Happy Anniversary, Knicks. Not!
Thursday was the five-year anniversary of the Knicks officially embarking on their plan of blowing up the team, ducking under the salary cap and preparing for the 2010 free-agent class. Sources now say their No. 1 goal at the time was pairing LeBron James with Chris Bosh.
On Nov. 21, 2008, then Knicks president Donnie Walsh, with the team off to a 6-5 start, dumped the long-term contracts of his two best players, Zach Randolph and Jamal Crawford, in two separate blockbuster trades.
It started a dizzying series of deals designed to go as far under the salary cap as possible in order to sign two superstars.
Instead of James and Bosh, the Knicks signed Amar’e Stoudemire the following summer to an uninsured five-year, $100 million contract and seven months later traded the farm for Carmelo Anthony.
Five years later, after 82 players have graced the 15-man roster since that 2008-09 season, the Knicks are 3-8 and in danger of spending this season battling for the seventh or eighth playoff seed. They don’t even hold a potential lottery pick for the superior draft awaiting this summer if they crash.
Five years later, the Knicks are on their third GM and probably will have a third head coach by next season.
Five years later, they have in Stoudemire a knee-impaired player not permitted to play in back-to-back games or more than 15 minutes a night on a James Dolan-inspired restriction.
Five years later they have a glum superstar in Anthony who could decide to take $30 million less to leave New York this summer to get out of a losing situation.
Five years later, their best playoff showing was a second-round ouster, accomplished last season and which may stand as the highlight of the five-year plan. The previous two seasons, the Knicks were knocked out in the first round.
Five years later, new president Steve Mills already is gathering a new analytics plan and strategy to deconstruct the roster with eyes on the 2015 free-agent class headed by Kevin Love.
Dolan’s intentions were good, he has no regrets, but many mistakes were made along the way. Happy Anniversary, Knicks.
In the semi-annual will-John Calipari-coach-the-Knicks-next-season rumor, the Kentucky coach was compelled to respond via Twitter.
“As I’ve said before, I have the greatest job in basketball any level,” he tweeted. “Why would I be interested in another job?’’
Dolan could be interested down the road because he loves dealing with the CAA agency, which represents Calipari. Calipari also is linked to William Wesley, a friend of Mills.
Lost in the commotion of the Indiana heartbreaker caused by the Iman Shumpert foul was the incident in the huddle between Metta World Peace and Tim Hardaway Jr., caught by MSG Network cameras. World Peace and Hardaway jawed at each other and the former Ron Artest gave the rookie a shove when an assistant got between them. Was it a sign this team isn’t getting along on or off the court? One person familiar with the scene called it “a heat-of-the-battle moment.’’… Woodson said he believes the overtime loss to Indiana was a positive step. “There’s light at the end of the tunnel,’’ Woodson said. “We competed. It was a beautiful sign to see.’’