(Photo Credit: Keith Allison, Flickr.com)
Death, taxes and the New York Knicks giving away first-round draft picks for overpaid, underwhelming players. Some things never change.
By sending Marcus Camby, Steve Novak, a first-round pick in the 2016 NBA Draft and a couple of second rounders to Toronto, the Knickerbocker front office acquired a player no other team wanted. A player that Toronto has been trying to trade for the better part of two seasons. A “stretch 4” that can’t shoot. And most importantly, a player who comes from a culture of losing with a history of lazy habits and bad intangibles. Andrea Bargnani is a blast from the past; a throwback from the days when Isiah Thomas sent out lottery picks for guys like Eddy Curry and gave $30 million deals to marginal free agents like Jerome James.
General manager Glen Grunwald was supposed to be a bit more savvy than this. And he may be. It isn’t out of the realm of possibility that owner Jimmy Dolan forced management’s hand in the wake of the trade the Brooklyn Nets made (which both stole headlines and put the Knicks out of the top four in the Eastern Conference from a talent standpoint). It’s also is a distinct possibility that the Knicks aren’t done. Might another trade that reshapes the roster entirely cause this vision to make more sense? But with limited assets and flexibility, what could possibly be New York’s next course of action?
Talent in versus talent out, this trade isn’t as horrible as it seems on the surface. Marcus Camby is on the brink of retirement and the odds of him producing next season were slim. And as good a shooter as Steve Novak is, he is limited in just about every other area and he fell out of favor with coach Mike Woodson towards the end of last season. It’s possible that as of opening day 2014, this move has made the New York Knicks better. But if Toronto wanted out of Bargnani’s deal as badly as has been reported (some speculated he could be amnestied if Toronto couldn’t find a taker), why in the world would the Knicks need to give up a first-round pick to facilitate this deal? In most salary dump scenarios, the team looking to shed salary is often the team giving up draft picks, particularly when the player involved is as maligned as Andrea Bargnani is.
The other question Knicks fans must be wondering is where the heck does Andrea Bargnani fit on this roster? The team flourished with Carmelo Anthony at the 4, but this may be a clear sign that Mike Woodson is looking to get back to a more traditional lineup. But where does that leave Amar’e Stoudemire and his $21 million next season? Deep on the bench as a reserve? It’s expected Stat will be on a minutes limit next season, but with the Knicks in the market for another big man, it seems as though New York is acting almost as though Amar’e isn’t even here.
A stretch 4 makes sense in terms of spacing the floor for Melo, particularly with Tyson Chandler‘s inability to score outside of the paint. But can we call a guy like Bargnani, who hasn’t shot better than 31 percent from 3 in two seasons, a stretch 4? Don’t you actually have to MAKE 3-pointers in order to stretch the floor? Does the New York front office believe he will magically regain his shooting touch thanks to a change of scenery? If that is indeed the case, than this is really nothing more than a ridiculous gamble. And again, if all you’re really looking for is a stretch 4 anyway, why not just play Novak (who is a far better shooter than Bargnani) more next to Chandler and keep the first rounder?
The fundamental flaw with this trade, though, is the fact that it addresses zero of the team’s needs. The Knicks were defeated by the Indiana Pacers thanks to a lack of interior toughness both defensively and on the glass. Andrea Bargnani is a frontcourt player in name only. Last season, Bargnani was the first player in NBA HISTORY 7 feet or taller to play more than 28 minutes per contest and average less than four rebounds per game and by all accounts he is one of the worst man-to-man defenders in the NBA. The move not only cost New York ANOTHER future first-round pick, but it also fails to keep the Knicks in the top four of the Eastern Conference.
New York basically paid to take out someone else’s garbage. They used the little flexibility they had and acquired a player on the brink of being amnestied, all while compensating the Toronto Raptors with a first-round pick (and two seconds) to do so. There’s a chance they haven’t improved on the floor and off of it they’ve again become the punchline they’ve been for the past 13 years. Andrea Bargnani is a guy with talent that lacks the mental make-up to be a winning piece on a contender. Sadly, not only is this unsurprising, but for the New York Knicks it has become par for the course.