Posted by Masterplan:

WHY?
Curry, Frye, Jared, Lee and James already occupy our Frontcourt spots for 2006-07 and its highly unlikely that we'll be able to make room for anyone else. Who could that be, Webber or KMart? Both of whom are big money players with leg problems. Why would we need them? Neither guy would guarantee us a title shot and too much money is involved.

i wish to god that is the knicks' mindset. why add webber or kmart or whoever else is on the outs with their current team? no good reason. then again, why add francis and jalen? but we did that.

if the plan is indeed to move toward financial sanity, it would be reassuring to hear someone in management say it. "we are reassessing our financial model," "we are committing to our core of youth," or even dump salaries of redundant players for chemistry purposes. i haven't heard anything like this, only rumors of the next starphuch, and "it's not your money" and "no one comes to see the salary cap play." but who knows, maybe they are wising up.

i've been hoping for the kind of strategy you're talking about for years. every year the knicks make moves like mo T and steve francis that set us back at least two seasons. i hope that last season was a wakeup call that what they're doing doesn't work. IT and the strategy he stands for is accountable this year. we'll see.

i need to let out a rant like this every so often. thanks guys

Posted by Masterplan:

WHY?
Curry, Frye, Jared, Lee and James already occupy our Frontcourt spots for 2006-07 and its highly unlikely that we'll be able to make room for anyone else. Who could that be, Webber or KMart? Both of whom are big money players with leg problems. Why would we need them? Neither guy would guarantee us a title shot and too much money is involved.

i wish to god that is the knicks' mindset. why add webber or kmart or whoever else is on the outs with their current team? no good reason. then again, why add francis and jalen? but we did that.

if the plan is indeed to move toward financial sanity, it would be reassuring to hear someone in management say it. "we are reassessing our financial model," "we are committing to our core of youth," or even dump salaries of redundant players for chemistry purposes. i haven't heard anything like this, only rumors of the next starphuch, and "it's not your money" and "no one comes to see the salary cap play." but who knows, maybe they are wising up.

i've been hoping for the kind of strategy you're talking about for years. every year the knicks make moves like mo T and steve francis that set us back at least two seasons. i hope that last season was a wakeup call that what they're doing doesn't work. IT and the strategy he stands for is accountable this year. we'll see.

i need to let out a rant like this every so often. thanks guys

Posted by wsdm:

Actually Isiah has for the most part taking on big contracts of Francis and Jalen, but they don't extend beyond Steph.

There's a simple reason for that: Steph has three full seasons left. Max contracts are 5 years (or 6 if re-signing with your own team). It usually takes a team a couple of years to decide if a big signing was a mistake that they want to dump onto another team. Give it time and they'll extend beyond Steph. It's DOLANOMICS and it's killing our team!

Posted by nixluva:

Posted by 4949:

Seroiusly, the thing the Knicks need to keep doing is build through the draft and don't sign anymore huge rediculous contracts. Let these young guys develop, if they do develop, and then offer a few big contracts to a few real stars when they become available. It's what you don't' do now that matters. I feel that the Knicks are already on the right track with all of the rooks that we have acquired and need to concentrate on development, instead of the 'quick fix'.

Why then shouldn't they be planning for when LeBron or Wade are available in a few years? I don't understand your reasoning at all. It won't stop us from continuing to develop our young players at all. Getting one of those players isn't a quick fix its a good move. LeBron would only be 25 at that time.

Posted by 4949:

This is what I see at this point. If this particular team ends up gong about .500 on the season, then we are in great shape. We just have to watch the money and be fiscally responsible. Our best young pieces will be the key. In a few years , this is were those free agents sigings that I mentioned above will be very important. In just two short seasons, we could be knocking on the door, if we play our cards right.

Again what are you trying to say? If you're plan is to add a key FA, then that's exactly what the Knicks would be doing. Just remember that after the 2008-09 season they will drop $39mil when Steph and Steve's contracts expire. The next season will see another $15.9mil drop off when QRich & James expire. I fail to see what the problem is then in going after LeBron at that point. Wouldn't that be the BEST use of the cap space we'd have at that point?

