We got valuable minutes from a rotation of Kurt Thomas Marcus Camby and Kenyon Martin. (The 3 of them rotating as our center off the bench, and some spot minutes occasionally off the bench for one of the other 2, but they were so old I don’t think all 3 of them ever suited up at the same time, and Kmart was a mid season signing.)
Our team was predicated on our spreadoffense, Felton or Melo pick and rolls with Tyson or Kmart, or double screens with Melo and Tyson or Kmart screening for Felton with the big rolling to the rim and Melo fading to the wing, getting us a lot of open 3’s or lobs to the rim.
We also played Melo a lot out of the post and surrounded him with shooters.
Felton, Jr, JKidd, Papi Prigioni, Shump, and most importantly 2 of the best 3 point shooters in the league. Steve “Novakaine” Novak, and Chris “Cope” Copeland, who both finished the season shooting over 42% from deep.
In that off-season, the Knicks decided they needed to be bigger, and they needed to shoot more, not a bad idea, bringing in a true center who wasn’t looking to soon retire, and giving Copeland more minutes could be a great idea right?
Right???
According to our front office, wrong.
What we needed, was a miracle, someone who could do what Chris Bosh was doing for the Heat, but better, according to our front office.
What we needed was Chris Bosh’s old teammate.
The guy Chris Bosh wanted to get away from.
A 7 footer, who shot under 40% from the field, and under 30% from deep
A 7 footer who barely averaged 5 rebounds a game, and hadn’t played in over 40 games in a season for over 2 years.
A 7 footer who was colloquially known as the worst defender, no, the worst player in the league.
What we needed was Andrea Bargnani.
And they were willing to trade Steve Novak and Marcus Camby to get him.
So trade they did, and they threw in another 3 picks that we didn’t have as well, just for kicks.
And with our newfound “Center” on the roster, and Amare “coming back from injury” we no longer had minutes for Chris Copeland either.
So they let him walk.
To the Pacers.
The next season, our team on paper looked remarkably similar. We had lost Camby and Kurt Thomas sure, but we had replaced them with Bargnani and Tyler Johnson.
Copeland and Kidd might be gone, but they were to be replaced by the rookie SG’s THJR, and Tour’e Murray (certified Knicks legend).
That was a team that should be good, right?
Wrong.
When you trade the incumbent 7/8th man of the Year. (Official reward of the NYBA (sponsored by the J train)) and a mainstay of the identity of you team, for the worst 7 footer to ever step on an NBA court, your season goes to shit. No questions asked.
And boy it wasn’t just one season. The Andrea Bargnani trade was the precursor, simply foreshadowing if you will, for what would be the Knicks future.
It culminated on March 12th, 2015, 2 years later, when the leagues worst Knicks at 13-51 played the 17-47 Los Angeles Lakers.
The Knicks started Langston Galloway, alexy Shved, Lance Thomas, Lou Amundson, and Andrea Bargnani on that night.
In a game uglier than any Knicks Heat matchup of the 1990s the Knicks recorded their first win of the season against a Western conference team.
5 months into the season.
4 months later, they would finally find the answer to a question they had posited to themselves 2 years previously.
Where could one find a 7footer, who could send shots into the stands, and also spread the floor for Carmelo Anthony?
The answer obviously, is in Latvia. And with the 4th pick of the NBA Draft, the New York Knicks selected Kristaps Porzingis, opening a new, equally tragic act, to the Broadway Magic that is the New York Knicks.
Pacers beating the Knicks in the 2013 ECSF.
I’m going to try to make this concise.
The Knicks were an old team.
We started a close to retirement Jason Kidd.
We got valuable minutes from a rotation of Kurt Thomas Marcus Camby and Kenyon Martin. (The 3 of them rotating as our center off the bench, and some spot minutes occasionally off the bench for one of the other 2, but they were so old I don’t think all 3 of them ever suited up at the same time, and Kmart was a mid season signing.)
Our team was predicated on our spreadoffense, Felton or Melo pick and rolls with Tyson or Kmart, or double screens with Melo and Tyson or Kmart screening for Felton with the big rolling to the rim and Melo fading to the wing, getting us a lot of open 3’s or lobs to the rim.
We also played Melo a lot out of the post and surrounded him with shooters.
Felton, Jr, JKidd, Papi Prigioni, Shump, and most importantly 2 of the best 3 point shooters in the league. Steve “Novakaine” Novak, and Chris “Cope” Copeland, who both finished the season shooting over 42% from deep.
In that off-season, the Knicks decided they needed to be bigger, and they needed to shoot more, not a bad idea, bringing in a true center who wasn’t looking to soon retire, and giving Copeland more minutes could be a great idea right?
Right???
According to our front office, wrong.
What we needed, was a miracle, someone who could do what Chris Bosh was doing for the Heat, but better, according to our front office.
What we needed was Chris Bosh’s old teammate.
The guy Chris Bosh wanted to get away from.
A 7 footer, who shot under 40% from the field, and under 30% from deep
A 7 footer who barely averaged 5 rebounds a game, and hadn’t played in over 40 games in a season for over 2 years.
A 7 footer who was colloquially known as the worst defender, no, the worst player in the league.
What we needed was Andrea Bargnani.
And they were willing to trade Steve Novak and Marcus Camby to get him.
So trade they did, and they threw in another 3 picks that we didn’t have as well, just for kicks.
And with our newfound “Center” on the roster, and Amare “coming back from injury” we no longer had minutes for Chris Copeland either.
So they let him walk.
To the Pacers.
The next season, our team on paper looked remarkably similar. We had lost Camby and Kurt Thomas sure, but we had replaced them with Bargnani and Tyler Johnson.
Copeland and Kidd might be gone, but they were to be replaced by the rookie SG’s THJR, and Tour’e Murray (certified Knicks legend).
That was a team that should be good, right?
Wrong.
When you trade the incumbent 7/8th man of the Year. (Official reward of the NYBA (sponsored by the J train)) and a mainstay of the identity of you team, for the worst 7 footer to ever step on an NBA court, your season goes to shit. No questions asked.
And boy it wasn’t just one season. The Andrea Bargnani trade was the precursor, simply foreshadowing if you will, for what would be the Knicks future.
It culminated on March 12th, 2015, 2 years later, when the leagues worst Knicks at 13-51 played the 17-47 Los Angeles Lakers.
The Knicks started Langston Galloway, alexy Shved, Lance Thomas, Lou Amundson, and Andrea Bargnani on that night.
In a game uglier than any Knicks Heat matchup of the 1990s the Knicks recorded their first win of the season against a Western conference team.
5 months into the season.
4 months later, they would finally find the answer to a question they had posited to themselves 2 years previously.
Where could one find a 7footer, who could send shots into the stands, and also spread the floor for Carmelo Anthony?
The answer obviously, is in Latvia. And with the 4th pick of the NBA Draft, the New York Knicks selected Kristaps Porzingis, opening a new, equally tragic act, to the Broadway Magic that is the New York Knicks.