Welcome to our inaugural weekly chat about things happening around the Association. This week, contributors Mark and Winston Wolfe talk about the MVP Race, the new look New York Knicks and saving Steve Nash.
Winston Wolfe: So I asked readers(over 60 replied) to give me their MVP vote & the results were pretty much what we might have thought:
- Amar’e [Stoudemire]: 74 points
- D-Rose : 50
- Dirk [Nowitzki] : 20
- Deron Williams : 19
- Dwight Howard & [Kevin] Durant : 16
- Rondo : 15
- LeBron : 13
I would imagine if we had polled the actual MVP voters, the voting would be pretty similar, don’t you think? Amar’e has been amazing but I do have an issue voting for a guy who is allergic to defense. After thinking about it over the weekend, I would probably vote for one of the PG’s(Rose, Rondo, D-Will), depending on which one’s stats/team record is the most impressive at the end of the season. Thoughts?
Mark: I also disagree with Amar’e being MVP. He’s improved for sure, and has more or less carried the entire New York Knicks (shout outs to Felton) to where they are now, but for a guy his size he needs to be getting way more rebounds. After being here in New York City for just a week, they definitely marketed the shit out of him though. So in the “intangibles” sense, he’s done a lot more for the team, and the city, which would deem him MV’P worthy. But the thing about that is, Dirk Nowitzki has had the same game, for like years, and he didn’t even receive MVP until the season after they went to the finals. Amar’e would have to push the Knicks to ECF for him to really deserve MVP.
Based on the last three major Knicks games (v. Orlando Dec 30, v. Miami Dec 28, and the epic Celtics game two weeks before that), how would you rate the Knicks? Was that game a preview of Round 1 of the eastern conference playoffs, or Round 2 maybe? Felton has been playing great but with the new look Magic, and with a healthy Rondo, I don’t think they have a chance vs. Boston or Orlando. Both the C’s and the Magic have such a deep bench and the Knicks have no decent backups for any of their positions. As far as Miami, they don’t have a bench either but with the way Dwyane Wade has been putting up 40+ in his last three games, plus LeBron and Bosh adding about 20+ each themselves, it would be hard for the Knicks to advance in the eastern conference if they were to play any of these teams. And that’s just offensively speaking, no way they can match up vs. Boston’s defense, especially in “playoff mode”. What do you think? How far can the Knicks go this year?
W.W.: Totally agree with what you said about MVP & Amar’e. As a Magic fan, you know that if Howard had the media spotlight that STATS now enjoys, Dwight would be hard to beat as an MVP candidate every year.
As for the Knicks, I’m not buying them as a legit playoff threat this year. I think the ownership & front office really needs Carmelo, or even Nash or CP3 for that matter, to pair with Amar’e. I think they realize that with Amar’e as their only star, they are doomed to a 1st round exit because of the way the Eastern Conf. stacks up.
I think Miami goes on to become the #1 seed. LBJ/Wade/Bosh are just too good. Boston will take it’s foot off the gas because of age & injury & Chicago has no one that can play with them in their division, so they will be #’s 2 & 3 in some order. Right now, Orlando & Atlanta are ahead of NY as well. That’s a bad scenario for the Knicks. If their roster stays the same, they don’t have what it takes to get past anybody above them right now. If they do pull off a trade I thinks it costs so much that they are a very entertaining, “tough out” in the first round.
M: What do you think about the new Suns? Makes you want to just give Steve Nash a hug and say it’s going to be OK but it probably won’t…
W.W.: I think if Steve Nash were traded this season it would have a greater impact on the league than a Carmelo deal. I say that under the assumption that if Carmelo is dealt it’s to either the Knicks(and they would have to give up too much to get him) or the Nets(Carmelo with Brook Lopez and whatever other pieces would not get out of the 1st round of the Eastern Conf this season). The Suns would be wise to try and facilitate a deal this season, at the deadline, because Nash deserves better & his value will never be higher than to a playoff team in 2011. Nash to the Knicks makes the mosts sense because I think Phoenix wants nothing more than to cut as much payroll as possible, while also trying to rise from the ashes(pun intended). Why not make a move where you say to the Knicks: “We will give you Steve Nash, HOWEVER, the trade is contingent on you doing a 2nd deal for Vince Carter? We don’t want much in return…for Nash give us Felton & Roger Mason(+part of an existing trade exception) and $3 million. Then, in the Carter deal, give us Eddy Curry’s expiring contract, Wilson Chandler, Anthony Randolph & another check for $3 million(+portion of trade exception).”
Do the Knicks say no to making a run the next 2 years with Nash, Landry Fields, Vince, Gallinari, & Amar’e as it starting 5? Okay, maybe the Vince part makes it too tough to swallow if you’re the Knicks & the Suns decide they would rather keep Vince and trade his contract in the next 14 months, but still use Nash to get rid of the AWFUL Frye & Childress contracts. The deal could still work with the Knicks adding bodes they don’t need. The Suns & the Knicks need each other! The Suns need to deal Nash & for PR purposes do it in a “positive” way. The Knicks need to get another All Star, but without losing some of the quality they have attained in their rotation. As risky as it seems, if they did go the Nash/Vince route, they would have both contracts coming off at the same time and could attempt to get CP3 and another very good player or two after the 2012 season. The Suns would also become a destination for free agents, after they cleared all the money off their books.
M: I am an eternal optimist and would want nothing more than Steve Nash to reunite with his old :07 Seconds or Less crew especially in the city where he spends most of his time anyways. Like, the whole thing just makes too much sense. The city of New York is already marketing Amar’e and this new Knicks like they’re the second coming, and if Nash follows suit, then expect Madison Square Garden to officially be the Mecca again. It’s obvious this city (I am currently typing this in a Brooklyn apartment, in which my roommate just happens to be wearing an Allan Houston jersey right now too) wants a legit basketball team again. Not even just New Yorkers, but every Knicks fan wants to be able to root for this team again. I can imagine it’s more or less what you went through as a Celtics fan before and after you acquired Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen. What that must have felt like to wash the stench of Antoine Walker away and to be the franchise you once were. So yeah, in that sense, I wish any form of trade with Nash going to the Knicks (even if Vince Carter is involved, but you can’t win em all eh?) would actually happen.
I can’t speak personally, but I think even Suns fans are expecting this. Their team has slowly been dismantled the last 2-3 years with key players leaving left and right. And with the most recent trade, they can only be hoping to rebuild for the future. On the bright side, Goran Dragic would make a great replacement for Nash, and Felton has been playing pretty outstanding as well. Plus you got a good Center in Gortat plus Charles Barkley’s undying love for Mickael Pietrus (but don’t we all? I think I still miss Peaches even though we did get Hedo back). The Suns would be losing their franchise player in Steve Nash, as well as many sad fans, but it’s not like they’re going to wind up like the Cavs or post-Garnett TWolves either (although Minnesota’s management is another topic). And they definitely won’t be as bad as when Barkley left for Houston. That was probably the worst Suns team ever.
As cliché as it is, teams just have their runs and with Phoenix, I believe that era is winding down. In New York, you can tell just by walking around the city and talking to fans, that they are legitimately trying to make some moves so the Knicks will be back as title contenders again. So if Nash doesn’t make the jump soon, then they’ll make a significant trade eventually. I’m expecting some Otis Smith level moves.
