hear ya.

and in the words of one of ray's back-up singsrs, "if you want to be a raylet, you gotta let ray."

Posted by nixluva:

Some of you negative guys just kill me. What is the problem? In less than 3 full years Isiah has turned this team over and made it better.

Isn't that debatable? Hasn't the team record gone down every year since Isiah has been here?

We actually have a future. I LIKE THIS TEAM.

The Knicks do have a better future since Isiah has come on board, but that is still wrapped up in potential unfulfilled.

the point was that sentence will NEVER happen in new york.

So to expect that here means you don't know anything about the knicks, because know knick fan would even joke that that was a possibility.

And if that is what it will take for you to stop being so "down" on the knicks in every post (except yesterday, you seemed a little bit more upbeat on the JJ2 signing, however, you did throw in ANOTHER "what about JJ rant" ) is for the knicks to be the sentence that was in bold, then you will never not be down on the knicks, because the payroll is going to stay at or around $100 million and at the same time we will content with the home grown talent we have been cultivating.

>>You and Earl truly are caped crusaders for all thing Knicks being great

And that silly over-exaggeration makes us what... optimistic Knicks fans?

While you and Martin bitch and moan about the 23 wins, everyone is supposed to fall in line for another kvetch session about how much they miss 'who' exactly?

Dave Checketts? - he hired Layden

Jeff Van Gundy? - he quit

Ernie Grunfeld? - he was wacked by Checketts

Personally, I miss Dave DeBusshere - he drew Patrick out of the hat and was the heart and soul of the franchise bit I digress.

I also wish Bill Bradley was team president and the Spike Lee/Woody Allen Group owned a share of the franchise, but that ain't happening.

You want another GM to step in an do all the things YOU would have done in your wet dream, but you have no patience for roster turnover because the record doesn't show it immediately with a bunch of disoriented (thanks Larry) kids?

Did you watch the Detriot Tigers last season?

Did you watch the Steelers through all the down years they stuck with Bill Cowher?

Of course not. that doesn't count becauase its new york and the GM is not supposed to be the smarmy lyin' devil himself, Isiah Thomas.


When Isiah took over not everyone lamented about how the Knicks could never get past Layden's mistakes or under the freakin' salary cap. The salary cap. Yeah right.

Some tried to have an open mind and understood that a rebuild/retool/regrowth of any NBA roster is the most difficult in pro sports.

It took the Bulls seven years to make the playoffs. Ben Wallace is no guarantee of taking another step forward.

You gotta GIVE to get and all Isiah had to 'give' was dreck and salary relief. There was no evidence of a directive from Dolan to let contracts simply expire and start from scratch. NONE. New York ain't that kind of party.

Houston, Eisey, Spoon, Charlie Ward, Travis Knight, Frank Williams, Maciej Lampe are ALL afterthoughts and in the rear view mirror. You REALLY think Dolan wanted to hold on to that crew THAT so the draft picks would drop from heaven while fans stayed home in droves?

Get real.

Players like Jeffries are not easy to acquire and don't fall in your lap because you bitched and moaned for more defense. Isiah calls in an Indiana relationship and he's raked for some past deal you didn't like.

Is Thomas perfect? Of course not. He WILL make plenty of mistakes because he's just as aggressive as a point guarde leading the break. Sometimes you throw the ball away. Other times, a layup off a sweet assist is a beautiful thing to watch. I don't celebrate his 'turnovers' because the future, for a change, is brighter.

I understand your frustartion and everyone WANTS to win. But some of the criticism of Isiah is only thinly-veiled bias. There is NO NBA parallel or precedent for what Isiah Thomas inherited yet he's not doing it fast enough.

That's cool. Just man-up, admit it so we can move on.

You and Martin are truly on a jihad for all things negative, juvenile, and anti-Knicks just because it doesn't fit your agenda or perecption of how 'things' should look in some pristine, fantasy league, universe.

That is a truly sad.

Anji - with all due respect...

Atlanta is NOTHING like New York. The ownership has tread water by for nearly two decades decade with a muddled agenda, poor performance on the court, and countless misses on first round draft picks. The fan base is NOT demanding and is happy to win t-shirts at halftime.


The Clippers have been under Donald Sterlings suspect stewardship for well, forever, and have given away too many players and botched more draft picks to list. Did you read where he is being sued for housing discrimination?

I respectfully disagree, those franchises - their history, and their constituency, are NOTHING like New York.

Finally, the Knicks are "buying" better, and younger, and more intelligent, players.

Stay Tuned

>>JJ2 is a good player and I'm glad we got him. I guess that makes everything ok right?

No. It only makes things better than they were the day before.

>>I hope Isiah has learned from his own mistakes. He's certainly had plenty of lessons to choose from when it comes to that.

Haven't we all had lessons to learn?

Then again, some of us never take risks in order to make mistakes and learn from them. Some are extra-cautious, simply play it safe and never venture outside their comfort zone,

Making mistakes is a part of living.

TMS - what "pattern" of "mistakes" are you referring to?

Please cite specific examples.

For example, If you consider the Malik Rose transaction a "mistake" then you must consider the first round pick that came with him, David Lee, a "mistake" as well.

Nah, forget it. Let's look forward Isiah's inevitable firing by the All Star break.

Things will immediately improve after that.

Martin - do you trust the storyline that Larry Brown actively campaigned to acquire Steve Francis and Jalen Rose?

Posted by misterearl:

Martin - do you trust the storyline that Larry Brown actively campaigned to acquire Steve Francis and Jalen Rose?

I don't know. I think it's plausible. Who knows. I wasn't there so I don't know. For arguments sake let's say it was 100% LB's idea. Isiah still was the one that forsake his "plan" to go out and get them. He was also the guy that hired LB in the first place even though he wasn't a fit for our team. All of that is a part of his plan. Hiring LB was part o fhis plan. It's a mistake that Isiah made and he is just as much to blame for last year as LB. LB wasn't the right coach, Lenny wasn't, Herb wasn't. When is Isiah going to hire the right coach. Hopefully, for us Dolan took care of this.

Posted by misterearl:

Martin - do you trust the storyline that Larry Brown actively campaigned to acquire Steve Francis and Jalen Rose?

sure, but I also trust that Isiah is the President and has the LAST call on such things. Just like the Butler call, the JJ2 call, the non-Miles call, the LB call, the 4 coaches in 3 years call, the draft, non-Theo trade, the non-Eric Snow deal and everyone else LB asked for. If you got a plan, stick with it.

Martin - plan?

We don't need no steenkin' plan!

The plan is to get better and win. The one small caveat that so many people conveniently overlook is that a GM must negotiate with his competition. No plan can plan for that.

Sone decisions are difficult. You can't sign BOTH Jackie Butler AND Jeffries. Isiah had to decide which player he coveted most while simultaneously handling negotiations. It was a calculated risk that Jeffries might return to the Wiz.

The other non-deals are pure speculation. Theo Ratliff? Get real.

The coaches? Big deal. Coaches are hired to be fired. Did you realy expect Larry Brown to create such discord last year at this time?

You gotta break some eggs to make an omelette