The Knicks took a lot of critisizm for drafting Mike Sweetney over the summer, those critics didn't know what they were talking about. Sweetney, who averaged over 20 and 10 last season for the Hoyas, posseses solid footwork, great hands and a fairly potent low-post offensive game. The Knicks would be wise to do a better job working him into the lineup. Now that Zeke has arrived, I have a feeling that might happen. Given a chance, I see no reason Mike can't develop into a solid, if not all-star calibar NBA player. The comparisons to Elton Brand are not without merit, many of the attributes in Sweetney which I described are also possesed by Brand. Is it just a matter of having Dice, Thomas and Harrington ahead of him? Or is the team down on his all-around play? Knicks fan: to those of you keeping a closer eye on the team than myself - Yes or No - has he done anything to warrant more playing time in Chaney's rotation?
Isiah hasn't exactly been a great coach, but his GM instincts are usually pretty good. I'm glad to hear that he's going to give Mike his opportunity, hopefully he'll make the most of it.
Sweetney <div class="quote_poster">Quoting GONYK:</div><div class="quote_post">Well, apparently Isiah agrees with you, becuase he's giving Mike a legitamite shot.</div> Do you know something we don't? Comparing him to Elton Brand is a bit unfair. They may be roughly the same size, but Elton Brand is extremely quick, particularly when executing his low post moves. I don't know that Sweetney has his quickness, and that is what allows Brand to perform as an undersized 4. The Knicks do need to find out what he can do, but if he isn't performing in practice and you have a bunch of experienced big men AND management expect you to make the playoffs this year, it is hard to find him quality minutes.
I don't think he will be exactly like Elton, I just threw out that comparison because it's one you tend to hear when comparing Mike's body type and style of play. It's unfair to compare their games at this point of course. As you said, Elton is much quicker than Sweetney. He has better moves in the post and he's become a dominant shotblocker. I wouldn't expect Mike to live up to those standards, but I do like his game and believe that he can be a very good player at this level. He may not reach that level of success which Elton has, but after watching his game improve drastically at GTown the past couple of seasons, I don't think something like a 14 and 8 average are out of the question in a couple of years.
