Is Raymond Felton right about the Nuggets truly being a better team than the Knicks?  If you were to look at the two teams’ records since the big trade last month, you would have to say the Nuggets.  But if you took a closer look at how each team has played, on both ends of the floor, night in and night out…you would still have to say the Nuggets are a better team.

The hope for Knicks fans is that they are truly treating these games as a preseason for the real games that will take place in the playoffs.  That they are experimenting with different offensive sets and getting used to playing with each other in time to “turn it on” for the playoffs.  However, the Knicks have not given fans much reason for this kind of hope.  So the question remains.  Is this what we should come to expect from this Knicks team in the playoffs, or do they have the ability to bring their game to another level that we have not seen yet?

Via Denver Post:

“In the afterglow of the Nuggets’ win over Atlanta on Monday night came the sobering news that forward Danilo Gallinari will miss extended time with a toe injury…

He will miss seven to 10 days, according to the team.”

If last night’s performance in Cleveland is a sign of things to come, Knicks fans will have to wait until at least next season for their team to make some real noise.  Perhaps they were looking ahead to their prime time Sunday night showdown against Lebron James and the Miami Heat, but the Knicks turned in a lackluster performance last night against one the worst teams in the NBA.  Although he finished with 27 points, Carmelo Anthony fouled out late in the fourth quarter after missing a key free throw as the Knicks dropped what should have been a gimme to the Cleveland Cavaliers, 115-109.  It is clear that this team more time to gel. (more…)

This reeked of Zeke.  Any Knick fan who recalls the Isiah Thomas era (though most have tried to block it out), could see the resemblance the Carmelo Anthony trade had to those made during Thomas’ time with New York.  The unloading of young talent and draft picks for a big name.  The willingness to give away more and more, without saying enough is enough.  Then of course, there is the inclusion of Renaldo Balkman in the deal, a player Thomas drafted and loved. (more…)

Will he be traded to the Knicks?  Would he sign an extension with the Nets?  How much is too much to trade?  Can the Nuggets find a way to keep him in Denver?  Is Walsh still in control or is Isiah back making moves for the Knicks?  The questions and rumors about the immediate and long term fate of Carmelo Anthony seem like they will never end. (more…)

As news broke yesterday that the Knicks could have landed Carmelo Anthony if they were willing to part with nearly their entire roster, reactions from the Knicks fan base were varied.  Some wondered what Donnie Walsh was waiting for.  Others agreed with Walsh and coach Mike D’Antoni, who believe Denver’s asking price is still way too steep.  Those who preferred Walsh make the deal will be screaming for his head if Anthony is not a Knick next season, through either a trade or via free agency.  Those who think the price was too high will be screaming if Walsh caves in the end.  It seems like Walsh needs to walk a pretty fine line in this game of “chicken” between the Knicks and the Nuggets.  But Donnie Walsh is a veteran of NBA trade negotiations, and knows how to walk that line better than anybody in the business.

Yesterday’s trade rumor included two names that had not come up in prior trade rumors: Raymond Felton and Chauncey Billups.  The Nuggets want to swap the two point guards.  It is not surprising that they would.  Raymond Felton is having a career year and just entering his prime.  Billups is a solid player with big game experience, but is in his mid 30′s, and may not have many good years left.  However, the inclusion of this point guard swap is something the Knicks seem to be open to in a deal for Anthony.  Still, there are clearly other aspects of the proposed trade that Donnie Walsh does not like.  So while a deal to New York is still a possibility, it is far from done.

A front office executive who was still wet behind the ears (Isiah Thomas, anyone?) would have jumped at the opportunity to acquire a star such as Carmelo Anthony, no matter what the cost.  The inexperienced exec would be so overwhelmed with the thought of making a move to bring another superstar to their team that they would do whatever was necessary, including trading away good young talent and mortgaging the team’s future by trading draft picks without protecting them (Eddy Curry, anyone?).  The team trading the superstar would say “jump” and the clueless exec would ask “How high?”  (more…)

Yes, Carmelo Anthony is obviously the big free agent score to be this NBA offseason.  But the possibility exists that he’ll be traded and signed (perhaps to the Knicks), or resigned by Denver, leaving current Knick Wilson Chandler as one of the big free agent prizes left on the market.

Chandler is young (23), talented, and has a ton of upside.  He has been a major contributor to this year’s Knicks team, and has the potential to be a star.  The same question with respect to Chandler exists now as did 2 months ago:  Is he worth giving up in a trade for Carmelo Anthony, or are the Knicks better off keeping him in the hopes they can sign Carmelo as a free agent and have both Anthony and Chandler on their roster?  Only time will tell…

For the better part of this season, NBA analysts have speculated about whether Carmelo Anthony would be traded or leave Denver via free agency at the end of the season, and about where he might land.  Despite Anthony’s public comments about his desire to play for the Knicks, it was the New Jersey Nets who seemed to be the leading contender to land Anthony via trade.  That is, until last night’s announcement. (more…)

Ever since Carmelo Anthony stated that he only wanted to be traded to the Knicks, there has been much speculation as to if and when such a trade would happen.  However, in the past week, it has seemed like it was the Nets, rather than the Knicks, who were close to acquiring the superstar forward.  There has been speculation that the Nets and Nuggets, along with the Pistons, were close to completing a blockbuster 3-team trade that would have sent Anthony to New Jersey.

However, the Nuggets seem to be quite upset about the public nature of the trade discussions.  Consequently, Denver has issued a “stern warning” to the Nets that either these trade discussions become private, or the Nuggets will trade Carmelo to the Knicks, seemingly out of spite.