SB Nation - Sun Yue

Waive Goodbye, Part 3

Jon L — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:15:16 -0000

by Chris Young - AP

Pops! (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Chris Young)

We wrap up our look at which players got waived last week and which made their respective teams with the Divisions Atlantic and Southwest. Really, I promise those are the correct divisions. I know some of these cuts happened a while ago, but I think that seeing them all as a group helps give a broader perspective as to which teams around the league are filling out the end of their benches with cheap talent (and it is talent). Here's part 1, and here's part 2 (and ignore the whole "Derrick Byars made the Bulls" thing. It happened, then it didn't happen.) Part 3 is here:

Boston Celtics

Who got cut: Mike Sweetney

Who got kept: No one.

Well, not no one, but their third-string guards are going to be recent draft picks Lester Hudson and the J.R. Giddens Rebounding Machine. Mike Sweetney is trying, he really is, and he's mostly fine on the offensive end. His conditioning is awful, though, which means he gets hurt and that he's several steps too slow on defense when he makes it onto the court. There's been some suggestion that he could try working his way back into shape in the D-League, and it will be interesting to see what he does from here. J.R. Giddens will likely see some D-League action himself, as his shooting is still really bad. I'm guessing Lester Hudson will as well. After all, the Celtics have a team in their own backyard, and they can't make Danny's son look bad by withholding their NBA talent.

Dallas Mavericks

Who got cut: Jake Voskuhl

Who got kept: No one.

What, you want me to talk about Jake Voskuhl? The Mavericks also rid themselves of Nate Jawai, who hadn't been there all that long, but I suspect that was more of a cap move than anything. D-League-wise, ESPN's Marc Stein things that rookie Rodrigue Beaubois could see some time in Alberquerque, as minutes could be hard to come by for him in Dallas. Beaubois is definitely talented, and he had an intriguing Summer League, so he could be fun to watch for the Thunderbirds.

Houston Rockets

Who got cut: Will Conroy, Romel Beck, Garrett Temple

Who got kept: Pops Mensah-Bonsu

The Rockets had to waive Brent Barry in order to keep Pops, so that's something. It's a shame Conroy couldn't stick around, as he played very well in Summer League and decently when he got preseason minutes, but the (ridiculous?) upside is that he hopefully showed other teams around the league that he can run an offense and is ready to play in the NBA. It's great that Mensah-Bonsu made the team, obviously, but it shouldn't really be that much of a surprise. A power forward/center somewhere between 6'6" and 6'9" who rebounds the hell out of the ball? Sounds like the Rockets to me. Add to that the fact that the team doesn't really know what it's going to get from new center David Andersen either, and you can see why they might want some extra frontcourt help behind Scola, Hayes and Landry. Mensah-Bonsu's offense will be up and down, but as Rockets fans are finding out, that's going to be true for a lot of their players. I'd definitely expect to see Jermaine Taylor and hopefully (for his and the team's sake) Chase Budinger in Rio Grande Valley at some point later this season.

Memphis Grizzlies

Who got cut: Mike Taylor, Thomas Gardner, Leon Rodgers

Who got kept: No one.

Again, it's not really "no one," as Trey Gilder is still around after signing a partially-guaranteed contract back in August. Mike Taylor has proven that he can play in the NBA, provided he can keep his turnovers to a minimum. It will be interesting to see what he does, as other players with less NBA experience have already said they're fed up with trying to make it out of the D-League and are heading to Europe. Taylor probably could lead the Euroleague in scoring, but he'd also be perhaps the number one call-up candidate should come back to the D-League, based on his NBA experience and ability.

New Jersey Nets

Who got cut: Bennet Davis, Will Blalock, Brian Hamilton

Who got kept: No one.

I didn't really expect any of these guys to stick around. Blalock and Hamilton are headed back overseas, I suspect, while Davis would do well to go back to the D-League and either develop an offensive game or become a top-notch post defender to go with his elite shot-blocking ability.

New Orleans Hornets

Who got cut: Earl Barron, Larry Owens

Who got kept: No one.

The Hornets are one of those teams that clearly don't care about the D-League, so I'm not really sure what to write here. Pass? Incomplete? Not qualified? Earl Barron has a D-League pedigree, sure, but even given his time with the Miami Heat this was pretty clearly not going to work out for him unless Hilton Armstrong went down with an injury. I'm guessing Barron goes the overseas route, but seeing him in the D-League would be a pleasant surprise.

New York Knicks

Who got cut: Warren Carter, Sun Yue, Ron Howard, Gabe Pruitt

Who got kept: Marcus Landry

Plus, don't forget the team also cut partially-guaranteed guys Chris Hunter and Joe Crawford. This team is all about winning on the cheap, right? And yet they cut several good, cheap players. But hey, have fun with that whole Jared Jeffries thing. Carter is probably going back to Europe, though I think coming to the D-League might be worth his time, because as I've noted several times before he has a David Lee-ish game. Ron Howard may come back to the D-League, though I'm less certain about Sun or Hunter. I wouldn't be surprised if Sun entered the draft, as he's become a semi-prominent example of a Chinese basketball product aiming for the NBA, and to give up on that while he's so young could be somewhat embarrassing. It also would give the D-League someone to market with so many players headed overseas this year. If he does enter the draft, it will be interesting to see both where he ends up and in what round, as the league considers him somewhat of a star, and while NBA stars can play pretty much anywhere, I'm not sure the same is true for the D-League. A crazy thought popped just into my head: would the Spurs/Toros be interested in giving him the Marcus Williams Treatment? Sun's offense isn't nearly at the level that Williams's is and was, but the Toros essentially created an NBA point guard where there wasn't one, which is what Sun Yue is. Or isn't.

Philadelphia 76ers

Who got cut: Stromile Swift, Sean Singletary, Rashad Jones-Jennings, Brandon Bowman, Dionte Christmas

Who got kept: No one.

So the 76ers apparently were comfortable with their roster as it stood. How's that working out? Yeah, yeah, they already had a lot of guaranteed contracts, and it's not like Sean Singletary is the bee's knees, but this is yet another team that doesn't really care about the D-League, or where their end-of-bench guys come from. Singletary could benefit from some D-League time, but a lot of European teams don't really care whether their point guards can distribute the ball as long as they can score, so that's likely where he's headed. Christmas could stay in the U.S., if for no other reason than to be on hand if the 76ers decide they want to sign him to a 10-day and then not play him.

