The Book Of Isiah By Modi....Here's Why Isiah May Just Be The Best GM In The League !!!

Before we get into that, let's get into some recent observations from the last 24 hours. As we all know, Isiah is back with the team in SC and practice has resumed as normal.

1)Curry and Zach have been speaking since Zach was traded to us....

2)Crawford has put on 15 pounds in the upper body....

3)Lee looks 100 percent....

4)So far Q is looking good....

5)Jerome James is injured again and should be bought out soon....

6)According to the reporters down there...D-Nichols isn't sticking out at all....

7)Marbury is a new man as he has found God...this could be a great thing for us....

8)Isiah will not be losing his job due to the trial results....

9)Everybody showed up in good shape except Jerome James

As more information becomes available I will post it...

Today let's take a look at a great article about Isiah Thomas and the Knicks team he inherited.

What he has been able to do with this team is remarkable but the media never see's it that way. Why can't the media give credit to this man where it's due.

I'm not even going to say anymore about it...I'm just going to post the article and let you see for yourself.

I got this article from a good blog friend (BARF = Be A Real Fan) over on Alan Hahns Newsday blog.

They all know I am the copy and paste king so here it goes...

If you are a Knicks fan or even an Isiah hater...this article is for you...

Enjoy



Intro: The Book of Isiah: Unraveling The Biggest Myth in Sports
Chapter 1

The Roster: Worst in Sports History?

Media Backlash: No backlash here, mostly deafening silence which speaks volumes. Context matters. The media’s reluctance to bring up the HISTORICALLY pathetic roster that Isiah Thomas inherited while lambasting him is the classic “lie by omission”. Hey Media – Do Your Homework!: The answer is D. Go ahead, comb through every single NBA roster from December 2003 and compare it to the Knicks one assembled by previous GM Scott Layden. The results are astonishing:

· NINE of those players are OUT OF THE LEAGUE
· NOT ONE SINGLE STARTER plays in the NBA today while virtually every other 2003 NBA team still has a minimum of three starters still in the league[1].
· Only ONE player averaged more than 5 points per game in 2006-2007.

To paraphrase Charles Barkley, superb San Antonio GM R.C. Buford had Tim Duncan to build around, two-time GM of the year Bryan Collangelo had Chris Bosh and a #1 draft pick to build around… Isiah had Michael Doleac to build around. Thomas was left with no young budding talent, no major trade chips, and the most expensive roster in the NBA which ruled out any thought of rebuilding through free agency. By any fair assessment, the Knicks were, at MINIMUM, a 5 year turnaround project. By acting quickly and decisively dumping players before their trade stock completely plummeted Thomas has given Knicks fans a hopeful future within his first three years.





“Inherit the Windstorm” - Sizing up The Knicks 2003 Roster:


Roster Review: Their only great player (Allan Houston) had a bad contract and worse knee which soon forced his retirement. In 2003, young players like Frank Williams, Maceij Lampe, and Mike Sweetney were all thought to have significant future potential, but Isiah quickly traded them all before the secret became public knowledge. Williams and Lampe are now out of the league, and Sweetney may join them any day now. Their only trade chips of any value were aging Kurt Thomas and Antonio McDyess, not exactly Kobe-enticers. The rest of the roster was a collection of overpaid and over-the-hill Howard Eisleys, Charlie Wards, and Shandon Andersons.

Worse than an Expansion Franchise?: Yes. Much worse. Before the 2004 expansion Charlotte Bobcats ever played a single game, they had a far superior roster that included Emeka Okafor, Gerald Wallace, Jason Kapono, Brevin Knight, and Matt Carroll. Most were young budding talent acquired through the expansion draft. The Bobcats also had the lowest payroll, no expectations to win right away, and the freedom to lose big and stockpile draft picks without criticism.

Worse than the 1999 Bulls?: No. About the same.Yes, you would have to go back to the year after Jordan, Pippen, and Rodman left the Bulls to find an equally horrific roster in the NBA. This team, led by Toni Kukoc in 1999, averaged under 20 victories for the next SIX seasons. Read that again please. Those years of misery enabled the Bulls to compile nine top 7 draft picks. It would be 7 seasons before the Bulls would taste the playoffs and 10 seasons before they could be considered title contenders (this coming year). After 3.5 years Isiah has already built an exciting young team that was on target to make the playoffs last year before their team was hit by injuries to three of its top five players. And while Bulls GM John Paxson has received plenty of journalistic praise, one also has to salivate at the thought of what Isiah Thomas would do with nine top 7 draft picks.

