Tracy McGrady Trade Rumors, Knicks

UPDATE: According to Yahoo! sports, the Knicks are discussing a possible three-team trade that would send Tracy McGrady to the Knicks. 

Weeks ago it didn’t seem as though the Knicks were going to pursue a trade for Tracy McGrady of the Rockets. One reporter even called a possible trade for T-Mac “Dead”. Now it seems as though the Knicks are rekindling the idea. 

On January 26th, Marc Berman of the New York Post wrote:

“Houston’s Tracy McGrady should be traded at the deadline and perhaps Chicago’s Tyrus Thomas, too. Both are squarely on Walsh’s radar. Rockets general manager Daryl Morey only has interest in a Knicks’ package if either rookie Jordan Hill or Chandler are part of it.”

One source thinks the Rockets would except a package around rookie Toney Douglas too. 

Hill, yes. Douglas, yes. Chandler, no. Wilson Chandler is a guy that could be a core part of the Knicks for years. We haven’t seen enough of Jordan Hill yet, but what we have seen hasn’t been impressive. Douglas has had some bright spots, but has been inconsistent. 

McGrady is set to become a free agent after this season. If the Rockets are willing to accept a package of Jordan Hill, Jared Jeffries or Eddy Curry, plus an expiring contract, the Knicks should jump on it and run like they just stole something because it will be tough to persuade them into taking Jeffries or Curry  - tough and extremely unlikely. 

The most likely trade scenario is one of the players the Rockets allegedly want (Hill, Douglas or Chandler) plus expiring contracts.

Knicks, Hughes Unhappy, Curry Out 6 Weeks, Robinson in Dunk Contest

The Knicks were hot heading into January and remained hot during the first week of 2010’s first month. Since then, the Knicks have gone cold and have hit a rough patch. They are 1-4 in their last five games and are having some off-the-court issues.

The off-court news starts with an injury note. Center Eddy Curry will undergo arthroscopic debridement today to remove loose cartilage in his knee. He will miss about six weeks.

Staying off-court, Larry Hughes is upset about his role, or lack-thereof, in Mike D’Antoni’s rotation. Nate Robinson’s insertion into D’Antoni’s rotation has taken away minutes from Hughes and he has not taking a liking to it. Hughes sounded off to reporters last week after he didn’t play in the Knicks’ blowout 132-89 victory over the Pacers. Now the New York Post has reported that Hughes walked out of practice.

In better news, Nate Robinson will defend his title in this year’s Slam Dunk Contest.

Knicks Roster Will Look Drastically Different Next Season

Of the Knicks’ current roster, only Wilson Chandler, Danilo Gallinari, Toney Douglas, and Jordan Hill are locks to be on the team next year. Nate Robinson, Eddy Curry (player option), Chris Duhon, Al Harrington, Larry Hughes, Jared Jeffries (early termination option), David Lee, Darko Milicic, Marcus Landry and Cuttino Mobley will be unrestricted free agents while Marcus Landry will be a restricted free agent after this season.

Donnie Walsh hopes to stock and reload the roster and obtain at least one NBA superstar. The Knicks players who are in their final year of their contracts know they probably don’t fit into Donnie’s plans. They know the organization is eyeing superstars like LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh, to name a few. The point is that the current Knicks will be free agents too and looking to sign contracts themselves. They need to play well in New York this season to get paid by another team next season. Players like Al Harrington, Larry Hughes, David Lee and Nate Robinson won’t get great attention because of the glaring star-power in the free agent class but they’ll be expected to make an impact on the teams that sign them. A poor showing in 2009-2010 will hurt their chances of signing good contracts.

It behooves the current Knicks to play well and win games. It behooves the organization because they don’t have a first round pick and want to show potential free agents there is a good, young group of players to build around. Most of the current Knicks know they aren’t in the team’s future plans, but they are playing for themselves right now as much as they are playing for the team. The team just isn’t that good.

Chandler, Gallinari, and Douglas could be a good trio Donnie Walsh can build around. Hill hasn’t played enough to get a feel of how he’ll be. The roster will be completely overhauled before next season and an entire city is hoping Donnie Walsh can put together a playoff caliber team.

Knicks Come From Behind to Beat Pacers

The Knicks got their second win of the season in a comeback victory at Indiana. The Knicks were down by as many as 13 in the third quarter and pulled out a 110-103 win. They played good defense in the second half and outscore the Pacers 34-17 in the fourth quarter. Larry Hughes scored 22 and Al Harrington scored 26, both came off the bench. Eddy Curry, who hasn’t played in two years, made his season debut and put up 10 points and four rebounds. Second year Knick, Danilo Gallinari, who averaged just under 16 points per game in the first 10 games, didn’t score bucket in the game.

The Pacers only scored 34 points in the second half and the Knicks scored that in the fourth quarter alone. The Knicks were down by 15 at the half and let the Pacers score 43 in the second quarter. 

The veterans played most of the second half and the younger players didn’t have much of a hand in the comeback win. It’s good to see the veterans, who know the Knicks are trying to put together a strong, young nucleus for the future and probably won’t involve them, play hard down the stretch. 

The Knicks could make it two in a row when they host the 0-12 Nets on Saturday.