A Look at the New Meadowlands

A final look inside new Meadowlands Stadium before its Saturday opening

Sports of The Times - Strickland Is Experiencing a Role Reversal - NYTimes.com

Sports of The Times - Strickland Is Experiencing a Role Reversal - NYTimes.com

Appearing in today's NY Times online edition, William Rhoden writes a nice piece highlighting the accolades of the former point guard of the NY Knicks. It's a great piece, and it comes at a time when many journalists have been speculating whether or not Mike D'Antoni is the right head coach to lead the Knicks to a championship.

I have always bee a Rod Strickland fan. Since his days as a point guard for the Knicks, Rod Strickland was always a favorite of both my father and myself on game day. He was a quiet leader with silky smooth ball handling skills. Essentially, he let his play speak for him.

Rhoden points out several things that should make Rod a serious contender to be the next head coach of the Knicks:
1. He attended Truman High School in the Bronx
2. He played for defensive-minded Knicks of the 90's
3. He is a proven college point guard teacher (Derrick Rose, Tyreke Evans, John Wall)

All of the above should immediately put Rod Strickland on Donnie Walsh's Head Coaching short list should D'Antoni continue to flounder at emphasizing defense and expanding his short rotation.

NBA.com: How some teams look heading into the Summer of 2010

NBA.com: How some teams look heading into the Summer of 2010:
"Cap space following 2010 Trade Deadline

1. New York
Salary - $21,571,737
Amount Under - $32,028,263

2. New Jersey
Salary - $27,170,659
Amount Under - $26,429,341

3. Miami
Salary - $32,254,326
Amount Under - $21,345,674

4. Washington
Salary - $34,454,130
Amount Under - $18,943,379

5. Chicago
Salary - $35,662,116
Amount Under - $17,937,884

6. Sacramento
Salary - $36,454,130
Amount Under - $17,145,870

7. L.A. Clippers
Salary - $38,235,273
Amount Under - $15,364,727

8. Minnesota
Salary - $41,004,156
Amount Under - $12,595,844

9. Oklahoma City
Salary - $42,104,151
Amount Under - $11,495,849

Projected salary cap for next season is ~$53.6 million.

Starks and Mason Take Pippen to the Paint

Check out the punch by Anthony Mason in the slo-motion closeup. One of the many reasons why, even though they never won a championship (a shame), this team was my favorite sports team of all time. Defensively, they just didn't give a S***! I must note that the Bulls were equally as aggressive on defense as the Knicks were. It makes you wonder why the current Knicks don't hire Charles Oakley or Anthony Mason to coach pride and defense in some capacity, which is something the Knicks have been sorely lacking for some time.

Nevertheless, this was one of the best rivalries of all times, no doubt.

Ewing the Great

Knicks sign T-Mac, Lose in Overtime to Thunder

Finally there are signs of life in the Garden. Although the Knicks lost to the red hot Thunder 118-121 in Overtime, newly acquired Tracy McGrady was excellent in his Garden debut as he racked up 26 points in 32 minutes of play.

Eddie House and Sergio Rodriguez were exceptional as well in their debut. House scored 24 and although S-Rod scored just 5 points he did tie with David Lee for the most assists in the game with six.

The missed FTs by T-Mac and Sergio lost this game for us. But wow, what a difference in the speed of the game with this new group. Sergio seems way scared to take a shot, but boy is he an upgrade over Duhon. I think the rest of the players, were stupefied to see how fast they were getting passes from Sergio and House and T-Mac.

Duhon, say hello to Mr. Pine (o points in 20 minutes). I think with a few more practices and games, this squad will be just fine. Playoffs? Probably not. But they will be a lot more fun to watch than the other group of duds.

LeBron James is Amazing

"At the end of the day, a max deal doesn't really matter. It is all about winning to me. When that day comes next summer, I want to win. If I feel like the team is capable of winning, then I will make my decision based on that."

That's what Lebron James said after the Cavs beat the Knicks 100-91 last night in Madison Square Garden, amid a star-studded cast celebrities. You hear that Donnie Walsh? LeBron wants to "win."

To me, that is one of the best quotes to have ever come from a superstar free agent. It pretty much sums it up, no matter what sport you are talking about. Sure, there are many players who are looking for a payday. Running back Derrick Ward, the second-string back for the New York Giants bolted to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for a $17 million dollar contract, only to wind up on an 0-7 team. Alex Rodriguez signed a 3 year deal with the Texas Rangers worth $252 million dollars, and ended up in last place in the American League West in both 2002 and 2003 before finally starting to turn it around in 2004. But LeBron just wants to win games. He is a pure competitor at heart, like Michael Jordan was in the 90's. You simply cannot see LeBron go to a terrible team just because he is offered a max contract.

Right now, New York is throwing a nauseating supply of celebrities at him. Jay-Z, Joba Chamberlain, C.C. Sabathia, Alex Rodriguez, and Mark Texiera were all on hand, courtside for last night's game. Oddly enough, Charles Oakley, Anthony Mason, and Larry Johnson, 3 Knicks players from the 90's, were there as well but didn't get too much notoriety. There is even an 8 story tall picture of him in Times Square posing for Air Jordan. All of this is nice, but LeBron is too mature and gracious to be swayed by such transparent flattery.

LeBron James just wants to win. And that is precisely why Donnie Walsh needs to do whatever is possible to get him. He has made it clear that he won't sign with anyone less than a contender, and that will not be the Knicks unless someone steps up to become a leader. David Lee is probably their best player, but you would never know it because he just doesn't speak up. He is a role player, and Donnie Walsh was right not to pay him top dollar. Wilson Chandler is probably the 2nd best player on the team, but he is far from a verbal general at this point in his young career. I believe Danilo Gallinari is the key. He seems passionate about winning, and he absolutely needs to step up and start commanding wins. He is already averaging 17.5 PPG, and is top 3 on the team in scoring. The team is wide open for the taking. Who is it going to be? Chris Duhon, is hardly an elite point guard. He is slow and prone to mistakes, but at least he spoke up recently to demand a little more effort and seriousness in the pregame warm ups. It was hardly a call to task, but it was a nudge. Unfortunately the criticism didn't work. Duhon is not the leader. It has to come from someone else.

If Gallinari has the guts to stand up and lead this team, perhaps along with Chandler or Lee, then LeBron James and other free agents in 2010 will take notice that the Knicks' building blocks have potential.

Someone on the Knicks needs to stand up and say, "this is my team." Who is it going to be? Gallinari, Lee, or Chandler?