Tag: New York Knicks (Page 16 of 36)

      Nets owner has ‘no doubt’ Wade and Bosh will sign with the Heat

      July 6, 2010 /

      According to notes obtained by ESPN.com, Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov said in his final meeting with team brass that he felt certain that Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh would sign with the Heat.

      Also, regarding LeBron:

      On the conference call, he categorized the options he believes James has before him: The “hometown angle” of remaining with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

      The choice to play with Wade and Bosh in Miami, where James would have a “very high chance to win two or three titles” but where he could also “diminish the LeBron brand.”

      Hmmm.

      He also outlined the Nets’ strategy:

      First, he said they must get one or two of The Big Three to sign with New Jersey. If the Nets land James alone, he wants them to sign either Carlos Boozer or David Lee to play beside him. As the veterans lead the Nets to the playoffs, he expects the club’s young talent, most notably rookie lottery pick Derrick Favors, to grow and develop their games.

      The bit about diminishing “the LeBron brand” makes me wonder if these ‘notes’ were leaked on purpose. Maybe he’s trying to light a fire under LeBron and get him to go somewhere on his own. But it doesn’t appear likely that he’s going to sign with the Heat to play with Wade and Bosh, so if this were intentional, it was probably unnecessary as well.

      Each of LeBron’s potential landing spots has its own set of pros and cons. Chicago has a good supporting cast but the specter of Michael Jordan still lingers. Cleveland is home, but the roster is not championship-ready. Playing with two other stars in Miami is appealing, but the Heat have always been ‘Wade’s Team.’ The Knicks play in the biggest market, but the supporting cast isn’t up to snuff, and both Danilo Gallinari and Wilson Chandler technically play the same position as LeBron.

      As for the Nets, they were miserable last season and will play in Newark for two more years, but they have new ownership, a new Brooklyn stadium in the works, a new coach, a future All-Star at center (Brook Lopez), a pretty good point guard (Devin Harris) and a good young prospect at power forward (Derrick Favors). Prokhorov also told LeBron that he’d continue to pursue a trade for his good friend Chris Paul.

      Also, Prokhorov sounds awfully certain that Wade and Bosh will sign with the Heat, but I’m sure there are some Miami fans sweating things out in South Florida as Wade weighs playing in Chicago.

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      Stoudemire agrees in principle to become a Knick

      July 5, 2010 /

      Phoenix Suns' Amar'e Stoudemire (C) attends the MLB interleague baseball game between the New York Yankees and Arizona Diamondbacks in Phoenix, June 22, 2010. REUTERS/Joshua Lott (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT BASEBALL BASKETBALL)

      I wrote quite a bit about this possible pairing a few days ago, but after flirting for a few more days, the two sides finally came together on an agreement.

      The Knicks said Monday they intend to sign Stoudemire to a contract later this week when the free agent moratorium period ends. Stoudemire’s agent, Happy Walters, said the deal is for the maximum allowed, which would be nearly $100 million over five years.

      Wearing a blue Knicks hat, Stoudemire said he looked forward to rebuilding a franchise and bringing the Knicks back to the top — maybe with a player such as LeBron James or Dwyane Wade with him.

      Team president Donnie Walsh said the Knicks decided to pull the trigger on the Stoudemire deal because he was the only player that has told the Knicks thus far that he wants to play for them.

      The Stoudemire agreement takes the Knicks out of the running for Chris Bosh, but New York has been assured it will not be an impediment to their chances of signing James or Wade, sources told ESPN.com’s Chris Sheridan and Chris Broussard.

      Interesting phrase there — “it will not be an impediment to their chances of signing James or Wade” — which can mean one of three things: 1) James and Wade like Stoudemire as much as Bosh, 2) they’re both willing to play with Stoudemire if push came to shove, or 3) neither guy is going to sign with the Knicks, so it doesn’t matter.

      I’m betting on No. 2.

      Stoudemire met with head coach Mike D’Antoni to clear the air that apparently became smoggy during the duo’s tenure in Phoenix. Stoudemire apparently admitted that he was a little immature at times during D’Antoni’s reign and the two clashed as a result. I’d expect them to work well together; Stoudemire is the ideal center for D’Antoni’s up tempo system.

