Posted by Bonn1997:

spent the weekend with my girlfriend. I didn't see Friday's or Sunday's game. I came online a couple of times, though. glad to see the Knicks winning!

Posted by martin:

Posted by Silverfuel:

Posted by martin:

I think Sweets is the real deal in the low post, and Mark is not exaggerating when he says Mike can be an all-star if he progresses. The guy just has the instincts, low center of gravity, and general sneakiness around the basket that make a low post player great. Lose 25 pounds and learn help-D and the sky is the limit.

I dont know why but I am just not sure about Sweetney. He shows post moves, but not consistently. I am not sure if he can lose he 25 lbs and I am not sure if he can learn the low post like you think he will. He has the instincts around the basket but how long will it be till he turns into a polished ready to play PF?

I really want to see the Knicks grow their own player, and I think Mike can be one of those guys; the same goes with Ariza.

This guy can definately be something. I love his defense! He doesnt usually get beaten and knows when to go for the steal. His jumpshot is shaky which he can learn but his handle is out of control. He reminds me of John Wallace when he drives. Drive with fury to get to the hoop and if he gets there, he can finish.

I have some faith that Ariza can develop but I think Sweetney might turn into one of those guys with a lot of promise that never arrived. I liked what I saw last game and no one would be happier than me if he does well but how long can we wait? 1 more year, 2 more years? Whats the number? Stephon comes with an expiration date and he might get slower in the next 3 - 4 years. Maybe the the time to trade Sweetney for a more developed player is now.

Weird, but I have the total opposite take. I think Ariza is just raw, totally raw; lots of potential there, but all raw basketball. He has the right athletic tools and demeanor, but nothing is refined: no jump shot; no favorite move; good defensively, but not a really good 1-on-1 defender nor a good team defender; goes to the basket nicely but goes to the hole and gets in the air and has no idea what he is going to do next; good passing instincts but sometimes makes horrendous passing decisions. I like him though, and hope he develops.

With Sweets I'll point of one sequence that really sealed it for me: In the Utah game he made back-to-back fade-away jumpshots over a 7-footer. And they weren't like Jamal fade-away jumpshots cause he didn't know what better to do. They were practiced shots that looked in the flow of his offense. Mike has shown he can nail the 15 footer, not consistently, but it's there somewhere in his arsenal. We know he can post and go to the rim, and now we also know he can hit the fade-away. And he draws fouls. Tons of them. That's killer. Mike is not all the way yet, but by beginning of next year, I think he will be a bonafide starter (17pts, 10rbs who draws 7 FTs easily).

great post...thats pretty much how I feel about both players. Ariza is extremely raw offensively and defensively at times. Sweetney is defensively but this past week highlighted by his performance versus Utah sealed the deal for me that he is the low post player we need. I think he's going to get a lot more minutes after that performance too with Nazr's decreasing which can only be good for him since he's logged so many minutes already.