you want to be able to use to build around your franchise talent? They are hard to find so you just give up and settle for mediocrity.

I guess I don't get the point of stating that there aren't many franchise guys.

A franchise free agent?


bippity - there are only 2 players capable of taking a franchise to the next level on their own skill-set. Cats that can take over a game when they want.

Kobe and Lebron

The rest are supporting cast types

Arenas comes close

Duncan is aging gracefully with a decent cast around him.

I would be willing to listen to other candidates who can change a game by their dominance

I guess it comes down to your definition of franchise guy. Because I see a lot of guys in the league capable of leading their team to more than .500 records. And a few more than capable of leading the right team to the playoffs and a title. Now the question becomes again, because their aren't a lot of great, great players and they are hard to find, does that mean you stop trying to position yourself for one. Luck comes from hard work and smart moves, not overspending and trading away draft picks. When your team is improving this is THE BEST TIME to be smart and make a move that can put your team over the top instead of settling and hoping what you have is enough.

The Knicks never got Ewing a second star in his prime. They never took a step back and maybe gotten a little worse in the short run to get a young player that can grow alongside Ewing. They never made the move that could help Ewing push this team over the top. It's the same mentality.

Pumping Up


ANNCR: Good evening, and welcome again to "Pumping Up With Hanz & Franz", the informative training program for the serious basketball fan.

Together: Welcome! We're back!

Hans Lee: Alright. Once again, I am Hans...

Franz Frye: And I am Franz. And we just want to...

Together: pump... [They clap]...you up!

Lee: Alright.

Frye: Alright, first of all, let’s clear something up. You know, many people have talked about us of being different since the Denver game.

Lee: Ja. They are right! But let me explain—to us, this (flexing) is not something different!

Frye: Ja. They are the people who stop on the street and stare at our amazing biceps!

Lee: Hence, we call ourselves the frontcourt with pumpitude!

Frye: Alright. Enough talk. We're not here to talk. We're here to...

Together: pump... [They clap]...you up!

Frye: You know, the big news is our cousin Eddy Curry who is also proud to show his new pumpitude. Doesn’t surprise us, formerly Fat Eddy has been pumping hard in practice.

Lee: Ja. You know, Biggie Eddy Fat is sure to beat out all the competition from these other second-rate NBA centers!

Frye: ie, Ben Wallace, Dalembert, Sha-quita…You know, all those guys!

Lee: That's right, you know - Brad Miller, all of them! You know, it’s a laugh to even compare them to Eddy! Look at me, Chan; I am laughing!

Frye: Ja! So am I, David!

[They laugh on, oblivious to the presence of Yao Ming who has just walked up behind them and simply stands there]

Lee: Ja, we are laughing—And what about this guy, Yao?

Frye: Ja! Hear me now and believe me later…Big Eddy could easily rip Yao's skinny little dinosaur arms off and use them as dental floss!

Lee: Ja, unwaxed! [They mime flossing their teeth, then suddenly notice Yao for the first time] Mr. Ming! I didn’t see you!

Yao: I couldn’t help overhearing what you guys were saying, you know…

Lee: Oh, you’re so quiet; how long were you back there? We were just talking…

Yao: Look, fellas—let’s not confuse the issue here. I don’t wanna compare myself to these other stars; they’re great and everything like that. But what I do is unique…You see, I follow—Zen.

Lee: Oh, we know Zen. First we get the rebound...

Frye: …Zen we get another…

Lee: …Zen another…

Frye: …Zen another…and Zen another…

Lee: ...And Zen another…

Frye: …And Zen we are done.

Yao: Nah, I don’t think you guys understand what I’m talking about; maybe I could demonstrate. I’d like to hold my little finger out and let you guys push on it.

Frye: Ah—Well, before you make this rash decision, maybe you should see what you’re up against.

Lee: Ja. Take a look, Yao…

Frye: Are you thinking what I’m thinking…?

[Segue into the “Pumping Up” opening sequence, but with the life-size cutouts of Arnold Schwarzenegger replaced by those of Eddy Curry.)

Together: Welcome. We’re back.

Lee: Once again, I’m Hans.

Frye: Ja, and I’m Franz... and this our big brother cousin Eddy....

Together: And we just want to pump… [They lightly bring the tips of their pinkies together]…you up.

fish.mike - As for the Larry Brown disaster will this team ever have a 6 game winning streak?

A. Maybe not, but the last five have been fun


fish.mike - I'm all for a new GM thats all about drafting and developing young players. Isiah retooled this team with veterans

A. Veterans Eddy Curry (24 and learning finally how to play withinn a system) Chan Frye (22 with a the sweetest jumper this side of Allan Houston) David Lee (22 sophomore and can do it all) Jamal Crawford (27 with the intuition of a john coltrane)

whatveteransyoutalking'boutwillis?

Posted by islesfan:

Posted by Bippity10:

I've learned that there are some you just can't have a conversation with.

You just learned that?

I'm sometimes slow to the party