Worst Roster in All of Sports?: Even though the COSELLOUT crack staff hasn’t put in the work, the guess here is a resounding YES! Go back to every basketball, baseball, football, and hockey team in 2003 and see if you can find a roster that has 60% of its team out-of-the league and not a single starter. Lets us know if we are wrong or even close to wrong.

Final Analysis: Early in his tenure Thomas remarked: “No team has ever had to rebuild from this altitude where we started”. While crystal clear to Thomas, this concept was never understood by those who were paid to write about him. Thomas has delivered a young promising team in three years – about half the time that would be expected.
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[1] There are debatably one or two exceptions to the three starter rule (see Celtics with Paul Pierce, Mark Bount, and Mike James). Even in these debatable instances, there is a bona-fide all-star on that team as trade-bait.


Chapter 2

The Past: Rewriting Isiah’s Resume

Pop Quiz: Which previous management experience has Isiah NOT excelled?


A) General Manager of the Toronto Raptors
B) Head Coach of the Indiana Pacers
C) Owner: Continental Basketball Association
D) ALL OF THE ABOVE



Hey Media – Do Your Homework!: The answer is C, and NOT D. Not all, but too many sports blowhards have remarked “how Isiah has failed everywhere he has been” as an executive. By all accounts Thomas seems to have failed as owner of the CBA, but who really cares? Donald Trump has had many business failures. It’s Thomas’ past experience as Raptors GM and then coach of the Pacers that best inform his choice as the perfect candidate for GM and then coach for the Knicks.

The Buildup and Breakdown of the Raptors: As the first-ever GM of the expansion Raptors, Thomas drafted Rookie of the Year Damon Stoudamire, shot-blocking and rebounding big man Marcus Camby, and Tracy McGrady successive seasons. He then added defensive stopper Doug Christie to create a strong foundation to put the Raptors into title contention for years to come. However, stemming from a failed bid to acquire team ownership, Thomas resigned after three years. Unfortunately, the post-Isiah Raptors abandoned his vision and embarked on a short-sighted strategy where all of his young prized acquisitions were let go or traded in exchange for “win-now” veterans such as Antonio Davis, Kevin Willis, and Charles Oakley. These trades (and the drafting of Vince Carter) were enough to get Toronto a short-lived taste of the playoffs, but came at the cost of building any real long-term future. What appeared to be a 5-year plan for title contention under Thomas ultimately became a 12 year plan for the Raptors.

The Raptors Record – The Young Talent Finder: Isiah’s stint with the Raptors showed his great eye for young talent. Within a couple of years after Isiah’s departure all of his Toronto acquisitions blossomed for other teams. McGrady achieved superstar status while Stoudamire, Camby, and Christie all went on to play critical roles for title contending teams. Camby helped bring the Knicks to the NBA finals, and Stoudamire and Christie teams both came within a Game 7 whisker of upending the dynasty Lakers. By foolishly abandoning Thomas’s vision, Raptor’s fans were left to wonder what might have been.

The Pacers Performance – The Young Talent Developer: Thomas’ stint as coach with the Indiana Pacers from 2000 – 2003 revealed another special attribute: DEVELOPING young talent. Many critics cite that Thomas underachieved because this Pacer team that made the NBA finals the previous season, but they conveniently forget that playoff tested vets like Rik Smits, Dale Davis, and Mark Jackson retired or were traded. Despite taking over the youngest team in the NBA, they made the playoffs in his three years and increased their win total in each year. And just as importantly, the development of Jermaine O’Neal, Al Harrington, Brad Miller, and Ron Artest, all flourished under his tutelage. Unfortunately, the “3-Year Cut-Off” was in effect again as Larry Bird became the Pacers GM and dismissed Thomas in 2003 in favor of long-time friend Rick Carlisle. While Carlisle is a fine coach who had achieved playoff success the following year, the team has since regressed and Carlisle was fired this past year.

