SOFT CURRY OFFERS KNICKS LITTLE HOPE

By GEORGE WILLIS

April 18, 2006 -- AT least the Knicks' farce of season won't stain the Garden floor any longer. The home schedule came to a merciful end last night against the Bobcats, which in itself deserved the loudest cheers heard in the building since that six-game winning streak in January.

Amazingly, an announced sellout crowd of 19,763 disguised as a bunch of empty seats showed up to bid good riddance. Still, you had to wonder why anyone bothered to show up at all, considering how inept the Knicks have performed this season from management on down. I suppose there are those who enjoy chasing disasters: Car wrecks, tornadoes and such. So maybe they couldn't pass on one last chance to see arguably the worst team in Knicks history.

Usually, the end of a miserable sports season offers an excuse to entertain optimistic thoughts about the future. The Knicks, despite all they've been through this year, might have some legitimate reason for hope in 2006-2007 if center Eddy Curry had offered any hint of being worth everything the Knicks gave up to acquire him before this season began.

Whether Curry emerges as a true franchise center, is the most important question facing the Knicks next year.

It has been well-documented the first-round draft pick the Knicks would have earned as a consolation prize for their season of futility belongs to the Bulls, who must be grinning ear to ear over how things have worked out. But that's only a minor irritant.

There is no LeBron James in this year's draft and it's uncertain whether top prospects Adam Morrison of Gonzaga and Duke's J.J. Redick will be franchise players. That's why the Knicks keep harping about Curry being better than anyone available in the draft. But that's not the point.

Curry needs to be a star if the Knicks are going to build themselves into a contender anytime soon. Thus far, he's far from that. In his first year as a Knick, he has been mostly out of shape and injury prone, an inconsistent player who seems content to be a role player instead of a leader.

Acting head coach Herb Williams said Curry needed to learn how to "dominate" opposing centers. Right now, that sounds a lot like saying Nate Robinson needs to be a 7-footer.

Curry scored 16 points in last night's 98-91 loss to the Bobcats. At times, he showed flashes of the offensive skills that accelerate heartbeats. But through three quarters, he had just two rebounds before finishing with four. That's Curry game, some offense, no muscle; more marshmallow than monster.

Right now, no center, no team has reason to fear Curry. He hasn't shown the ability to dominate a game or carry his team through difficult times.

Yes, he's only 23, as the front office keeps reminding us. But Robinson is only 21 and he already displays more fire and passion than the 6-11, 285-pound Curry. If the Knicks could package Robinson's desire with Curry's body, then they would have something to give them optimism for next season. Instead, there is little reason to believe Curry can make the jump from inconsistent to intimidator.

The Knicks must hope Curry improves with a good conditioning program during the offseason and a full-training camp. Maybe he'll mature and realize it takes more passion and dedication to be the kind of player the Knicks expect him to be. But that might be wishful thinking. You can tighten a player's body, but you can't necessary instill the intangibles that make great players great.

george.willis@nypost.com

There's a great point about Nate. When you watch Nate you can see there is no doubt he plays with passion. There is no doubt he wants to win. There is no doubt he want to BEAT the guys he's playing against, and there is no doubt that he's embarrassed when he gets beat. I dont see that in Curry. I'm sure he enjoys playing but does he love playing, and does he love winning? I think he is a role player. Not because of his talent, but because of his personality.

Curry always seems to have the poorest mentality. I can totally understand why Larry Brown and Mark Aguirre always say he's the best athlete on the team, b/c he's so agile, yet strong. Yet, you rarely see him use it. You might have said it best, by saying that maybe he just doesn't love basketball enough and wants the money more and enjoys his Summers in the Bahamas.

I didn't like the Curry trade from the beginning. When the rumors started rumbling last April, I didn't want him for anything then, either. I knew he had this personality, and I have unfortunately been proven right for the first time, on this one.

If the Knicks could package Robinson's desire with Curry's body, then they would have something to give them optimism for next season.

Nate, don't agree to the switch. You can jump much higher using your own body.

Curry has been a big disappointment.

His size and natural talent may actually be a hinderance. He may not know what it's like to really have to work hard to acheive something.

A guy like Nate - at his size, to be playing professional ball, he has to have passion and be highly motivated and competitive. Otherwise, he wouldn't be playing professionally.

Curry's sort of like a C student who could be an A student if he worked his butt off, but he's content with Cs. It makes him an uninteresting player.

[Edited by - BASKETBALLJONES on 04-18-2006 14:19]

Posted by Allanfan20:

Posted by tkf:

clyde during the broadcast asked, why is it when butler comes into the game the knicks can get him the ball, but curry has a hard time. Then he said, well maybe they are double teaming curry. I think the answer is that butler wants the ball, and knows how to fight for the position, curry gives up at times and he stops moving. I will also give him this summer but that is it. I am worried about curry's fire on the court, I watch nate, and he feels he is as good as Iverson when he goes up against him, that is the mentality to have, I wonder if it really bothers curry when they lose.. really...

Curry is way soft fighting for the ball and he just doesn't understand HOW to overpower the defender. His idea is to lower his shoulder and completely destroying the defender. It's very easy to draw a charge from Curry, b/c he can't control himself. And it seems like he's not even trying to improve. His defense has been poor, he shows the flashes on both ends, but for the most part, it's been inconsistent, low passion/motivation, and he doesn't seem to care most of the time.

if phil jackson had curry this thread would be a moot point.....thank you larry brown for your words of wisdom by telling curry he is the franchise player

please......how long did we have jabbar?

keep it real