Who Are The Knicks Kidding?
Who are the Knicks kidding, the audacity that occurred last Saturday night was just the most recent debacle in a long line of abysmal events that have transpired with the Knicks in the last decade. Don’t be fooled with Derek Fisher’s and Phil Jackson’s blind optimism. It is clearly a façade put on the keep the media happy.
On Saturday, April 11th, the Knicks played in a game that will be forever remembered in NBA history, a mere fifteen points were scored in a professional basketball quarter. How insulted were the few fans that decided to attend that game? The other franchise involved in that game has not had much to be proud of either the past couple of years. Since losing the finals to the Lakers in 2009, the Orlando Magic have failed to be anything but relevant.
But at least they are not the New York Knicks, a team that has become synonymous with losing. The Knicks last finals appearance came in a lock out-shortened season in which they overachieved and were never expected to even go past the first round. And just like the Magic they really have had nowhere to go but down.
The whole franchise has made a myriad of mistakes just the past ten years that will still set them back even in next years draft. The margin for error for this team just does not exist. One wrong move in management after another has ensured that if they want to win with Carmelo Anthony in his prime, and that means winning a championship basically the next season or the next two after that, they will have to be absolutely instrumentally correct in all of their moves.
Now that includes who they draft, who they sign and how many of their upper management decisions have a risk of setting them back more than a year or two.
The draft pick is one of the most important parts if not the most important part. For the first time since drafting Patrick Ewing, the Knicks will end up with a lottery pick. And the player who comes of it must be making a huge impact on the team next year. Someone like Karl-Anthony Towns because of his defensive ability, post presence and overall size would be perfect, size tends to rule the game in basketball. Since they are lacking a first round pick in 2016, this pick must be a key part of their team for possibly the next 10-15 years.
Another important part is the free agents they decide to sign. If there is a team with a recent history of acquiring big name marquee free agents and them not working out for the team at all, it is the Knicks. I still cringe at the mention of Jerome James and we all are still freshly reminded of how much money was wasted on Amar’e Stoudemire, every time he steps off the Dallas Mavericks bench. The Knicks have to look at this the same way they should look at the draft; they are going to need an impact player. They need someone who could possibly be a big part of the team for the next 5 years, somebody young and with little history of injury. He above all if nothing else has to be someone that presents as little risk as possible because the Knicks have no margin for error.
One Shining Moment Knicks 2014-15 Tragedy
This is the situation they find themselves in because of the various moves they have made in the past ten years. They are not totally sunk right now but the ship has holes and if they are not patched up soon, that ship may not sail right for a long time.
