I don't think we believe that we can improve the team through any other means than hitting the jackpot--and that is not true.
^ I'm not sure that is true. I think the Knicks put themselves in a position for a jackpot. The Jeffries trade resonates that the Knicks are looking more for the jackpot in 2010 than the gradual team building that has made teams like San Antonio a force for so long. But the positioning toward a jackpot isn't fully at the expense of gradual team building and finding value in other players. Walsh has historically worked toward finding sleepers on other teams' rosters.
I can agree that the current management was far to near-sighted by playing Duhon, Jeffries etc... at the expense of developing rookies. Nor did they do a great job of bolstering the roster with non-guaranteed contracts and/or vet minimum contracts.
I'm not sure that you can blame the Knicks for not signing Barron sooner-- that seems like quite the pessimistic view. And lets be honest, before we anoint Barron as the new center of the future, he's had 1 good game and 1 great game. I am hopeful that he will continue to play at that level, but I think we need to wait and see.
But his immediate playing time for Barron makes you wonder what he wasn't seeing in Jordan Hill. It has been a D'antoni sticking point that players must be in top notch physical condition to earn time. He, unfortunately, seems to value that over skill. See his treatment of Duhon and Jeffries for examples. But guys with conditioning and skill never sit. See David Lee.
