Knicks Acquire Tracy McGrady and Sergio Rodriguez in Three-Team Trade

Several sources are reporting the Knicks, Rockets, and Kings have completed a three-team trade that sends Tracy McGrady and Sergio Rodriguez to the Knicks. 

According to ESPN;

The Knicks will acquire McGrady and Sergio Rodriguez from Sacramento, sources said.

The Rockets get Kevin Martin, Jordan Hill and Jared Jeffries from New York and will have the right to swap first-round picks with New York in 2011 as well as take on New York’s 2012 first-round pick.

Sacramento obtains Houston’s Carl Landry and Joey Dorsey and New York’s Larry Hughes.

The Knicks finally get the salary cap space they desired and get a chance to audition both Sergio Rodriguez and Tracy McGrady for the future.

According to Chad Ford of ESPN, the Knicks’ 2011 pick sent to the Rockets is Top 1 protected while the 2012 pick is Top 5 protected.

Knicks, Rockets Getting Closer to McGrady Trade

Adrian Wojnarowski and Marc Spears of Yahoo! Sports are reporting the Knicks and Rockets are inching closer to a deal that would send Tracy McGrady to New York. 

According to Wojnarowski and Spears;

The Knicks and Rockets have designed the framework of a deal that would unload New York’s Jared Jeffries, Jordan Hill and either Al Harrington or Larry Hughes for McGrady, Joey Dorsey and Brian Cook.

As talks stood on Monday, the price of dumping the burdensome contract of Jeffries – who is owed $6.9 million next season – comes with the Knicks and Rockets exchanging 2011 first-round picks and the Knicks’ 2012 first-round choice going to Houston. New York also might include a 2010 second-round pick.

The breakdown of the trade is as follows:

Knicks Receive:
G Tracy McGrady (Due $23 million in 2010 & contract expires)
F Joe Dorsey (Due $880,000 in 2010 & 2 years left on contract after this year)  
F Brian Cook (Due $3.5 million in 2010 & contract expires) 
Houston’s 2011 First Round Pick

Rockets Receive:
F Jordan Hill (Due $2.5 million in 2010 & 1 year left on contract after this year)
F Jared Jeffries (Due $6.5 million in 2010 & 1 year left on contract after this year)
F Al Harrington (Due $1o million in 2010 & contract expires) or G Larry Hughes (Due $13 million in 2010 & contract expires)
Knicks 2011 First Round Pick
Knicks 2012 First Round Pick

TNT’s David Aldridge Says McGrady to Knicks “50/50″ Chance

During the All-Star game, David Aldridge of TNT said there is a 50/50 chance the Knicks get Tracy Mcgrady before the February 18 trade deadline.

Without a third team, I don’t see the Knicks being able to acquire Tracy McGrady from the Rockets. Last week, the Knicks were rumored to be in discussions of a three-way trade for McGrady which included the Washington Wizards. The Wizards have since pulled off a seven-player trade with the Dallas Mavericks which puts an end to their involvments in trade talks with the Knicks and Rockets.

To get McGrady without involving a third team, the Knicks will have to give up a young player they value; Jordan Hill, Toney Douglas, Wilson Chandler or Danilo Gallinari. Of those players the only guys the Knicks would trade are Hill and Douglas, but reluctantly. To make the trade worthwhile, the Knicks will try to throw Jared Jeffries in the deal. That’s where the discussions end. I can’t see the Rocket entertaining the idea of taking on Jeffries’ contract.

The Knicks could try to work a trade of expiring contracts for McGrady. The Rockets and McGrady aren’t on good terms and the Rockets may want a player like Al Harrington to help them this season before his contracts expire. They could also deal Larry Hughes or Nate Robinson to the Rockets. The only thing is, being that the Rockets are on bad terms with McGrady, why would they do him a favor by trading him without getting a player of substantial value for him?

The best bet of a trade happening is if the Rockets accept expiring contracts or if another team gets involved and gives the Rockets someone of value. The Knicks won’t give up a player they are high on unless the Rockets take Jared Jeffries too and the possibility of them taking Jeffries is slim because they want to have cap space for free agency this summer just like the Knicks do.

If the Knicks desperately want McGrady, they’ll send a package of either Jordan Hill or Toney Douglas plus Al Harrington and possibly another expiring contract to Houston.