Knicks Next: Thomas’ past success at finding, and then developing makes him the perfect candidate to be the General Manager, and subsequently, coach for New York Knicks. He has already overhauled a geriatric roster into one with young talent, and, in his first year as coach, has already developed talent (see Curry, Lee, Crawford, Balkman) that was reminiscent of his Pacer days. Only multiple injuries have prevented a Knicks playoff berth in 2007.


“Three-and-Out”: Had James Dolan acquiesced to intense media and fan pressure to fire Thomas at that familiar 3-year marker, history would have surely repeated itself. The team’s roster would have been “blown up” by “smarter people”, and the media would mislabel his stint in New York as yet another failure. But with the justice that is his contract extension, Thomas will finally have the opportunity to write his own ending to the script instead of having the media revise his resume once again.


Perhaps the “three and out” that Isiah has experienced throughout his career is the most troubling aspect of all. At each step his “work” as either coach or GM was taken into a different direction after he left. His Raptors roster was blown up, and the development of his players in Indiana did not progress. Like virtually the entire media did last summer with the Knicks, those with higher power than Isiah simply believed that they knew more than him. The Raptors were set back another 8 years after Thomas, and this year, Indiana will be one of the worst teams in all of basketball (write it down). Larry Bird, a good coach, whose record as General Manager for the Pacers has been simply awful, has received a small fraction of the national criticism as Thomas. Unlike many other GMs Doubting Thomas turned into a national media obsession. In Chapter 10, "A Summary of Biases", we will explore the many reasons why.




Chapter 3

The Salary Cap Myth: Pure Media Madness


Pop Quiz: In the past 10 years, 47 NBA all-stars were drafted and 43 all-stars were obtained via trade.

How many all-stars were acquired via free-agency as a result of clearing salary cap space? [1]


A) 49
B) 45
C) 41
D) 9


Bonus Question: Why did the Boston Red Sox pay $51 million just for the rights just to TALK to Japanese Pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka, and why did the Yankees pay Roger Clemens about 1 million PER START?


Hey Media – Do Your Homework!: The answer is D. (Bonus Answer: “Because they can.”). Yes, on average, less than ONE great player changes teams each year because another team got under the cap. A team is 10 times more likely to obtain an all-star through the draft and trades and 5 times more likely to land a prize via a trade alone. Unless there exists an under-the-table agreement with Lebron James for 2010, Isiah should continue to ignore his legion of media critics who contend that the best long-term plan for the Knicks is to “get under the salary cap”. The hard truth is that Isiah took the correct, and ONLY proper approach to rebuilding the Knicks disaster of a roster. Here’s why:

Hey Media – It’s Not Your Money!: Whether the Knicks are $1 or $100 million over the cap makes little difference. On behalf of Cablevision, James Dolan signs those checks. It’s his problem, not Mike Lupica’s. Most teams try to stay under the cap because their owners either can’t afford to, or choose not to go over the cap. However, Forbes magazine rates the Knicks as the NBA’s most valuable franchise. If the Knicks have one single privilege over most NBA teams, it is the luxury to afford the luxury tax. When he took over as GM, Isiah immediately and wisely seized upon this advantage and absorbed more expensive contracts to help acquire young players and draft picks who would never have been available by dangling the names “Othella Harrington” or “Michael Doleac” as trade bait.

Fool’s Gold: Why Free Agents Ain’t Always Free: This off-season’s big free agent prize was Rashard Lewis going from Seattle to Orlando while the Celtics nabbed Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, and Allen Iverson all moved via trades. Last year the one-per-year lotto prize was the Bulls signing of Ben Wallace. The Bulls then traded Tyson Chandler to the Hornets for the primary purpose of freeing up future salary space to help absorb Wallace’s contract. Last year Chandler outperformed Wallace, is improving as Wallace is declining, and will be a top defensive big man long after Wallace has retired. In retrospect, Wallace was no prize at all, but, most likely, a long-term mistake. Bottom line: Clearing salary space to land or keep a free-agent often operates more like a trade. And sometimes a very bad trade at that. This is one reason why only about 5 of 30 teams are significantly under the cap in any given year.

