SB Nation User Blog: Anthony Masons Haircut

Complaining just to Complain

Anthony Masons Haircut — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 03:42:44 -0000

Editor's Note: Mase brings it once more. This is excellent. Game Thread coming soon.

Sometimes I really like Mike Lupica. When the Knicks were relevant in the 1990's, his columns were a must-read. He often praised the team for their effort, and was one of the few staunch Patrick Ewing defenders in the latter years of his career while others were highly critical.

But, there are other times I really don't like Mike Lupica. Like when he's writing his 1,781st column on the Yankees' bloated payroll, preaching his extreme political views in a sports column (dude, you're a sports writer - not Keith Olberman), or complaining about the Knicks.

I can complain too. I know that April 29, 2001 was the date of the last Knicks' playoff win. I remember where I was when Ewing drove past Alonzo Mourning for a clinching dunk that gave the Knicks their last playoff series win in Game 7 of the 2000 Eastern Conference Finals. I remember Scott Layden. I remember trading for Shandon Anderson, Howard Eisley, and Keith Van Horn. I also remember trading four first round draft picks in the Stephon Marbury and Eddy Curry deals combined. I've donned my Larry Johnson jersey for good luck on Draft nights that yielded prized prospects like Renaldo Balkman, Mardy Collins, Channing Frye, and a trade that brought a fat Zach Randolph with an even fatter contract. I've gone through the Jerome James, Vin Baker, and Jared Jeffries eras.

I know how much it sucks to not make the playoffs and not be competitive. I also know how much it sucks root for a proud franchise that's become nothing more than a punchline.

That being said, I'm complained-out.

I'm tired and I'm pissed off, but I'm also numb to it. It's been almost a decade of this shit. What's another year?

Lupica chooses to take offense to the Knicks not signing Allen Iverson. He argues that A.I. wouldn't have made the Knicks a better team, but would've made them a "better ticket". Really? That's what we've been reduced to? "Well, the Knicks still suck but with Iverson at least they're entertaining?" Entertaining how? Entertaining like the Stephon Marbury saga? Entertaining like Isiah Thomas' pathetic head coaching stint? Entertaining like his subsequent sexual harassment lawsuit? Give me a break.

Are you not entertained, Knicks fans?

Lupica cites Iverson's leadership eight years ago when he took the Sixers to the NBA Finals at the height of the Eastern Conference's sucktitude (an era which also included TWO Nets teams that won the conference). He even compares him Latrell Sprewell (!).

Lupica pretends to be speaking for the fans, but obviously he a) doesn't read this blog, and b) doesn't know basketball. Iverson was cut by Memphis. MEMPHIS. He's a 34-year old undersized two-guard that can barely play anymore, and that nobody wants. Oh, and did I mention the guy still thinks he's a starter?

I could give two shits about being entertained. I want this team to win. The Knicks aren't going to win this year, with or without Iverson. So I don't blame Donnie Walsh for sparing his team the unnecessary drama that Iverson would undoubtedly bring.

This team still sucks, but people have to understand that it takes time to climb out of the nuclear crater left by Isiah Thomas and his predecessor Scott Layden. The plan was to use the 2009-10 season as a throwaway year. You may not like it. I don't either. But, I'm willing to live with it because guess what? IT'S A PLAN. This team hasn't had one of those since Checketts and Grunfeld were running things and I had braces.

So, root for Gallo. Close your eyes when Larry Hughes shoots. Thinks of names for Mike D'Antoni's mustache (Luigi is my personal choice). Curse when Chris Duhon attempts a three-pointer. Critique Clyde's blazer. Listen to Jordan Hill's album. Vent frustration on Al Harrington's shot-selection on P&T. Let Darko spin. DWTDD. Bite the bullet and deal with it.

But, please stop complaining.

Knicks say "No" to Iverson

Anthony Masons Haircut — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:16:28 -0000

Knicks say "No" to Iverson

good news. even with Duhon's epic sucktitude, there's no reason to roll the dice on an aging, locker room cancer like A.I.

i was starting to wonder if Donnie Walsh knew what year it was. think about it - pursuits of Grant Hill and Jason Kidd in the offseason (both All-Stars in '98), trading for Al Harrington (High School Player of the Year in '98), Larry Hughes (9th overall pick in '98) and Cuttino Mobley (also drafted in '98).

if he really thought it was 1998, why not bring back LJ, Houston, Childs, and Camby - then package Mills, Starks, and Cummings for Sprewell? it worked before.

