Well, so far we have played just one more game than half of the 82 NBA season. During these 42 games, we have seen stretches of happiness and stretches of sadness. The season started out somewhat promising however, due to many factors such as injuries, coaching, and ourselves, it wasn?t until yesterday we ended a 7 game losing streak and a stretch in which we lost 11 of our last 10 games. Despite losing this many games, the Knicks are only 1.5 games behind the Boston Celtics in the Atlantic Division. Because of Ice, I have given every Knick midseason grades. I also would like to hear everyone else?s opinions of the grades and maybe your own. *Keep in mind that BOLD indicates leads the team Let?s begin with Our Starters: Stephon Marbury?Captain Position: Point Guard Height: 6?2 Weight: 200 lbs. College: Georgia Tech [imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/act_stephon_marbury.jpg[/imgl]MPG: 40.0 PPG: 20.5 RPG: 3.1 APG: 8.5 FG%: 45.7 FGapg: 15.3 FGmpg: 7 3P%: 31.4 3apg: 3.7 3mpg: 1.2 FT%: 84.8 SPG: 1.45 PF: 2.3 TO: 3.23 Stephon Marbury is a great point guard and one of the top ones in the league. He is considered the best player on the Knicks, and was given the honor of becoming a part of the Knicks tri-captains. Stephon Marbury is our leading scorer and is also our leading assist man. Because of Marbury?s presence, he is able to set up players on the Knicks when the defense attempts to collapse on him. Nazr Mohammed and Kurt Thomas are many times the beneficiaries of Marbury?s offensive abilities. He is also able to get to the charity stripe almost at will because of his penetration abilities. Even though he has all of those great qualities, he has his share of bad ones as well. Despite his excellent speed and unusual strength for the point guard position, Marbury is a great liability on defense. The amount of points he scores are often given right back up because of his lack of defensive intensity in fact, a hall of fame point guard namely Isiah Thomas said, Marbury is the worst defensive guard in the league. That is how poor his defense is. Marbury is 100% capable of becoming a good defender or at least decent, it?s more about his lack of effort that causes him from becoming a good defender. If Marbury fixed this part to his game, he might be considered the best point guard in the league. Marbury also has a problem sometimes with balancing scoring with passing. When the Knicks need a scorer because no one is producing, Marbury occasionally becomes more of a passer instead of the scorer we need him to be. At other times it is just the opposite. If Marbury could manage this part of his game, then we will obviously become a better team. I also feel that Marbury?s captain role was premature because he is not much of a leader for the Knicks. If Marbury could be a consistent leader for the Knicks, then again, I think it will do wonders for the Knicks. Overall Grade: B+ Jamal Crawford Position: Shooting Guard Height: 6?5 Weight: 190 lbs. College: Michigan [imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/act_jamal_crawford.jpg[/imgl]MPG: 37.1 PPG: 19.3 RPG: 2.9 APG: 3.8 FG%: 39.4 FGapg: 17.4 FGmpg: 6.8 3P%: 34.8 3apg: 7.1 3mpg: 2.5 FT%: 86.1 SPG: 1.44 PF: 2.3 TO: 2.41 Jamal Crawford has been playing well for us and it is because of his scoring and his great passing ability. Since Houston has been struggling and has been out for a majority of the season, Crawford has given us Houston?s scoring that we need. When he had that turf toe injury, we saw how valuable he was to us. The last two games, Jamal Crawford has been Averaging 31 points for us and has been the catalyst for us which set the tone for the game. Had Jamal Crawford decided not to step up, we probably would have been done for the last two games with embarrassing blowouts. Jamal Crawford recently has been the leader for this team. He also puts fans in their seats with those amazing crossover moves, and those playground layups that look so easy to do. He is a true crowd entertainer. He is also a high class individual. We do like to see great players on the court but, let?s not forget he is a very respectful person. I even remember a time when he was diving to save the ball and