Isiah’s Knicks Kick Off Summer of Rebuilding

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And they’re off! Tuesday’s announcement of a new collective bargaining agreement between the NBA and its players allowed teams to get down to business, and the Knicks aren’t wasting any time.


Two provisions of the new agreement have major implications for New York. The first is a one-time opportunity for teams to dump unwanted contracts. Every team will get a chance this summer to waive one player. That player’s contract still counts against the salary cap and the team still has to pay the player his salary, but the team would no longer be obligated to pay luxury tax to the league owed for that contact.


This is of obvious interest to Knicks President Isiah Thomas because of Allan Houston’s massive contract. Houston’s knees are bad enough that he may never play again, but the Knicks still owe him close to $40 million over the next two seasons. Since the Knicks are over the luxury-tax threshold even without Houston’s contract, cutting him now would save the Knicks tens of millions of dollars in future payments. It almost appears the rule was put in specifically so the Knicks could cut Houston, as no other team has such a clear-cut case of a contract that needs unloading.


That said, a few other teams may also decide to take advantage of the ruling. Expect Portland to part ways with Derek Anderson, who like Houston has a bad knee and a big contract. The incentives may also be enough for the Timberwolves to dump Troy Hudson or Michael Olowokandi, and the Sixers to unload Kevin Ollie.


Houston’s departure is a matter of “when,” but another deak the Knicks are working on is a matter of “if.” New York is rumored to be mulling a trade with Phoenix that would send Kurt Thomas to the Suns in return for Quentin Richardson. The cap implications of this trade are insignificant – a rarity for the Knicks – but it does help them to align their talent better.


Right now, New York has almost no depth in the backcourt or on the wings, which is why the team has been forced to give so much playing time to mediocrities like Penny Hardaway and Shandon Anderson in recent seasons. On the other hand, you can’t swing a cat in the Knicks’ locker room without hitting a power forward.


In that sense, trading Thomas, an established power forward, for a perimeter player would be an obvious fix. At 32, Thomas is unlikely to still be a productive player when the rebuilding job is complete. (I realize this statement presumes the rebuilding will ever be completed, but I’m trying to see the glass as half full.) Additionally, removing Crazy Eyes from the equation would clear the way for Michael Sweetney to become a full-time starter.


It’s less obvious to me why Phoenix would pull the trigger on this trade. True, Thomas is a solid defender and the Suns need to improve their defense, but the cost seems fairly high. At 25, Richardson should be much more productive over the next three seasons, and he plays a position where the Suns have little in reserve. A stated reason for Phoenix to make this move was that Thomas’s arrival would allow Amare Stoudemire to play his natural power forward spot. But as a center, Thomas is an even bigger poser than Stoudemire was. The trade would make the Suns bigger and slower, harming the devastating fast-break attack that was the key to last season’s success.


As an added plus for the Knicks, Isiah would land a conditional first-round draft pick in the trade. Normally, “conditional” is code for “lottery-protected,” but considering Phoenix’s success last season, that probably doesn’t matter. What is important for New York is that the deal would continue Isiah’s recent strategy of accumulating draft choices. Since the draft is one of the few things Zeke has consistently done well, the strategy plays to his strengths.


Overall, New York’s off-season facelift is just beginning, but already we can see the outlines. The Knicks are well into the process of unloading the older players they imported with such zeal in the previous few seasons. In doing so, perhaps they’re finally paving the way for a quality team to emerge a few years down the road.


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