Knicks 110, Pacers 103

Anthony Masons Haircut — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:29:50 -0000

Editor's Note: Mase was in attendance, and took over recap duties for the Knicks' second win of the season. Here he is...

Morning, dogs and poodles! I got to catch one of the few Knicks' wins this season live and in person, in what was a pretty weird and sloppy game to say the least.

Game-time attire: Larry Johnson road jersey I got when I was a teenager, $8 Starburys, orange t-shirt. You know how people say a shirt is a smedium (between a small and medium)? This jersey is like a infxmall (between infant and extra-small).

PREGAME

- I actually having a working season media credential for the Pacers but they'd likely frown upon me wearing an LJ jersey and rooting openly for the Knicks. So instead I bought $15 balcony seats (Section 223, Row 21, Seat 4 - look that shit up, it's like three rows from the top) for six bucks a pop for myself and a few Pacers' fan friends. I might has well have been watching the game from one of the rings of Saturn.

- Conseco Fieldhouse is universally regarded as the best venue in the NBA, and those rankings are legit. There isn't a bad vantage point in the place, including my shit seats. If you're in Indy whenever the Pacers are relevant again, or the Big Ten Tournament ever becomes visually appealing, do yourself a favor and check it out.

FIRST QUARTER

- Both DWTDD and Gallo were in the starting lineup again. I was encouraged, thinking that they would actually play more than 20 minutes tonight. I was wrong.

- Eddy Curry entered the game somewhere around the 8:00 mark. It took him eleven seconds to pick up his first foul.

- There was a sick chair-pull on Wilson Chandler by ~~Malik Rose~~ Dahntay Jones. Inexplicably, no travel was called.

- This was the highly-anticipated homecoming of Jared Jeffries, a former Indiana Mr. Basketball (that's Indiana high school basketball player of the year to you) at Bloomington North and one of the leaders of IU's 2001-02 squad that went all the way to the National Championship game. Think Kobe's first trip back to Philadelphia sans any ~~standing ovations~~ audible cheering.

- Danny Granger showing signs of going off early. Knicks keep within one.

SECOND QUARTER

- The Pacers went nuts, specifically Granger. He cruised to 29 points at halftime, and the Pacers were on pace for 128, which wouldn't be a surprise with this Knicks' D. They scored 43 in the 2nd, and just 60 in the other three quarters combined.

- Chris Duhon missed a wide-open layup after two Pacers went towards David Lee on a pick and roll and left him free. That's just the kind of respect that Du gets nowadays. He needs to quit basketball.

- Does Roy Hibbert remind anyone else of a young Zydrunas llgauskas (but black)? I guess the real question is: was Z ever "young"?

HALFTIME

- Got all of zero comments about my LJ jersey. To say Pacers' fans are apathetic about their team would be the understatement of the century.

- Two teams of Indianapolis 2nd graders scrimmaged at halftime. The blue team's offense looked more fluid than the Knicks did in the first half.

THIRD QUARTER

- Tyler Hansbrough took over for a short stretch with a soft J, a layup, and a putback plus one. I'm surprised that he's been this effective so far. I'm not sure about his Rookie of the Year candidacy, but he'd certainly get my vote for Douchebag of the Year (boom, roasted).

- In all seriousness though, it's pretty disturbing that Hansbrough is already more productive than Jordan Hill. Hill is about two years away from being an average NBA player. Hansbrough is already an average NBA player. Just saying.

- What the hell happened to Nate Robinson? There's a short dude wearing #4, but it doesn't look like the Nate I know.

- After falling behind 19, the Knicks end the quarter on an 11-0 run. I keep thinking that if they could just string together a few stops, they'd be back in this one. Instead, I prepared for the Pacers to blow it back open.

FOURTH QUARTER

- Eddy Curry went to the free throw line four times in the first five minutes with the Knicks trailing by eleven. One time he cut the lead to ten.