      The other line that I think is funny is the part about Donnie Walsh saying that the team pulled the trigger on Amare because he was the only one willing to commit. It makes sense — the Knicks are offering him the max and at his age with his injury history, he’s not really a max player. Of course he’s going to jump on all of this guaranteed money.

      Now, will his presence get LeBron or Wade to join the Knicks? I doubt it. But there are a few other possibilities out there.

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      LeBron’s decision could take a while

      July 4, 2010 /

      After reporting that LeBron James was telling teams he wanted to make a decision by July 5, Ric Bucher is now saying that LeBron not expected to shut down this free agency circus by Monday.

      The source said although James wanted the interview process to be finished by the Monday deadline, he may not decide on a franchise until later in the week. Previous reports had James making a decision by Monday, but the source said no specific reason was given for the delay.

      Sigh.

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      Joe Johnson may wait to make final decision

      July 3, 2010 /

      Joe Johnson gets it. He has a max offer from the Hawks on the table, but hasn’t agreed to sign it just yet. He wants to see which big-name free agents land where, to see if there’s a secondary or tertiary role for him on a championship contender.

      Sources said Johnson was still considering whether it would be a better career move to play in New York or Chicago, and his ultimate decision would hinge upon which of the top free agents make commitments to those teams.

      Johnson’s decision is this — would he rather be the best player on a good-but-not-great Atlanta team or the second- or third-best player on a Finals-caliber team?

      Maybe he’s reading the LeBron/Wade tea leaves and realizes that LeBron’s ego may not accept the perception that he needed Wade to win a title. Johnson is the next-best shooting guard on the market, and would be a decent fit alongside LeBron in New York, New Jersey or Chicago.

      Writers like to throw around the phrase “leaving $30 million on the table” when referring to home/away max contracts, but that number is misleading. Through the first five years of the deal, the difference is ‘only’ $4 million. It’s that (extra) sixth year that makes up most of the difference in the total value of the contract, but players would presumably still be able to re-sign for a good amount of money. So really, the difference in the home/away contracts is this:

      Diff = $4 million + $25.3 million – E

      where:

      E = expected value of first year of next contract

      For a player like Johnson, who would be 33 after the final year of a five-year contract, the value of E would be quite a bit less than someone like LeBron, who would be 30 after the final year of a five-year deal. Assuming both players stay healthy, Johnson would be leaving more money on the table than LeBron would by signing a max deal with an away team.

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      Knicks, Stoudemire close to deal

      July 2, 2010 /

      Adrian Wojnarowski reports that Amare Stoudemire is close to finalizing an agreement with the New York Knicks.

      Amar’e Stoudemire and the New York Knicks are making progress in talks on a five-year maximum guaranteed contract and a deal could be completed as soon as Friday, league sources told Y! Sports.

      The framework of a deal is in place and the two sides are expected to talk again soon, sources said.

      The Knicks’ free agency was looking a little gloomy, but this certainly helps. LeBron was reportedly more impressed with the Nets’ presentation, but now that Stoudemire has (almost) committed, the Knicks do have a stronger case to make.

      If he can stay healthy, Stoudemire should thrive in Mike D’Antoni’s up-tempo system. It’s not clear what this means for David Lee, who could play alongside Stoudemire if D’Antoni elected to run Amare at the five. Neither player is particularly good on the defensive end.

      How did things fall apart in Phoenix?

      The Suns made a last-ditch proposal to Stoudemire, offering him a five-year contract that guaranteed him $71 million, sources said. The first three seasons were fully guaranteed. The fourth season contained a 50 percent guarantee that could become fully guaranteed based on the number of minutes Stoudemire played in the first three seasons. The fifth season of the contract also could become guaranteed based on a minutes incentive.

      The Suns put in the incentives because of concerns over Stoudemire’s past knee and eye injuries. Insurance won’t cover Stoudemire’s salary if he can’t play because of any additional problems to either of his knees or his right eye.

      The Suns were wise to proceed with caution with regard to Stoudemire’s injury history. The Knicks are showing a lot of faith in his ability to stay healthy, but they are/were in a tough spot and had to commit guaranteed dollars to get him to sign.

      I’m not sure why the Suns aren’t working out a sign-and-trade for Stoudemire to acquire Lee from the Knicks. He seems like he’d be a natural replacement for Amare in that offense.


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