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**Da Grinch** · 10-25-2005, 12:03 PM

http://www.probasketballnews.com/steinberg_1024.html

a nice piece i think

Last night I woke up in a cold sweat. Confused, disheveled, unsure of even whom the bed I was in belonged to. Is this some low grade Tucker Max story? No, this is much worse. So very much worse. I woke up and suddenly thought ... what if Isiah Thomas is right?

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What if after all of that tinkering and mad scientist-like maneuvering, Isiah actually has a plan? Is it possible? Could he really be making moves that are designed to help and not hurt the team? The answer is ... yeah, maybe.

Think about it. Two years ago the Knicks were in total disarray. Fourteen billion over the cap with little but CBA talent to show for it. Once he had put together the most expensive sub-.500 squad ever, Isiah made the only logical move he could. He convinced the most out-of-touch coach in modern sports to leave his Sharper Image massage chair for a return to the hardwood. Lenny Wilkins guiding a dysfunctional, untalented, group of ball hogs. It just HAD to work. Yet for some reason, it didn’t.

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How has he done it? The Knick-tacular journey began on draft day. First, with the eighth pick, Isiah snatched up Arizona center Channing Frye. So far the 6-foot-11 big man has done very little -- except score 19 points and grab eight boards in less than 20 minutes against the defending champion Spurs, while looking George Clooney cool doing it. Twenty-two picks later, the Knicks nabbed another big man in David Lee, who just might be a double-double threat in a couple of years.

Then, thanks to a difficult exit from the 2005 playoffs, the Suns decided they needed more bulk and defense (duh), and were eager to acquire some -- maybe even overpay for it. Enter Isiah again. The Knicks traded Kurt Thomas and Dijon “Don’t call me mustard, Chris Berman” Thompson for swingman Quentin Richardson and Suns draft pick Nate Robinson.

It may still be preseason and a little early to make judgements, but Nate Robinson is the most exciting player you may ever see. Why? Cause he’s me and you. At 5-9 and 180 pounds, he’s got the speed, the hops and the badass moves to rival nearly every guard in the league. Better still, he’s averaging close to five boards a game despite being the same size as Emilio Estevez.

These three on the floor with the silky three-point shooting of Q-Rich would be enough to make any fan happy. Not Isiah. Thomas then went out and signed the human buffet, Jerome James to a five-year deal. Has James ever done anything to warrant a contract quite like that? Probably not, but the Celtics are paying the same green to Brian Scalabrine and I’m fairly sure James can out-play and out-eat him any day of the week.

And then came Eddy. Just a few weeks ago, when the Bulls were telling the world that Eddy Curry couldn’t play for them without taking a DNA test, Isiah stepped up and swung a deal. Drop the swab, Doc -- no test here. Not only did he acquire the young pivot and lock him into a long term deal (that will be insured), but he got rid of the defense allergic Tim Thomas. Curry, if healthy, is a huge upgrade at center, the best since Ewing. With the right coach behind him, he could become a monster.

Did someone say coach? Isiah’s biggest coup of the year was landing Larry Brown as his new coach. Sure, it cost more than the GDP of Uruguay to get him, but who cares? Larry is one of the few coaches in the game who means extra wins to his new team right off the bat. Few can motivate and get the most out of their players like Brown. He single-handedly returned Rasheed Wallace to top five status as a power forward and turned Chauncey Billups, every other team’s garbage, into an MVP guard.

**STUCKEY!** · 10-25-2005, 12:05 PM

Too funny

ChosenFEW · 10-25-2005, 01:15 PM

LOL......that was a pretty funny read.........the human buffet jerome james LOL!!

but its true what he said at the end "He [larry brown] single-handedly returned Rasheed Wallace to top five status as a power forward and turned Chauncey Billups, every other team’s garbage, into an MVP guard."

nice article though

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