From Real GM

With Jerome James agreeing to a five-year contract at about $6 million per season, Isiah Thomas has pulled off a very non-Erick Dampier signing.

Dampier was in a very similar situation to James last summer, as he was the prized center on the free agent market, coming off a successful season, but with questions about his long term value, as both players have been plagued by apathy and mediocrity.

Dallas overpaid for Dampier in a sign-and-trade deal with the Warriors and he is now on a the second year of a seven year contract, a contract where he will make more than $10 million a year over the final four years.

He is now already an unwelcome part of the Mavericks’ franchise as he has clashed with Dirk Nowitzki and been an all around disappointment. The same kind of disappointing play he demonstrated over his years in Oakland, which led Chris Mullin to choose the unskilled, but dependable Adonal Foyle.

Quentin Richardson and Nate Robinson for Kurt Thomas and Dijon Thompson was Isiah’s first strike this summer.

Robinson has already become a cult phenomenon in the Vegas Summer League and will be a solid rotation guy immediately.

James now comes to Madison Square Garden with the midlevel and the Knicks are clearly much better than they were this time last season. With a starting line-up of Stephon Marbury, Quentin Richardson, Tim Thomas, James and potentially Antoine Walker in a sign-and-trade, the Knicks have a very capable five, with players that do very different things on the floor.

At 7-1, James is a legitimate center with very good quickness, a nice lowpost game and the ability to defend top tier centers such as Tim Duncan and Shaquille O’Neal.

The question of course will be if Isiah can rely on a player who has never averaged more than 17 minutes per game to be the Knicks’ starting center. Will they be getting the Jerome James who lit up the Kings for 17.2 ppg and 9.4 rpg in the first round of the 2005 Playoffs or the Jerome James who disappeared against the Spurs by averaging 8.5 ppg and 4.7 rpg.

At times James is a center that elicits comparisons to Robert Parish, as one announcer once proclaimed last season and at other times he looks like Benoit Benjamin.

The pressure of playing at Madison Square Garden should keep James away from the fits of apathy that he had while playing in laidback Seattle over the last four seasons. If James even begins to think about giving lackluster performances, he will be booed like he has never been booed before.

Isiah's next move will involve watching the Larry Brown situation very closely. He is prepared to wait as long as it takes to see if Brown will receive a buy out from the Pistons and if he leaves Detroit, Isiah will pounce with a contract in the neighborhood of $50 million.

Of course there are two more aspects of the off-season that have to be resolved beyond who will be the head coach.

The first one will be Antoine Walker. Michael Sweetney is the final holdover of the Scott Layden era and Isiah seems keen to rid himself of the undersized power forward. Walker would give the Knicks a versatile power forward, who has averaged more than 20 points per game six times during his career and his reputation as a guy who launches three-pointers all day has waned, as he has reduced his attempts significantly since he was traded to the Mavericks.

The second one will involve a potential trade of Stephon Marbury or Jamal Crawford. This situation is less likely to actually happen, but there have been so many whispers that one of these players could be dealt. Brown doesn't appear to be a big fan of Marbury, whom he coached on the 2004 Olympic squad, but Brown has the potential to turn the talented point guard into a Chauncey Billups type of leader.

Crawford has more value to other teams than Marbury, as a combo guard with as much pure basketball talent as any player in the league, but who has yet to really click, but under the right coach, in the right system, could become an All-Star. It is likely that Isiah wants that All-Star bid to be in orange and blue.

Even with these moves, the Knicks won't be making a title run, but they are now the best team in the Atlantic Division.

[Edited by - TheSage on 07/14/2005 22:05:55]

Must have forgot that Miami is in the Atlantic. But I like those rose colored glasses. Would that it were so.

shaq shot his load last year...he once again proved kobe right that he can't last an entire season and playoffs healthy.

This is his contract year, and he may put up big numbers, but James will be able to hold his own better than Nazr's rag doll impersonation.

Forget about Q and lee and nate and frye. I don't think the heat added anybody.

we're one of the top teams in the atlantic...I'm sure of it.

Miami is in Southeast..Would agree that the knx are the deepest and may have the most athletic talent but think the kids have to prove themselves before we can assess whether the team is the best. Hope so but think the writer may be a bit optomistic.

Posted by TheSage:

Miami is in Southeast..Would agree that the knx are the deepest and may have the most athletic talent but think the kids have to prove themselves before we can assess whether the team is the best. Hope so but think the writer may be a bit optomistic.

yup, werent we supposedly the best in the atlantic prior to last season?

we probably were the best in the East for a while until the injuries started hitting and a pretty good pg got well accross the river and the Celtics found out they could play together

But we will probably have the crapiest coach out of all of the league...Watch, all of the rookie coaches will have better recors than Herb if he is hired.

Posted by TheSage:

Miami is in Southeast..Would agree that the knx are the deepest and may have the most athletic talent but think the kids have to prove themselves before we can assess whether the team is the best. Hope so but think the writer may be a bit optomistic.

Posted by HARDCOREKNICKSFAN:

Best in the Atlantic is a good goal to shoot for. IMO the big trade is gonna go down @ the trade deadline... regardless of any other moves Isiah makes this offseason.

depends how well Sweetney performs. another move might not be necessary.

I think that, with the team as it is now, we'll be fighting for the 8th seed in the East...

Not bad, but not great.

[Edited by - bobs3304 on 07/14/2005 23:01:50]

They lost Kwame and Hughes.

They add Butler, Atkins, and whichever FA they add (Donyell Marshall?).


I'd take that second group believe it or not. I think they'll be as good, if not better, than last year...

In the conference, my opinion is that:

Heat
Pistons
Pacers
Celtics
Bulls
Wizards
Nets

are all clearly better than us.

I think there's still other teams like the Raptors, Cavs, Magic, Bucks and 76ers that could be better than us this year. As far as I can tell, we'll be battling for the 8th slot, and I think we may still miss the playoffs. We'll see...

Not trying to rain on everyone's parade, I just fail to see how four guys (James, Frye, Robinson, Lee) who wouldn't be starters on most teams in the NBA are going to be difference makers.

[Edited by - Solace on 07/15/2005 07:01:57]