The rub: No matter what anyone says about Zach Randolph after his performance against the Spurs, heads would have rolled if the Knicks didn't try to get under the cap. The big prize was Lebron. They say hindsight is 20/20. Means nothing if you are blind to that fact. Its still a fun scenerio to talk about. Who's really better? Zach or Amar'e? Was it worth it to shuffle shooting guards for 3 seasons? Was trading eventually all their starting calibre small forwards for 1 alpha dog really worth it?
Bottom line with the Amar'e/Zach conversation is Amar'e can't rebound. End of conversation. Why is it the end? Zach is not a threat to drop 40-50 like Amar'e, but he will give you 20/10 the minimum every night. The kicker with Zach is he will drop 20/20 on you too. Has Amar'e even come close to that as a Knick? Zach is also low maintenance. He's gonna get 4-6 points off put backs in traffic. He doesn't need plays called for him. So you can forget about Zach for a while on offense because he finds his way to the ball anyway. Amar'e is more explosive than Zach. Amar'e uses that to bully his man. That gets Amar'e in trouble with charges at times. Zach is an old school guy that uses head fakes, spins, hook shots, floaters, step back jumpers, etc. He can also spot up and do the same explosive plays Amar'e does without having to jump over his man every time. He's just more efficient. The knock on the dude is his off the court stuff. He never had a problem playing basketball. As a knick he was excellent. The team was horrible, but their was that little stint under D'antoni where he played superb ball with David Lee. They had a great two man game going, totally controlling the boards and the points in the paint. If the Knicks didn't join the espn hype machine, maybe they could have added a starting calibre shot blocker with size to support that winning combination.
Knicks also had the best ball handler in the league at the 2 guard spot in Jamal Crawford. He Is also the best bad shot maker in league history. History? He leads the league in 4pt plays. End of conversation. Nobody could strip him of the ball and he could get anywhere he wants at any time. That's a dynamic we all never appreciated while he was here. The knicks have been trying to find that talent since he was traded. Landry Fields was thoroughly exposed in the playoffs. He's a rookie but if he had the confidence of a Jamal Crawford the Knicks could have completed with anyone. It all comes down to defense. Anyone talking about Jamal's defense on Atlanta? As a team Atlanta handles business. The Knicks going forward had the ability to do that. Knicks had to get under the cap though. Can't knock it for reasons explained above. I just gotta say one thing. You gotta move the ball but nothing is happening you absolutely need someone to move the ball by themselves and attract defensive attention. Believe that.
Its all hypothetical now. Using your imagination, could a Zach, Wilson, probably Gallo, a resigned David Lee(probably cheaper), say a Joakim Noah/Dalembert/Tyson Chandler type, Crawford and decent point guard with a jumpshot win in Ny. Yes, no question. Hypothetically, the knicks can still win the way things are right now. Knicks have Melo, Amar'e, Chancey Billups, Toney Douglas, and Landry Fields all locked in for next year. Knicks need a legit center that can rebound, bang and finish. They need a legit shooting guard that can score the ball with his jumpshot and ball handling ability. They need a spot starter at the 4/5 off the bench to preserve the health of Amar'e Stoudamire. They need a legit back up point guard that can push the ball and create to preserve Chancey Billups. Can they do it? If anyone can its Donnie Walsh. His situation with the team is key.
After keeping Chancey for another year at his current near Max salary, the Knicks can't afford any big names. The difference now is ny is more attractive to play. Who wouldn't want to play with Amar'e, Melo and Chancey? Knicks will probably have their fair share of veterans who will come over cheap just to try and piggy back on a championship. A Championship in Ny is not a tough sell. At least not now. Their is the outside possibility the Knicks hold back yet another off season just to try and get Chris Paul. As we already witnessed in the playoffs, health is not a given. Every season that goes by the window of opportunity closes a bit. I got the feeling, at least I hope the Knicks take this off season seriously. If not? Well they might as well have kept Zach and Crawford.
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