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raven
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Joined: 9/2/2002
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Canada
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Webber and Thomas Have History
By LIZ ROBBINS
Published: January 5, 2005
The smile was pure Broadway and Seventh Avenue. When Chris Webber flashed a grin yesterday morning in a near-empty Madison Square Garden, it glimmered wistfully, playfully and mysteriously all at once.
If something seemed familiar, it was because Isiah Thomas, the Knicks' president, also possesses that Cheshire cat grin. And Thomas happened to be Webber's mentor growing up in Michigan.
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"I've always been a fan of this organization, especially Steph and Isiah," said Webber, the Sacramento Kings forward, referring to Knicks guard Stephon Marbury. "I've known Isiah forever."
Webber and Thomas first met at the Silverdome two decades ago. Webber was 12 and Thomas, playing for the Pistons, was holding a basketball clinic after a game. Webber and his brother, David, would later attend Thomas's summer camps.
Is it time to consider a reunion? The question is not implausible.
The Knicks could be one of the few teams in the league to take on Webber's weighty contract ($17.5 million this season, with approximately $62 million and three years remaining in the $123 million deal).
There have been discussions within the organization, according to two people briefed on the Knicks' conversations, that a deal for Webber could work financially, but no trade has been proposed.
When asked if he would welcome such a trade, Webber shook his head and smiled. "I think right now I just have to keep playing," he said.
"You know, there's really no way to answer that without getting in trouble. But I'll tell you, I've loved Isiah forever. He's been a mentor and a friend."
Webber seemed instantly comfortable at the Garden last night. He grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds and scored a team-high 22 points, making two key jumpers in the final 1 minute 18 seconds to seal the Kings' 105-98 victory over the Knicks.
The Knicks need such a low-post scorer, and Webber, 31, despite returning from his 2003 operation on his left knee that limited him to 23 games, is putting up big numbers again. He is averaging 20.9 points and a team-leading 9.3 rebounds. He provides just the splash Thomas likes to make.
"I think I have so much to concentrate on now, as far as the health and the season and playing games," Webber said, dismissing the thought.
"My brother told me he had heard rumors about New York. Rumors, you don't want to get excited about anything. I just think I'm in the place where I'm letting anything that happens happen."
Thomas, when asked which player he would like to add to the roster, simply answered, "Shaquille O'Neal." He would not comment on Webber.
The Knicks have players with contracts that expire after next season to bundle in a trade - Tim Thomas, Penny Hardaway, and Moochie Norris.
Webber's age and his health - he missed a combined 102 games the past three seasons - could cause the Kings to consider taking on expiring contracts to restructure the team. Sacramento fans booed Webber when he played poorly after the knee surgery.
In the off-season, Peja Stojakovic requested a trade because he was upset with the locker-room chemistry, and Webber implored his team to play harder. The two stars have appeared to solve their differences, yet the Kings' future seems uncertain.
The Kings have the fourth-best record in the West (20-9), even with their nemesis, O'Neal gone to the East. They won 12 of 13 games, but on Dec. 16, suffered their worst loss at home to the Lakers, 115-99.
"I still think we're the best in the West," Webber said, as he is starting to return to form.
On Monday, they lost guard Bobby Jackson to wrist surgery for the regular season. Maurice Evans, a shooting guard who played in Italy last year, replaced him, adding 16 points and defending Marbury solidly last night.
Kings Coach Rick Adelman said of Webber: "This year, he still has a ways to go. But we see more and more nights where he's got a bounce in his step. Some times he will have dead games. We're just hoping as the season goes on his knee will get stronger."
Webber said, "I think a lot of people still think that I'm done, and I think that I'm just getting started this year."
For Webber, his roots are in Michigan, a place of mixed memories spanning his infamous timeout call in the N.C.A.A. tournament final to his having faced criminal charges for accepting money from a booster.
Webber prefers to think of his Michigan roots at Thomas's clinic.
"My brother asked how much money he makes," Webber said with a laugh. "My brother was about 6 years old at the time. I remember, it was a big thing in my family, we talk about it all the time.
"Isiah answered, 'How much money do you think I'm making?' My brother said, 'A lot of money.'"
"What's a lot of money?" Thomas asked David Webber, who shrugged. Thomas smiled and said, "You're right."
Perhaps someday Thomas might revisit that question with regard to Webber and ask, "What's a lot of money?"
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/05/sports/basketball/05webber.html?oref=login
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