blkexec wrote:

nixluva wrote:

blkexec wrote:

nixluva wrote:

dk7th wrote:we have younger players but there is no jason kidd and pablo prigioni to anchor the offense. hopefully our guys this year will grasp the system well enough to be as effective as a true orchestrator like kidd was for the knicks... and exceed expectations. i project 34 wins, but as high as 42 wins if everyone plays defense and the offense clicks. more than 42 wins if kris explodes.

We have enough quality Guards to make this all work. We won't need a Jason Kidd in this offense. That's one of the benefits of playing this style. The key is to have a high level of passing at every position. An Elite Passing PG is not important. Not that you can't benefit from having one but the level of Guards we have now should be excellent for this style. IN this style you mostly want Combo Guards that can pass a bit and score, but don't need the ball all the time in order to be effective. Jose, Jerian, Langston, Arron and Sasha can all move, catch and shoot and all have enough skill and savvy to make things flow. It's part of why i'm high on this team being above .500 this year. This is a very smart and versatile group of guards.

I didn't see Kidds value on this team for his physical tools. It was the mental tools where Kidd adds value. Melo needs a Jason Kidd type on the team for added stability and the vocal leadership. Hopefully Rolo can provide that, but have a veteran PG is like having another coach on the floor, which is what Fisher clearly needs to ensure success.

Jose, Afflalo, Jerian, Sasha and to a lesser degree Gallo, all have enough mental capacity to help stabilize this team. I think people are underestimating the mental strength of our guards. They will be the ones making the initial calls on where the ball goes and in general setting everyone up and I believe they are all highly capable in that regard. Kidd is a special case and there are VERY few guards with his level of floor leadership. We have about the best group we could get IMO. I believe fans will grow to appreciate the guards we have now as the season moves along.

Trust me, I agree with you. But when you have 1 solid floor leader / future HOF'er....it's hard to replace him. Jose was suppose to fill that void, but that experiment has failed so far. Having multiple guards with a good head on their shoulder is a great problem to have, but it will never replace the 1 floor general we've had in the past (kidd and billups). But as you said, Kidd was a special player, ever since he was in HS back in Cali. So there's really no replacement for him, especially with the guards we have on the roster. Hopefully, Melo, Jose, Rolo, Aflalo and other vets can help fill that veteran void.

No doubt in my mind Knicks targeting Durant next off season, as any team with cap space should, but 1b should be Conley. Both are obviously long shots.

martin wrote:

blkexec wrote:

nixluva wrote:

blkexec wrote:

nixluva wrote:

dk7th wrote:we have younger players but there is no jason kidd and pablo prigioni to anchor the offense. hopefully our guys this year will grasp the system well enough to be as effective as a true orchestrator like kidd was for the knicks... and exceed expectations. i project 34 wins, but as high as 42 wins if everyone plays defense and the offense clicks. more than 42 wins if kris explodes.

We have enough quality Guards to make this all work. We won't need a Jason Kidd in this offense. That's one of the benefits of playing this style. The key is to have a high level of passing at every position. An Elite Passing PG is not important. Not that you can't benefit from having one but the level of Guards we have now should be excellent for this style. IN this style you mostly want Combo Guards that can pass a bit and score, but don't need the ball all the time in order to be effective. Jose, Jerian, Langston, Arron and Sasha can all move, catch and shoot and all have enough skill and savvy to make things flow. It's part of why i'm high on this team being above .500 this year. This is a very smart and versatile group of guards.

I didn't see Kidds value on this team for his physical tools. It was the mental tools where Kidd adds value. Melo needs a Jason Kidd type on the team for added stability and the vocal leadership. Hopefully Rolo can provide that, but have a veteran PG is like having another coach on the floor, which is what Fisher clearly needs to ensure success.

Jose, Afflalo, Jerian, Sasha and to a lesser degree Gallo, all have enough mental capacity to help stabilize this team. I think people are underestimating the mental strength of our guards. They will be the ones making the initial calls on where the ball goes and in general setting everyone up and I believe they are all highly capable in that regard. Kidd is a special case and there are VERY few guards with his level of floor leadership. We have about the best group we could get IMO. I believe fans will grow to appreciate the guards we have now as the season moves along.