San Antonio Spurs

Who got cut: Marcus Williams, Curtis Jerrells, Dwayne Jones, Jack McClinton

Who got kept: Malik Hairston

San Antonio went with Keith Bogans over Marcus Williams, even though Bogans played pretty poorly in the preseason while Williams barely played. I say that Williams was waived instead of Bogans and not Malik Hairston because Hairston played so well in both Summer League and the preseason that I would've beeen pretty shocked to see him gone. McClinton, Jones and Jerrells have already signed overseas, and Williams is another guy who it will be interesting to watch, because he'd be at the front of the call-up list should be come back to the D-League. He'd probably also be a first-round D-League draft pick and maybe the first player taken overall. As much as we praise him here at RU, Williams does still have some work to do as a point guard, mainly getting his turnovers down. And, if he tries to hang around the Spurs universe he'll have to become a better-than-passable defender. But the fact that he's gone from a gunning wing to a high-scoring, (mostly efficient), high-assist point guard in the span of less than a year is a testament to Williams's talent and how hard he's willing to work to improve his chances, which speaks well to his basketball future.

Toronto Raptors

Who got cut: No one.

Who got kept: No one.

Okay, this is who should get the pass/incomplete/not qualified. They didn't sign any waiver fodder, so they didn't have to cut any waiver fodder. All is not lost, however, as Sonny Weems seems to have landed solidly in Toronto after being traded twice this offseason. He's begun the season on the inactive list, where I suspect he'll see a fair amount of time, but still.

Ridiculous Transactions: 10/5-10/11

Jon L — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 19:47:43 -0000

More photos » by Al Goldis - AP

8 months ago: Miami's Jack McClinton shoots during the men's 3-point contest, which he won Thursday, April 2, 2009, at the Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, Mich. (AP Photo/Al Goldis)

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"We don't do many encores and, well, this is why."

If you're wondering why the training camp invite series sputtered to a finish, I encourage you to read on! A lot of guys are starting to get waived, so I didn't see much point to talking about a player who's only going to be around for a few days afterwards. I'll talk a little bit about those players I didn't get to but are listed here, but they won't get the full treatment.

October 6: Denver Nuggets - waived Keith Brumbaugh; Phoenix Suns - waived Raymond Sykes; Minnesota Timberwolves - requested waivers on Jack McClinton and Alonzo Gee

See what I mean? Starting with Minnesota, McClinton's waiver is unfortunate in that there should be a place for him in the NBA, even as a rookie. It's possible that that sentiment is based on the myth of San Antonio draft picks and how they almost universally end up as contributors, even if it takes them a few years, but McClinton's collegiate three-point shooting and overall scoring efficiency is real, and I hope he decides to go the D-League route (big surprise) and figure out how to improve his scoring closer to the basket. Gee is almost the opposite of McClinton in that he's a slasher with no real outside shot to speak of. There are so many guys either in the NBA or trying to get into the NBA that fit that profile that an additional skill would be helpful, but Gee's defense leaves a lot to be desired as well.

Brumbaugh is a guy I hadn't gotten to yet, and while he once had a history of off-court stuff, it's been a few years since any of that came up (I guess the history is still there, just further in the background) and Brumbaugh has some scoring ability, and he's a pretty good three-point shooter (he shot .375 last season for Sioux Falls). He wasn't very consistent, though, and while he's listed anywhere from 6'8" to 6'10" his rebounding comes and goes. There's definitely talent there, but it may be Europe for Brumbaugh.

I don't know a whole lot about Sykes, but he's apparently a powerful dunker. His per-36 minute averages as a senior at Clemson were around nine points and six rebounds, which isn't really enough to be considered for the NBA. Frankly, with those numbers and not much other information available about the guy, I'm a little surprised he got a training camp invite.

October 7: Idaho Stampede - retained Joel Abelson as an assistant coach; Bakersfield Jam - named Greg Minor, Mark Strickland and Chris Leazier as assistant coaches.

I'm already (briefly) discussed the Jam hires here, but more broadly it's an interesting staff. Woolpert is a pretty good coach, so Minor likely learned a bit working for him last year even though that team was terrible (and injuries played a part in that, etc.) But other than that you have two college assistants, guys who will be figuring out how the D-League works along with their boss. I know I talk about how D-League coaching experience is important for understanding the league's quirks, and who knows, maybe I overstate it. But having an entire (or nearly entire) coaching staff essentially starting from scratch could make it tough for Bakersfield this season. Greg Minor was an assistant in the CBA as well, so watch for him in the future for a head coaching job (or an NBA assistant job). As far as Abelson is concerned, he did a solid job as an assistant to Bryan Gates last season, even if he didn't get his own Day like colleague Randy Livingston.

October 8: New York Knicks - waived Sun Yue, Ron Howard, Warren Carter and Gabe Pruitt; Rio Grande Valley Vipers - named Gersson Rosas as general manager and Paul Mokeski as assistant coach.

I don't know much about Rosas, who's also the Rockets' VP of player personnel and worked his way up through Houston's front office after being a college video coordinator and a Rockets scout. Everything you need to know about Mokeski may be found here.

October 9: Fort Wayne Mad Ants - named Michael Sanders as assistant coach; Miami Heat - waived Alade Aminu and Andre Brown; Los Angeles Clippers - waived Taj Gray; Robert Vaden - signed with Imola (Italy)

Sanders is a great hire for Fort Wayne, as he's been a head coach in the CBA and an assistant in the NBA, and combined with Joey Sanders that team has a strong, strong coaching staff. Hopefully they'll be able to turn that team around after a pretty bad season. Vaden's rights is belong to the Oklahoma City Thunder, but they have so many people on that team who are of a certain (young) age that Vaden might be "another year away from making the team" for, well, several years. He's a perimeter shooter and not much else (as far as I can tell), but he'll be in his mid-20s before he see time in either OKC or Tulsa. Gray has spent the last few years playing in Europe, and averaged around 20 and seven last year in France. He's a former University of Oklahoma player, so I wonder if he'll go for the D-League this time and try to get on the 66ers roster as a local allocation.

October 11: James Mays - signed with Beijing (China); Cedric Bozeman - signed with Beijing (China)

Both of these players are very talented, and could play in the NBA if teams gave them an honest chance. They were also both part of the expansion draft, and if they decide China's not for them and come back to the D-League, each of them will play for the Springfield Armor. That's something to keep an eye on as the season goes on, as they're both very good scorers who could give Dee Brown's team an added push towards the playoffs or, depending on how the season goes, avert a first-year disaster.