inadvertently hit a girl on the side. He said sorry almost unconsciously. He also apologized after his one technical foul of the season. He is a good person on and off the court. Jamal Crawford?s game isn?t flawless either. Although Jamal Crawford does give us scoring he is also identified as what one would call a ?chucker.? Crawford?s shot selection has definitely improved since he came from Chicago but, it is not at all at the quality we would like to see. Many times he has an open lane however, he chooses to shoot it rather than get an easy layup and possibly a trip to the line. He shoots 86% from the freethrow line and rarely takes advantage of it. This is a part of the reason why he shoots under 40%. His shot selection is poor and his field foal percentage is suffering because of it. He is also not that great of a rebounder due to his lack of weight. Jamal Crawford is a bit underweight at 190 for that shooting guard position. His defense also needs work just like Marbury?s. Aside from getting posted up, Crawford is a defensive liability because his defense is inconsistent. Sometimes he plays great defense like yesterday, and other times he plays lazy defense and doesn?t always put in the effort that he is capable of. Overall Grade: B Tim Thomas Position: Small Forward Height: 6?10 Weight: 240 lbs. College: Villanova [imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/act_tim_thomas.jpg[/imgl]MPG: 36.4 PPG: 10.1 RPG: 3.4 APG: 1.1 FG%: 39.4 FGapg: 9.6 FGmpg: 3.8 3P%: 34.5 3apg: 2.3 3mpg:0.8 FT%: 78.8 SPG: 0.61 PF: 2.5 TO: 1.56 Tim Thomas has given us some good numbers at times and also hit a couple of big shots which proved to be game clinchers. He did dunk on Tony Battie this season too. That?s all of the positives that I can think of. Tim Thomas has been playing absolute deplorable basketball. He is shooting less than 40%, is not contributing, is a horrible rebounder, a horrible defender, breaks up picks all the time, and is playing horribly so far. Surprisingly enough, this is his worst season. He said many relatives of his died and I do feel sorry for him, but when you are playing this badly, maybe you need to sit out. I think Tim Thomas will play well off the bench like what he did with Milwaukee. Maybe that will get the best out of him. Anyway, he has not been playing well at all for us. Overall Grade: D+ Kurt Thomas-Captain Position: Power Forward Height: 6?9 Weight: 235 lbs. College: TCU [imgl] http://www.nba.com/media/act_kurt_thomas.jpg[/imgl]MPG: 36.5 PPG: 11.8 RPG: 9.7 APG: 2.0 FG%: 47.6 FGapg: 11.4 FGmpg: 6.6 BPG: 1.0 FT%: 81.6 SPG: 1.10 PF: 3.7 TO: 1.17 I think Kurt Thomas has been our best Knick so far. He is by far the most consistent Knick who has played. Anytime Kurt is in the game, you know what you are going to get. Kurt Thomas plays great post defense, he has a nice midrange jumpshot, and a great rebounder. I was so surprised when his rebounding prowess was being questioned! Only a real stupid clown would even question his abilities. A true moron. Without Kurt Thomas? toughness and experience, I am sure our record would have been far worse than it is now. He makes you pay for doubling Stephon. Kurt and Steph?s little pick and roll game has been a focal point in our offense. His jumper spreads the floor and it makes players like Nazr Mohammed, Crawford, and Marbury better giving them more space. His picks that he sets and all that other stuff can not be forgotten as well! Kurt Thomas? does have a nice jumpshot to his offensive game but, he still can not really create his own shot. He relies a lot on Marbury, or Crawford setting him up. Sometimes he posts up and has a little fade away jumper that goes in but, it is not really that reliable. We have seen this improve but not to our standards. Kurt Thomas is a bit foul prone. With his amazing contributions on the court the Knicks can ill afford him to have to sit on the bench because of his foul trouble. He has improved his attitude and now because of it the Knicks are doing well. He acted like a captain especially yesterday when he could have gotten a technical foul for atguing with the official but he decided to maintain his cool and because of it, the Knicks were able to score