http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/19/sports/basketball/19knicks.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

I prefer the times for news...

Knicks' Great Hope Carries Burden Forward
By HOWARD BECK
Eddy Curry is losing to guys he has never met, never seen and in some cases never heard of. He could dunk on them to prove a point, but then, Curry will not have that chance for some time.

Six months ago, the Knicks acquired Curry from the Chicago Bulls. In return, Chicago received three players and a first-round draft pick that has become more valuable than anyone imagined.

With one game left in a disastrous season, the Knicks have locked up one of the two worst records in the league. Their first-round pick in June is now guaranteed to fall between first and fifth. The Bulls will be the delighted beneficiaries and, if the lottery balls drop right, could have their pick of Tyrus Thomas of Louisiana State, LaMarcus Aldridge of Texas and Andrea Bargnani of Italy, among others.

So now Curry, who battled injuries and conditioning all season, carries the burden of justifying the trade while embittered fans fantasize about the Pick That Got Away.

"I can definitely do a lot better than I did this year," Curry said.

He can take solace in one other fact: The 2006 draft class is viewed as weak. In an informal survey of a half-dozen executives in the National Basketball Association, all asserted that Curry was better than anyone on the draft board. The executives — five general managers and one scouting director, representing five of the six divisions — were granted anonymity because they were not authorized to comment on another team's player.

Some of them qualified their assessment, noting that the choice depends on a team's particular needs. But on talent alone, Curry got the nod every time.

"Without a doubt," an Eastern Conference scouting director said. "I wouldn't even bat an eye to think about that one. There's nobody in this draft that you're going to add to your team and he's going to make you a playoff contender."

That last sentiment was repeated by every person surveyed. An Atlantic Division scout took the argument one step further, saying that Curry was also better than anyone in the 2005 draft, with the exception of Chris Paul, the Hornets' point guard.

that includes both frye and bogut btw

Still, there is nothing as enticing to a beleaguered fan as hope, upside and potential. Thomas, a forward, has fantastic athleticism. Aldridge, also a forward, is agile and a gifted shot-blocker. Bargnani can play all three frontcourt positions and has 3-point range.

None of them, however, have Curry's combination of size, skill and low-post scoring ability, the executives said. And while Curry is a five-year veteran, he is still only 23 years old. A proven N.B.A. starter, he still retains that mystical "upside" that is so often ascribed to unproven draft prospects.

Curry is already regarded as a superior athlete for a player his size (6 feet 11 inches, 290 pounds) and strength. He is light on his feet, gets to the rim quickly and can overmatch most opposing centers.

It is also an article of faith among N.B.A. executives that big men develop more slowly than other players. Curry, with career averages of 12.2 points and 5.1 rebounds a game, is one of only 12 players at least 6-10 who have averaged 12 points or more before their 23rd birthday. He posted his best scoring average, 16.1 points a game, in 2004-5.

that would be the year before larry brown got a hold of him

"He'll probably get better," a general manager for a team in the Southeast Division said. "But a lamb is not going to turn into a tiger."

That reference was to Curry's reputation as a soft rebounder and defender. Curry has averaged a blocked shot a game only once (2003-4) and has averaged at least six rebounds a game only twice. The Bulls soured on Curry even before concerns about an irregular heartbeat surfaced last year. His defensive deficiencies and lack of hustle are well known throughout the league. But the executives consulted for this article all said it was too soon to say that Curry would never change.

They were reluctant to judge Curry on this season, in which he averaged 13.5 points and 6.5 rebounds, playing 25.9 minutes a game. Because of concerns about the irregular heartbeat, Curry was benched last spring and did not work out for nearly seven months. His subpar condition left him vulnerable to a series of injuries.

A penchant for foul trouble, and Coach Larry Brown's changing whims, also limited Curry's playing time.

is it just me, or are the legitimate press turning on brown?

There are no strong centers in the June draft and the most intriguing college big man — Florida's lithe sophomore Joakim Noah — has said he will return to the Gators.

"Centers are hard to come by," a Pacific Division executive said. Curry, he said, "has got a track record" in the N.B.A., "and everything else is pie in the sky."

"You get a starting center who will be in the league for 10 years, then to me that's a good gamble," the executive concluded.

anybody that proposes a curry trade needs to talk to Nalod about starphucking (or whoever is the expert on that subject...stop proposing trades that cause us to lose players under 25

The Knicks also gambled on Curry's health. Bulls officials feared Curry might have a potentially fatal heart condition. The Knicks concluded otherwise after an examination. Curry has not reported any heart irregularities this season, and even with a $56 million contract, league executives say Curry is a marketable asset if the Knicks choose to trade him.

The Knicks have been criticized for not placing conditions on the draft pick, or protecting it if it was high in the draft. (In such cases, the pick is conveyed in a later season instead.) The Knicks offer two explanations: They figured to be around a .500 team and have a pick somewhere in the teens, and the Bulls would not agree to the deal if the pick was protected.

But the most potentially devastating aspect of the Curry trade is a seldom-discussed wrinkle. The Knicks also gave the Bulls the option to exchange first-round picks in 2007 — again, without conditions. And next year's draft is projected to be stocked with impact players, led by the current prep star Greg Oden, a 7-foot center. There were seven 7-footers in this year's McDonald's All-Star Game, and according to one general manager, all could be picked in the first round in 2007.

That leaves Curry and the dysfunctional Knicks with a simple agenda: get better, fast. Curry accepts the burden of justifying the trade.

"I think anybody who's put in that position thinks that it's up to them to try to make something happen," he said. "But I've also got to be realistic about the situation. No one person's going to change anything. I've just got to try to do my part."

OK OK...maybe the next year pick was a bit much. (jokes)

[Edited by - rvhoss on 04-20-2006 01:25 AM]

frye and bogut are better than curry in just their rookie seasons. but whatever, I also think that we should hold on to curry becuase I beleive that he will be better next season, but if he is not significantly better than we should just cut our losses with him.

actually I shouldnt have said frye is better, he's about the same. anyway Im almost positive that one of this season's draft choices will replicate curry's performance from this year in their rookie season (and have a better career obviously) but isiah probably never expected to give up a pick this high, not that he shouldnt be fired anyway, but theres no use in crying over spilt milk. the curry trade was dumb, pure and simple.

[Edited by - slimpack on 04-20-2006 08:58 AM]

the Bulls would not agree to the deal if the pick was protected.

Makes sense. Without a high pick, the all the Bulls got out of the deal was $20 mil owed to Tiny Tim and Mike Fatney. In this case, it would have been better not to do the deal, but it's awfully naive to think Isiah could have just asked for and gotten full protection when we were giving the Bulls nothing but a $20 mil bill for the trade.

The bulls were over a barrell. They had a player in Curry, who was never going to play for them again. Isiah negitiated against himself. We also gave them our top young prospect at the time in Sweets, not to mention Cap space when TT's deal was up.

By the way, the spurs of all teams had lotto protection on the picks they sent to the knicks. No one trades unprotected lotto picks in this league......except Isiah who is in a league of his own. It really pains me to bask on Zeke because he was my idol growing up.

Like they say, the truth hurts..............