IDK but I think Isola is good. He is my most entertaining Twitter follow and I agree with a lot of what he tweets and says. I guess I have an agenda too.

Swishfm3 wrote:

WaltLongmire wrote:

knicks1248 wrote:the pelicans just signed AD for damn near 30 million per,(did they even win a playoff game yet) and there's a serious belief that KD will get upwards of 5yr 200 million starting next season.

Damion lillard got 4 mill less the melo, and he hasn't done anything note worthy, or LMA wouldn't be circling the country looking for a new home.

Monroe, gets 16 mill, and never made an all start team, or any other note worthy season awards. Its time we stop making a big deal about the measly 22 million melo is getting.

Not sure the money is the real issue, here, and I think you know this.

It is about what "rebuilding" means, and how you go about doing it.

You are not being honest with yourself.

All you have to do is look around this very site and see that folks still have an issue about Melo and his contract.

You can also see that, while everyone TALKS about rebuilding the "right way" (whatever that means), members of this site were having complete meltdowns because Phil didn't offer MAX contracts to players like MONROE and MATTHEWS. Its ok to overpay these 2nd and 3rd tier player because the cap is going to "skyrocket" next year BUT lets keep bringing up Melo's contract.

Knicks1248 is spot on with his post.

May be wrong about things...but I'm always honest with myself.

The market for players has hit a bump- there has never been a flurry of signings like we have seen. Nothing similar going on when Phil resigned Anthony, if I remember correctly. Phil gave him what was basically a Max contract, a player option, and a no-trade clause that could earn him even more $$. As was the case when he was traded for, Anthony got just about everything he wanted.

My understanding is that Phil did offer a Max to Monroe, just like LA did, or had an agreement with Faulk that he would offer a Max contract if that is all it would take to sign him. All things being equal, he took the offer from the EC team further along the way in its path toward playoff success.

The rising cap makes Anthony's deal more financially acceptable, but does not address the rebuilding issue, and whether the Knicks would have been better off cutting ties with Anthony and picking up some younger players and draft picks for him.

The "right way" to rebuild is to have a plan which does not call for a new rebuild every 2 or 3 years. You want a team with a core of players within 2/3 years in age who can grow together. You bring in some compatible older vets and/or younger players through trades and FA, and use your draft picks wisely.

The big thing is to draft, trade for, or gain through FA, players who have the traits you expect a good player to have. In Phil's pre-draft interview with the Times, he described the kind of player he did not want coming to the Knicks through the draft or FA, and if you actually read his words, you know he was talking about Anthony.

I find it a bit surprising that people don't understand what he was saying...

JACKSON: We’re trying to find players who are the best fit for us. We’re really chasing as much information as we can. We’re not interested in guys who are just interested in the money and in their branding. They have to have a little more to their life than just those selfish desires. There’s nothing wrong with chasing money, and there’s nothing wrong with making the most from your name. But that seems to be the running theme that you see a lot these days.

Q: Speaking of branding, why did Anthony play in the All-Star Game when it was clear that he needed knee surgery?

JACKSON: I don’t see any value at all in an All-Star Game. None. I think it was a pretty exciting game this year because of its speed. But as a coach, what’s the point? But when guys have, as part of their contract, shoe things when they make the All-Star team, we try to accommodate what will help them move forward with their lives and their careers. So when we sat down with Carmelo in London and we had dinner with him, we actually pointed to that date as a possible time for him to shut it down.

JACKSON: The idea of whether it was the right thing to do, I can see where people could look at it and be skeptical. How do you think he (Anthony) played that night? I think he got between the free throw line and the other free throw line. I don’t think he could run very well.

...just as I find it surprising that in one of his press conferences, he also talked about the kind of players he wanted to draft, especially in regard to their family backgrounds and support groups. Who did he get in the draft- 3 players with strong family structures and support groups, and 3 players who have family members involved, one way or another, in the sport of basketball.

I think a lot of sports journalists are coming around to the position, especially after the draft, that Jackson might not consider Anthony to be a prime building block on the Knicks team he is now trying to build, and that their timelines for team growth might be differ from each other.

holfresh wrote:With that point of view, he wouldn't want LeBron or Kobe or a Lawrence Taylor type of player...It's just silly...We aren't running a monastery...

Did any of these guys have problems when they came out of HS or college?

Kobe came from a BB family and James was the most storied player to come out of HS, and by all accounts is a guy who has been a good family man, and hardly a terrible guy, even if there are things about him you might not like.

Taylor was a gifted athlete...don't recall bad stuff about him in college, although its been a long time.

Being a competitor is one thing. Of course you want your guys to have a desire to win and can compete, but all this being equal, it would seem that Phil believes other things are also important.

I'm just regurgitating what Jackson put out to folks. Interpret his words any way you want. Just seems to me that he is looking at character, as well as BB ability- and this was reflected in our draft.