Putting a Cap on the “Lotto Strategy”!: Many media critics love to point to past free agent lotto prizes like the acquisitions of Shaquille O’Neal (Lakers) or Steve Nash (Suns) as shining examples of the get-under-the-cap strategy. Yes, and smoking cigars is healthy because George Burns lived to be 100. And consider this: both Shaq and Nash were ALSO acquired through trades by the Heat and Mavericks. Other all-star free agent signings like Tracy McGrady (Magic), Dikembe Mutombo (Hawks), and Vlade Divac (Kings) were also acquired via trades by The Rockets, 76ers, and Hornets. In 10 years prior to this summer, only FOUR all-stars (Allan Houston, Gilbert Arenas, Carlos Boozer, & Mehmet Okur[2]) were acquired through available cap space, but unavailable through a trade. That’s it [3]. No, seriously, that’s it. During, that same span 38 all-stars were obtained by trade.


Great Players Resign with Their Own Teams! Basketball ain’t baseball. If it was tThis summer Dwight Howard signed a contract extension. Last off-season Lebron, Carmelo Anthony, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh all did the same instead of testing the free agent market. The year before that Kobe resigned with the Lakers leaving the Clippers, Bulls and all their salary cap room out in the cold. Amare Stoudemire? Dirk Nowitzki? Tim Duncan? Kevin Garnett before the big trade? All resigned with their teams. Why? Because resigning with your own team will almost always pay the most. In contrast, the Atlanta Hawks have been 10-14 million under the cap for the last 5 years. Last summer they signed Speedy Claxton.


E. CAP RECAP! (Data from last 10 years [4])

Odds of obtaining an All-Star through Draft & Trades: 90%
Odds of obtaining an All-Star Through Free Agency: 9%
Odds of taking a blackjack hit on 19 and not busting: 15%

Number of All-Stars Obtained through trade ONLY: 38
Number of All-Stars Obtained through Free Agency ONLY: 4




F. Forget the Cap… Forever!: Like every other team the Knicks can use their mid-level exception to land a solid free agent role player. As for the Knicks unique situation, striving hard to get under the cap to land a franchise player would actually be a BAD policy (unless a prearranged commitment exists). It would mean letting too many “birds in the hand” get away in order to get under (see Bulls-Tyson Chandler example). And even worse, it would mean giving up the Knicks only singular advantage of being able to acquire superior talent by overpaying for it.


Final Verse: To ask that Thomas not aggressively wield the one trump card that the Knicks have (James Dolan’s pocketbook) in favor of a “lotto strategy” borders on lunacy. While sports journalists, even many smart ones, all across the land were telling Thomas and the public how stupid he was, Isiah knew that taking on big contracts as a package deal for amassing greater talent and additional draft picks (see David Lee; Renaldo Balkman; Mardy Collins) was the obvious and correct strategy to turn around the Knicks. If there was ever a case that proves that sports journalists would make awful General Managers for the New York Knicks, it is this one.

Chapter 4

The “Mistakes”: Mountains from Mole Hills

Pop Quiz: Which has been Thomas’ ONLY major mistake?

A) The Draft
B) The Trades
C) Free Agents
D) Coach Hires


While there was a widely held rumor that the August 2005 signing of Jerome James may have very well sparked Hurricane Katrina the following month, the answer is D. Thomas’ drafting has been stellar (see Chapter 5), his trades have rejuvenated a geriatric roster (see chapter 6), and his free agent signings, the only area that can be legitimately criticized, cost the Knicks nothing in return.


A. Hiring Larry Brown: This was, by far and away, Thomas’s biggest error as General Manager. While virtually all media members (and this author) enthusiastically agreed with the signing at the time, Thomas is paid to be smarter than the rest of us – which he usually is. In hindsight, it is easy to see that Brown, who is at his best coaching veterans, was the wrong coach, in the wrong city, at the wrong time for this youthful Knicks team. Besides 59 games, much more was lost. Brown’s NBA record 42 line-ups, lack of steady rotations, and penchant disparaging his players through the press, stunted valuable opportunities to build team chemistry, personal player development (see Eddy Curry), and individual/team confidence. Residual effects of the 23 win season included the lowering of the draft pick received by Bulls in Eddy Curry trade, the lowering trade value of Knicks players, and Thomas’s worst GM decisions often came in attempts to please Brown (which is still 100% Thomas’ fault). Verdict: Major Mistake.