Training Camp Invites - New York Knicks

Jon L — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 13:00:28 -0000

More photos » by Mike Groll - AP

2 months ago: New York Knicks guard Sun Yue, of China, takes a shot during NBA basketball training camp in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009. (AP Photo/Mike Groll)

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Our journey through the world of training camp invitations takes us to the Atlantic Division. Which of course means it's time once again to talk about Sun Yue! and the rest of the Knicks. I've talked about all of these signings recently, but in the interest of making this a full and complete series I'll do it once more.

Sun Yue! - A lot of Sun Yue! jokes get made around here, mostly about how much he's hyped up as a 6'9" point guard who can do it all. Most of the time those jokes or references to him not being very good come in generalities, so let's talk real numbers now. He played a total of 28 minutes over 23 games for the Lakers last season, so of course we'll have to turn to the D-League stats for a better picture of what kind of player he is. Of course, he only played six games there so...put 'em together? I guess? He averaged four assists per 36 minutes for the D-Fenders and just under three per-36 in the NBA, so his passing skills aren't really as advertised. He was clearly more comfortable (and successful) shooting against weaker competition, as he shot .397 in the D-League, including .381 on three-pointers. His NBA shooting numbers were a lot grimmer. A .273 shooting percentage, in fact, and he missed all of his threes. He averaged about three and a half rebounds per 36 minutes in the D-League, which is fine for a point guard I suppose, except that a.) he's 6'9", b.) it came in only six games, so not a very large sample, and c.) he didn't get any rebounds in the NBA. He averaged about a steal and a half per 36 minutes when you combine the two "seasons," and he's used his height to block shots, but at this point he's just not ready to play in the NBA on a regular basis.

Warren Carter - Carter was a backup at the University of Illinois and has spent the last few years playing around Europe, but he's a very good rebounder. He led the Knicks' Summer League team in that category on a per-minnute basis, and the fact that he's back here makes me think the team might be giving him an honest shot at making the team. Rebounding is pretty much all he does, but perhaps the team sees him as a budget David Lee (or the new Jared Jeffries?) for their bench.

Gabe Pruitt - Gabe Pruitt had an up-and-down Summer League while playing for Boston's team this year, doing a decent job of running the offense but not always shooting the ball well himself. He made his three-pointers at a decent clip in the D-League, about 36 percent, though he struggled with that shot in the NBA. He didn't pick up that many assists, maxing out at about five per 36 minutes, but he also almost never turns the ball over.

Ron Howard - Howard is an excellent defender who spent most of last season covering opposing small forwards while playing for Fort Wayne, though given his size he's more of a shooting guard in the NBA. That's probably fine since he doesn't rebound at a consistent rate, and while he's not much of a shooter he picked up his scoring towards the end of last year.

Marcus Landry - Landry made almost 42 percent of his three-pointers whilst playing for Sacramento's Summer League team (yeah I used the world "whilst," what of it?), which I'm sure Mike D'Antoni likes. His scoring output increased steadily in college, though some of that was likely due to his increased minutes, and it also looks like he did a good job of both hanging onto the ball and staying out of foul trouble.

Training Camp Notes: Day 1, Evening Session

Seth — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 00:48:33 -0000

More photos » by Mike Groll - AP

2 months ago: New York Knicks head coach Mike D'Antoni talks to his players during NBA basketball training camp in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009. (AP Photo/Mike Groll)

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Day 1 of training camp is finished, and I just got to watch about an hour of five-on-five scrimmaging. I did a couple interviews which I'll probably post very early tomorrow morning. In the meantime, I'll type up these notes for y'all and tell you what I saw:

Eddy Curry- You've probably already read it elsewhere, but Eddy appeared to aggravate his injured right calf while grabbing a rebound. He limped off the floor about ten minutes into scrimmages and didn't return. He said it's just a strain and he's day-to-day.

Danilo Gallinari- Gallo kept moving well in the full-court scrimmages, and continued to show off his offensive repertoire. He wasn't all that active off the ball, but after a catch he wasn't just settling for jumpers. There were a couple nice fakes and dribbles for short jumpers, a spinning lefty layup (that rimmed out), and a couple vicious dunks, including one complete facial on Jordan Hill (prompting David Lee to put his thumb to his forehead and yell "The Rooster!"). As for the jump shot, Gallo wasn't quite as automatic as he'd been in practice. He missed a few early, and angrily ripped the bandage off his right hand following one brick. It's not like he was shooting poorly, though. Anything less than perfection from the field surprises me when it comes to Gallinari. I did get a chance to see the cut on his hand up close and it ain't no scratch.

Alan Hahn mentioned to me earlier that he envisions Gallinari as more of a shooting guard than a forward, and he might very well be on to something. On defense, Gallo spent a lot of time guarding the likes of Joe Crawford, and on offense he pretty much chilled outside the arc and waited for a pass. Sounds like a two-guard to me.

More player notes after the jump...

Wilson Chandler- Chandler, meanwhile, seems to be fancying himself more and more a forward. He caught plenty of passes at the perimeter, but didn't just hoist up threes. Wil attacked the basket at times, swung the ball at others, and shot when he was open. That's a good sign from someone who's been accused of being a bit of a chucker.

Larry Hughes: Speaking of which, Hughes forced more than a couple threes and just couldn't connect. He was also a little lazy with his passes. But hey, go get 'em tomorrow, Larry.

Jordan Hill- Hill's game looks very much like it did in summer league (duh). He runs the floor well and generally knows what to do with the ball. It's when he goes up to shoot that problems emerge. His takeoff is slow, indirect, and sort of feeble, and he got his shot armpit-blocked more than once. The flipside of it is that he'll probably draw a lot of fouls.

Toney Douglas- Toney's shot looked much nicer than it did in Vegas. He swished a couple threes, and tried out that righty floater as well. He obviously wasn't handling the ball nearly as much as he did this summer, but looked steady and confident when doing so. Toney also stuffed a Gallinari jumper, which would be awesome if it weren't blasphemy.

Al Harrington- Al looked his best this evening. His jumpers were falling, but he didn't rely solely on that. Instead, when faced with a mismatch, he would bully his defender right down to the rim. Sun Yue, for instance, just didn't have a chance.

Sun Yue- Give Sun credit, though, for being pretty goddamn silky with the ball His form looked solid, and his handles completely defy his size. I'd guess that one of the reasons he hasn't made it quite yet (besides the aforementioned weight disadvantage) is that his English isn't great, and he keeps pretty much to himself throughout these things. At first glance, though, I'd say he's got a shot.

Joe Crawford- I'd be able to tell you more about Joe Crawford's performance if I hadn't been admiring his beard (which is now cut short) the whole time. Might have to solicit some grooming tips.

Jared Jeffries- I'm not gonna jump to conclusions, but let's just say a whole pod of seals died this evening.