- Apparently Dahntay Jones is a scorer now? He's a career 6 ppg guy, but was the Pacers only real scoring threat late.

- With the game on the line, the Knicks have a lineup of Al, Jeffries, Du, Hughes, and Lee. I puked in my mouth a bit.

- Curry was being aggressive but he still sucks. It's really reassuring to know that the two picks that Isiah traded for him turned into double-double machine Joakim Noah, and LaMarcus Aldridge, one of the best young players in the league (slams head into wall).

- A second Harrington three gets the Knicks within one. It was enough to make me stand up and be a dick about it to the remaining fans.

- A couple of Pacers' turnovers late seal it. I walk out of Conseco Fieldhouse wondering what just happened.

CONCLUSION

- Sloppy game. 36 combined turnovers. 23 combined miss free throws. Did I mention the Pacers shot 24 percent in the 2nd half? Yikes.

- This game was a microcosm of the last two years of the Pacers. Saturday night they beat-up on Boston, four days later they're blowing a 19-point lead to the hapless Knicks. They're a frustrating team to watch. It's weird because as much as I hated them throughout the 90's, I do somewhat pull for them to do well now. Side note: I never got the whole "second team thing" - like "oh, the Knicks are my #1 team but I also root for the Pacers". What? Sure there are teams that I like (i.e. Kansas City Royals) more than others (i.e. Boston Red Sox) but I root for the Knicks, Giants, and Yankees. That's it. Screw everyone else.

- Larry Hughes' line: 22 pts, 10 reb, 7 ast . The Knicks were +24 (!) with Hughes on the floor. I think HeyLarryHughesPleaseStopTakingSoManyBadShots.com crashed shortly afterwards.

- I wish Al would play as hard and tough against everybody as he does against his former team. 26 points for him off the bench while keying the game-clinching 20-3 run. Safe to say he's a Pacer-killer.

- I mentioned who the Knicks had on the floor late. I'll never complain about a win, but what are the Knicks gaining by playing Larry Hughes 35 minutes and Jared Jeffries 27 minutes? 31 minutes combined for DWTDD, Gallo, and Hill - that's not enough. I'd rather the Knicks go 2-80 getting those guys meaningful NBA experience instead of going 20-62 by showcasing Larry fucking Hughes and a suddenly-not-obese Eddy Curry.

- Brandon Jennings only scored 19 points tonight, lowering his season average to a measly 24.8 ppg. See? I knew Hill was the right choice at #8. Eat shit draft pundits!

- Good thing I didn't bring my Free Darko! sign. He inexplicably sat (again).

- On the way out, someone commented on my infxmall LJ jersey. I could've turned around and said "scoreboard!" like a 14-year old, but I decided to act like a grown-up in a jersey that I got when I was 14 years old.

- A win is a win is a win. There's actually a pretty big difference between 2-9 and 1-10. The Knicks are now on pace for a 15-67 record instead of 8-74 (pops champagne).

Winless Nets on Saturday. Woo.

Cock Shot

Anthony Masons Haircut — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 16:33:03 -0000

Cock Shot

Before he turned into a 6'10-do-it-all-Italian-wunderkind and P&T man-crush, Gallo was rocking the 90's mushroom cut in Serbia.

(side note: are those basketball shoes or Dutch clogs?)

Mase says RELAX...

Anthony Masons Haircut — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 17:15:51 -0000

(I usually hate referring to myself in the third person, but I needed an attention-grabber).

In case you didn't realize the season started, the Knicks are 0-2. A blowout loss in Miami was followed by a double-overtime loss to the putrid Bobcats. Here we go again.

Yet, a lot of you (some newbies to the site, which is great) are screaming for Mike D'Antoni and Donnie Walsh's heads on a platter.

Not to sound too blunt, but who cares?

Is it frustrating that this team is pathetic? Of course. But, there's nothing that Walsh or anyone else could've done about it this season. I mean, what's the difference between winning 20 games and 35 games? In either scenario, the Knicks don't gain anything. I hate to see this team be a last-place punchline, but it's not like the Knicks can become even more of a joke than they already are, even if they went 10-72. The only thing that makes me want to punch the wall and mercilessly stomp on the heads of woodland critters is the fact that the Knicks don't have a first round pick this year. There is no silver lining to winning 20 games.