I have to make a correction to what i've said in other posts, Jamal doesn't expire after 2009-10, it seems he has a player option

[Edited by - NIXLUVA on 09-19-2006 9:16 PM]

Posted by nyk4ever:

Posted by nixluva:


I'd really like to know what the HELL you're talking about? I didn't say anything about the 2 rookies being big contributors. If you look at our Roster there's not enough minutes to go around NOW much less if we tried to add another big contract player to the roster. What i'm saying is that for the next 3 years this team is going to be in preparation for the LeBron and Wade FA class.

You tell me why we'd need to make any big trades between now and then? We have to at least see how this team works this year. Jalen and Mo will be gone and still we'd be pretty set in terms of our rotation.
Curry, Frye, Jared, Lee and James are MOST likely to still be here for the next few years. So we probably won't be adding any more frontcourt players. WHY SHOULD WE? Steph, Francis, Jamal, Nate and QRich are signed for the next 3 seasons so unless we trade someone there's no room there either. Behind them we have our two rookies. Man, i'd like to hear a logical explanation for why we'd be looking to bring in any big salary players at this point. WHERE WOULD THEY PLAY!?! Any player we tried to get would have to not only be better than the guys we have, but also cheaper. We have Frye, Jared, Lee and James and none of them are making more than the MLE. Why do we need to bring in someone who probably won't make us better and cost more?

EVERY YEAR FROM NOW TIL 2009-10 we're going to be dropping salary off the cap. I think you guys are NUTS if you think the Knicks haven't already planned to try to get LeBron and Wade after that season ends. All of our young players will be coming into their prime years by then, so it makes perfect sense. This is very plausible.

When have the Knicks EVER let contracts run off the books so they could sign a free-agent? Thats right they never have. Obviously this is a great idea to try and get Lebron or Wade but what gives you any sort of idea that the Knicks will change the way they've done things and do this? This is a foreign language to James Dolan and Isiah Thomas hasn't shown me otherwise. He uses the MLE every year, no matter who it is on and he acquires lofty contracts via trades on a daily basis. The problem is that you talk like it is a forgone conclusion that Lebron is coming to NY and that this is 100% happening, I guess thats what happens when you neglect to look at whats actually happened the last 10 years.

I understand though, your mantra on this site is to be the guy who makes all kinds of predictions and obviously just by sheer luck your going to have to be right sooner or later. All your doing is predicting things when you come on here and you just make claims on what will happen and what wont happen when you have nothing to backup your claims except your own good word.

Mr.Psychic, since you can tell the future, I'd love to know who will win the Super Bowl so I can place my bets now. Thanks.

[Edited by - nyk4ever on 09-20-2006 12:10 AM]

He's got a good point. That's not the Knicks way! The Knicks way is to maybe' win the lottery, get the number one first round pick, say 'every 30 years' and try to build around him. We don't do things the right way. We like to sign huge, outrageuous contracts, not to mention 'very long ones' that we make sure don't run out in time to free up cap space so we could make a pitch at that every once in a while, and really more often then not, super star free agent. We make absolutely sure that our capped out team is wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy better than anyone in the history of the NBA and that no one in they're right mind would dare to pass the totals beyond our own. As a matter of fact, if Dolan even thinks a pure super star is going to be on the market in a few years, he'll make sure he signs a bum to 100 million, 7 year contract, so our poor GM's can't make more sensible deals! Yup, those are our Knicks! Gotta love-um!!!

Posted by Solace:

Posted by nixluva:

Again Solace, Bip and others, you're just NOT PAYING ATTENTION to what i've been saying.

The core players we have NOW are all signed thru 2008-09. After that season Steph and Francis contracts expire. However, up until that year, we have a very good chance that there won't be any BIG Contracts added. WHY?
Curry, Frye, Jared, Lee and James already occupy our Frontcourt spots for 2006-07 and its highly unlikely that we'll be able to make room for anyone else. Who could that be, Webber or KMart? Both of whom are big money players with leg problems. Why would we need them? Neither guy would guarantee us a title shot and too much money is involved.