David Lee- At this point, we pretty much know what to expect from Lee. He does appear to be making a more concerted effort to block shots, though. I also saw him nail 4 of 5 threes in practice.

Nate Robinson- Nate is, as you'd expect, the most animated and energetic player on the floor. He talks to everybody, including teammates, refs, and himself. That said, I didn't get many notes on Nate's play. I'll key in on him next time around.

Chris Duhon- Same deal. Threw a couple nice passes off the pick-and-roll, but I didn't get much else.

Darko Milicic- Darko set a lot of picks, but wasn't getting his touches when he rolled. It was frustrating for both of us, because we both wanna know if that jumper's gonna fall in a game setting. For his part, Darko took it in stride and didn't shred any clothing.

Lots to do. Get at me in the comments, on Twitter, via email, or by carrier pigeon if you've got questions for the players or general curiosities to share.

Around the Association: 2009-2010 New York Knicks- Is it summatime yet?

Atma Brother ONE — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 19:15:57 -0000

Just hurry up and make this trade Cleveland. It'll save you from a miserable 2010 summer.

Actually isn't it always miserable in Ohio?

Jump for a look at the Knicks year long campaign to bring LeBron James and (his) friends to the Big Apple!

Before we look at the present and project the future, let's hit the rewind button on our 80's boombox real quick...

The Coast II Coast Throwback: From the Bay to NY

The Golden State Warriors and New York Knicks have long had an interesting somewhat symbiotic relationship (actually "symbiotic" would be way too nice), but we'll keep things simple here.

"Put a little mustard on it!"

PJ tells Spree to put a little mustard on it. Spree chokes PJ. Warriors suspend Spree and try to nullify his big money contract. Judge says no (I still to this today don't understand why). Warriors "banish" Spree to NY where he goes on to resurrect his career, help lead the Knicks to the 1999 NBA Finals and 2000 Eastern Conference Finals, a mild first round upset of the Toronto Raptors in 2001, and feed his family for a few years too.

Spree had a ton to smile about back then when he could feed his family.

via www.nationalbasketballdevelopmentleague.net

The Warriors continue their playoff drought with the likes of Chris Mills, Terry Cummings, and headliner John Starks.

This didn't happen in Oakland.

Winner: New York, New York

The miraculous herbal cure for sore backs not found in Oakland

Al Harrington's back was hurting and he couldn't play. He gets shipped to NY. He's back! (sorry bad joke)

What helped Al's back?

Is it the shoes? Or is it being on a different coast than Don Nelson?

via www.andybatt.com

Jamal Crawford goes on to drop a half-Wilt for the Warriors. Shortly after that Nellie asks him to trade him his jersey for a suit and opt out. JC gets moved to a playoff squad right before draft day 2009. (Think he misses the Knicks or Warriors right now?)

Winner: Atlanta, Georgia

Indian Cooking 101

Curry in New York has way too much ghee, but Curry in the Bay Area is just right.

Big bottle of ghee for a big man.

Seriously Eddy- put the bottle down and walk away slowly.

via upload.wikimedia.org

Winner: Oakland, CA

Rewinding 2k8-2k9 Season

Record Last Season: 32-50, 14th place in the Leastern Conference (out of 15 teams)

Last year was all about 2 things: 1) Opening up dollars for 2010 and 2) Mike D'antoni.

There's no doubt the Knicks did a pretty good job at #1. They found some suckers to take on the past-2010 contracts of Zach Randolph and Jamal Crawford. Those suckers are of course none other than Warriors South and Clippers North. Some reports said that the Kings were willing to play the role of that 3rd sucker from the Pacific Division and take Jared Jeffries contract if just crowned 2k9 Slam Dunk Champ Nate Robinson was part of the deal. The Knicks said no and it could potentially slightly hurt them in the near future but in the recent past and present I could see why it was hard to say goodbye to Krypto-nate. He's one of the few entertaining aspects of the New York Wait For LeBrons.

One of the only FANtastic parts of the 2008-2009 New York Knicks.

via blogs.seattleweekly.com

As for #2 the results are mixed. D'Antoni did help inflate Crawford and Randolph's stats helping their Westward shipments and he did keep the Knicks realistically in the playoff hunt for the last playoff seeds in the East till the last month or so of the season. However, the Knicks pretty much choked down the stretch, finishing the season 3-7. At the end of the day the Knicks record last season mirrored the record they had in their first season season under GM/ Coach/ "Not the Ladies Man" Isiah Thomas in 2006-2007. I can't say I'm all that impressed, but jury's still out till the 2010-2011 season.

2k9 Offseason Rewind

Memo to Knicks front office: It's not 2000. For some reason the Knicks seemed fixated on signing Jason Kidd and Grant Hill. Probably the league's most underrated point guard last season Ramon Sessions was theirs for the taking, but they decided to let the Minnesota Timberwolves win the Guiness World Record for most point guards on a lottery team- Ay caramba! It makes sense why they didn't want to add on another long term contract, but then why pursue Kidd and Hill? Were either of those two guys near-retirement really going to make great recruiters for the 2k10 free agent class? Doutbful.

I remain puzzled why the Knicks didn't make a more concerted effort to bring Allen Iverson to the Big Apple. AI was The Answer for the Knicks on so many levels. His camp was obviously willing to accept a 1 year deal, which is incredibly rare for a superstar with his resume, so the Knicks could have preserved their valuable 2010 cap space. Iverson would have entertained under D'Antoni's system and if it worked out it could be another chip in the 2010 offseason.

As of this writing solid young Knickerbockers (and great Isiah Thomas draft picks by the way) David Lee and Nate Robinson remain unsigned, but pretty much everyone around the league expects them to be back next season in NY on 1 year deals. That's a good thing. Both are very solid role players, especially Lee. Holding onto their Bird rights and adding them to the 2k10 and beyond core could be key.

Overall it was an incredibily uneventful summer for the Knicks. The 2009 Knicks summer rates right up there in terms of meaningless-ness (there's that word again) with the Golden State Warriors summer (there's some symbiotic-ness for you again too!). But in the grand scheme of things I do want to give the Knicks front office some props for not locking themselves into any contracts that they'd regret next summer. It seems like a no brainer, but remember this is a league where teams outbid and ink Elton Brand, Baron Davis, Gilbert Arenas, Corey Maggette, and Stephen Jackson to lucrative extensions and free agent deals, then just a few months later are willing to ship them out in non-basketball trades just to get their contracts off the books. Common sense isn't that common in your average NBA front office. I hate to say it, but there's too many dumb ex-jocks running the ship in the wrong places.

