i agree, you hit it right on the spot because everybody is playing well for us except mutombo. he had a bad game today in my opinion and againg curry too. he's just old, the knicks need to upgrade

Posted by knixnprix:

i agree, you hit it right on the spot because everybody is playing well for us except mutombo. he had a bad game today in my opinion and againg curry too. he's just old, the knicks need to upgrade

Mutombo is just a half step slow these days. And it takes him forever to get his shot off. I wonder about his value in the playoffs though, we the half court game becomes dominant and the D tightens.

The Knicks need a post up player who can command a double team in the low box, and who they can run the offense through in a half court set. That can be a C, a SF, or a PF.

[Edited by - Rich on 01/19/2004 17:02:18]

Posted by MaTT4281:

Center is definately the one spot we need help in, the 4 can wait. We can't assume Deke is gonna hold out for very long. As I already suggested, we should try and make a trade for Camby.

Why don't we trade Dikembe to NJ?

the knicks have two problems. 1 is the cap and 2 is keith van bore. the knicks must jettison van bore if they ever hope to get anywhere.

I think its pretty obvious the one thing we need is an athletic 4/5 to get garbage points, dunks and that can run with Steph. Right now KVH is the only guy that does that. Chris Anderson from Den is a perfect guy we could get with the MLE this summer.

the signs are on the wall, i think kvh is the next to go. he's been playing real well, and it would be a shame if he was traded for rasheed b/c i think that actually is a downgrade. but i kvh is traded, then we have to get young athletic guys in return. if we could coax paxson to bring curry and crawford in return for kvh, frank, and either sweets or a pick, then that's i trade i wouldn't think twice about.

just by what marbury and zeke have been saying, i think kurt will not be moved b/c he is thriving and he's the only guy we have to do the dirty work down low. doleac may actually be re-signed by us which i wouldn't be upset about.

chris anderson? ok, he jumps out the gym, but if you're going to give him anymore than $1 mil/year, then it's too much.

Zeke will remove all the wak links from the chain as soon as possible.

What does this have to do with KVH? Read this:

http://www.newsday.com/sports/printedition/ny-pow203634190jan20,0,1668389.column?coll=ny-sports-print

Better yet, here it is...


Isiah's Dream, Keith's Nightmare
Shaun Powell





January 20, 2004

The winning and the buzz are back at the Garden. The Knicks have their superstar player, as Stephon Marbury confirmed again yesterday.

Their new coach is unruffled and, so far, undefeated. It looks and sounds as if everything's in order, you think? Not quite. Knicks president Isiah Thomas still doesn't fully trust what he sees and hears, because the next order of business already beckons: What to do with Keith Van Horn?

The last major proof that the regrettable Scott Layden era ever existed wears No. 2 and starts at small forward, a position of concern for Thomas. Coincidently, on a Martin Luther King Day when Thomas gave his own "I Have a Dream" speech about trading for a more athletic player, Van Horn delivered his worst performance of the season and received a second-half benching.

Nothing went right for Van Horn against the Raptors. He blew two layups. He was stripped of the basketball on a fast break. Another Van Horn shot was rudely rejected by impressive Toronto rookie Chris Bosh.

Some guy named Roger Mason blew by Van Horn for a finger roll. And Van Horn missed eight of his nine shots.

Coach Lenny Wilkens had seen enough midway through the third quarter. The crowd cheered when Penny Hardaway tore off his sweats and checked in at the table. Wilkens yanked Van Horn, who returned with six minutes left in the game only because Othella Harrington fouled out.

"I felt out of sync offensively," Van Horn said. "It was just one of those games."

There are two worst-kept secrets at the Garden. One is that Marbury, despite his conciliatory words about Van Horn, doesn't respect his former Nets teammate. The other is Thomas isn't too fond of Van Horn, either. The day he was hired to clean up the Knicks, Thomas was asked about the Latrell Sprewell-for-Van Horn trade. After a shrug, Thomas' exact words were: "What's done is done." That wasn't a ringing endorsement.

Isiah's vision for the Knicks is a team that complements Marbury's skills. Isiah prefers tough-minded and quick players who can touch the ceiling. He wants forwards who can fill the lanes on the break and run with the point guard. He likes defenders who can make things happen with a blocked shot or a stop. He likes Dennis Rodmans and John Salleys, a pair of pogo sticks who helped Thomas win two championships in Detroit.

Van Horn doesn't exactly fit the description.

The tricky job for Isiah is convincing some team that Van Horn, still owed two more years and $30 million, will help them. Not many would be willing to take on that contract. Among the few who might are the Trail Blazers, who are anxious to dump a headache named Rasheed Wallace. If Isiah succeeds in moving Van Horn, he'll probably have to take a risky player in return. In order to stick to the goal of making the playoffs this season, Thomas might do it.

Actually, in the last few weeks, Van Horn has made a strong case for the Knicks to keep him. Since Thomas took over, Van Horn has averaged nearly 21 points and eight rebounds and shot 53 percent. His season high of 30 points came just two games ago against the Sonics. He and Marbury had bad chemistry in New Jersey, but Van Horn believes they can work this time.

"In the past," Van Horn said, "we were frustrated by the won-loss column. That was the problem. When you win in this league, that's the cure-all. Suddenly, everyone starts smiling."

Van Horn very much wants to rejuvenate his career with the Knicks. The Nets cut him loose when his production didn't match his salary. In Philadelphia, Van Horn never became the complementary scoring option to Allen Iverson the Sixers hoped he would. Then the Knicks, in their rush to wash their hands of Sprewell, became Van Horn's third team in four years.

"I want to make this my last stop," he said. "I've worked hard to make this thing work. We're starting to get used to each other. There's a different air around here. I try not to concern myself with all the talk about changes, because I can't control that. But whatever they ask of me, I'll do."

Van Horn is putting up decent numbers and gives the Knicks three solid scorers, more than they've had in a while. But the issue isn't whether he's giving the Knicks the best he has. It's whether he can give what they need.