AnubisADL wrote:
You seriously think he is going to get quicker as he adds weight? He will get stronger but faster? I doubt it. Only way I see him getting faster is if he loses weight because he doesn't seem the type to look ripped.

David Lee's skills evolved. He appears to have the same leaping ability he had in highschool. Of course Gallo's skills will improve but you're acting as though his foot speed can be increased.

The NBA drafts athletes for a reason. Working hard will only get you so far when it comes to athleticism.

So you are a Creationist, and not an Evolutionist.

Actually, a lot of athletes, especially those who did not train properly in the past, have improved, or shall I say, MAXIMIZED, their so called "athletic" ability with training. D. Blair and Kevin Love are 2 guys in recent drafts who improved their athletic numbers through exercise, training and diet.

Last time for me on this- You have to look at the individual player when evaluating how much they may evolve once they get into the NBA. Some players, like Chandler and TD, seem to be physically mature quite early on, while others, like Gallo, and Hill, have not reached their full physical maturity.

He will become quicker as he matures, his body hardens, he becomes stronger, and his confidence in what he is able to do on the court grows. One more time- physical immaturity (relatively speaking)does make a difference, and Gallo has a certain looseness that tells me he is not fully matured.

None of this means that Gallo will become some kind of uber-athlete, but he will, in fact, improve his quickness as he matures and gains his adult strength.

I don't think anyone's quite sure what position Gallo will settle at - but he's looking more and more like a huge SF.

Randolph has a bit of a scary frame - so long and lean that he looks like an injury waiting to happen. Then again, Chris Bosh has evolved, but is still incredibly lean looking...

SupremeCommander wrote:Who gives a **** if Gallo has "maximized" his stopwatch speed? That's such an asinine point to argue, especially after just watching Chauncy Billups. Gallo is clearly fast enough and already savvy enough to take guys off the dribble and create space for his shots. As he improves his technical play and gains more polish he's going to be able to make the guys with the fast stopwatch speed look slow.

A DraftExpress report from about 3 years ago:

Then we have how Gallinari makes the most out of that controversial athleticism. It’s particularly remarkable how he can beat his match-ups off the dribble on a regular basis. He might not be very reactive, but his first step is very nice, his strides long and difficult to keep up with for his defender...

You can find a lot of reports about this aspect of his game. His lack of "athleticism" has always been an issue, yet at all of the levels he has played, he has been able to get to the basket.

Some seem to think that if a player cannot finish like V. Carter, Wade, Lebron, McGrady in his prime, etc., he is looked upon as unathletic, and Gallo is never going to be the athlete that those guys are, but as you say, there is more to speed than the stopwatch.

I think you can have a legitimate debate over who we should have drafted, but Gallinari's play is making it easier to accept the fact that we took him.

Compare his game today with last year, when he was being ripped apart by a lot of folks around here,not only because of his back, but because they did not think he could be more than a bit player on a team, and you have seen some significant progress in his game... and he is only going to get better.

He is still going to have games where he does not play well, but those should diminish as he becomes more and more comfortable as a player in the NBA. His play and his numbers are only going to get better.

Watching Gallo, TD, and Wilson develop has been one of the few positives this season, and makes next year something to look forward to. Throw Walker and Giddens into the mix and you have a number of younger players to observe and watch evolve. I wish that Hill was still around, but we all know that the NBA is a business, as well as a sport, so...

Gallinari and Douglas Give Knicks Hope
By HOWARD BECK

If this is a renaissance, the Knicks picked a peculiar time for it. Their losing record is assured, the playoffs are a near impossibility, and the season is down to 11 seemingly meaningless games. There is little to gain now.

And yet the Knicks – left for dead long ago, dismissed as selfish, callow, poorly coached, indifferent or simply uninspired – are suddenly on a roll, with four victories in their last six games.

The modest surge could be waved off as an aberration, except that it includes stunning victories over the Dallas Mavericks and the Denver Nuggets, two of the best teams in the N.B.A. They also beat the Atlanta Hawks two weeks ago, making the Knicks 3-3 against teams with .600-or-better winning percentages in the month of March.

It may not seem like much, but consider that the Knicks did not beat a winning team from Jan. 2 to March 7, and that they have as many victories this month (six) as they had in the prior 52 days.

The late surge means the Knicks are still competing at a time when they could be shutting it down to protect their bodies; there are nine pending free agents on the roster. Despite an occasional pratfall (including routs by the Nets and the Celtics), they are not giving up.

If the games are ultimately meaningless, the way the Knicks are winning them is not. In fact, the surge bodes well for their future: Danilo Gallinari and Toney Douglas, two top prospects, are blossoming by the day and leading the late resurgence.

Gallinari is averaging 17.3 points in March, his best month this season. Douglas, a rookie who became the starting point guard March 12, is averaging 14 points and 3.9 assists this month.

Both have been scorching from the field. Douglas is shooting 50.9 percent in March and has made half of his 3-pointers (23 for 46). Gallinari is shooting 45.6 percent this month, including a 40.6 percent from the arc.