Projecting 2k9-2k10 Season

Let's keep things simple. Eddy Curry and Al Harrington are not exactly Patrick Ewing and Charles Oakley- especially on the glass. Larry Hughes is not John Starks. Chris Duhon is not the 90's PG combo of Chris Childs/ Charlie Ward. Darko Millicic is no Anthony Mason- although he's arguably just as scary.

For the Knicks the 2009-2010 season is about restoring some semblance of relevance to Madison Square Garden. A return to the playoffs would obviosly be great (especially since they don't have the rights to their 2010 draft pick), but this season is really about doing whatever maneuvering possible to set this franchise up for a brighter future in the 2010 summer and beyond. The goal for this season is to reduce the number of "OMG! THE KNiX DID WHUT?!" statements.

I feel bad for all the Knicks season ticket holders this season who shelled out big bucks for one of the league's most expensive seats, but that's basically it. The entire 2009-2010 New York Knicks season is one big summer league or preseason tryout. The goal is to not screw up.

My crystal ball says 30-42.

Golden Predictions

Eddy Curry has a fool's gold comeback all the way to the All-Star break and then Walsh finds some sucker to trade an expiring contract or use a trade exception on the most 1-dimensional low post scoring machine this league has ever seen. (If you could merge the skillsets of Baby Bulls Curry and Tyson Chandler you might have the near-perfect big man. You'd just be missing the passing.) Let's hope that sucker isn't Robert Rowell.
Somehow and someway Walsh finds a way to dump the 2 years and $13.4 million left on Jeffries contract before the summer. Just a thought: Jeffries for Stephen Jackson doesn't helps the Knicks open up salary cap space, but it does help them improve their supporting cast for LeBron. The Warriors would rid themselves from "Captain" Jack's 2 extra years.
Danillo Gallinari proves to be a bust. Coach D'Antoni agrees not to convince the Knicks front office to draft players with names that sound like longer versions of his last name ever again.
Jordan Hill has a solid rookie season and begins his path towards being the Diet Coke of Charles Oakleys.
David Lee outrebounds and outscores Warriors "franchise cornerstone" Andris Biedrins again. The Knicks front office have made their share of dumb moves over the past decade, but unlike the Warriors front office at least they're smart enough to recognize a great role player when they see one and not proclaim him to be a franchise building block.
Chris Duhon lights up the Warriors in both matches. Back in 2008 with Monta Ellis "guarding" him Duhon lit up the Dubs for 34 points and 9 dimes. Last season in NY Duhon dropped 22 dimes on the Warriors- oh it was funny.
Another solid late 1st round Isiah Thomas pick Wilson Chandler scores a respectable 15ppg.
Sun Yue jerseys outsell Yi jerseys from across the bridge even though it's The Year of the Yi.
After a blowout loss to the lowly Sacrapmento Kings on February 9, 2010 in the Garden, Darko Millicic goes on a profanity-laced tirade that no English speaker can even fathom.
Larry Hughes continues his statistically odd career of peaks and valleys by averaging 20ppg.
The Knicks don't lose a single game Cuttino Mobley plays in this year.
Al Harrington's back doesn't hurt all season- good for him.

Goals for Summer of 2k10

As Ja Rule, Fat Joe, and Jadakiss would say... "He's... from NEW YORK!"

HOLLA! HOLLA!

Bring LeBron James to the Big Apple. (Yes this sort of analysis is exactly why they pay me the big bucks around these parts.)
Convince as much of the Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and Amare Stoudemire free agent crew to join LeBron in NY. There's a great piece on ESPN.com about where these marquee free agent will land: James| Wade| Bosh | Stoudemire
Use Darko Millicic to help lure LeBron James. Sure Darko was drafted #2 right behind LeBron James in 2002 despite a few folks proclaiming that he should go #1 over that "overrated" high school talent, but guess who is the only one with a ring? I think we all know who has had the last laugh. Have Darko show LeBron what it feels like to be a NBA champion playing in NY.
Re-hire Isiah Thomas to lead the Knicks draft department. There's no way Isiah would've passed on Brook Lopez, Anthony Randolph, Jason Thompson, and Eric Gordon. Isiah might not know how to manage the checkbook, but he does know NBA Draft [ESPN.com].
Have a better summer than this one- Remembering the Free Agent Madness of '96 [Posting and Toasting]
Release Nike Air LeBron VIII's in at least 23 different NY-themed colorways. Seriously did folks not notice this and this and this and of course this? He didn't even play for NY last season. LeBron 2 NY is going to do wonders for Nike's bottom line in 2k10 and beyond.

The greatest Big 3 ever assembled.

via lebronjamesin2010.com

For more on the Knicks from folks who actually know what they're talking about check out our SBN brother site Posting and Toasting.

Our friends in NY have quite the "Unstoppable Baby!" slogan:

Partying Like It's 2010!

Another NY fav is of course Modi and gang's Sports on My Mind.

Poll

When LeBron James is finally a Knickerbocker in the 2010-2011 season will he sport a Cleveland Indians hat when he speaks to the media?

YES: Hometown loyalty.

187 votes

NO: He'll still rock the NY.

295 votes

482 votes | Poll has closed

Magic Snatch Morris Almond

Seth — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 21:53:58 -0000

First of all, imagine how completely baffling that headline would be if you knew nothing about the NBA. Second of all, it's time for some knee-jerk rage. I just read this tweet from the esteemed Ben Q Rock, which led me to track down this article from the Orlando Sentinel. Why do we care about the Magic adding training camp personnel? Here's why:

The Magic have added two free agents --- guard Morris Almond and forward Linton Johnson III --- to their training-camp roster, said General Manager Otis Smith.

Almond, 6-feet-6, was a former first-round pick in 2007 by Utah and played 25 games with the Jazz last season. He averaged 3.7 points and 1.4 rebounds.

I'd like an explanation, please. You may or may not remember that Morris "Mo Nuts" Almond was on the Knicks' Summer League squad in Las Vegas and played excellent basketball. He showed expert range, an ability to drive to the basket, and even some defensive chops. Many of us were impressed, and Donnie Walsh himself mentioned his love of Nuts during an interview in Summer League. So you'd figure that all translates to a training camp invite, right? Apparently not. Gabe Pruitt got an invite. Sun Yue did too. Almond didn't. Why not? Does Walsh simply feel that the Knicks are set at shooting guard (If so, that's hogwash), or is there something else at work here? Does Almond's agent hate the Knicks? Did Morris witness Walsh strangling a hooker at Summer League? I'm sure one of New York's beat writers will get to the bottom of this. WE WANT ANSWERS.