Trust me, I agree with you. But when you have 1 solid floor leader / future HOF'er....it's hard to replace him. Jose was suppose to fill that void, but that experiment has failed so far. Having multiple guards with a good head on their shoulder is a great problem to have, but it will never replace the 1 floor general we've had in the past (kidd and billups). But as you said, Kidd was a special player, ever since he was in HS back in Cali. So there's really no replacement for him, especially with the guards we have on the roster. Hopefully, Melo, Jose, Rolo, Aflalo and other vets can help fill that veteran void.

No doubt in my mind Knicks targeting Durant next off season, as any team with cap space should, but 1b should be Conley. Both are obviously long shots.

I actually think people are gonna be pleasantly surprised at how good this team will be and in part because we have the right guards for how this team wants to play. Also because this group has a tough bunch of bigs that will make things uncomfortable for opponents. This isn't the Powder Puff Girls we had last year. We've got some bangers now.

I think Jose, Jerian, Afflalo, Sasha and Gallo can play well enough to push this team into the .500 range. All of them can shoot and in this system that's important. They don't have to be elite floor generals in this style of play. Just be able to make basic passes and move well without the ball. If you can run a Give n Go or PnR that really is about the most complicated thing a guard will do in this system.

TPercy wrote:If Grant turns out to be Chris Paul 2.0 and Kristaps Porzingis soon becomes a superstar before Melo's contract runs up, I don't see why not.

All of that doesn't have to happen. 1st of all Jerian is a Combo Guard in a system that favors Combo Guards. He's not supposed to play like CP3. I do believe he's gonna be really good tho. Just in his own way. As for KP I think he just has to play his game and not feel he has to be a savior. Just let the game come to him. He's so big and skilled he should be able to contribute.

TPercy wrote:

nixluva wrote:

TPercy wrote:If Grant turns out to be Chris Paul 2.0 and Kristaps Porzingis soon becomes a superstar before Melo's contract runs up, I don't see why not.

All of that doesn't have to happen. 1st of all Jerian is a Combo Guard in a system that favors Combo Guards. He's not supposed to play like CP3. I do believe he's gonna be really good tho. Just in his own way. As for KP I think he just has to play his game and not feel he has to be a savior. Just let the game come to him. He's so big and skilled he should be able to contribute.

Most teams that compete for championships have 2-3 stars on their team...

Who said we won't have 2-3 stars? We have some young players who haven't yet been able to make a name for themselves. It doesn't mean they won't be able to become stars for this team. IMO we've got some talented players under development. There's a long way to go between now and the playoffs. It should be a very interesting season this year.

crzymdups wrote:This is idiotic that this is even a story. What's Melo supposed to say? I took his comment to mean that they are trying to build toward a championship team. He didn't say this season. He was also answering idiotic, leading questions from the NY media who are trying to make controversy out of nothing.

Look at his actual quote:

"S---, we're competing. People might not believe that, but we're definitely competing for that," Anthony said after training camp practice on Wednesday. "That's always going to be the goal. Whether we get there or not depends on us and what we're doing. That's always our big-picture goal."

What's he supposed to say? He's not competing? He's given up hope on the season?

newyorknewyork wrote:

knickscity wrote:

crzymdups wrote:This is idiotic that this is even a story. What's Melo supposed to say? I took his comment to mean that they are trying to build toward a championship team. He didn't say this season. He was also answering idiotic, leading questions from the NY media who are trying to make controversy out of nothing.

Look at his actual quote:

"S---, we're competing. People might not believe that, but we're definitely competing for that," Anthony said after training camp practice on Wednesday. "That's always going to be the goal. Whether we get there or not depends on us and what we're doing. That's always our big-picture goal."

What's he supposed to say? He's not competing? He's given up hope on the season?

Considering he wouldnt place playoffs as an expectation just the day before makes him sound rather silly. care to explain how you state your team is competing for a title, but wont predict making the playoffs?

He is talking more so about a mindset, how they prepare and the effort they want to put in during practice and in games. Not so much an expectation.

Im sure Phil made it loud and clsar about talking playoff stuff. That was alesson learned from last season. But as it was said. ....you have top have a goal of winning a championship and not just making the playoffs. ......That's the beginning of a cultural shift in knick land.