B. Salary Cap: See "The NBA Salary Cap: The Most Misreported Story in Sports"

C. Steve Francis Trade: See "Turning Weatherspoons into Wine: The Truth about the Thomas Trades"

D. Not “Lottery Protecting” Draft Picks in Eddy Curry Trade: As it stands the Curry trade will probably turn out to be a win-win for both teams in its worst case scenario. However, had Thomas insisted on “lottery-protecting” the picks, this trade would have turned out to be a steal of mammoth proportions. Surely, Thomas expected the Knicks to make the playoffs in 2006 and 2007 which would have resulted in mid-late round picks. But even so, Thomas also knows that injuries are part of the game and can affect draft standing which is exactly what happened in 2007. However, two years later Bulls GM John Paxson still insisted that he would not have made the Curry trade unless the draft picks were not lottery protected. So, if this is indeed the case, should Isiah have made the trade anyway? Yes, considering how rare mobile 7-footers like Eddy Curry come along. Verdict: Only a mistake if Paxson was bluffing. If not, no mistake at all.

E. Jared Jeffries Free Agent Signing: Signed as a defensive specialist in 2006 with the mid-level exception, many media have already pronounced it another Thomas free agent bust. Not so fast. The Knicks gave up no player to obtain him, and most teams DO NOT EVEN USE THEIR FULL MIID-LEVEL EXCEPTION. Unlike other teams, a free agent for the Knicks is basically FREE. Overpaid? Yes… and the Knicks can afford it. Since the Knicks will probably be seeing Lebron James and Chris Bosh in the playoffs for the next 10 years (and now Garnett for the next 5), Jeffries defensive specialties may become more valuable than we all realize. In the playoffs, matchups are everything and he could be dusted off the bench the way the Suns did with Kurt Thomas on Tim Duncan. Stay tuned. Verdict: Minor mistake at worst, playoff difference-maker at best.

F. The Last Word on Jerome James: In sports, there are two rare breeds of players who routinely get away with highway robbery: In baseball, it’s left-handed pitchers with a heartbeat, and in basketball it is 7-footers who can walk and chew gum at the same time. The latter is most often a losing gamble that many franchises keep taking, because well …size matters. Even a 10% chance that the big man prospers, may be worth the signing considering the potential payoff. Even if not, one extra big body on a Shaq or a Dwight Howard in a key playoff series may very well end up being a difference maker. So at a time when no player was taller than 6-9” on the Knicks roster, Isiah gambled on Jerome James, and he seems to have lost that bet. But besides James Dolan’s money and some terrible PR, what exactly did the Knicks really lose? James was NOT acquired through a trade. Nothing given up, but a roster spot. Bad signing? Yes. Falling sky? Not so much. The previous summer, the respected and revered Jerry West signed current Memphis Grizzlies bench warmer Brian Cardinal (a non-center!) at about the same cost as James. Unless you are a hoops junkie, chances are that you never heard of the Cardinal signing. And you owe it to yourself to explore why that is. Verdict: Minor mistake.


Final Verse: The great irony of 99% of media criticism that Thomas receives is that he barely gets blasted for the one REAL mistake that he made: the hiring of Larry Brown! And he doesn’t get blasted because most media members would have done the same thing, and so many members are personal friends with Larry Brown (see Mike Lupica). Of course, Thomas deserves considerable credit for convincing Dolan to rectify this error after one year against intense media pressure.

Has there been any executive in ANY sport who has been nitpicked and criticized so much about “mistakes” that amount to so little?; who has ever taken over a worse roster?; who is one of the best drafter’s in NBA history?; and who has traded so many dead bodies for young players with potential? If there is another GM out there in ANY sport that is comparable, please let me know who that person is, and we can evaluate fact-for-fact instead of media-report for media report. In the final analysis, the making of Thomas as incompetent GM is one of the greatest media magic tricks of all-time. Had he been fired this magic trick would have become his permanent reality and legacy. Now, it is this author’s prediction that the Knicks are 2-3 years away from being title contenders and Isiah will be able to finish his own script.

Chapter 5
The Drafting Genius: Isiah the Prophet

Pop Quiz: Which Knick’s drafting era has yielded the higher sum total quality of draft picks?

