http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/1096951853320020.xml


Knicks happy to be on the run
Tuesday, October 05, 2004
BY COLIN STEPHENSON
Star-Ledger Staff
GREENBURGH, N.Y. -- The 2004-05 Knicks will be a versatile group, according to coach Lenny Wilkens, able to play whatever style of basketball they want.

And the style of basketball they want to play most often is to run as often as they can.

"We want to get up and down the floor," Wilkens told reporters last week at the Knicks' training facility. "If you play a little up-tempo, teams can't get set to defend you. ... If you can catch them in transition, hopefully it yields some easy baskets for us. I don't like to have to grind things out all the time. I don't think anybody does."

Naturally, the coach's proclamation that he wants to let his players get out in the open floor and create opportunities was a big hit at media day yesterday at the team's practice facility. For Stephon Marbury -- who, like Wilkens, GM Isiah Thomas and 15 of the 19 players on the current roster, will be taking part in his first training camp with the Knicks -- the words were music to his ears.

"I think guys will definitely get up the court a lot more, because if they don't, they're not going to get the ball," said the Brooklyn-born point guard. "Because I already know how I'm bringing the ball up the court. And I know (Michael) Sweetney's going to be running; I know Penny (Hardaway)'s going to be running; I know Tim (Thomas)'s going to be running; I know Vin (Baker)'s going to be running. ... I think everybody's going to be running."

Marbury talked excitedly about having a training camp to learn Wilkens' offense and defense, and he also spoke about the chemistry he expects to instantly have with newcomer Jamal Crawford, whom the Knicks acquired in a free-agent sign-and-trade with the Chicago Bulls.

"Jamal is very athletic," Marbury said. "He brings a lot of the same things that I do to the game. He plays with a lot of flair. So you've got two guys right there (Marbury and Crawford) that basically got a lot of trickery to their games."

Allan Houston will be with the team when it has its first practice this morning at the College of Charleston in South Carolina, where the Knicks will spend the next eight days. But the Knicks captain, who is still cautious working his way back from the knee surgery that essentially allowed him to play only 50 games last season, said he likely will limit himself to what he has been doing: shooting, running and working on his own. He will probably shoot with the team, but won't scrimmage and might not play in any of the eight preseason games.


Forward Shandon Anderson,

who Thomas had said was "welcome to come to camp," was in uniform and sitting at his table, just like every other player. A story in Friday's Daily News reported that Anderson had been told not to come to camp, but Thomas told reporters Friday the Knicks would live up to their obligations and Anderson, who has three years and $24 million remaining on his contract, would be treated in a professional manner.

Thomas did say he has been trying to trade Anderson, and will continue to try to do so. Anderson said he has had no personal contact with the GM and was never told not to report to camp. He said his godmother read the Daily News story and told him about it.

"You know what? I don't even listen to it," he said. "I'm under contract to play for the New York Knicks, and until something happens otherwise, I'm going to show up."


Four free agents

agreed to non-guaranteed contracts to attend camp, including former Seton Hall point guard Andre Barrett. Barrett, an honorable mention All-American as a senior last year, played for the Knicks' summer-league team in Long Beach, Calif., and averaged 7.7 points, 3.5 assists and 28.3 minutes in six games.

Also joining the club were 12-year NBA veteran forward Tracy Murray; 6-11, 300-pound center Mengke Bateer, a three-year vet; and undrafted rookie Brent Wright, a 6-8, 235-pound forward from Florida. Wright also played for the Knicks' summer-league team, and averaged 6.0 points and 4.7 rebounds in 18.8 minutes.

http://www.thejournalnews.com/newsroom/100504/c0705knicks2web.html


Knicks hope to form bond

By MIKE DOUGHERTY
THE JOURNAL NEWS
(Original publication: October 5, 2004)


GREENBURGH — It was exactly the kind of dull remark that inspires daydreams, but Stephon Marbury simplified what ultimately caused the Knicks to come undone last season in the playoffs.

The bus idling outside in the parking lot of the MSG training center yesterday afternoon signaled a fresh start this organization keeps hailing as the cure to losing. It was the eve of training camp, so the wild optimism flowed. Nobody dared to dispute the fact that a week together at the College of Charleston would make all the difference after what amounted to dizzying change.

"Now, we're all starting at the same time," said Marbury, last year's prized addition. "It's like when a meeting starts at 10 and you get there at 11:30, you missed all the information."

And that's kind of what happened.

Isiah Thomas came in and shook the place up. Nobody was sure who was coming and who was going. Familiarity and repetition got lost in the shuffle.

"Definitely, it was tough," Kurt Thomas said. "Everyone wants to have that consistency, but this is the NBA, we know how it works. Once we know who's going to be here, once we know the system that's going to be in place, it'll make everything a lot easier."

With the free agent signings of Mengke Bateer, Andre Barrett, Tracy Murray and Brent Wright, the Knicks left with 19 players. The first preseason game is Oct. 14 against the Nets, and the season opens Nov. 3 in Minnesota.

Establishing a new identity after three losing seasons is paramount, and it's something most players believe will be relatively simple given time.

"The hardest part is going from winning to not winning," said Allan Houston, who's going to pace himself during camp while rehabilitating a tricky right knee. "We have guys who are hungry, guys who have a lot of energy. The whole environment has been refreshed."

Just getting into the playoffs will no longer be fulfilling.

Many observers feel the Knicks will compete on the level of the Detroit Pistons and Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference, and yet the only significant addition is Jamal Crawford.

"I feel great about (our chances)," said Tim Thomas, who quickly added the necessary caveat. "With the talent we have and the way things are going, I feel great. But I've been with a team that was supposed to come out of the East three straight years, and we only got close once."

Depending on the health of Houston's knee, which team officials keep reinforcing is no longer a cause for concern, the Knicks are deeper than in seasons past. The competition for starting jobs might be a little overblown at this point, but Mike Sweetney is hoping to close the gap on Kurt Thomas, and Vin Baker might be able to push Nazr Mohammed.

"No one is running from the competition," Kurt Thomas said.

Even with the jet waiting on the runway across the county, nobody was sure there wouldn't be a couple of personnel moves before the season tips off. The uneasiness will never probably never go away. So that only increased the urgency to get something down with the precious time being allotted.

"Basically it's going to boil down to us getting down to South Carolina and getting on the floor," Baker said. "The continuity's got to come on the floor. We have to get a feel for each other. We've got so many guys who can play the same spot, we have to get to South Carolina, find our niche and come back up here as Knicks, one cohesive group."



Send e-mail to Mike Dougherty



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------