Ridiculous Transactions: 9/7-9/13

Jon L — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 13:00:37 -0000

Futurecast favorite Sun Yue may be around next year after all.

View full size photo »

Thank goodness some stuff happened this weekend, otherwise this write-up would've been the sparsest one yet. If I had to guess, I'd say that fewer guys are signing European contracts these days because there are fewer to sign. Most of the available roster spots have already been filled either by European players or D-Leaguers that we've already covered, so at this point we may be hearing more about tenuous NBA training camp invites rather than guys going to Greece or Belgium or Korea to get paid.

September 8: Idaho Stampede - hired Bob MacKinnon as head coach; Maine Red Claws - hired Randy Livingston and Mike Procopio as assistant coaches.

The Coach Mac and Coach Liv have each been discussed in some detail already, so let's talk Procopio. Maine's newest assistant has a player development background having worked with Tim Grover, and he's also a former Celtics scout. According to this DraftExpress interview, Procopio specializes in helping big men (and moderately big men) with their footwork. The Red Claws have a strong set of assistants...remind me again what Austin Ainge is supposed to do?

September 12: New York Knicks - signed Warren Carter and Gabe Pruitt (oh, and SUN YUE)

Carter led the Knicks' Summer League team in per-minute rebounding, and while he didn't score a whole lot, he's shown some ability to do that the last few years in Europe. It's his boardwork that will earn him playing time, though, and I think he'd be able to give the Knicks a decent fraction of David Lee's skillset off the bench. Pruitt is late of the Boston Celtics, and he spent some time with the Utah Flash in 2007-2008. There he averaged about four assists and three turnovers per 36 minutes, which is what you'd call "not very good for a point guard." He did pretty well in getting steals and is a decent shooter, but he's just not much of a ballhandler at this point. Sun had better start preparing for Massachusetts winters. (I'm pretty sure he can still be assigned to the D-League since he didn't play for the Lakers the first year after they drafted him.) His game as a point guard isn't much better than Pruitt's at this point, though with fewer turnovers and slightly worse shooting. There's the non-basketball benefit of sparking interest in the new franchise (what with all the free Futurecast pub they'd get), and also with New York's Chinese community should he make it to the Garden, but otherwise some time backing up/learning from Eddie Gill in Springfield couldn't hurt.

The New York Times says all of these contract are partially guaranteed, and if both Lee and Nate Robinson re-sign with the team (which I'd say is likely) that puts the Knicks at 16 players. It's certainly commendable that the Knicks are starting to pay increased attention to D-League players (remember, they already have Joe Crawford and Chris Hunter right now), but I doubt all of them will be around come the start of the season.

Sun Yue, too.

Seth — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 14:42:07 -0000

More photos » by Mark J. Terrill - AP

Sun appears to be 8 feet tall, which is cool. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Browse more photos »

The Knicks are making a third addition to the training camp roster. Sun Yue, the lanky point guard out of China, will join the club in Saratoga on a partially guaranteed contract, Howard Beck reports. Sun played sparingly with the Lakers last year, but stuck around long enough to become the first ethnic Chinese player to win an NBA title (I can't seem to find who the first champion from China was, but I'd like to know). Sun's a longshot to ever get backcourt minutes, but the idea of a spindly 6'9'' guard running amok in the D'Antoni offense is intriguing, even if, as Mr. Sham says, "he's not a good shooter, he's very weak, he can't and won't rebound, he doesn't understand positioning at all, and his defense is amongst the worst you've ever seen". Actually, reading Mark's analysis just pretty much drained all the intrigue from the signing, but whatever.

Between this signing and that of former Celtic Gabe Pruitt, it's clear that Donnie Walsh is committed to adding some championship experience to his middling team. Lovely.

Around the Association: 2009-2010 Los Angeles Lakers: Big Brother, Little Brother

Fantasy Junkie — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 23:13:41 -0000

After a championship season, for the fans, it's nice when the big offseason question is whether it's more likely that the Lakers will win 70 games or a championship. Us Warrior fans are wondering if the Warriors will win 70 games in TWO seasons and even thinking about a championship is out of the question. For the franchise, the big offseason news wasn't Lamar Odom's empty threat of leaving or Trevor Ariza wanting too much money, it was Ron Artest, crazy Ron Artest, making his way to the city of angels. I imagine this going to be a season in which the big brother, Kobe, has to show his little brother, Ron Ron, the ropes and keep him under control. When I think of LA, the first thing I think of is traffic. Then I think of the Dodgers and Lakers, which makes me throw up a little bit in my mouth. And then I think of Hollywood. Hopefully for the rest of the league, Ron Artest will mix some real Hollywood drama into that Lakers' franchise.

Offseason Additions
VIA FREE AGENCY
Ron Artest (from Houston)
Shannon Brown (re-signed)

VIA DRAFT
Chinemelu Elonu (No. 59)

Offseason Subtractions
VIA FREE AGENCY
Trevor Ariza (to Houston)

WAIVED
Sun Yue

There are just 2 things that could derail the Lakers' path to consecutive championships, Ron Artest or an injury to either Gasol or Kobe.

1) Ron Artest
The Lakers might have been favored to win the championship even without adding Ron Artest, but they needed some more insurance after losing Ariza and the top contenders becoming stronger. The Cavaliers added Shaq. The Celtics added Rasheed. The Magic swapped Hedo for Vince and also get their All-Star PG, Jameer Nelson back from injury. The Spurs added Richard Jefferson and get Manu Ginobili back from injury.

Many question the Artest signing since he's been known to be a hothead and cause trouble. If he gets out of control both on and off the court, the Lakers will be in trouble. On the court, he's lost a step (maybe a half-step) defensively but he's still a top-notch defender. Offensively, he usually doesn't play within the team's game plan unless that game plan is for him to take ill-advised 3's in crucial playoff moments, pound the ball in the post in an attempt to back his man down, and not move the ball around.

With 2 strong leaders in Phil Jackson and Kobe along with Artest's desire to win a championship, I don't expect any drama to happen. Kobe's going to play the role of big brother this season to his little brother Ron. He'll make sure Ron stays in line, plays within the system and doesn't blow up. You know, he'll do the thing that good big brothers do to help their little brothers succeed. Ron Artest will make the Lakers a better team.

Just a little bit of the craziness.
"I don't want Kobe to be on my ass. Kobe's real competitive. I ain't trying to get in trouble."

2) An injury to Kobe or Gasol?
I don't think it matters if any of the other players get hurt. Bynum, Odom, Walton, Farmar or Artest could get injured and the Lakers could still win the championship. As long as both Kobe and Gasol are on the court, the Lakers have as good a chance as anyone to win it all. Both players make the other ones on their team better so no matter who you throw in there next to them, the team will do just fine. As long as the Lakers can avoid injuries to both Kobe and Gasol, expect to see a repeat.

