Come on, Briggs, you know Dampier has made it 100% clear that he will opt out of his contract.

well he did say that he'd rather have a smaller contract with more years guaranteed than a large short contract and that he wants to come to a team in the east with a star PG and SG, which leaves the Knicks and Pistons. And the Pistons are too busy with Rasheed and Okur to go after Dampier. Either he's lying or a long-term deal (maybe 6 years starting at the MLE) on NY would be his first choice.

Here's a good article where Dampier talks about his plans

http://www.adonalfoyle.com/the_game3.shtml

Here's one quote. You should read the whole article, though; it's a good article.

"I definitely want to play with a point guard, with a good shooting guard," Dampier said. "I wouldn't mind going to the East. I have a chance to be an All-Star there. I wouldn't say money is a factor. I've been in the league for 7-8 years. So, I'm pretty much taken care of financially. So, I don't think money is a big issue.

[Edited by - Bonn1997 on 05/24/2004 12:24:31]

[Edited by - Bonn1997 on 05/24/2004 12:30:21]

Posted by BRIGGS:

ive read that and it means nothing. these guys all say the same thing. if GS gives him a 3 year extension and a guarantee to play a bigger part with a new coach and GM who happens to be on the same level as isiah, he isnt going to give up 20 million dollars. 99.9 % of the population wouldnt give up 20mm

I can't imagine GS giving him a 3 year extension. In fact, with the amount of money he's owed and the fact that they could be substantially under the cap, I bet they're praying that he opts out of his contract.

We already have a player that is as Good as Drew Gooden (Sweetney)

im srry but sweetney is not as good as all of you think he is. this is not to knock the kid, i admit during some of the games he show flashes of what we might expect in the future and he is my fav knick other than marb. But you guys are already comparing him to Brand? elton was putting up huge number in rookie year, and to put sweetney on the same level as elton or even gooden is just unfair and inaccurate. I know he gets limited minutes, but he is really undersized and havent done much offensively. i just dont see y you guys keep saying how good this kid is, and also saying how every team wants frank and how he is better than this guy and that guy when he realli only had a stretch of good game when he started. Maybe is because these are the only 2 rookies the knicks developed in a long time, but damn you guys think frank and sweets are better than what they realli are. and to say we already have a player like gooden is sweets is just ignorant.

[Edited by - mintyfreshness33 on 05/24/2004 19:14:30]

as far as gooden being pegged as too skinny, remember he has only been in the league for two years. after a few years of the standard nba weight training regiment, he should bulk up. look at the first two years of rasheed, webber and even shaq. they were skinny until they gained weight lifting and now they are built. i am very concerned with his inconsistent play. it is worrisome when orlando was still shopping for a low post option throughout last year when gooden had a decent amount of minutes. true, he started in the 3 position but howard had a terrible year so he could have attempted to outplay him for the 4 position. i think sweetney is a better fit becuase already he is our best low post back to the basket player. gooden on offense is just like kurt thomas in which he shoots face up jumpers and limited post moves except off of tips or alley-oops ( which is one thing he can do that kt can't). we need someone who can play the paint tough right now. not a tim thomas clone who does not know whther he is a true 3 or 4.

what is not overrated is the amount of rebounds and fouls this guy could draw in very limited minutes, without being really involved in decent plays.

That's a thing we should bank on. take a risk, give him minutes, let aguirre teach him. with time and game experience, with his work ethic, he should please use.

above all, he has a good behavior, and that's alone is most of time a guarantee for progress.

Elton spent majority, in fact all of his career playing for croppy team. He has had the luxury to receive ample amount of playing time, off-course he will be 20/10. The kid (Sweetney) proved that he could do the same thing with playing time. He runs the court well, and has a knack for rebounds. If Lenny wasn't too dumb, he should have used the kid instead of Kurt.

I trust on Isia to do what is right with Sweetney.

Posted by crzymdups:

I agree that Sweets is being slightly overrated. I didn't realize his wingspan was actually 7 feet. That's pretty good. Almost as good as Nene's 7'4" wingspan. But height does matter, dammit.

But as for Elton Brand: he is one of the most overrated players in the league. Scoring 20ppg is all about getting touches. Brand gets about 20 touches a night, it's easy for him to score that much. If Sweets got that many touches he would score 20 easy.

I'd love to see Sweets develop. I just don't think he and Nazr can be the foundation of a winning front court. One of them needs to be bigger and block shots and intimidate. As Joe Dumars has said, the Wallaces are only 29 yrs old each, they're going to be around for a while (at least three more years - thank god they didn't get Melo!).

Posted by mintyfreshness33:

We already have a player that is as Good as Drew Gooden (Sweetney)

im srry but sweetney is not as good as all of you think he is. this is not to knock the kid, i admit during some of the games he show flashes of what we might expect in the future and he is my fav knick other than marb. But you guys are already comparing him to Brand? elton was putting up huge number in rookie year, and to put sweetney on the same level as elton or even gooden is just unfair and inaccurate. I know he gets limited minutes, but he is really undersized and havent done much offensively. i just dont see y you guys keep saying how good this kid is, and also saying how every team wants frank and how he is better than this guy and that guy when he realli only had a stretch of good game when he started. Maybe is because these are the only 2 rookies the knicks developed in a long time, but damn you guys think frank and sweets are better than what they realli are. and to say we already have a player like gooden is sweets is just ignorant.

[Edited by - mintyfreshness33 on 05/24/2004 19:14:30]

Did you watch the last 20 games of the regular season??? Kurt was aweful.

Posted by Bonn1997:

If Lenny wasn't too dumb, he should have used the kid instead of Kurt.

No way; at this point in their careers, Kurt's defense, especially low post and help defense, is much, much better than Sweetney's. Mike will improve with time, but Kurt deservedly was the starter.

I agree. Sweet needs to spend a lil bit more time on the bench. Not too long, half a season if he keeps improving at that rate.