A) 14 Years Prior to Isiah (1990-2003) OR

B) 3 Years into the Isiah Era (2004 - 2006)


Media Backlash?: Okay, in fairness, even some of his harshest media critics begrudgingly concede that Thomas is a “good drafter”. But it is time to “tell it like it is”. Thomas is not merely “good”, he is simply the best in the business. Hey Media – Do Your Homework!: The answer is B. He has been able to: pluck superstars from notoriously thin draft crops, find steals very late in the draft, and have the courage to select highly unpopular picks over media and fan favorites. He has yet to have even one single 1st round “bust pick” in his entire drafting career. Any thorough review of his drafting record will show that Thomas, with all due respect to Toronto GM Bryan Collangelo, has an unparalleled eye for young talent.

“End of an Error” — Thomas Takes Over: In his first three years (too early to include 2007 draft) Thomas drafted more talent than the Knicks had selected in the previous 14 years whose drafting incompetence netted only two starters and no star players from 1990 to 2004. Consider that since 1990 the Knicks 1st round draft picks were: Jerrod Mustaf, Greg Anthony, Hubert Davis, Charlie Ward, Monty Williams, John Wallace, Walter McCarty, Dontae Jones, John Thomas, Frederic Weis (one pick ahead of Ron Artest), Nene Hilario (traded on draft day; 2 picks ahead of Amare Stoudemire;), and Michael Sweetney. Now all Knicks fans should follow these directions: 1) Please read that list again… 2) Rinse and repeat; 3) Send Isiah a thank you note.

McGrady in a Haystack: Isiah’s selection of perennial all-star Tracy McGrady with the 9th overall pick in 1997 draft should go down as one of the greatest selections in NBA draft history. Sure, your grandmother could have selected Tim Duncan with the 1st pick, but what about after that? The #2-#8 picks were: Keith Van Horn, Chauncy Billups, Antonio Daniels, Tony Battie, Ron Mercer, Tim Thomas, and Adonal Foyle. Insert McGrady here. The next three picks were: Danny Fortson, Tariq Abdul-Wahad, and Austin Croshere. Besides Billups, these 10 surrounding picks spend most of their time at the end of an NBA bench or watching games from their couch at home.

Late-Pick Heists: With the 43rd pick in the second round of the 2004 draft, Thomas Trevor Ariza his first-ever Knick draft choice. Basketball isn’t football and draft picks after #40 aren’t even supposed to make NBA rosters. Unfortunately, his emerging talent is developing in an Orlando Magic uniform. The very next year Thomas nabbed rebounding extraordinaire David Lee with the final pick in the 1st round. Lee is already drawing comparisons to previous power forward Knick greats Charles Oakley and Dave DeBuscherre. If Mardy Collins, last year’s 29th pick, is able to add a jump shot in the next couple of years to his solid all-around game, he will add to Thomas’ resume of draft larceny. If not, the selection will still be a solid one.

The Guts Picks: Considering the intense media and fan pressure to pick more popular individuals (see Marcus Williams and Ed O’Bannon), the selections of Renaldo Balkman in 2006 and Damon Stoudamire in 1995 may very well be Thomas’ most impressive draft feats. Had Thomas been wrong in either case, he would have been the subject of endless draft ridicule that would have defined his legacy. Thus far, Balkman has outplayed the 10 selections before him, and Stoudamire became Rookie of the Year as the first ever pick for the expansion Toronto Raptors. With the previous pick in that same draft the expansion Grizzlies also made their first ever draft selection: …Bryant “Big Country” Reeves. Oh yes, and O’Bannon was out of the NBA after three seasons. Considering the media ridicule, if there ever was a NBA drafting upset equivalent to Ali-Foreman a generation after Ali-Liston over all of the so-called "experts", Balkman and Stoudamire were it.

Quality in Any Draft: With the 2nd pick in 1996 Thomas chose Marcus Camby who has become a rare defensive, rebounding, and shot-blocking (leading league 3 times) force along the lines of Dikembe Mutombo. Only yearly injuries have robbed Camby of perennial all-star caliber status. Channing Frye and Nate Robinson, selected #8 and #21 in 2005, have been solid contributors that are in line with their draft slots. However, Frye has since been traded as his full range of skills (read: post-up) cannot be maximized in an offense centered around Eddy Curry who was acquired shortly after Frye’s selection.

