By MARC BERMAN
Was on Bill Daughtrey’s weekend show on ESPN Radio and he asked me a very poignant question on whether I thought the new regime – for all the good publicity their arrival spawned – has mismanaged the club this season.
Daughtrey is as tough on the Knicks as anyone out there and his question was spot on. It hasn’t been written about enough – or written about recently enough – how many wasted roster spots the Knicks have had and still have.
There was news this morning as center Jerome James is now out for the season. The Achilles strain he suffered at practice turned out to be an Achilles rupture following an MRI. Done.
You can make a case now there are five of 15 roster spots that have been completely wasted until this past weekend.
Stephon Marbury, Eddy Curry, James, Cuttino Mobley and – until Saturday night – Danilo Gallinari. That’s 1/3 of the roster being unable to contribute a lick.
And you wonder why the Knicks have looked worn out and shoddy since December? Could Isiah Thomas have gotten away with that? The Knicks better hope not only Gallinari’s back holds up, but Chris Duhon’s.
Duhon played through back spasms earlier in the season but the workload for him has not lessened. If he goes down – with Nate Robinson becoming a horror show – they are in deep trouble. Duhon missed practice Sunday and Saturday’s fourth quarter. He is supposed to play today vs. the Bulls but with Gallinari back, hopefully D’Antoni will cut back Duhon’s minutes. Less is more with Duhon. His lack of freshness late in games hurt them in Chicago last month and in many games.
Walsh is still waiting on the NBA to rule on Mobley’s disabled player exception before he can waive the guy and reap the benefits. Walsh didn’t file the application with the league till the southwestern trip. I’ll cut Walsh slack on taking his time on the Mobley thing. It’s smarter to use the $4.5M exception this summer if the NBA allows it. (Walsh can trade the exception for two players or sign two free agents with the $4.5M allotment).
But whether you like Marbury or not, allowing him to take upl a roster spot this season is the height of mismanagement on every level. I reported in Sunday’s editions Marbury has put his $1 million giveback back on the table, claiming he has a commitment from at least one team for that amount. He is awaiting to hear from Walsh. Marbury claims the matter is in Dolan’s hands. The Knicks have already paid nearly half of Marbury’s salary. It’s evident Dolan does not want to see Marbury win a ring in Boston, which shows nobody really cares about the sturdiness and well being of this season’s Knick roster.