One way Kobe could get hurt...

Check out more Lakers coverage over at Silver Screen and Roll.

Poll

Who has the best chance of knocking off the Lakers?

Cavaliers (Kobe vs LeBron and Shaq finals?)

273 votes

Celtics (added Rasheed Wallace, repeat of the 2007 Finals)

214 votes

Magic (swapped Hedo for Vinsanity, get Jameer back)

63 votes

Spurs (added Richard Jefferson, get Manu back)

123 votes

Other (specify in comments)

55 votes

728 votes | Poll has closed

Who's Next? A Look at Undrafted Rookies (Part 1)

Aisander D — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 19:50:51 -0000

Who's acomin' to the League???

Here at RU we're all about finding the next big thing. And no, that's not a Jasper Johnson joke or a dig at Sun Yue. We really do strive to find those players who will shine in the upcoming season, and possibly make a strong push for 10-day contracts or an extended stay with an NBA team. The first place one might look for such up and coming talents would be the pool of undrafted NCAA players who may be more apt to stick with the D-League in hopes of getting a second look (or in some cases third and fourth look) from NBA scouts.

Now think back faithful reader to a time when you ate strictly Ramen Noodles and Microwavable Beddar Cheddar Brats, yes that far back. That's right, you had just graduated from college (or left home, whichever the case may be). You were on your own for the first time, and trying to make your way in the world. Now let's pretend that you had valuable athletic abilities and basketball skills; how much different would your life have been? Very. You certainly wouldn't have spent that six months living on a commune in Iowa if you'd had sick hops coming out of school.

We were all 22 years old at some point - here's to you cheddar brat!

So for the talented young men who didn't get snapped up by the NBA the first time around, let me help you on your path to basketball success with a little advice: play in the D-League. First, the D is the perfect place to build your professional resume; NBA scouts will be watching, and having D-League experience pretty much trumps all minor leagues in terms of competition and talent level. As NBA and D-League agent Bill Neff put it in an interview earlier this month, "The D League is the best formula for preparing a player for the NBA. Very few American players come from Europe to the NBA. If it is your dream, stay here and play..." Nuff said Bill.

Unfortunately, a lot of young men have already either signed overseas, or made enough waves in Summer League to get an NBA camp invite. So for now we'll primarily be focusing on those players who are currently still available. This list may change drastically as we start to see who else signs with international teams and gets NBA training camp invites, but for now lets see who we got.

Hit the J-U-M-P for a list of Undrafted Rookies

Jerel McNeal - Listed as a 6'3" SG from Marquette, he formed a part of the successful backcourt with PG Dominic James over a last few seasons. McNeal played with the Sacramento Kings at the Vegas Summer League averaging an unspectacular 4 points. I like to think of McNeal as a less good version of Ben Gordon, undersized for the SG in the NBA, I suspect he'll need to work on his ball handling and point guard skills.

Dominic James - The other half of the Marquette backcourt, James is a speedy and athletically gifted player who would often exploit his quickness in the college game to get past his opponents and to the rim. Two notable gaps in his game are his shooting and overall efficiency with the ball; which are both essential if you want to stick in the NBA as an under 6 foot PG. James was considered on of the better PGs in the NCAA throughout his four years at Marquette, but slipped considerably in the draft boards after breaking his foot in February of his senior season. Let's hope he considers the D-league to recapture his mojo.

Josh Heytvelt - If you had asked any NBA scout two years ago, they would have told you Josh was a borderline 1st round talent who could be somebody's rebounding/intangibles guy off the bench. But then he took a bit of a tailspin; got arrested for shrooms (I mean c'mon it's Washington state!), injured his foot and was suspended from Gonzaga for a season. Now Josh is healthy, he spent his senior year trying to resurrect his basketball resume from the trip gone bad.

Paul Delaney - Another physically gifted Point Guard out of UAB, Delaney made the first-team at the Portsmouth invitational with his physical play and explosive offensive game. Delaney's main weakness is his shooting, he only made22 3-pointers in 33 games during his senior season and has an ugly looking shot with poor mechanics. His size (6'2" 200lbs) will be an asset, but he's not the only physical yet unrefined 6'2" guard looking to stick in the NBA (Oh, hello DeMarcus Nelson).

Paul Harris - I remember when Harris came out of High school, he was a pure Manchild. Physically gifted and an absolute specimen, Harris was touted by some as the next Carmelo Anthony for Syracuse. Well, let's just say that Harris never quite blossomed to that extent. His skill level and decision making are still considerably raw, given the amount of time he's spent at the college level. Paul's jumpshot is improved from where it was coming in to college, but he still has a long way to go in that area. Paul seems like the perfect candidate for the D-League, he's an absolutely amazing talent that simply needs some developing.

Eric Devendorf - Another 'Cuse guy, Devendorf has had some problems with the law, which has faded his star to some extent. Devendorf is not an overwhelmingly physical gifted player, rather having a nicely polished offensive game that includes a pretty jumpshot. His shooting totals from college are pretty impressive, boasting nearly 40% from behind the arc and shooting nearly 50% from inside the 3-point line. His mention on this list is pretty moot though, as he announced before the draft that he was much more interested in Europe than the D-League.

Curtis Jerrells - Jerrells is yet another point guard looking to make the big show. He played at Baylor for three years before deciding to enter the draft. The story on Curtis' game is that he is an all around solid floor general and ball handler, but can be a bit of a ball hog. His offensive game at Baylor revolved around running the pick-and-roll, with most of his point being scored off of contested jumpshots. Jerrells did help himself a little in the Vegas Summer League with the Mavs, he averages just over 5 points in 5 minutes a game, playing more under control than at Baylor.

Dar Tucker - Having played two seasons at DePaul, monster athlete Dar Tucker decided to try his hand at the NBA. Unfortunately for him, unpolished, athletic two guards come in droves to test the NBA waters. Tucker's game was fairly up and down at DePaul, primarily because of the talent level on that team. Tucker often tried to do too much while at DePaul, relying on a poor jumpshot and limited ball handling ability (read: he has no left hand). He would certainly be a good D-League prospect.

Luke Nevill - Dude is big. 7'1" and 250 lbs big. Luke Nevill is the big center from Australia, by way of Utah. He actually reminds me a little bit of Scott Schroeder's favorite Aussie of all-time: Luke Schenscher. Nevill is very tall, has soft hands and good length, but remains on the slow, unathletic, and seemingly immobile side. He got a look-see from New Orleans at the Vegas Summer League and did fairly well in the one game where he saw more than just a few minutes of action. In 22 minutes against the Timberwolves SL team he posted 12 points, 4 boards, and three blocks.

