By MARC BERMAN

April 22, 2006 -- Days after Larry Brown won the 2004 NBA championship with the Pistons, he walked into GM Joe Dumars' office with a list of players the coach wanted traded, including at least one starter.

According to a league source, Dumars was shocked and Brown got a reprimand from owner Bill Davidson.

Now Brown, after the most embarrassing season in Knicks history, has carte blanche, and Isiah Thomas has agreed to reshape the roster to Brown's liking.

"When I left Detroit, we were one game from winning the championship and they got six new players," Brown said. "We won 23 games. To sit here and think we're going to stand pat is kind of silly. We're loyal only to the Knicks winning. Now we got a job to do. We got to change this. The owner and Isiah promised me that we can build a team the way I feel comfortable coaching."

Detroit's Ben Wallace said the Knicks need more role players, and that is the Knicks' plan, not a very sexy one. Brown has identified the three biggest needs: a playmaking point guard, a shot-blocking center, and a defensive small forward.

Generally, Brown wants players who rebound, defend and don't need the ball. That the description of Seattle's Danny Fortson, who has demanded a trade. The Knicks inquired about him at this season's deadline.

The Knicks have the $5 million mid-level exception to sign one free agent; among the targets are Brown favorites: playmaking point guard Speedy Claxton; small forward Jared Jeffries; and rugged rebounding power forward Reggie Evans.

The Knicks will look into a sign-and-trade with Atlanta for free-agent forward Al Harrington, but he's not their No. 1 priority.

Brown doesn't trust Jerome James to become the team's big-man defensive intimidator, so they plan to get involved again with Portland for shot-blocking center Theo Ratliff and can offer Maurice Taylor's expiring contract. The Blazers are looking for expiring contracts and draft picks, leading to a potential draft-day blockbuster.

The Knicks have two late first-round picks (20th and 29th). The Blazers are trying to get rid of Darius Miles, but the Knicks have more interest in point guard Steve Blake, who worked out for the team last summer.

They will shop Stephon Marbury and Steve Francis, who blew off the media on getaway day and carries more baggage.

"I definitely have a difficult job in terms of changing the roster," Thomas said. "We want to make it right. GMs such as myself find a way to get [Brown] things he needs and he finds a way to win."

*

The Post has learned that Thomas is heading to Europe in the next few days for a twice-postponed draft-scouting mission.

http://www.nypost.com/sports/knicks/67443.htm

[Edited by - mcK1 on 04-22-2006 10:12 AM]

Brown couldn't get Joe to trade Chauncey, we'll see if he can get Steph moved this summer.

I want JARED

Posted by McK1:

I want JARED

dude, you and every woman on the planet...

Posted by djsunyc:

Posted by McK1:

I want JARED

dude, you and every woman on the planet...

he's holding Eddy's britches

Jalen and Mo for Ratliff, Miles and Jack(whom I prefer) or Blake.
Steph for Griffin, Hassell, Blount and the 7-Cut Blount.
Francis, Jerome and the 7(maybe...TMac is a big injury guy) and the 29 picks for TMac and Dikembe.

Curry/Ratliff/Butler
Frye/Griffin/Lee
Miles/Hassell/--Q--
TMac/--Craw slides to the 2--/Q
Craw/Jack/Nate

IL has Mutumbo, rookie with 22 pick, Rose

[Edited by - joec32033 on 04-22-2006 11:30 AM]

Posted by crzymdups:

so Larry wanted Dumars to trade Chauncey Billups after Chauncey won the Finals MVP? haha. get ready for a weird summer.

Chauncey's habit of camping on the 3 line and pull up 3's on 3 on 1 fast breaks bothered Brown to no end.

Who exactly are Larry's players that will help this team? Ben Wallace? We wont get him.

Ratliff? Isnt he washed up? What exactly did he do for Larry in 76er land? Last I remember he was traded before they made it to the finals.

AI - pipedream. I also seem to remember the two of them hating each other.

I understand Larry has a player type that he likes, but who is really going to play for this guy and help the Knicks win some games? So he wants role players - well dont we need to fill every single role on this team since LB has basically gutted it and said the majority of the roster isnt what he wants? To me he is asking for a complete overhaul. All of this double talk is rediculous - put a plan together, be open about it, and execute on it. This season was a disgrace.

larry Brown typed players who might be available this offseason??

guards/small forwards: andre miller, C. duhorn, mike james, speedy claxton, D.fisher, eddie jones, raja bell, trenton hassell, rasual butler, bonzi wells, ruben patterson, eric snow(i think he's done )


froncourt players: ratliffe, reggie Evans, Jared Jeffries, kenny thomas, cliff robinson, Carlos boozer, Dalembert and kenyon martin

Most of these guys are either rugged, hardnose, rebound, play the right way and don't need the ball to dominate...

We could get every one of those players and that would maybe make the Knicks a second round team. Nobody on that roster is "the piece" around which champinship teams are built. That's what the Knicks need, a franchise player. Everything else is a bandage.

oohah

You know, the day we actually have a winning record, let alone win a playoff series, talk to me about gettin that player. Right now, I don't fking care about that shiat. We won like 23 games, and you are talkin about winning it all? Get to .500 at least, then bring that up. You need a foundation first, then you can talk about big things.

Well, it doesn't work like that. Most championship teams START with a championship player, then pieces are added. Check the last 15-20 years of NBA history.

If the plan is to get mediocre with medioocre players, then magically land a franchise player to put the Knicks over the top, well that's unrealistic.

Are the Knicks simply trying to be mediocre now? Is that satisfying just because the Knicks were destroyed this year? Cause that is what a team of "LB players" is: Mediocre.

I might add that the Knicks had the players to be mediocre this year. if the goal is to be mediocre, I wish LB had simply coached to win this year instead of teaching the whole team a lesson that only he can figure out.

The Knicks should be trying to land a franchise player, then filling the team in around him. That is historically a recipe for true winning, not a crapload of mediocre players.

Did I mention mediocre?

oohah



[Edited by - oohah on 04-23-2006 5:54 PM]

And how many of these "franchise" player are around? You think any of them are gettin traded? The only way to get one is the draft, and that is the top 5-6 picks.

Not exactly true but close.

The way they are workign the team now, we are never ever going to be any good.

I feel the same way for the most part. I would like to see the knicks be at least decent too.

I just don't think an entire team should be traded to just have an okay record. I think a coach should do the best he can each year with what he's got. The way I see it, when LB decides to hit the road in the next two years and we are left watching a team of "LB players" that will be around .500, none of us will be happy.

I think they have to at least swing for the fences. I think they should be building for real, not getting a bunch of stop-gap players to make LB happy and stop us from vomiting.

That would make me happier at least.

oohah