http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylc=X3oDMTBqam1ocWIyBF9TAzk1ODYxOTQ4BHNlYwNlY2w-?slug=sk-bulls020405&prov=yhoo&type=lgns
Excellent read. Could the knicks just target perennial winners too?
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For John Paxson – one of the great clutch shooters in NBA playoff history – his first two years as general manager of the Chicago Bulls must have seemed like one bricked three-pointer after another.

No matter what moves he made, the Bulls seemed to be stuck in a rut, unable to shake the losing habits that plagued them ever since the departure of you-know-who in 1998. With a team full of young but unproven talent, Paxson was frustrated by the players' unfamiliarity with the concepts of competing, defending and unselfish play.

Last summer, he set out to restock the roster with tough, competitive players. Paxson wanted guys who would do what his Bulls championship teams did – work. He wanted to reshape the culture of a proud franchise that had, in the last six years, become all too accustomed to losing.

So what did Paxson do? He added four rookies, but these weren't just any rookies. Paxson specifically targeted winners.

it takes the right combo of players to win a title...you can have a whole collection of so-called "winners" & not win a thing, just as you can have a collection of so-called "losers" & end up winning the whole shebang...you just never know what combination will click just right...in the end, you need a couple of star players, some good complementary players to surround them with, & hope to form a good chemistry & catch a few lucky breaks along the way...that's true in any team sport.

i agree w/that pretty much...i think you need hard working guys who buy into the system & in each other...look what happened to the Lakers last year when they stopped doing what had won them 3 consecutive titles to begin with...they got divisive & lost, even though they had the most talented team & the 2 best players in the league on it...their whole team was made up of "winners", but they lost to a ragtag bunch of blue collar guys who had been put together from a bunch of other teams & hadn't won jack before because they played as a team that year.

Since JYD has won everywhere he's been, right?

JYD's contract is ridiculous for a guy known for trying hard. Paxson's done a great job.