at the other end. He has been great for us this season. Overall Grade: A- Nazr Mohammed Position: Center Height: 6?10 Weight: 250 lbs. College: Kentucky [imgl] http://www.nba.com/media/act_nazr_mohammed.jpg[/imgl]MPG: 29.9 PPG: 12.0 RPG: 8.9 APG: 0.5 FG%: 51.7 FGapg: 9.1 FGmpg: 4.7 BPG: 1.05 FT%: 73.2 SPG: 1.19 PF: 3.4 TO: 1.11 If I told you guys last season that Nazr Mohammed would be given All-Star consideration I think I would have heard a variety of responses such as, are you crazy, what are you smoking, and ha ha ha ha. Well who?s laughing now? The only person who kept the faith was our very own Bobby Escobar. Nazr Mohammed has been an incredible surprise for us and is in contention for most improved player. Do you guys remember where Nazr came from. Picking up two fouls in 1 second, or called for steps so frequently, or missing simple baskets. I think the word scrub comes to mind. Well now he is averaging around 12 points and 9 rebounds and a solid block per game. Nazr Mohammed has been playing very well for us has been rebounding, cleaning up the boards, and has been really producing. I am very happy to see his improvements. Although he has turned the corner, he is still inconsistent. There will be a couple of games where he might have 20 points and 15 rebounds and other games where he wil1 have 6 points and 3 rebounds along with 5 fouls. Mohammed still does make some silly mistakes. Like some of those traveling violations and those really silly very avoidable fouls. Before Mohammed can reach the next level and be considered better than he is, he will have to fix this problem. With the Knicks going on a tough road trip, we can ill afford Mohammed to have one of his off nights. We need Mohammed 24/7. Mohammed overall has been playing exceptionally well. He wins the Knicks most improved player by a landslide. Overall Grade: B- Starting Lineup You guys have seen what I feel about our starters. Overall I think we have a decent starting lineup. It is far from flawless however, it is very capable. Their offense is very good and is full of capable scorers. Their defense however, (especially the perimeter defense) is not good at all. A majority of our perimeter defense gives up a lot of points. I wouldn?t even say the frontcourt is bad at defense. We guard the power forward position the best, and Nazr Mohammed is a solid defender. Marbury, Crawford and Tim Thomas do not defend very well at all. The Knicks need to fix this before their lineup becomes very successful. Overall Grade: B- Alright, now it?s time to go into our bench. I will very briefly describe our bench and give them their grades just like what I did above. Let?s start with a man that should have been our 6th man or maybe even starting however, due to injuries he has only made a brief appearance for us. You guys are familiar with: Allan Houston-Captain Position: Shooting Guard Height: 6?6 Weight: 205 lbs. College: Tennessee [imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/act_allan_houston.jpg[/imgl]MPG: 26.6 PPG: 11.9 RPG: 1.2 APG: 2.1 FG%: 41.5 FGapg: 10.25 FGmpg: 6.8 3P%: 38.8 3apg: 4.0 3mpg: 1.55 FT%: 86.3 SPG: 0.40 PF: 2.5 TO: 2.1 Allan Houston was arguably the best shooter in the game a couple of years ago. At least I thought so. The thing that distinguished Houston from other great shooters such as Ray Allen or Peja Stojackovic is because he didn?t have the same tools. Ray Allen had pretty good handle and was very athletic while Peja was tall and can easily shoot over his opponents. Another thing about them is that they all had pretty good point guards who could set them up for easy shots. Houston didn?t always have that. Allan Houston didn?t have that great handle or that height or those point guards. Houston created his own shots while he was stationary. For many years, the Knicks lacked a great point guard. Sure they had Mark Jackson a couple of times but, mostly they had pretty mediocre point guards so obviously, Houston?s shots were not affected by that. If Houston could become the great shooter that he once was, the Knicks can easily make it to the conference finals. Many reports are coming in saying Allan Houston will never become his old self. Houston has shown us