Not One “Bust Pick”: Thomas has done the near drafting impossible in being “flop-free” across all his 1st round picks. This fact where Thomas distinguishes himself from nearly every other GM who also possesses a stellar drafting record. Peers such as Bryan Collangelo (see Zarko Cabarkapa), Jerry West (see Troy Bell & Dahntay Jones), and Geoff Petrie (see Tariq Abdul-Wahad), all had at least one “bust pick” while high quality players were selected shortly after those selections.

Final Verse: Thomas is not a just a “good drafter”, but might even contend for the best in NBA history this side of Red Auerbach. He is a drafting GENIUS, and the media should start using this word to describe his drafting acumen and break the silent media code of only applying the "genius" tag to white managers and executives (see Tony Larussa, Bill Belichick, Jerry West, Charlie Weis, etc.), often an undeserving tag at that.

CHAPTER 6

The Trades: Turning Weatherspoon into Wine

Pop Quiz: Which currently RETIRED player should Isiah NOT have traded for young talent?


A) Antonio Davis
B) Keith Van Vorn
C) Frank Williams
D) None of Above


Media Backlash: The Eddy Curry trade has been called “the worst trade in the history of sports”; the Steve Francis backlash makes folks believe that Trevor Ariza is Kobe Bryant; and the media endlessly reports on Jalen Rose’s salary instead of the trade’s draft pick that turned into Renaldo Balkman.

Hey Media – Do Your Homework!: The answer is D. While, Isiah is not mistake-free (show me one GM who isn’t), his trading record is overwhelmingly positive when freed from the biased lens of those who write about him. He has taken a pile of aging Clarence Weatherspoons, and turned them into a young talented nucleus capable of title contention within a couple of years. Finally, when judging Knicks trades, the value of new players will only judged against the value of the players given up. Salary will not be evaluated as a factor since we have already addressed the myth of "getting under the salary cap" as a preferred rebuilding strategy.


A. The Mistake: Steve Francis for Trevor Ariza (and Penny Hardaway)
Analysis: Let’s get this out of the way. While overhauling an entire roster in three years Thomas made at least one bad trade of any significance. Forget salary. This is simply a bad trade because Trevor Ariza was more valuable to the Knicks than Francis, who were already loaded at the shooting guard position. Ariza is emerging as a defensive specialist with a solid all-around game. Francis, and his declining knee, is just not the same athlete from a couple of years ago. In summary, Thomas made one bad trade. Any media critic who obsesses too long over this mistake should consider that another GM probably would not have stolen Trevor Ariza in the draft’s 2nd round in the first place, and be soothed that he was able to parlay Francis and Channing Frye into Zach Randolph. Final translation: 8th pick (Frye) and 43rd pick (Ariza) for Zach Randolph.



B. Weatherspoons into Wine (with great help from James Dolan’s Checkbook)


1) Keith Van Horn becomes David Lee and Mardy Collins (via draft picks obtained in interim Nazi Mohammed trade)
2) Dikembe Mutombo, O. Harrington, & F. Williams become Jamaal Crawford
3) Kurt Thomas becomes Quentin Richardson & Nate Robinson (via draft pick)
4) Antonio Davis becomes Renaldo Balkman (via draft pick acquired with Jalen Rose)




Analysis: Each trade that you see listed above received criticism from the short-sighted media during its time. These trades boil down to the Knicks trading Kurt Thomas (now 34), and a bunch of AARP members for a cadre of young promising players ages 22 -27 that form the nucleus of a Knicks youth movement for the next 10 years. While the media was loudly portraying Thomas as a dunce for absorbing expensive contracts (see Malik and Jalen Rose), Thomas was quietly collecting first round draft picks as part of these deals. And when it comes to drafting quality, Thomas is the best in the business. The media was too busy perpetuating the myth of the salary cap to notice that the Thomas strategy was turning old into young, retirees into rookies, and hopelessness into hope.

Media Hypocrisy: Let’s set the record sraight. Isiah’s media critics will now often give high praise to Thomas’ DRAFTING of David Lee, Renaldo Balkman, and Mardy Collins. But to this very day Thomas will rarely receives any credit for TRADING for those draft picks that landed these players. In fact, Thomas is STILL often RIPPED for making both the Malik Rose and Jalen Rose trades that landed those picks. The media simply cannot have it both ways. This bears repeating for those slow on the uptake: Thomas traded Nazi Mohammed and Antonio Davis for David Lee, Renaldo Balkman, and Mardy Collins! Because it is hard to conceive that so many media members are THAT dumb, like the salary cap issue, one can only conclude that there is personal anti-Isiah bias at work in their reporting.



