Knicks Knacks

Shaking the sand out of my shoes

July

The sun was out all week on the Delaware seashore, which I can highly reccomend if you happen to enjoy miniature golf, a plate full of seafood or just kicking back in a beach chair with a good book.

Don’t forget to apply sunscreen to your feet, though.

I was back in time on Sunday to watch the final game of summer league, and have seen bits and pieces of earlier games. Truth be told, it was kind of a worthless exercise without Danilo Gallinari on the floor. Any thoughts?

Wilson Chandler looked pretty good at times. Remember, though, it’s only summer league and rotation players should be getting 18 points a game against that kind of competition. To move past Quentin Richardson when training camp opens he needs to connect from the perimeter on a consistent basis and play hard-nosed defense.

Anthony Roberson seems properly equipped to provide a scoring jolt off the bench.

Mardy Collins probably has to make some big adjustments in order to get off the bench next season. He doesn’t appear to have the kind of explosiveness required to go by defenders and initiate the Mike D’Antoni offense in a timely fashion. If the Knicks need to clear a roster spot, he might go before Jerome James.

Zach Randolph didn’t come to Las Vegas, which might be a good thing.

Let me know what you saw. Or perhaps you turned off the set once Gallinari was shut down.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 22nd, 2008 at 10:02 am by Mike Dougherty.
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5 Responses to “Shaking the sand out of my shoes”

stingy d July 22nd, 2008 at 11:33 am
mardy collins is the worst player on the team. far and away. a turnover in the making. the only reason he doesn’t get turnovers sometimes, is because he does thigns that are so bizarre, that defenders get confused for 3 and 4 seconds while he holds the ball, and they trick themselves into fouling him.

chandler is good, and works hard which i like. but the jumper is still suspect.

gallinari i bet will be fine. ruling out the possbility of an injury riddled career, i bet he amounts to an almost all star for his career. which anyone would love to hae on their squad. a mike bibby type. never too incredible (maybe for a stretch unstoppable) – always a major focus for the opposition.
benny July 22nd, 2008 at 11:42 am
Danilo = Darko Milicic
islesfan July 22nd, 2008 at 5:09 pm
I saw that Gallinari has a nice shooting touch but may not have consistent NBA 3pt range.

I saw that Gallinari lacks the explosiveness to get past most NBA centers much less PF’s and SF’s. He actually uses a running start when he wants to make a move.

I saw that Gallinari has good court vision and feel for the game.

I saw that Gallinari isn’t a toothpick and still lacks the strength to get through a Summer League game without getting hurt. How much more weight can be put on without effecting his game?

I saw that Gallinari is too slow to guard SF’s. He has to play so far off to prevent getting blown by.

I saw that Gallinari is too weak and slow to guard PF’s. He’s going to get pushed around very easily in the NBA.

Most of all, I saw that the Knicks screwed up big time by not taking Jerryd Bayless.
dan July 22nd, 2008 at 5:46 pm
Welcome back Mike,

With NBA TV now showing all the games from Vegas and The Rocky Mountain Review, the summer league seems to be gaining importance. Players must realize that the games are going out nationally now and seem to be bringing more intensity. I’m sure more big(ger) names are showing up as well. It really is fun for the hard core fan. There are some good players. Luke Jackson looked great today for Atlanta, for example.

The Knicks were a disappointment. Losing Balkman to injury when we already know what he can do is stupid. Not getting to see Danillo is a minor bummer for the jones-ing basketball fool in July but not a major catastrophe. Roberson doesn’t make any sense to me. He’s a guard who doesn’t pass (insert obvious joke here). The squad was poorly constructed with no beef down low so they got pounded. Nate looked disinterested and rusty.

Overall though, none of it seemed much of a concern to Walsh or D’Antoni so I won’t worry too much about it. It was great to hear extended interviews with those guys. It was good to hear from Jamal Crawford as well, who is a classy individual and I’ll be rooting for him as we progress. Danillo looked good in limited action. Wilson Chandler will compete for a starting job.
knicksdefense July 23rd, 2008 at 11:02 am
islesfan

That’s funny, I watched every second of every game and did not see half the things you saw.

The summer league is a showcase, nothing more.

You can’t write a player off based on one week’s performances in vegas.

Also, you can’t crown the next king based on any performances in vegas.

fat boy tractor traylor made a career out of hurting people. I’m glad his a** is out of the league because he does not belong in a sport as elegant as basketball.

Nate was the MVP last summer league, this summer league he stunk up the UNLV pavilion.

Travis Outlaw has in previous years put up monster numbers only to be a marginal player in the regular season.

bottom line don’t write off my knick Danilo Gallinari, he wanted to come here, only worked out for two teams, and we were one of them, because he wants to be here and he’ll do what it takes to be a good player for the knicks.

oh yeah, and one last thing:

f*ck bayless.

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