Knicks Did Better Than You Think

Come on, now Knick fans, you didn't really expect O.J. Mayo to fall into your lap just because you were chanting his name before the draft started, did you? Or did you? Is that why you unfairly booed Danilo Gallinari? What were you expecting? Sure, Minnesota wound up trading Mayo to Memphis for Kevin Love in an 8-player deal, but if any of you in your right (or wrong) minds sincerely believe that the Timberwolves or the Grizzlies were going to trade their pick for anyone on the Knicks roster then you belong with Isiah Thomas in a looney bin because that's the way he thought. He was not only delusional, but he was the NBA's resident garbage collector, always acquiring rejects and headcases and signing them to obscene contracts, making them unmovable. Other GMs were all too happy to dump their trash in Madison Square Garden because Thomas was an incompetent jackass who received and deserved no respect.whatsoever. Do you Knick fans think like Isiah? No? Then shut up and wait!

Look, I can understand your impatience, but wake up and smell the toilet. There was no way the Knicks were going to be able to pull off a draft-day deal. When you hear BS like the Timberwolves trading their pick to the Knicks or the Stephon Marbury-for-Shawn Marion rumor or anyone at all having any interest in trading for Zach Randolph or Eddy Curry, what you should do is, instead of swallowing the media's bait you should spit it right back in their faces. The obvious fact is that it's going to take Donnie Walsh a long time to dig this franchise out of the grave that Isiah buried it in. Under the circumstances, Gallinari was actually the best pick Walsh could have made. Some people are yelling for G Eric Gordon. What, Jamal Crawford and Quentin Richardson don't shoot enough? Well, how 'bout D.J. Augustine and Jerryd Bayless? They don't project as the impact player the Kncks need at the point. New York already has Nate Robinson and Mardy Collins playing that role (Marbury will be gone by opening night. More on that later).

Gallinari doesn't project to be an impact player either (at least not yet, he's only 19), but he's probably the best fundamental player after the top three and that right there is what the Knicks need more than anything: A player with a brain in his head. Also, Gallinari doesn't have the attitude problems Mayo and Michael Beasley reportedly do. If anything, the Knicks could slot him at small forward because as much help as the Knicks need everywhere else, there's no more painful need than at that position. There's nobody else on the roster who's capable of doing it.

The bad news is Isiah Thomas did so much damage that it's possible the Knicks may not be able to make a play for LeBron James, Chris Paul or Dwyane Wade when they become free agents. Think fantasy league for a second: Would YOU trade for Randolph, Curry, Jeffries, Jerome James, or Marbury? The best hope for a quick fix is if David Stern supplies a similar remedy that got the Boston Celtics off their sickbed and into the winner's circle.

On Stephon Marbury: He's a cancer, but he's an operable cancer. Cut the cancer out of the body and the patient feels better, right? Get rid of Marbury and the Knicks are better. Release him, buy him out, eat the contract, do something, anything to get him the hell off the team. It's the cover story of No-Brainers Illustrated. The Knicks need to improve ASAP, and getting rid of Marbury is a big step in that direction. It's classic addition by subtraction. Example: Do you know who the starting point guard was for Phoenix when they hired Mike D'Antoni as their coach? Stephon Marbury. He lasted a few weeks before the Suns dumped him, Penny Hardaway and their combined annual $35 million salaries on the Knicks and as you know, that cleared the way for Phoenix to sign Steve Nash, and the Suns improved drastically while the Knicks sunk into the Isiah Thomas Memorial Sewer and Reclamation Hole. Considering how fast D'Antoni shot Marbury out of the cannon in Phoenix and all the crap that has gone down with Marbury and the overall deterioration of his game ever since, why would D'Antoni want to coach Marbury now? Combine that with the potential improvement of the team without Marbury and it's obvious that the Knicks really have no choice. The "Star" is out.

In the meantime, the rehab of the franchise is going to take a while, but for the first time in a decade, the New York Knicks are in good hands.