C. The Signature Trades

1) Stephon Marbury (and Penny Hardaway) for Antonio Mcdyess, Howard Eisley, Charlie Ward, Maceij Lampe, Kirk Snyder (via draft pick) & #1 pick in 2010.


Updated Translation: Marbury was obtained for McDyess and a 1st round pick in 2010.


Marbury Trade Analysis: Depending on his performance the next two years, the Marbury trade looks like either a very good one or an average one. Marbury has emerged as floor leader that his critics previously doubted he could. Unfortunately, this trade could probably never be fully evaluated because Thomas gave up two #1 picks. Two #1 picks in Isiah’s hand have much more value than when being held by another GM. Still a good trade?: Most likely. Great trade?: Only, if Marbury leads the Knicks into title contention in the next few years. No complete assessment can be made prior to the 2010 draft pick.





2) Eddy Curry, Antonio Davis, and Wilson Chandler (via swapped 2007 draft pick) for Tim Thomas, Mike Sweetney, Ty Thomas (via draft pick), Joakim Noah (via swapped 2007 draft pick) and #right to swap #1 picks in 2008.


Updated Translation: Eddy Curry, Renaldo Balkman (acquired via Antonio Davis), and Wilson Chandler, for Tyrus Thomas and Joakim Noah.


Curry Trade Analysis: At best this will be a great trade for the Knicks or more likely a win-win for both the Knicks and the Bulls since Ty Thomas and Joakim Noah have great potential. Ultimately, this trade will be decided on whether Isiah is right about Curry’s recently emerging development as “the tip of the iceberg”. At this point, there is little reason to doubt Thomas here. Finally, any fair discussion of the Curry trade must also include the Knicks addition of Balkman who would not have been acquired without the pick-up of Antonio Davis’ expiring contract. After the media has ignored this fact for over a year, credit is given to the New York Post’s Marc Berman for finally bringing this up after being urged by his bloggers.




3) Zach Randolph for Steve Francis and Channing Frye


Updated Translation: Zach Randolph for Channing Frye


Randolph Trade Analysis: Channing Frye, whose post-up game would never develop in an Eddy Curry centered offense should work better in Portland. Randolph’s brings rebounds and a midrange game that might complement Curry well and will always leave the Knicks with a post-up force on the floor. Critics who are concerned about interior defense, as am I, need to remind themselves that Channing Frye wasn’t reminding anyone of Patrick Ewing on D. In the worst case scenario where the post isn’t big enough for Curry and Randolph, one can always obtain value in a trade. In the final analysis, this trade is a straight-up steal.





4) Roster Depth and Versatility



The Knicks have incredible roster depth and versatility, in fact, maybe too much depth. This “problem”, which includes many young players, may open up possibilities for at least one more significant trade. Their versatility of different players may also make them a difficult playoff opponent where match-ups can be manipulated and adjusted across a 7 game series. Stay tuned.


Final Verse: Media critics will argue that the Knicks haven’t made the playoffs yet, but ignore the bigger picture and the stable of young talent he has amassed. They will argue that millions have been spent and we have argued that it is not their money to worry about. Nitpicking critics will also argue about deficiencies on court “chemistry”, but those critics never had Othella Harrington as trade bait. While one can point to many quality young players that Thomas exchanged for warm bodies on the shuffle-board circuit, there is not ONE-SINGLE EXCHANGE that in its final translation that can be definitively described as a bad trade. (His one clear mistake was also rectified as Steve Francis’ contract helped net Zach Randolph). The fact of the matter is that Thomas and Dolan’s dollars have done the impossible to the Knick’s bench: Turn Spike Lee into David Lee. While impatient and biased journalists were looking at the house "as-is", Thomas, like any smart business person was looking at "what the house could become". As stated elsewhere the Knicks will likely become title contenders in 2 - 3 years.

THE END

How do you like them apples?

Do you think you'll ever see an ariticle like that in any of the NY papers?
Probably not...but it's out there.

I predict with the win total we'll have this year...he has to be heavily considered for GM and coach of the year.

Till later today.....DaVonn Jefferson