I hate you so much.

What happened to said first round pick (of the unprotected variety)?

Isiah Thomas (drink!) sent it to Phoenix, who then sent it to Utah. In a hilarious chain of events, the Jazz will have acquired a potential top-five pick for Keon Clark and Ben Handlogten. (Cue squirrel head-stomp)

Try blaming that on Walsh or D'Antoni.

It's silly to blame the new regime because no matter what they did via the draft or free agency, the Knicks wouldn't have improved enough to climb over Orlando, Boston, or Cleveland this season. Hell, I doubt they could've even surpassed Atlanta or Chicago. Would Jason Kidd have made that big of a difference? How about Grant Hill? Hey, maybe if it was 1997, the Knicks would've been one of the top teams in the league with that dynamic backcourt.

The focus is on the future as it should be. The biggest mistake this franchise made was not rebuilding at the end of the Ewing era***, and trying to piece things together by throwing money all over the place. The current regime seems to have some sort of plan in place which is a lot more than I can say for either Scott Layden or Isiah Thomas (drink!) and their whole Hire-a-Coach, Fire-a-Coach merry-go-round.

***isn't it ironic that after all the Ewing-haters wanted him run out of town in late 90's, the Knicks haven't won a single playoff series since he was dealt? 2-7 playoff record and 7+ losing seasons since Ewing's departure - that was after fourteen straight years of making the playoffs and eight straight seasons of reaching at least the Conference Semifinals. Guess what Bill Simmons? Your Ewing Theory is fucking bullshit.

As for D'Antoni, it has to be tough to run SSOL with a bunch of guys that can't shoot the ball (outside of Gallo). I'm going to hold off judging him until he has someone other than Chris Duhon starting at point. At least he seems to be the best coach this team has had since JVG, even though that isn't really saying much.

I've sat through this entire decade of bad basketball and even worse management. I'm almost numb to it. The most surprising thing to me is that people are actually shocked to see this team struggle. Any realistic fans knew that this was a group that on paper was going to struggle to win 30 games.

April 29, 2001 is the date of the last Knicks' postseason victory (not to be confused with April 26, 1992 - the Sublime song). That was almost nine years ago.

I'm frustrated just like all of you, but one more year of sucktitude isn't going to bother me.

Give Walsh and D'Antoni a chance to right this ship.

$10 million per for Nate?

Anthony Masons Haircut — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 22:54:29 -0000

$10 million per for Nate?

Knicks' beat writer and Eddy Curry lover Marc Berman is reporting that the pro team Oilykmpkiakoiks (extra k's and i's added for Greek emphasis) is offering Nate Robinson a package that translates to $10 million (!) per season.

Also, Lee has an expiring five-year offer from Donnie & Co.

Knicks offer Hill one-year deal

Anthony Masons Haircut — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 18:28:30 -0000

Knicks offer Hill one-year deal

Editor's Note: Thanks to Mase for snaggling the story while I'm at work. One year and half the mid-level (around $3 mill) seems perfectly reasonable to me.

via Celtics Blog via Sporting News via New York Post.

No specifics on the deal, it only says "a portion" of the team's MLE. The Celtics could only muster $1.9 million, which wasn't good enough.

Update: "Contrary to a published report, the Knicks have not made a formal offer to Hill, but, according to a source, Hill's agent, Lon Babby, did discuss parameters of a potential deal with Knicks president Donnie Walsh." - Seth

ACTUAL Radioactive Fallout from Z-Bo/Q-Rich swap

Anthony Masons Haircut — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 12:04:45 -0000

P&T member and easy to remember nicknamer nyknickerbocker just posted his thoughts on the Z-Bo/Q deal and what it meant for the Knicks potentially keeping David Lee. Memphis is all hot and bothered by our resident double-double machine, and reportedly offered him a 4/5 year deal in the $10 million per range. But, with the acquisition of Randolph, maybe the Grizzlies will back off.

However, nyknickerbocker outlined this very well (check out his post), so I won't address it.