flahses of what us Knicks fans have appreciated for years, but it is not on a consistent basis. His lateral movement has greatly been effected since his return as well so he is another defensive liability on an already weak perimeter on defense. I for one am getting a bit concerned about Houston hopefully he can become the H2O of old. Anyway as much as it hurts me, for the season I am going to have to give him a not too nice grade. Overall Grade: C Michael Sweetney Position: Power Forward Height: 6?8 Weight: 275 lbs. College: Georgetown [imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/act_mike_sweetney.jpg[/imgl]MPG: 16.9 PPG: 7.8 RPG: 4.7 APG: 0.5 FG%: 51.9 FGapg: 4.9 FGmpg: 2.6 BPG: 0.59 FT%: 75.7 SPG: 0.38 PF: 2.3 TO: 1.32 Ah yes, Michael Sweetney the victim of everyone?s bashing. People just do not know how good this guy is unless you see him. I can not believe many people have no respect for this guy. Oh well, surprisingly enough these people were people who don?t even watch Knicks games. But what else is new? Michael Sweetney is a threat on the low post and must be doubled. Anytime he is down low, you can almost always predict a foul. Once he gets his foot in the paint it?s a wrap. Michael Sweetney also has great hands and has a great rebounding touch especially in traffic. He is 6?8 but uses his bulk very effectively. He is a man with tremendous work ethic and will only get better. The only concern that I have with Sweetney is that he is very foul prone. A lot of his fouls come from picks and some silly fouls. If Sweetney is to continue being effective, he can?t make silly plays like that. He needs to keep calm and not always be too overzealous. He is a great pick for the future and will become very good for this Knick organization. Hopefully he gets locked up along with Ariza and the Knicks will dominate in the near future. Overall Grade: B- Trevor Ariza Position: Small Forward Height: 6?8 Weight:200 lbs. College: UCLA [imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/knicks/ariza_140_041026.jpg[/imgl]MPG: 16.6 PPG: 5.4 RPG: 2.8 APG: 1.3 FG%: 40.7 FGapg: 5.1 FGmpg: 2.1 3P%: 0.0 3apg: 0.02 3mpg: 0.0 FT%:70.8 SPG: 0.88 PF: 1.8 TO: 0.93 Trevor Ariza is simply amazing. The guy is 19 years old, a freshman from UCLA, and is getting decent minutes in New York with perfectionists with high expectations. To tell you the truth, I thought Trevor Ariza would be on the injuried list but he is actually getting minutes. Trevor Ariza is an excellent defender and makes you pay for leaving him open. The Suns thought that he was just a little rookie and Ariza had to show them he was no joke. He showed them by getting 20 points, and 11 rebounds (8 offensive). He is also an underrated passer. He has great court vision especially for someone his age and his position. Ariza still doesn?t have a good jumper however, from where he started in UCLA, it is a major improvement. Our very own Knicks Analyst has tapes of his jumper in UCLA and can see the vast improvement from college to the pros. I think Ariza will develop into a solid all around player once he gets some weight and a little jumper, we will have no problems. Ariza came into the league like most rookies, without a jumpshot and without the weight. At times he is overzealous but that is to be expected. He will turn into a great player in this league. Overall Grade: B- Penny Hardaway Position: Shooting Guard Height: 6?7 Weight: 215 lbs. College: Memphis [imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/act_anfernee_hardaway.jpg[/imgl]MPG: 22.4 PPG: 6.2 RPG: 2.6 APG: 1.8 FG%: 38.1 FGapg: 6.6 FGmpg: 2.5 3P%: 38.8 3apg: 1.5 3mpg: 0.4 FT%: 68.4 SPG: 0.53 PF: 1.90 TO: 1.24 Penny Started off great for us and showed us what he is capable of doing in the season. He is an experienced veteran player and his versatility really helps the Knicks. He can score he can pass and he has the experience to be a good leader. Penny Hardaway has played very little this season for me to come up with a real accurate grade for him. I will judge on the little I have seen. Overall Grade: C+ Jerome Williams Position: Power Forward Height: 6?9 Weight: 206 lbs. College: Georgetown [imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/act_jerome_williams.jpg[/imgl]MPG: 17.3 PPG: 5.1 RPG: 3.9 APG: 0.7 FG%: 52.1 FGapg: 3.4 FGmpg: 1.8 BPG: 0.17 FT%: 68.8 SPG: 0.79 PF: 2.4 TO: 0.98 From looking at the stats, Jerome Williams looks like a scrub however, Jerome Williams is one of the best players that we have. He always hustles, he is a great defender and if there were actual statistics for the many intangibles that he does, he would be on one of the All NBA teams. He also has a great attitude. He never looks to fight, retaliate or things of that nature. His hustling heroics is why the Knicks have not bombed out of the Atlantic division. He is versatile and can defend many positions for us. His offensive game isn?t really polished though. He has a decent little 15 footer however, he really isn?t an offensive threat at all. His overall game is pricless and there are few players that even exist that are like The Junk Yard Dog. Definitely a joy to have on the team. Overall Grade: B- Moochie Norris Position: Point Guard Height: 6?1 Weight: 185 lbs. College: West Florida [imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/act_moochie_norris.jpg[/imgl]MPG: 12.8 PPG: 2.7 RPG: 1.3 APG: 1.2 FG%: 34.1 FGapg: 3.0 FGmpg: 1.0 3P%: 0.0 3apg: 0.39 3mpg: 0.0 FT%: 76.1 SPG: 0.58 PF: 0 .88 TO: 1.40 Moochie Norris has been a good leader for the Knicks. He has been very vocal and has played good defense for them. He also has a decent jumpshot that was never exploited to it?s fullest. Again, yet another player that doesn?t get any time. He would have definitely been better Overall Grade: C Vin Baker Position: Power Forward Height: 6?11 Weight: 240 lbs. College: Hartford [imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/act_vin_baker.jpg[/imgl]MPG: 7.5 PPG: 1.4 RPG: 1.6 APG: 0.2 FG%: 33.0 FGapg: 1.7 FGmpg: 0.33 BPG: 0.22 FT%: 45.5 SPG: 0.11 PF: 1.1 TO: 0.50 Vin Baker has gotten pretty much no burn when Lenny Wilkens was around. I thought that was a huge mistake. Last year, Vin Baker was a valuable contributor for us. The very few minutes that he got with us he has been pretty decent. But again, his minutes are just ridiculous. He deserves much more. The grade that I?m giving him should probably be higher but, it is due to his lack of minutes. Overall Grade: D+ Position: Center Height: 7?2 Weight: 260 lbs. College: Croatia [imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/act_bruno_sundov.jpg[/imgl]MPG: 3.8 PPG: 1.9 RPG: 0.9 APG: 0.1 FG%: 31.8 FGapg: 2.4 FGmpg: 0.33 BPG: 0.22 FT%: 1.00 SPG: 0.22 PF: 0.80 TO: 0.44 I have not seen too much of Bruno so I?m going to have to give him another bad grade. I heard other than Houston, he has the purest jumper. His defense could use some work though. He should get more time though. Wow, I don?t even know if he is even gradable because he can?t get a good score. Too bad. Overall Grade: D The Knicks have been struggling so far this season and have not met expectations so far this season. This is mostly due to injuries and the coaching of Lenny Wilkens however, it is partly on the players. They have not been playing up to par and their record has struggled because of it. The Knicks just recently ended a stint in which they lost 10 of their last 11. Last night vs Cleveland they ended it. They look back on track now though. Hopefully we will see some good results soon. We have everything to fight for this season. The Knicks Overall Grade: C+
I took his consistency in account though. I also was trying not to be biased. Perhaps I was a bit harsh on my grades. I hope not too much.
Wow, the "best point guard in the league" only got a B-? Wow. Sorry, couldn't help that one! Great list though, a lot of work obviously went into it. Good eye when it comes to Vin Baker and Penny Hardaway. Many people seem to have forgotten about the talent that those two have.
Yes nice post indeed.I'd like to see more teams do some midseason grades like this.My overall grade for the Knicks is brutaly honest,F-."But GiantMidget,how can you give them that grade when the grading scale stops at F?".Well,heres how.With the highest team salary in the league,not being in first place in the ATLANTIC division is absolutely horrible.Not to mention not being over .500(.419).Yeesh...
