NBA News 2010: New York Knicks 2010-2011 Preview

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Top Offensive Player: Amare Stoudemire

Top Defensive Player: Ronny Turiaf

Top Playmaker: Raymond Felton

Top Clutch Player: TBD

The Unheralded Player: Timofey Mozgov

Best New Addition: Amare Stoudemire

Strengths

Offense. Mike D'Antoni knew what he was getting in to when he signed on as Knicks coach two summers ago. Over his first two years in NYC, he was basically getting paid to stay sane and not complain while the roster was completely gutted. Despite the fact that the Knicks were, for the most part, awful, there were plenty of excuses which helped deflect criticism away from the head coach. However, after a major overhaul this offseason, that is no longer the case. D'Antoni has a deep roster, a star power forward, a solid starting PG, and plenty of energy and youth all over the floor. In short, D'Antoni finally has the ingredients to cook up some satisfying dishes. Now the chef has to earn that big pay check. D'Antoni's calling card has always been as an offensive mastermind. With sufficient pieces in place, the pressure is on D'Antoni to produce.

Weaknesses

Defense. As mentioned above, the Knicks have consistently been among the league's worst defensive teams under D'Antoni. Use the quantitative measure or metric of your choice (opponents FG%, PPG allowed, steals, or blocks, etc.) and you'll find the Knicks near the bottom of the heap. Correspondingly, New York has lost far more games than they have won. D'Antoni's game plan will be to outscore his opponents, we know this; but that job will be exceedingly difficult if he can't get the necessary stops in big spots. Throughout his coaching career, D'Antoni has bristled at the notion he doesn't pay enough attention to defense and has refused to hire a de-facto 'defensive coordinator' to help him shore up that end of the floor. During his first two years in NYC, when losing was more or less expected/accepted, and potential free agents and the surrounding controversy dominated all Knicks-related headlines, D'Antoni's defense (or lack thereof) didn't receive much attention/criticism. That grace period has expired. It's up to the head coach to put a winning product on the floor – and part of that success will be determined by this team's commitment to guarding the other team.

Will the Knicks find a way to add Carmelo Anthony to the mix?

Even before news of the infamous 'Chris Paul wedding toast' broke, Knicks fans had been hoping Donnie Walsh would be able to pair another superstar(s) alongside Amar'e Stoudemire and form a superpower worthy of challenging LeBron and his buddies down in Miami. New Yorkers' greatest hope of immediately transforming the Knicks into instant contenders would be by acquiring forward Carmelo Anthony, who has purportedly expressed a strong interest in playing for the Knicks. Despite abundant rumors, a deal is unlikely at this point, as Denver is currently restructuring its front office. However, the threat of losing Anthony as an unrestricted free agent next summer is very real (ask the folks in Cleveland); thus, if Carmelo forced the Nuggets hand, it could lead to a contentious situation at February's trade deadline. Obviously, it is something New York will keep a close eye on…

http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=17317

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NBA News 2010: Knicks Sign Felton, Mozgov

Image via WikipediaUsing cap space to sign Raymond Felton and Timofey Mozgov was not what anyone had in mind when the Knicks began clearing cap space in November and 2008 and it certainly was not the desired objective when they mortgaged a good portion of their future to create enough cap space for a second max contract slot.
But I've long been on record as supporting the decision of Donnie Walsh to gamble heavily on 2010, as even a 10% chance at LeBron James was clearly worth it.
Furthermore, at least the Knicks did sign Amar'e Stoudemire instead of Tyrus Thomas or Hakim Warrick with that massive amount of cap space.
Felton is at his best when he is able to get out in transition and in the pick-and-roll. Those of course are two of the main job requirements of a Seven Seconds or Less point guard. While with the Bobcats, Felton didn't receive too many of these opportunities in a slowpaced system.
He is capable of shooting the ball well from the perimeter, but he is absolutely streaky. Felton had a career best three-point percentage in 09-10 of 38.5%, up from two consecutive seasons below 30%. He came into the league shooting 35.8% with a larger sample size, but obviously struggled in maintaining its reliability. Felton's shot was something that wasn't a key strength coming out of North Carolina, but it was surprisingly better than expected once scouts were able to take a look in workouts.
I don't think Felton is suddenly going to become the next Steve Nash by coming into this system, but he undoubtedly will be a more valuable and productive player for the Knicks than he ever was for Charlotte.
Grade for Knicks on Felton: A-
If I were Felton, I would have been far more eager to secure a long-term deal given the free-wheeling climate the uncertainty of the CBA. If there is a certain kind of player that gets squeezed after the players and owners finally settle on a new deal, it will be personified by a middle of the road guy like Felton. A full MLE type of deal from another team would have paid less on an annual basis, but at least it would guarantee $34M over the next five years. The decision to accept just $14.56M puts a lot of strain on that summer of 2012 for Felton since that kind of money falls a little short of setting him up and everyone he cares about for life.
With that said, Felton now has the opportunity to prove himself to be more than just an average starting point guard in a system that showcases point guards. He could play his way into a five or six-year extension at $10M or so annually in 2012 while he's still just 28.
Grade for Felton: B
The Mozgov signing is obviously an interesting futures bet, as 7'1" guys with some agility and pure skill don't exactly grow on trees. I've never seen him in regular game action, but I watched just under 100 individual clips of him.
The biggest thing for him is if he is able to create some space for himself, as he looks pretty good in those instances. Mozgov has decent touch and lift to the bucket, but far too many of his attempts are capable of getting blocked with how he puts the ball out in front of himself. He's unafraid of being physical when posting up for position, but he tends to get a little soft upon the catch.
His hands are decent and his presence on the weakside will lead to some easy dishes after a double-team on Amar'e Stoudemire, as well as put backs. Mozgov is also fully capable of running the pick-and-roll, but he needs to receive the ball within four or five feet of the bucket.
Grade for Knicks on Mozgov: A
Mozgov's NBA career may quickly stop soon after it starts because of the potential work stoppage, but he at least will have a full season to prove himself against NBA competition. He also has the luxury of playing in a system that suits him where he is guaranteed playing time for a team with low expectations for the position.
Grade for Mozgov: A-
http://knicks.realgm.com/articles/56/20100716/grading_the_deal_knicks_sign_felton_mozgov/

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