http://www.ultimateknicks.com/outerlink.asp?id=62302

As you guys prolly already saw, Berman is suggesting Duhan will be team captain.

My question is who do YOU think should be the captain or captains of this team?

I think the only clear answer is DAVID LEE

he works hard, stays positive, is productive, never complains. And is prolly our best player. Let David be team captain.

Hard to nominate Duhan cuz we don't know what kind of player/teammate he is yet.. But Lee has distinguished himself in his first few years as a positive influence.

My NO WAY list:

Q Rich - sucks and doesn't deserve it, also i don't see him as a leader more of a annoyance
Malik - he might be a vet, and just so happened to swing on Tim Duncan's nuts long enough to have a ring.. but he is a terrible player and no1 will give a **** what he has to say, they never have.
Eddy Curry/Steph - Obvious.

Not opposed to:
Zach - a clean slate would be nice, and this would be a good gesture.. but he should earn it.
Nate - he has really shown to be a candidate to BECOME a great leader.. but his joking around and silliness might get in the way
Jamal - quiet... but has been here the longest and never complains.. lukewarm

David Lee and Duhon works for me.

Curry and Crawford were handed the captainship last wear, they don't deserve consideration.

Posted by Allanfan20:

Nobody deserves consideration. There's nobody on the team you can truely look up to all the time. There's nobody on the team that can lead any charge, when called upon, consistently.

The only one who deserves to make it is the guy who's probably going to be cut.

Who are you talking about ? The one trick pony ?

Posted by Allanfan20:

Nobody deserves consideration. There's nobody on the team you can truely look up to all the time. There's nobody on the team that can lead any charge, when called upon, consistently.

The only one who deserves to make it is the guy who's probably going to be cut.

so whats your argument agains DLEE?

Posted by Elite:

Posted by Allanfan20:

Nobody deserves consideration. There's nobody on the team you can truely look up to all the time. There's nobody on the team that can lead any charge, when called upon, consistently.

The only one who deserves to make it is the guy who's probably going to be cut.

so whats your argument agains DLEE?

He hasn't won on the NBA level. What has he done to deserve being the captain besides being a good player? Think of all of the captains in all of NY sports. Do you really really think David Lee has earned the right to be at that level?

I already predicted David Lee would be named co-captain in the "Hang your Ass 2008-2009" thread and I will stick with that prediction. He plays hard, plays smart, and has the respect of the other players. And D'A and the other coaches recognise these qualities in him as well.

Duhon is too new here to be named captain now. He needs to earn it. Maybe later in the season if things go well for him.

mike d'antoni should be the captain. we don't need anyone else being labeled anything other than player.

No one.

im sorry I just dont see any valid points or arguments as to why David Lee does not deserve to be captain of this team.

A captain is somebody who KNOWS how to win on the level that they are on. I'm not saying NBA championship, but I am saying somebody who can just win. Somebody who knows how to get his teammates to be winners. Somebody who you can legitly say "Hey captain!" and know that he'll be keeping that title for as long as he's on the team. Somebody who knows how to work with every one of his teammates through winning AND losing situations.

David Lee CAN'T be captain. I LOVE the guy. He busts his ass. He does everything to get the team to win and to make himself a winner. However, so far, he hasn't. He hasn't gotton there yet. The team hasn't experienced winning for a long time before and after Lee has been with the club.

We can call him a leader, but not a captain, b/c a captain is reserved for winners.

I dunno what goes on between the players, but a coach should usually give it to someone who commands the most respect from his team mates.

Having the PG as captain is usually common, and a good thing, since they are often the direct connection between players and the coach. Like a QB, the offense runs through them, so it is often very sensible to have them as captain. Duhon also plays defense, so he can talk to players on that end of the floor, and he doesn't make many mistakes. Those two factors are also very important.

The critique of Craw used to be that he doesn't play D, so he can't command total respect. Lee faces the same challenge.

The other thing that D'Antoni could be thinking, and is associated with well regarded managerial/organizational change philosophy is that it's often good to have someone who is not tied to the old regime as leader, when there were organizational problems/tension, unless it is beyond obvious that they command the players' respect.

Lee seems well-liked, but I don't get the sense that he is viewed as the leader of the team right now.

If you put someone in power who doesn't deserve it in the players/workers mind or feel comfortable with it can be very problematic.

It might be seen as an insult to other players that they were passed over, cause players to roll their eyes at what they say, or even worse lose respect for the head coach, etc.

In the end that matters most, even if we as fans with an outside perspective may like Lee because we think he "deserves" it based on what we see on the floor and hear from his mouth in the press.

Maybe D'Antoni even asked Lee, and he said he didn't feel ready. Why knows?

Duhon isn't a star, but I think his rep is pretty good, from what I gather.

We aren't involved in the player interactions, and given what Mike D has done thus far, in terms of handling players, I trust he made a sound decision.

Some guys who we may love for reasons that seem "leader" worthy are not always made out to be captains anyway.

For a good example of what I've been talking about anyone watch 'Generation Kill' on HBO?

[Edited by - PresIke on 10-21-2008 1:40 PM]