Man, this is a long post......time for some mid-post intermission

Antonio Anderson - After spending four years on a Memphis team that saw tremendous ups and downs, Anderson has worn many hats within the offensive sets of coach Calipari. The beginning of his career saw him as a hustle and transition player, while in his junior and senior seasons he blossomed into a defensive stopper and, oddly enough, an assists guy out of the two spot. Anderson's best chance at making the NBA will definitely be his defensive abilities. He's never been an explosive scorer, but he has the physical profile (6'6" 215lbs and a long wingspan) to be a solid perimeter defender.

Alade Aminu - Being the older brother of a phenom is hard, just ask Taylor Griffin. Alade's younger brother Al-Farouq Aminu has been the one garnering love from the NBA scouts, but Alade, like Taylor, is no slouch in his own right. The issue Alade has had mainly stem from his unpolished offensive game. Despite playing four years of ACC ball, it appears that he was never really utilized or developed well at Georgia Tech, as he failed to make an impact on even their worst teams. Alade possesses great physical attributes; he's 6-10, 7'3" wingspan and can run the floor with ease. I think some strength training and offensive development might slide him a little further out of his younger brother's shadow.

Wes Matthews - Yeah I know what you're thinking, "But Wes Matthews was already drafted in 1981!" It's not that Wes Matthews. This Wes Matthews is yet another four year player from Marquette (Marquette must be hurting for veteran players by now), who has the size to play Shooting Guard in the NBA, but not really the skill set. He is listed as a college SF, but would need to hone his outside shooting and his ball handling in order to play in the big leagues. During his senior season, he took on much more of the scoring and defensive assignments, pushing his stock farther along the NBA path. Despite this, his glaring weakness is that he has no weakness. Wes does a lot of things well, but nothing great. That coupled with his average athleticism should place him as a solid role player in the NBA should he get the chance.

Luke Zeller - What say you? Shall we find another unheralded older brother? Oh hey Luke Zeller! Zeller attended four years at Notre Dame and is so unappreciated that he didn't even garner a Draft Express page. Poor guy. The general consensus on him is that his lack of explosive athleticism and thin frame are a major setback for him. Unless he can really fill out his body and develop a more consistent jumper, Zeller is not a likely candidate for the NBA. Just in case you didn't know, his younger brother is Tyler Zeller of UNC fame, and he does have a Draft Express page.

Garrett Temple - This LSU product has a lot going for him in terms of height and playmaking ability, but where most NBA scouts get nervous is his lack of true bulk. At nearly 6'6" and 176lbs, Temple is badly in need of a few of those Cheddar Brats I mentioned earlier. He played for the Houston Rockets in the Vegas Summer League, and like most of the other guys on here, didn't do anything too spectacular, averaging around 5 points and little else in 12 minutes of playing time. While he was at LSU, Temple was noted to run the fast break very well and ran the point very efficiently, with nearly a 3:1 assist to turnover ratio. Though a major knock on Temple is his lack of scoring ability and his general passiveness in the halfcourt offense.

Connor Atchley - As of late, every big man with some hops and an unrefined post game has been claiming that they are the next "Birdman" aka Chris Andersen. Usually it's all smoke and mirrors because they aren't very good. In Connor Atchley's case, I think the comparison kind of works. He's 6'10" and 230lbs, and has really nice defensive ability. At Texas he was able to block and alter a lot of shots, but stayed relatively foul free while also battling down low with some of the better big men in the Big-12. Atchley is also known for his smooth jumper, which extends out to at least the college 3-point line. In terms of post moves, they are nonexistent. I'm hoping he'll consider the D-League, which would be a great training ground for the next Birdman.

Diamon Simpson - I don't know what it is about St. Mary's, but they have seemed to produce solid players who I just seem to fall in love with. Add Diamon Simpson to that list. Simpson is what you would call the undersized NBA banger. He measures approximately 6'8" with a wingspan of 7'1", weighing 230lbs. His career at St. Mary's essentially boiled down to him doing a couple things well: Defending, rebounding, and hustle. His offensive game is not great, but he does have decent footwork. He was slotted to play with the Wizards at the Vegas Summer League but sadly got no burn. The things that will get Simpson a second look from the NBA will be his hustle and defensive abilities.

Alonzo Gee - To me, Alabama product Alonzo Gee reminds me of an even more unpolished Paul Harris. He is a physically gifted player who doesn't really know how to play the game. His decision making, shooting, and defensive abilities are not particularly strong, though Gee has been known to show flashes of slashing ability and defensive awareness at times. Also, he only shoots 62% from the foul line, ouch. On the bright side, Gee is a team player, often passing well and feeding teammates for open looks. I'm hopeful that Gee will land in the D-League this season, as SEC players are just drawn to us. Oh and he has a wobbler apparently.

Hang around for Part 2 later this week! More prospects to come!

SB Nation - Sun Yue

Waive Goodbye, Part 3

Ridiculous Transactions: 10/5-10/11

Training Camp Invites - New York Knicks

Training Camp Notes: Day 1, Evening Session

Around the Association: 2009-2010 New York Knicks- Is it summatime yet?

The Coast II Coast Throwback: From the Bay to NY

"Put a little mustard on it!"

Winner: New York, New York

The miraculous herbal cure for sore backs not found in Oakland

Indian Cooking 101

Winner: Oakland, CA

Rewinding 2k8-2k9 Season

2k9 Offseason Rewind

Projecting 2k9-2k10 Season

Golden Predictions

Goals for Summer of 2k10

2009-2010 Around the Association

When LeBron James is finally a Knickerbocker in the 2010-2011 season will he sport a Cleveland Indians hat when he speaks to the media?

YES: Hometown loyalty.

NO: He'll still rock the NY.

Magic Snatch Morris Almond

Ridiculous Transactions: 9/7-9/13

Sun Yue, too.

Around the Association: 2009-2010 Los Angeles Lakers: Big Brother, Little Brother

2009-2010 Around the Association

Who has the best chance of knocking off the Lakers?

Cavaliers (Kobe vs LeBron and Shaq finals?)

Celtics (added Rasheed Wallace, repeat of the 2007 Finals)

Magic (swapped Hedo for Vinsanity, get Jameer back)

Spurs (added Richard Jefferson, get Manu back)

Other (specify in comments)

Who's Next? A Look at Undrafted Rookies (Part 1)