sebstar wrote:

orangeblobman wrote:Tougher teams, all the more reason that our fragile mental constitution had to be protected at all costs and cultivated towards further solidification. Larry Hughes showed a blatant disrespect for team chemistry, and so for his teammates, his brothers in battle, by voicing such violent displeasure with the Coach. It's like someone coming in and spitting on all the hard work and Thanksgiving Day bonding that the team struggled so much to foster.

If Larry doesn't spit on his teammates, these Knicks are much better prepared to match up with these tougher teams. But Larry spit on them, violently, and so they grew weak in mind.

He said he couldnt understand why he was riding the bench...the way way you over-dramatize things one would think he was out kicking the player's children in the chin.

We're mediocre right now. Mediocre teams cant sustain success for very long. We're a low-30 win team and everybody knows that....no surprise.

I say no. It's not so much what he said but how it was said and when it was said. Timing? Horrible. He went against the team, the chemistry. How come Nate didn't mouth off when he was benched for 14 games on what some would argue were less-sound grounds than Larry's benching? Come on. An act doesn't need to be physically violent to be violent. His conduct went directly against all the good feelings the team had. His behavior was directly violent towards team chemistry, which was fragile at best. Still in it's early stages. It's on record that teammates were a little pissed at Larry for the timing of his comments. Why? No other reason than that the Knicks were getting along and bonding and then this guy sticks a giant rod into the turbine.

You know how mediocre teams get better? You know how some teams overachieve and make the playoffs? By having good feelings, no toxins, by BELIEVING in themselves.

It's really easy to write them off as a crappy team, "oh, who cares?", and in doing so you give cool-guy Larry a free pass and you fool yourself into thinking that his actions had no consequence on the team.

GodSaveTheKnicks wrote:what the hell are we talking about here? seriously

practice?

sebstar wrote:

orangeblobman wrote:Larry Hughes destroyed the spiritual fabric of the team and this resulted in their slide.

If Larry didn't violently destroy this fabric, the team would have been better prepared to face these tougher teams.

I do wonder if you are legitimately out of your damn mind sometimes.

They're professional athletes, fam. It should take a hell of a lot more than a cat whining about playing time for a whole team to mentally unravel. We talking about grown ass men or an episode of Barney?

You're still talking about human beings, doesn't matter if they're pro athletes or bus boys. The human mind is a beautiful thing, but it is also susceptible to bad things.

It should take more, it should that, and so on. But end of the day these cats are human beings with feelings and minds. It doesn't take a lot to throw off the collective mind of the squad.

Chemistry is a subtle but definitely present thing in the locker room. When you have a team of perennial losers, and then that team builds some type of bond, some understanding, and then Larry comes in and tramples it with his expensive, fancy shoes, you can see how it can lead to unraveling. Of course it is not the entire reason they capitulated, but it was a catalyst, and for that we can look at Mr. Hot-Shot Larry Hughes.

GodSaveTheKnicks wrote:

TMS wrote:

GodSaveTheKnicks wrote:what the hell are we talking about here? seriously

practice?

We sittin here'. Knicks supposed to be a premier franchise and we in here talkin' bout Larry Hughes?

How the hell can you make a team better by Larry Hughes?

Not Lebron. Not Joe Johnson. We here talkin' about Larry Hughes?!

lol

sebstar wrote:

orangeblobman wrote:

sebstar wrote:

orangeblobman wrote:Larry Hughes destroyed the spiritual fabric of the team and this resulted in their slide.

If Larry didn't violently destroy this fabric, the team would have been better prepared to face these tougher teams.

I do wonder if you are legitimately out of your damn mind sometimes.

They're professional athletes, fam. It should take a hell of a lot more than a cat whining about playing time for a whole team to mentally unravel. We talking about grown ass men or an episode of Barney?

You're still talking about human beings, doesn't matter if they're pro athletes or bus boys. The human mind is a beautiful thing, but it is also susceptible to bad things.

It should take more, it should that, and so on. But end of the day these cats are human beings with feelings and minds. It doesn't take a lot to throw off the collective mind of the squad.

Chemistry is a subtle but definitely present thing in the locker room. When you have a team of perennial losers, and then that team builds some type of bond, some understanding, and then Larry comes in and tramples it with his expensive, fancy shoes, you can see how it can lead to unraveling. Of course it is not the entire reason they capitulated, but it was a catalyst, and for that we can look at Mr. Hot-Shot Larry Hughes.

How do you know it bothered them?

What if they didnt give Hughes' complaints a second thought. Could the reason why teams like the Mavs are knocking the Kufi's off their head due to talent as opposed to some half-baked examination of human psychology?

They voiced concern. But it's not like they have to tell you it bothered them. It just does bother them. It's not them individually, but the chemistry. It had to bother chemistry.

You see, when Larry Hughes says these things, it means he's not happy. As soon as you have one unhappy person in the room, it is toxic. A toxin. And toxins deteriorate the body within, that much is true. It doesn't matter if you realize what the toxin is or realize that it's there or not, it's doing work.

Half-baked? Hardly.

TMS wrote:

Sangfroid wrote:The only problem I have with Hughes is that when he got his chance to play, he didn't make a difference. He didn't stop his man, he didn't hit the open shot, he didn't make the good pass. He lent nothing to the process of playing winning basketball. He's taking 14mil this season and shows no sign of basketball leadership or professional accumen. He gives professionalism a black eye. You would think with all that extra time and for that big assed paycheck, he could at least work on his jump shot!

sorry but you're wrong... he played very well in December & helped this team go 7W - 5L in games he played in (5W - 0L in games where he played more than 25 minutes)... he put up #'s in November too while the rest of the team was playing like crap, including Duhon, Nate & Wilson during that horrible stretch to start the year... in total, the Knicks are 8W - 9L in games where Hughes has played over 25 minutes this season.

but he played badly after injuring his groin.