Whoa, there are a lot of points I would disagree with in this article. In fact, it would seem to me like a little bong-action was had during the writing of the above.
Sending Granmama to her retirement home was a blessing for the Knicks except they decided to pay Clarence Weatherspoon a ridiculous amount to do the same thing as Johnson: be past his prime, have no hops, and get posted up by any forward taller than 6'6".
The Knicks management may have overpaid Clarence, but not by a ridiculous amount. The guy still does have hops, but he can not guard an NBA power forward. Maybe a small forward, but not a 6'9" or taller player. And I would submit that at small forward, Spoon would do well in the post-up and rebounding departments.
In a shocking move that makes absolutely no sense, the Knicks got rid of a disgruntled Glen Rice and in return received two players they don’t want and don’t need. Shandon Anderson and Howard Eisley bring nothing to the team. They are average players that merely increase playing-time tensions between the enormous number of small guards. Now the Knicks have three point guards and four shooting guards and the worst frontline in the East. But at least they’re all getting paid well.
I guess the author here is stating that having two very good role players with moderately (or maybe not moderately) overpaid contracts is worse than a grumbling, injured, otherwise non-tradable has-been player? Remember, Anderson and Eisley are tradable commodities as much as they are redundant players.
One of the team’s biggest losses in the last three years was the firing of general manager Ernie Grunfeld who brought Sprewell and Camby to the club. Since Scott Layden took over, he’s overpaid big-time names like Luc Longley, Travis Knight, and Felton Spencer to beef up the Knicks front court. Longley retired while Knight and Spencer have barely contributed. Layden also has helped make some terrible draft decisions with only one draft pick in the last four years still on the squad.
I'll agree that Ernie Grunfeld was a mistake in letting go, but has it been four years running that Layden has overseen the draft process? I don't think so.
With all the poor decisions that Layden has made, Camby’s injury, and the recent poor effort the team is putting forth, Jeff Van Gundy will undeservingly bare much of the blame for other people’s problems. Here’s a guy who brought a lackluster 98-99 Knicks team to the finals against the San Antonio Spurs and has had the Knicks overachieve in each of the last two seasons. How many coaches are willing to jump into fights for their players (one recalls him crawling on the ground while yanking at Alonzo Mourning’s ankle)? He’s a solid coach and the front office shouldn’t fire him for the problems it has caused.
If you can receive the praise for the 98-99 wonder-season, than you can also rightly receive the criticism for a lackluster-season. Van Gundy got his reward by way of a very lucrative contract for his and his teams efforts that year. VG is responsible for the play of his team, not the makeup of the team (although that too is arguable), and the play of the Knicks has been disgusting.
After the season when the Knicks reflect on all the games in which they got demolished on the boards and pounded inside, maybe the team will wonder: What if we still had No. 33?
What if we still had No. 33? What, so he could average 14 minutes, 6 points and 4 rebounds? No. 33 is coming off the bench after Andrew DeClercq.
This article needs some touching up.