<font color="Blue">I was going to write more for everybody, but I decided to keep it short. I listed the players in no particular order.</font> Stephon Marbury What can we say about the self-acclaimed best point guard in the league? What isnt there to say? The man is simply not living up to the standard he set for himself and for his team. Statistically, hes up there, but if youre going to come right out and say that youre the best point guard in the entire league then you dont back it up with strong statistics, you go out there and get your team to win games. Now, we all know that the best player in the league is the one deemed most valuable, or so we hope. Hell, the best player in the history of the game (according to most) is Michael Jordan. And besides racking up incredible, unprecedented statistics, the man won a large quantity of championships. He put rings out of reach for great players such as: Karl Malone, Patrick Ewing, Mark Jackson, Gary Payton, Charles Oakley, Charles Barkley, John Stockton and other notables. While Marbury folds under the pressure of the first round of the playoffs and cant lead a team to 50 wins. Even with his 20 points, 8 assists statistics, there are some very serious flaws in his game. He has never been superb at finishing lay-ups and hes been selfish throughout his career. He often exerts his energy in the first half, leaving him with nothing when the 4th quarter rolls around. His defense is mediocre at best, even Isiah Thomas, his number one fan, agrees. Marbury then promised to step up his game. Now Im not going to say that his defense hasnt improved, its gotten a little bit better, but when you say youre going to improve then you have to do better than a little. With improving your game you should be looking to improve your teams chances of winning, but not in Marburys case. Marbury hasnt led the Knicks to anything but losses, and while he expresses his disappointment off the court and following games he simply doesnt do so in the games. And before you go off saying Oh come on, he has nothing to work with. Well, that may be true to some extent, but there certainly are some good complementary players to work with. For example, he has Kurt Thomas, a player who should be extremely productive with Marbury at the point. Now while its not entirely Marburys fault that Kurt Thomas isnt doing his best with Marbury, he needs to take some of the blame. Even when Marbury has to produce half-court plays for Kurt, they usually are the same picks and such. The Marbury-Crawford duo has been anything but electric as the two of them have been gruesomely inconsistent and they never seem to be on the same page. Again, Marbury cant take all the blame for that, but he has to take some. Marburys play has helped Nazr Mohhamed, though. Mohhamed is in the middle of his best season yet, but again he is dreadfully inconsistent. Now we cant put Mohammeds inconsistency on Marburys shoulders, but we must realize that sometimes Mohammeds poor play is a direct result of poor decision-making from Marbury. Marbury has got to step it up if he wants to live up to the title Best Point Guard in the NBA, and he hasnt done so just yet. But wait, when has Marbury proven the media wrong? Hasnt the media been nagging Marbury about how his team never wins with him, and how when he leaves the team often improves? Has Marbury put in the work to prove the media wrong? Maybe, but his work isnt good enough and were all getting a little tired of waiting for him to prove the media wrong. Before you say how the New York media is looking for a player to trash, and before you say how Knicks fans arent exactly tolerant, let me ask you a question. Do you think it would be so different if Marbury were playing in Milwaukee, or Atlanta, or anywhere for that matter? No, hes gotten it everywhere he went; its just bigger in New York. <font color="Red">Grade: B+</font> Jamal Crawford - The undisciplined scorer of the Knicks. The future of high-scoring 2 guards. What has he done for us lately? Nada. His inconsistent play and lack of courtvision and awareness has been a bright light in every Knicks fans eye, blinding them from the potential of Jamal Crawford. What good is potential unless you utilize it? Has Crawford utilized it? Yes, to some extent. But we want more out of him. His defense has been 'bleh' and while his dribbles and fancy ball control may excite Knicks fans everywhere, the negatives are outweighing the positives....for now. <font color="Red">Grade: B</font> Allan Houston - He's done. He can't run anymore, his shot has lost its beauty, his defense is eerily worse then ever and he gives every Knicks fan a headache. His injury put him away, he is no longer of value to the Knicks. There is no Grant Hill story here, we can see he'll never be the same. He was one-dementional from the start, he has no moves to the basket, no passing skills, no defense and he can't perform at all on the fast break. He is nothing to the Knicks. <font color="Red">Grade: D</font> Moochie Norris - Moochie's defense has been ok, which is incredible compared to pretty much everyone else. He can't score, can't pass, makes stupid fouls and complains. He's a great cheerleader, though. He takes the ball upcourt, then pisses away 18 seconds off the shot clock, then passes the ball off to someone completely out of position, leaving them with no shot of scoring. Worthless bum. We want Weatherspoon back! <font color="Red">Grade: C-</font> Tim Thomas - Tiny Tim, whiny Tim. Both nicknames personify everything Tim Thomas is about. Fake injuries, constant complaining, stupid fouls, poor shot