The only thing more critical for the Knicks than signing a superstar is giving superstars a reason to be here. Gallinari and Douglas (and, until he was injured, Wilson Chandler) are showing they are worthy teammates for LeBron James, Dwyane Wade or whoever else will be looking for a new supporting cast this summer.

In what might have been the signature performance of his young career, Gallinari went toe to toe with one of the league’s other top stars, Carmelo Anthony, on Tuesday night. It was one of the most thrilling nights at Madison Square Garden this season.

The two traded baskets throughout the third quarter, with Gallinari outscoring Anthony, 17-12. After one big 3-pointer, Gallinari bellowed and beat his chest as he ran back up the court. In the fourth quarter, he converted a baseline reverse and drew the foul, then skip-strutted toward the Nuggets’ bench.

Anthony finished with more points (36 to 28), but Gallinari made the bigger plays down the stretch to secure the win. And while Anthony made 14 of 26 field-goal attempts, the feisty Gallinari had a hand (and often a forearm) in his face on nearly every shot.

“He took the challenge,” Coach Mike D’Antoni said.

Gallinari, who had asked to guard Anthony, called it “a great moment.”

This has been a breakout season for Gallinari, despite a midseason lull in January and February. He is earning respect around the league and justifying his selection as the No. 6 pick in the 2009 draft.

“I love what he is doing,” Anthony said of Gallinari. “It was kind of fun to me to see him actually hold his ground and not back down.”

The Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki, another European big man with a versatile game, recently said that Gallinari was ahead of where he was at the same stage. One presumes that James and Wade have taken notice as well.

So the Knicks’ season may be a lost cause, but the games that remain are anything but meaningless.

Yeah baby, YEAH! Gallo is, has been, and will continue to be our UNTOUCHABLE Italian.

TMS wrote:

And yet the Knicks – left for dead long ago, dismissed as selfish, callow, poorly coached, indifferent or simply uninspired – are suddenly on a roll, with four victories in their last six games.

The modest surge could be waved off as an aberration, except that it includes stunning victories over the Dallas Mavericks and the Denver Nuggets, two of the best teams in the N.B.A. They also beat the Atlanta Hawks two weeks ago, making the Knicks 3-3 against teams with .600-or-better winning percentages in the month of March.

interesting that winning streak coincided with Tony Douglas being inserted as the starting PG.

Its also interesting that it coincided with the GM traveling with the team.

TMS wrote:

CrushAlot wrote:

TMS wrote:

And yet the Knicks – left for dead long ago, dismissed as selfish, callow, poorly coached, indifferent or simply uninspired – are suddenly on a roll, with four victories in their last six games.

The modest surge could be waved off as an aberration, except that it includes stunning victories over the Dallas Mavericks and the Denver Nuggets, two of the best teams in the N.B.A. They also beat the Atlanta Hawks two weeks ago, making the Knicks 3-3 against teams with .600-or-better winning percentages in the month of March.

interesting that winning streak coincided with Tony Douglas being inserted as the starting PG.

Its also interesting that it coincided with the GM traveling with the team.

i agree... Walsh had to basically force MDA's hand by travelling w/the team to get him to finally give the rookie some burn... i am willing to bet he was frustrated as hell that he had to give up Jordan Hill in that trade to dump Fishlips' contract & wanted to see for himself why his draft picks couldn't get any burn on this team.

I doubt Walsh has FORCED Mike to do anything. GMs and coaches talk so you can be sure they've discussed the team and the players and who is playing and who isn't. Maybe the coach tweaks things a bit on the suggestions of the GM. Maybe the coach plays players that the GM wants to trade. Things like that. Yet a flat out FORCING the hand of the coach? I don't believe that.

I think Mike did a wonderful job with Toney Douglas. And I think Toney did a wonderful job with "himself" while he wasn't getting court time. It shows. Look how well he is playing.

Gallo, Chandler, Lee - all playing very good basketball.

I think Walsh and Mike are generally on the same page. There will always be disagreements but in the end the Coach plays who he feels he should play and I doubt Walsh would get in his way over it.

Douglas is playing because he has grown and has earned his time.

Nothing more.

Again, NONE OF US watch practice. NONE OF US know what happens in practice. What happens in PRACTICE has a bearing on WHO PLAYS IN THE GAMES.

We were also in a unique situation with all our 2010 veterans and I applaud Mike for giving those vets the chance to play for their next contracts. Yet, when he saw what was going on he scaled back Harrington, Duhon, and Jeffries and - Hill and Douglas and Landry - and now Walker and Giddens have gotten time.

You may have wanted this to happen in December or January but it's not up to you. It's up to the coach.

I think Mike has done okay. We have four young players playing very good basketball.

Why not be happy about that?

TMS wrote:

Again, NONE OF US watch practice. NONE OF US know what happens in practice. What happens in PRACTICE has a bearing on WHO PLAYS IN THE GAMES.

you're the one making these end all announcements about Jordan Hill's lazyness during practice... stop talkin' out yo ass dude... u haven't seen jack but sporadic play over 24 games to come to your expert analysis of this kid's game.

Plus one on this - because if you honestly believe that, then Duhon must be a completely different player in practice.

Because that is the ONLY way to explain how Douglas got no time all year.