Big Blue Huddle

Hartenstein wasn't the answer anyway

Quote from: BluesCruz on July 01, 2024, 05:13:02 PMHartenstein wasn't the answer anyway

How do you figure, he was the perfect backup to Mitch. It's not like there's a Kareem Abdul-Jabbar or Wilt Chamberlain out there hoping the Knicks will pay them 4 mil a year

IHart had what most centers don't...brains. He knew how to get all the other guys chances to score because he could block, pass, and fought like a tiger for the rebounds. The epitome of "team player". He might not be worth 30 mil a year, but he's vastly underrated...at least by you

Quote from: Jolly Blue Giant on July 01, 2024, 05:30:42 PMHow do you figure, he was the perfect backup to Mitch. It's not like there's a Kareem Abdul-Jabbar or Wilt Chamberlain out there hoping the Knicks will pay them 4 mil a year

IHart had what most centers don't...brains. He knew how to get all the other guys chances to score because he could block, pass, and fought like a tiger for the rebounds. The epitome of "team player". He might not be worth 30 mil a year, but he's vastly underrated...at least by you

I didn't mean it that way.  He was decent but you need better to overcome Boston. They are very confident and athletic   Strong and Agile.   He had the strong part not the athletic and agile

You cannot knock on the door....you have to kick it in

Unfortunately it's not just the Celtics we have to worry about in the East... the Sixers have George now, who although he is 34, has shown no signs whatsoever of tailing off. The trio of him, Maxey, and Embiid will be very tough to deal with. We have to hope Embiid is an injured mess again come the playoffs. That team is going to be tough.

Quote from: DaveBrown74 on July 01, 2024, 09:56:40 PMUnfortunately it's not just the Celtics we have to worry about in the East... the Sixers have George now, who although he is 34, has shown no signs whatsoever of tailing off. The trio of him, Maxey, and Embiid will be very tough to deal with. We have to hope Embiid is an injured mess again come the playoffs. That team is going to be tough.

I read an article a long time ago discussing "knowledge of fans", "passion", and "male to female ratio". Three cities were far above the 4th place city (Chicago). Needless to say, the craziest, most loyal, and most knowledgeable fans were from NYC, Boston, and Philly...also the highest ratio of men to women, which they suggested was male fans were more frenzied and passionate about their teams because of the testosterone driven need for war and dominance. Apparently, females like the entertainment value of a game; whereas, men see it as a battle...or something like that. Regardless, it's only appropriate that the three teams with the most passionate fan bases are on the top of the mountain in the NBA. I hope the Knicks wipe the floor with them!

Knicks completed the Bridges trade with the Nets and suceeded in staying under the apron whatever that means.  The result is that they have some flexibility in adding players this year.  They gave up Shake Milton and another journeyman and received a journeyman from the Nets who was at a minimum salary.  From the looks of things, Rose continues to make the right moves.

In an unrelated transaction, Alec Burks signed with the Heat.

Quote from: nb587 on July 04, 2024, 05:08:13 PMKnicks completed the Bridges trade with the Nets and suceeded in staying under the apron whatever that means.  The result is that they have some flexibility in adding players this year.  They gave up Shake Milton and another journeyman and received a journeyman from the Nets who was at a minimum salary.  From the looks of things, Rose continues to make the right moves.

In an unrelated transaction, Alec Burks signed with the Heat.

I saw that. Looked like some small-ball tweaking to the deal that amounted to advantageous, deft, cap maneuvering.

Good stuff. The Knicks were basically a joke franchise for two decades after the Ewing era. Now all of a sudden they're one of the best run teams in the league and on steep incline. Rose really deserves a great deal of credit for what he has managed to do since taking over. Thibodeaux deserves his fair share of the credit too. A lot of these players have really been coached up nicely by him and his staff.

The most impressive part of this Knicks team is that it was built without a single big time draft pick. None of their top players are guys they drafted. This team was put together through very sharp trades, signings, and by coaching players up from mediocre to good or from good to very good.

It's impressive as hell.

Quote from: DaveBrown74 on July 04, 2024, 05:12:45 PMI saw that. Looked like some small-ball tweaking to the deal that amounted to advantageous, deft, cap maneuvering.

Good stuff. The Knicks were basically a joke franchise for two decades after the Ewing era. Now all of a sudden they're one of the best run teams in the league and on steep incline. Rose really deserves a great deal of credit for what he has managed to do since taking over. Thibodeaux deserves his fair share of the credit too. A lot of these players have really been coached up nicely by him and his staff.

The most impressive part of this Knicks team is that it was built without a single big time draft pick. None of their top players are guys they drafted. This team was put together through very sharp trades, signings, and by coaching players up from mediocre to good or from good to very good.

It's impressive as hell.

A lot of credit must be given to Brock Aller (Vice President, Basketball and Strategic Planning) who has been in charge of managing the cap. Non-Knick basketball fans have been calling him a miracle worker and a numbers magician. He has been at the heart of all the deals since fanagling the draft to free up money to get Brunson. He lives in the shadows, but he's the genius that makes deals work

https://www.si.com/nba/knicks/news/new-york-knicks-front-office-staffer-promotion-brock-aller-leon-rose

Quote from: Jolly Blue Giant on July 04, 2024, 08:20:41 PMA lot of credit must be given to Brock Aller (Vice President, Basketball and Strategic Planning) who has been in charge of managing the cap. Non-Knick basketball fans have been calling him a miracle worker and a numbers magician. He has been at the heart of all the deals since fanagling the draft to free up money to get Brunson. He lives in the shadows, but he's the genius that makes deals work

https://www.si.com/nba/knicks/news/new-york-knicks-front-office-staffer-promotion-brock-aller-leon-rose

Good point. While Rose deserves lots of praise, one individual cannot do what this front office has done by himself. You need a great team of minds around you.

I don't want to go too overboard here yet. The Knicks still haven't even made it to a conference final yet (although they no doubt would have this year if they hadn't been so ridiculously banged up). Still, I'm feeling great about the trend this team is on and the way they're being run. It's very nice to see.

What I'm hoping for this year for the Knicks (and the Giants) is that the injury rates revert to the mean. Fewer injuries is often a major success indicator.

Quote from: nb587 on July 04, 2024, 09:44:04 PMWhat I'm hoping for this year for the Knicks (and the Giants) is that the injury rates revert to the mean. Fewer injuries is often a major success indicator.

The Knicks were particularly afflicted last year, so you'd think their injury rate would mean-revert, but there are some forces against them on this front:

(1) They have some very injury-prone players like Mitch Robinson, OG and (to a lesser extent) Randle.

(2) They play a very physical, all-out effort type of style that is effective but is more likely to lead to injuries than a more finesse, offensive-minded style.

(3) Thibodeaux really pushes the minutes on some of the players.

I still think last year was particularly egregious for injuries and the rate is likely to mean-revert, but I still expect there to be injuries.

I won't get into the Giants in any detail in a Knicks thread, but I can't say I'm confident they'll suddenly be much healthier as a team either. I have yet to get the feeling that they're really considering the causality of the injury issues they have in a serious way with a plan to take action on it.

From Basketball Network:

"As brilliant as New York Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau is at getting the most out of his players' skills, he's gotten a bad rep around the league for being an intense taskmaster and riding his players out until they're out of gas. This reputation has dogged him at every stop of his coaching career"

The injuries aren't entirely because of a player putting too many minutes on the floor, but I think it is a factor. Certainly Knick players play a very physical style of game. We have a good enough second team to spread the minutes IMO...and Thibs should do so for the sake of player health

That was the same complaint many had about Jim Boeheim at Syracuse...overplaying the stars