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joec32033
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Daily News version
Curry, Knicks breathless
BY FRANK ISOLA
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Isiah Thomas enjoys 1st practice as Knick coach, which ends with players struggling on sprints.
CHARLESTON, S.C. - Jared Jeffries, the Knicks' newly minted $30 million small forward, shot one air ball from the foul line and launched a couple of bricks at the end of Isiah Thomas' first practice yesterday, resulting in Jeffries' teammates running a few extra wind sprints.
Three additional "suicides" were added because free agent Nikoloz Tskitishvili, a player without a guaranteed contract, suffered the misfortune of having his cell phone ring in the locker room while Thomas was addressing the team on Monday.
The punishment for those transgressions seemed particularly cruel for Eddy Curry, who was huffing and puffing from end line to end line and finished last each time. He eventually needed Quentin Richardson and David Lee to pull him along. But at least Curry finished. His backup, Jerome James, resumed his familiar role of hobbled spectator after suffering an injury on the first day of practice for the second straight year.
"We've got a ways to go," Thomas said yesterday from the College of Charleston. "We got a long way to go."
With precious little time and a flawed roster at his disposal, Thomas is under the gun to turn the Knicks into a winner. In 28 days, the Knicks open the season in Memphis against the Grizzlies and will play 11 of their first 18 games on the road. When asked if he feels a sense of urgency to turn things around, Thomas softly replied: "I would say that's accurate."
Thomas is counting on Curry to increase his productivity and minutes from last season under Larry Brown. The Knicks acquired Curry one year ago today from the Chicago Bulls in a controversial deal that gave Chicago salary-cap relief and a non-protected lottery pick .
The Bulls, convinced that Curry suffers from a potentially fatal heart ailment, ended up with the second pick in the draft, which they used to select Texas forward LaMarcus Aldridge before trading him to Portland, and were able to sign Ben Wallace. The Knicks still owe them a first-round pick this June.
Meanwhile, Curry arrived in camp out of shape and failed to become the dominant big man Thomas covets. Yesterday, however, Thomas suggested that Brown was to blame for Curry's production.
"When I look at it, it probably had more to do with minutes played than anything," Thomas said without mentioning Brown. "I think when you're averaging 25 minutes, 24minutes a night and you're getting (13.6 points) and six rebounds and shooting (56%) from the field that's pretty damn good to do in 25 minutes. And I don't think there are a lot of centers who did that in 25 minutes a night. My job is to keep him out on the floor and try to give him more minutes so he can be productive."
Curry's limited playing time - he averaged 25.9 minutes in a team-high 69 starts - can also be blamed on his inability to remain fit and stay out of foul trouble. Curry averaged 3.3 fouls per game and had a habit of starting off strong and disappearing down the stretch.
Fatigue and lack of motivation were cited as the primary reasons for Curry's poor production in the fourth quarter. Thomas is trying to address both concerns during the preseason. During yesterday's wind sprints, Thomas was closely monitoring the lumbering center and decided that Curry, who was once diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat, should take a break. Curry, however, insisted on running, and with a little assistance from Richardson and Lee, he completed the workout.
"I'm part of this team so I want to finish it," Curry said. "I'm not sitting down. I'm going to practice every second of practice."
The sight of watching the 23-year-old Curry struggle to get up and down the court was somewhat troubling. But Thomas was impressed that Curry refused to quit and that Richardson and Lee wouldn't allow him to.
"My job is to make sure he has great success and make him a better player," Thomas said. "I've had experiences with it before, helping Jermaine (O'Neal) Brad Miller grow. I believe I can have similar success with (Eddy) as well."
NYPOST Version
NO RIDING COACH
THOMAS DISPLAYS SOFT SIDE AS KNICKS OPEN CAMP
By MARC BERMAN
Slideshow image
NEW ERA: In his first day on the court as Knicks coach, Isiah Thomas works on ballhandling with Jared Jeffries as the team began training camp in Charleston, S.C.
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October 4, 2006 -- CHARLESTON, S.C. - The most poignant moment of Isiah Thomas' first practice as Knicks coach yesterday occurred in the final 20 minutes of the two-hour session, during "suicides."
In the drill, if a player misses a free throw, the group sprints the length of the court and back. Unfortunately for Eddy Curry, free-throw shooting is not Jared Jeffries' speciality.
With Jeffries missing three straight, the Knicks were on the move at the College of Charleston. And Curry, alone in the rear, looked ready to collapse, gasping for oxygen.
Instead of reaming Curry out, Thomas asked Curry if he'd like to sit out. Curry said he would continue. It was a test and both Curry and Thomas passed. Thomas did not humiliate Curry in front of the media like former coach Larry Brown might have, and Curry fought through the exhaustion.
"I'm trying to teach these guys about becoming one, thinking as one, acting as one," Thomas said. "Not only did that tell me a lot about [Curry] when he stayed out on the floor, but his teammates encouraged him to keep going. It's good to see a group coming together ... because we've got a long way to go before we're solidified."
Thomas had Curry's back afterward, claiming he's pleased with Curry's conditioning and the sight of the 6-11 center's panting looked worse than it was.
"Anytime you have a big guy running with the guards, he's going to look a little slower," Thomas said of Curry, whom he plans on playing more than 25 minutes a night. "I was being a little unfair to him in asking him to keep up with the [Nate] Robinsons and [Jamal] Crawfords, and at the same time I was challenging him. Even though he didn't keep up with small guys, if there were bigger guys out there, he would've looked much better."
Said Curry, who's still in better shape than he was last October, "I'm part of this team and you finish it. I wasn't sitting down." http://www.nypost.com/seven/10042006/sports/knicks/no_riding_coach_knicks_marc_berman.htm
[Edited by - joec32033 on 10-04-2006 08:42 AM]
~You can't run from who you are.~
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10/4/2006 8:16 AM