selection, poor defense, no intensity, no care for the team, poor scoring and no rebounding even though he's usually 4 inches taller then his opponent. I could trash Tim Thomas for years, and hours to no end. He is the least valuable player in the league, I'd rather have Glen Rice. <font color="red">Grade: F-</font> Vin Baker - Vin Baker and his alcohol legs, you can see him stumbling from miles away. He has no ball control, he's lost any post moves he had, he can't score, pass, defend, teach, foul at the right time. He can't do anything right. Hell, he can't even cheer his team on from the sidelines well. When you look at Vin Baker you can't help but get depressed, his potential was out of this world, then he crawled into a bottle and now he's out, but he has grown old and stale. <font color="Red">Grade: D-</font> Bruno Sundov - Who? Huh? BOOOOOO! Just kidding. He played for Maccabi before coming into the league. No one knows his name until they see his name on the roster online. In the time I've seen him play (20 minutes at the maximum) he's looked no better then bad. <font color="Red">Grade: C-</font> Jerome Williams - WOOF WOOF WOOF WOOF WOOF WOOF WOOF! The Junkyard Dog. The one player on the Knicks who exhibits heart and soul and care for the team and basketball every time he steps on to the court. His stats don't properly exhibit his importance to the team. He is the fan favorite and you can't help but smile when you see him make a play. I love this guy, how can't you? If you don't love Jerome Williams you don't love or know basketball. <font color="Red">Grade: A</font> Trevor Ariza - The wonder boy. Every Knicks fan drools with anticipation as soon as you hear his name. His potential is stunning, and he is already well on his way to becoming one of the best 6th men in the league. There aren't many players more exciting to watch. His game is incredible, he rebounds very well, and despite his wirey frame and his lack of size, he manages to work his way in there to pull down some hard-earned boards. His defense is strong, and he is great at knocking the ball away, his defensive awareness and such is unmatched by anyone on the Knicks. Despite his rookie mistakes, he is the apple of all Knicks fans' eye. He is the future of the Knicks. <font color="Red">Grade: A-</font> Michael Sweetney - Oh boy. The next great back-to-the-basket front-court players. He always seems to draw the defense beautifully down low, and his game in the paint is great. He can't really score from outside, but ocassionally he'll nail a jumper. His freethrow shooting is terrible, and he fouls too much. But he's working hard to improve. It's important that Isiah locks Sweetney up, I'm sure there are scouts drooling at the sight of him. He works hard and leaves it all on the court, he is improving at a great rate and Aguirre seems to be working well with him. <font color="Red">Grade: B+</font> Nazr Mohhamed - Having his best year of his career in New York and seems to enjoy it. But he is inconsistent and fouls way too much. His game needs tweaking and his play needs improvement. His passing has improved from prior years, and he has been a key component to most of the Knicks' few wins. If you look at the boxscores of plenty of the Knicks' wins, you'll see that Mohhamed was very important. His real flaw is his lack of will to take a man coming to the hoop to stop him and his stupid fouls along with the inconsistency. Other than that, I can't complain. <font color="Red">Grade: B+</font> Penny Hardaway - He started the season strong and was looking like a good veteran player. Then he got hurt, started complaining. Didn't seem to care for the Knicks anymore. He no longer exhibited the heart he let out last year when his veteran leadership was so important to the success of the Knicks. He's losing it, and he can't accept it. He's experiencing some trying times and it's hard for him like it would be for anybody. I just hope he straightens out and becomes at least decent. <font color="Red">Grade: C-</font> Kurt Thomas - He's having a pretty good year. With Marbury at the 1, one would assume he'd be playing better than he is right now. His outside shot is deadly but he is a streaky scorer, and it can get very aggravating for fans. His defense has been pretty good, and he seems to be really trying. However, he's not very physically intimidating either for that matter. He seems to get scared and feels the need to foul his man and that really hurts the Knicks. He gets into foul trouble early, like Mohhamed, forcing Herb to empty the bench early on. Then he commits stupid fouls in the second half. He's not worth the money, but he's solid. <font color="Red">Grade: B</font>
grades I thought the grade were pretty good but I thought stephon deserved better. Also how did Nazr and Ariza only get B-s? Both of them have been above and beyond what was expected of them.
True but, Nazr is very inconsistent and still hasn't entirely recovered from his quick fouling and silly plays. Ariza has been very good for us however, his lack of a jumper, his inconsistency, overzealousness (I think it's a word), and things like that hurt his grade. Btw Jwohl, you heard that LeBron James to NY rumor. I know that will make you real happy. Me too !
Yeah it's in the rumor mil, I doubt it though. Cleveland will lock this guy up before he even gets an opportunity. Anyway, let's stay on topic guys my bad for going off!
hahahaha, the Titanic is more likely to rise from the frozen artic waters to combat the iceburg that took its young life. I don't think you'll be seeing LeBron in any other uniform for the rest of his career.
