BigDaddyG wrote:Alexander is naive if he thinks Lin alone wil draw free agents. $$$$ draws free agents. If they're older and want to win a title, then maybe the quality of the team plays a role in a free agent's decision.

Houston is a young team and they'll have max caproom and no state income tax in Texas.

martin wrote:

crzymdups wrote:

martin wrote:

crzymdups wrote:

martin wrote:

crzymdups wrote:Rockets have a good young team. Mock away. In 4 years they'll be in a much better position to contend than the Knicks. And it's not like the Knicks will be truly contending over the next 3.

holy overreach.

perhaps. they have good young talent they seem interested in developing instead of giving away for free though. ask briggs about their draft, it was solid. cap room and a good young team. knicks are capped out for 3yrs with one of the oldest rosters in the league. i'm hoping for the best, but i just don't see it. i think they'll be good, like 5th seed or so. but that just means a date with the heat in the second round. and this year is prob their best shot, they're only gonna get older.

I take a different angle on the age of the Knicks' roster: I focus on the starters, who are not old by any means, and in fact I would say all of them are in their primes (depending on who you pick as starters). Their bench is definitely old, but those (main) guys all started on their respective teams and were legitimate starters who will now be going against second line guys.

Felton, JR, Melo, Amare, Chandler. All between 26-29. Their bench will be Kidd, Camby, Novak, White, Kurt and SG to be named later. Kidd and Camby started for their respective teams last year.

Chandler and Kidd started and were key kogs on a championship team 2 years ago; Kidd probably has lost some but not a whole bunch and now his role is redefined.

Check out Boston: Garnett will be 37, Peirce will be 35. Both are starters. Jason Terry will be 35. Bradley is a nice young prospect but just had shoulder surgery again. Rondo and Bass are nice young guys.

Who are the other 4 teams that will be better than the Knicks next year?

I think Miami, Boston, Indiana, Chicago will all be better than the Knicks. I would love it if the Knicks could finally dethrone Boston for the division crown, but Boston added a lot of young talent via the draft and Courtney Lee and Jason Terry are great FA grabs, plus Jeff Green is back.

I think Boston and NY will go toe-to-toe. I forgot about Green.

Chicago will not have Rose for most of the year. Did they match Omer Asik? And didn't they cut Brewer? and trade away Korver? Who are their SG and PGs? Hopefully Deng's wrist will survive the Olympics.

And I am wondering how Indian will do with Augustin.

For me, Indiana, NY, Boston are all second tier after Miami.

I agree with that. I think Chicago will be tough. Word is they will match Asik (then again we've heard that before about RFAs...)... and Chicago was tough without Rose last season.

The Knicks CAN get the second seed. If they do, I will be very impressed. Beating Boston would be a huge step. I think they'll have to beat Boston in the playoffs to even get to Miami

BigDaddyG wrote:

crzymdups wrote:

BigDaddyG wrote:Alexander is naive if he thinks Lin alone wil draw free agents. $$$$ draws free agents. If they're older and want to win a title, then maybe the quality of the team plays a role in a free agent's decision.

Houston is a young team and they'll have max caproom and no state income tax in Texas.

True, having a young team is nice. But the other two things wrote are probably the most important thing that will influence a free agent's decision. That said, it still isn't a guarantee. You still don't hear many free agents mention Houston as a destination spot. Dallas has had an OK free agency, but it's not as nice as they would've liked.

Depending on how Houston handles their cap space, they should be players in free agency during the next few years. But I'm not sure how many big names will be available by then.

One thing to consider is that Tracy McGrady became a HUGE name in China because of playing alongside Yao Ming. Some savvy star or near-star might realize that.

mrKnickShot wrote:

crzymdups wrote:

BigDaddyG wrote:

crzymdups wrote:

BigDaddyG wrote:Alexander is naive if he thinks Lin alone wil draw free agents. $$$$ draws free agents. If they're older and want to win a title, then maybe the quality of the team plays a role in a free agent's decision.

Houston is a young team and they'll have max caproom and no state income tax in Texas.

True, having a young team is nice. But the other two things wrote are probably the most important thing that will influence a free agent's decision. That said, it still isn't a guarantee. You still don't hear many free agents mention Houston as a destination spot. Dallas has had an OK free agency, but it's not as nice as they would've liked.

Depending on how Houston handles their cap space, they should be players in free agency during the next few years. But I'm not sure how many big names will be available by then.

One thing to consider is that Tracy McGrady became a HUGE name in China because of playing alongside Yao Ming. Some savvy star or near-star might realize that.

Did T-Mac capitalize on it?

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-ball-dont-lie/tracy-mcgrady-chinese-beer-commercial-video-221537674.html

but the takeaway here is that McGrady remains a coveted endorser in China even when he's at his athletic nadir. Even in retirement, the Yao effect continues on.

crzymdups wrote:

martin wrote:

crzymdups wrote:Rockets have a good young team. Mock away. In 4 years they'll be in a much better position to contend than the Knicks. And it's not like the Knicks will be truly contending over the next 3.

holy overreach.

perhaps. they have good young talent they seem interested in developing instead of giving away for free though. ask briggs about their draft, it was solid. cap room and a good young team. knicks are capped out for 3yrs with one of the oldest rosters in the league. i'm hoping for the best, but i just don't see it. i think they'll be good, like 5th seed or so. but that just means a date with the heat in the second round. and this year is prob their best shot, they're only gonna get older.

How do you come to this conclusion when they are willing to give up their recent picks and future picks for Howard or Bynum?

TheloniusMonk wrote:Jeremy Lin is an iso player who is better suited to be an undersized 2 guard. However, he passes better than a lot of 2 guards but he's not a "read the defense" type of point guard no a "playmaker" type. He is best when he is setting up the play for himself. Yes he threw alleys to Chandler but so did Shump, Melo, Jr and Fields. Ultimately, Lin is a scorer and best when doing things for himself. He's a good player. An average playmaker tho. Nash, Kidd, Paul (etc) makes players better. Players like Deron Williams, Westbrook and Rose are best when doing things for themselves. Lin isn't as good as those guys but he is cut from the cloth of the latter group.