We also have Steph, Francis, Jamal, QRich and Nate. The only way we add a backcourt player is if we can move one of our huge contracts. That's not likely given the way teams are penny pinching these days. Plus we already have Balkman and Collins on the roster to support off the bench. I never said there would not be anymore additions or trades, just not BIG MONEY moves that add a lot of salary over years. Again I have to ask why would we do that? We already have a young core of talent that is just now getting a shot to perform. We don't have enough minutes for the guys we already have.

So we can drop Jalen and Mo this year. Malik next year. Steph and Francis the year after that. This would set us up nicely for the end of 2009-10. Filling up the rest of the roster doesn't have to mean getting more big money players if the team is targeting LeBron or Wade or some other FA. The core of the team will still be here and young enough for a good run. If you think that the Knicks aren't aware of this and at least thinking about it, I think you're underestimating them a great deal. In recent years we've been making all these moves out of necessity. They were trying to improve the team. Now we have a young core that we can let play over the next 3 years. A lot of Big money additions won't be necessary until the 2009-10 season. Think about it. Houston, Jalen, Anderson and Mo represent $55mil that this team can cut off their cap number. Malik will take another $7mil next year and Steph and Francis another $39mil the year after that. That's $101mil over the next 3 years and we'd still have all of the young players on this team.

Ok, so we're not signing anymore MLE contracts and we're not trading expiring deals for "studs"? Again, what planet are you on? We could've been under the cap for the last time LeBron was a free agent and chose not to. What really makes you think we'll go for it again? Furthermore, the guys we'll still be paying:

Renaldo Balkman - $2,918,906
Mardy Collins - $2,701,543
Jamal Crawford - $10,080,000
Eddy Curry - ~$11 million
Jared Jeffries - ~$7 million
Total ~$33.5 million

That's for only five contracts. Then add in the resigned rookies: Channing Frye could easily get 6 years, $80 million if he's anything good, Lee could get 6 years, $50 million and Nate could also get 6 years, $50 million. Now, add in those first year salaries:

Channing Frye - $10 million
David Lee - $7 million
Nate Robinson - $7 million
Combined Total - $57.5 million

That's still only 8 players. An NBA roster is 15. So we'll probably have some MLEs in there, and likely another big contract. Being on the "generous" side, I can see the remaining 7 players requiring only another $20 million, which brings our team salary close to $80 million.... well well well OVER the cap.

Now please stop posting illogical kool aid. At least rv's kool aid is somewhat entertaining.

Posted by Panos:

Posted by nixluva:


Actually Isiah has for the most part taking on big contracts of Francis and Jalen, but they don't extend beyond Steph. We have no big contracts that extend beyond Steph. All of our longer contracts are actually reasonable. In any event if we don't make a trade for a big money long term contract we'll be setup quite nicely just from the natural attrition of our expiring contracts.

And this is what we said for years about H20's contract. Yet somehow when that day came we had Steph.
Now its a new horizon. And before he's gone, there will be another.

I'm a pretty happy guy and yet these Knicks have me wishing away the years. It's really not easy being a Knicks fan. I should route for the Bulls or some other nice young team.

You have to remember the circumstances of why we made the trade for Steph. Dolan wanted to make anotther run at the playoffs with H2O and KT still here. It made sense at the time. We didn't waste any time tho once it was clear that we wouldn't ever see a healthy H2O again.

Now we have a team which at least has a chance to do something over the next few years. If not then we can at least start planning to make a play for LeBron or Wade. We'll know a litttle something this year for sure. The thing is that no matter how things go over the next few years, The team won't have to do anything special in order to get the cap number down. just let the contracts expire and fill in with low salary players and draft picks.

Posted by Bippity10:

It could happen, it could not happen. That's pretty much the summary of this post. Can't wait for the season to start!!!

Posted by Allanfan20:

Solace, as I'm typing with my right hand and groping Eliza with my other hand while she's on my lap, I'm wondering just how much faith you have in me. That's just mean man. You really never believed I could get with Eliza, but guess what...

LeBron to NY to 2008. Wooooooooo...

Anyway, I've got more important things to do than reading Solace's post, like getting back to Eliza.