What I did want to address is the ACTUAL potential radioactive fallout from the Zach Randolph/Quentin Richardson swap. We've seen really bad deals orchestrated by former team president Isiah Thomas - two first round picks for Eddy Curry, Trevor Ariza for Steve Francis, MLE's for Jerome James, Jared Jeffries, and Vin fucking Baker - but have we ever seen two former Isiah trade acquisitons get traded FOR EACH OTHER?

Could there be dire consequences when one terrible trade chip (Quentin Richardson) gets shipped out for another (Zach Randolph)? Floods? Locusts? Pissed-off Baikal Seals?

Randolph only cost the Knicks Channing Frye, and ~~Steven Francis'~~ the-haunting-soul's expiring contract. Plus, Spike Lee discussing the trade did give us (pause) - one of the fondest memories in P&T's short history. You could actually make the argument that the Richardson deal, despite his ridiculous contract (almost $9M), worked out for the Knicks because it included the draft pick that eventually became Nate Robinson.

My thinking is that because neither the Q-Rich nor Z-Bo trades were necessarily terrible (at least by Isiah standards), that there may only be an 5.2 earthquake or some lighter shit like that (be prepared).

However, what if Jared Jeffries ever got traded for say Tim Thomas... armageddon? The same could apply for coaches. Could planet earth handle Lenny Wilkens replacing he-who-must-not-be-named in Charlotte? Both of these theories pale in comparison to my biggest feat - an Isiah-era acquisition getting traded for a Scott Layden-era acquisition. If Eddy Curry ever got traded for the still-not-expired Keith Van Horn contract and a fresh-out-of-retirement Shandon Anderson...

...then we'd all be totally screwed.

Q: Who is Mike Taylor?

Anthony Masons Haircut — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 02:13:36 -0000

A: He was a 2nd round draft pick out of Iowa State who now plays for the Los Angeles Clippers.

via cache.daylife.com

Fun with Numbers involving Mike Taylor

157 - the number of points scored by Mike Taylor this season entering Wednesday night's game vs. Knicks.

35 - the numbers of points scored by Mike Taylor in Wednesday night's game vs. Knicks.

22% - the total percent of Mike Taylor's season points scored in one night by Mike Taylor against the Knicks.

454 - the number of points that Dwyane Wade would have to score in one game in order to reach 22% of his season total (2,064).

4/12/2009 - the date of the next Knicks/Heat game in Miami.

2 - the number of times Al dumbass Harrington has had a technical foul in the final minute costing the Knicks' potential wins this season.

2 - the number of times Al received said technical against the Los Angeles Clippers.

33-107 - the combined record of the Kings and Clippers, both teams the Knicks have lost home games to in the past week.

cue Francis the Vomiting Man...

Sessions vs. Nate

Anthony Masons Haircut — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 14:09:58 -0000

To continue the discussion from last night and today's recap, I decided to try to make the argument that going after Ramon Sessions and letting Nate walk may be more beneficial than signing Nate to a long-term deal.

If you take a look at the stats, Sessions PER numbers this season are nothing to scoff at:

16.7 ppg, 6.4 ast, 4.4 reb, 1.4 stl, 45% FG

Those numbers are pretty much a wash when compared with Nate's:

17.9 ppg, 4.0 ast, 2.7 reb, 1.5 stl, 45% FG

PROS: Sessions turns just 23 in April and only made $424K this year. He's 6'3, and can play defense. Not that Nate is the worst defender in the world, but his height is certainly a glaring flaw.

CONS: Sessions is NOT a three-point shooter. In fact, he's just 6-33 for the entire season (Nte probably shoots 33 three-pointers a week). Also, his dunks aren't as cool.

Considering that he made $427K this year, i'm assuming (emphasis on "assuming") that Sessions shouldn't demand much more than about $6M on a short deal, maybe three years or so at $2M per. That's a big drop-off from Nate, who should command anywhere from $5-7M per year. I'd like to re-sign Nate, but the organization has to keep the blueprints for 2010 intact. If you can get a player with similar production for one-third (or even one-fourth) of the cost, it makes sense.

It's at least something to consider.