D’Antoni Will Start Nate Robinson over Chris Duhon at Point Guard

The Knicks are making a “trade” or sorts, but it’s taking place right inside their roster. Knicks head coach Mike D’Antoni will start Nate Robinson at point guard over Chris Duhon. Duhon has struggled mightily this season and Nate’s spark when on the floor can’t be missed. D’Antoni informed reporters of the switch during the post-game media session after their 107-85 win over the Wizards Wednesday night. 

About starting Robinson over Duhon D’Antoni said, “I don’t have a reason not to. I like what we saw. Hopefully it will stay that way.”

Robinson played the entire second half for the Knicks at point guard. He had 23 points, 8 assists and 6 rebounds in the game. 

The decision is a no-brainer. Robinson adds spunk to the Knicks and Duhon doesn’t add much of anything, at least lately. Duhon’s not getting the job done and D’Antoni has seen his point guard’s struggles become the teams’ struggles. 

On a side note, castoff Larry Hughes saw time on the hardwood in the Knicks win Wednesday night. He scored 11 points. He saw the floor two times in all of January.

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 Hot Streak

Coming off of an exceptional week where they won three of four games from Tuesday to Sunday, the Knicks are starting the new work week off the same way. The Knicks are 4-1 in their last five games including wins over Phoenix, Atlanta and most recently the Blazers. Their other win came over the one-win Nets and their lone loss was to the Magic. The Knicks were just 3-14 entering the Phoenix game last week that started this four-of-five winning pattern. The win over the Blazers gives the Knicks three consecutive wins. 

The recent hot streak has pulled the Knicks up to respectability and separated them from being the second worst team in the league in front of the Nets. The Knicks have stepped over Philadelphia for third place in the Atlantic Division and have their sights on the second place Raptors who have just two more wins than the Knicks do. The Atlantic division is pretty weak, making the Knicks look better in the division standings compared to the conference standings. They still sit toward the bottom of the Eastern Conference. 

Nate Robinson doesn’t seem to factor into Mike D’Antoni’s plan anymore. Nate hasn’t played in the team’s last four games and D’Antoni would rather bring in rookie Toney Douglas off the bench before Nate. 

The Knicks have been playing very well and have come out strong in the first half of games lately. In the beginning of the season they were starting out slow and by halftime they were already down by double-digits having to claw their way back in the second half. They’ll be competitive in most games over the next week fews with the way they are currently playing. Credit Larry Hughes and Al Harrington, two veterans, for playing well during this stretch.

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.

What has Donnie Walsh Really Done So Far?

Donnie Walsh was supposed to be brought into the Knicks organization as a savior.  He was supposed to cleanup Isiah’s mess and turn the team into winners.  He was brought in to appease Knicks fans and give the franchise hope.  Lets take a look at what he has done in the one year and four months that he has been the president of basketball operations of the team.  

Walsh’s first area of business was hiring a new head coach and he lured in ex-Sun’s coach Mike D’Antoni and his explosive seven seconds or less offense.  This was Donnie’s first move and it was a great one.  D’Antoni comes with a pretty good resume and playoff experience.  

This is to the extent in which Walsh has proved he is worth all the hype.  Since then, he has done minimal to improve the Knicks.  I know he has been able to let go of some dead weight and regain some financial flexibility but he hasn’t improved the talent on the team.  You can say he is positioning the team to make a splash in next year’s free agency but what if he isn’t able to land an elite player in 2010?  Then what?  All of this dumping of salary is great but if the Knicks don’t use the money on superstars, then they are going to be stuck as a mediocre team because those elite free agents will turn teams into contenders. 

The players that Walsh was able to acquire so far are guys like Chris Duhon, Darko Milicic, and Larry Hughes.  There’s no elite talent there.  He drafted decent players (Gallinari and Hill), but no elite players (yet anyway).  Walsh hasn’t done anything extraordinary and I believe the job he has done so far could have been done by other guys.  It’s what he does next summer that will show us if he really is the great basketball savior we all expected.   

Donnie Walsh has a lot of work to do and this summer has been terrible  Other than the draft, he has done nothing to improve the talent on the team.  He has tried.  He put out some offers to veterans but nothing has panned out.  Hopefully Donnie can put a team on the court that will play well in 2009-10 and hopefully he can land a superstar in free agency next summer.