I have been sorely disappointed with a substantial number of decisions Knicks' management has made, particularly since the signing of Layden as the General Manager over a decade ago. But spilled milk is spilled milk.
We have recently paid a price in the unsuccessful effort of getting LeBron. It was a worthwhile gamble, but in retrospect it appears that LeBron intended to take his talents to South Beach long before the ridiculously staged formal announcement. I think we were played by team Lebron. Perhaps we would not have invested so heavily in Amare' if we knew it was not going to help in attracting LeBron.
I believe that for the next year or two, at least, Amare' is untradeable for anything that would add value or significant cap space. We are not trading Melo. I would do it for Howard or Bynum, but I do not think Dolan would.
Melo is a terrific offensive player, one of the very best. He has the athletic capacity to be a very good defensive player. And when he wants to, he can pass very well. Melo does not look as though he is in top physical shape, but he seems to play with the speed and strength of one in very good shape. He may be one of those persons whose outward appearance is deceiving. I am told that Mark Aguirre always looked out of shape and pudgy, but when the Pistons did some fat percentage analysis, he fared very well.
My problem with Melo is that he needs the ball and often plays --albeit with substantially good results -- one on one or two and with the rest of the team with somewhat better than front row seats.
I like Lin, but he also dominates the ball. Though the ball does not "stop" with him, it is only because he constantly moves with it, often finding an open man, but nonetheless using a substantial portion of the shot clock. This will frustrate Melo, who would prefer someone like Shumpert at the point who will defer to him and constantly feed him at that elbow where Melo likes so much to commence his ISO moves.
I am not sure that Lin, Melo, Amare' and Chandler, although all very capable, can work that well together. Woodson is going to have his work cut out for him.
For the next three years, we will have over 75% of our cap space invested in Melo, Amare' and Chandler. We do not have the ability to sign any valuable free agent. We have no 1st round pick this year, and none in 2014. I think JR will go where the money is. I am not sure about Novak. Other teams can offer him more than we would probably want to pay him. His opportunity for signifcant paydays is limited. I would love it if somehow Odom fell to us. But I think Brooklyn has a better chance of getting him than we do.
We will have a solid group, but a way must be found to get them to work together. The Spurs have done it with, arguably, less talent than we have.
