The Knicks have been playing this season with two different – some might say conflicting – priorities. On the one hand, they wanted to make a run at a playoff berth, to show the world that Mike D’Antoni and Donnie Walsh have righted the listing ship and avoid watching Utah – owner’s of the Knicks’ first-round pick thanks to one of Isiah Thomas’ deals – make an appearance at the lottery. The other hand is Walsh’s attempt to maximize cap space for next summer.
The “make the playoffs” part of the plan is an explanation for D’Antoni’s heavy use of veteran players like Al Harrington, Jared Jeffries, Chris Duhon, and – at times – even Larry Hughes, Jonathan Bender and Nate Robinson. But of that group, Jeffries is the only player signed for next season. Meanwhile, lottery pick Jordan Hill and fellow rookie Toney Douglas have been afterthoughts, and even supposed franchise building blocks like Wilson Chandler and Danilo Gallinari have been marginalized at times.
That could be changing. Soon.
They’d need to leap-frog the Sixers, Bucks and Heat just to get into the eighth spot. They’re 2-8 in their last 10 games – a stretch that includes losses to Minnesota and Washington. And their post-break schedule just gets tougher. Barring a major roster shakeup at the trade deadline – which seems unlikely given Walsh’s reluctance to take on any salary – the sort of hot streak they’d need to get back into the playoff picture seems incredibly unlikely.
And that might mean a second-half focus on players who actually will be part of the team’s future, like Gallinari and Chandler, Hill and Douglas, maybe even Marcus Landry.
via NBA.com – The Waiver Wire.
