Community Shootaround

The Knicks’ 2015/16 season has quickly spiraled out of control and with an overall record of 25-37, the team’s playoff chances appear to be slim at best. One reason for New York’s woeful record has been the performance of the team’s point guards, who have done little to distinguish themselves this campaign. Starter Jose Calderon has looked far older than his 34 years of age while contributing just 7.6 points and 3.4 assists per contest. Backing up Calderon are second-year playmaker Langston Galloway and rookie Jerian Grant, neither of whom appear to be the short-term answer, much less the long-term solution for the team at the one spot.

With 2015/16 all but over for the Knicks, the focus should shift toward finding players who can help the team next season. New York apparently won’t re-sign Jimmer Fredette after his 10-day contract expires at the end of today, which isn’t a surprise given his lackluster track record since entering the NBA and relative ineffectiveness during his brief run with the team. The Knicks will also take a pass on signing Ty Lawson, who’s poised to become a free agent in the wake of his buyout from the Rockets, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post. The Knicks reportedly spoke with the Rockets about trading for Lawson before last month’s deadline, but New York’s playoff hopes have faded since then.

While Lawson reportedly remains a possibility in free agency this summer for the Knicks, the team currently has a specific interest in adding younger players, according to interim coach Kurt Rambis. This raises the possibility that New York could look to ink Ray McCallum, who cleared waivers today following his release from the Spurs, former Trail Blazer Tim Frazier or former Sixer Tony Wroten, whom the team recently met with. New York is more likely to ink McCallum or Frazier than Wroten, according to Frank Isola of the New York Daily News.

This brings me to the topic for today: Which available point guard should the Knicks sign?

Should the Knicks take a chance on Lawson despite the potential baggage he brings with him, or should the team look for younger players it can develop? If the younger route is the one you’re advocating, then whom should the team target and try to develop? Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions. We look forward to what you have to say.

Outspoken Mavericks team owner Mark Cuban has never been shy about voicing his opinions about the state of the NBA and his latest idea involves moving back the 3-point line, as he told ESPN during Friday night’s win over the Nuggets (h/t Tim McMahon of ESPN.com). Cuban, prompted by watching the two teams launch a combined 58 3-point attempts that night, had this to say: “It’s getting too close. Guys are shooting a foot behind it anyways. That’s something we should look at. It’s worth looking at. I don’t think the number of shots would decline, but I think it would reward skill and open up the court some more. So guys would still take [3-point] shots if it’s seven inches back or whatever, but at the same time, it opens up the court for more drives, more midrange game.”

While many will automatically assume this stance is motivated by the unreal shooting range of Golden State’s Stephen Curry, the Mavs owner insisted this change would benefit players by opening up other scoring opportunities. “I think it’d open it up more so guys with different skill sets could play,” Cuban said. “It would open up play for more drives. Guys with midrange games would be rewarded and that would stay in the game. There would be more diversity of offensive action in the game. You’d see a little bit of decline in the 3. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing that we shoot so many 3s, but it’s worth it in the D-League to see what happens [with a deeper 3-point line].”

This brings me to the topic for today: Should the NBA adjust the distance of the 3-point line?

Is this simply an overreaction to Curry’s play, or is there an issue with the game that needs to be addressed? As a basketball purist at heart, I often lament the decline of the midrange jumper and miss the days when skilled big men would dominate the paint area. While I certainly appreciate the athleticism displayed by the NBA’s top stretch-fours and perimeter-oriented big men, a major part of me still longs for the days of Hakeem Olajuwan, David Robinson and Patrick Ewing battling it out in the post. The 3-point shot has never been used more freely than it has been this season, with players currently on pace to nail 58,477 in total, which would easily shatter the league record of 55,137, as McMahon notes.

But what say you? Should the 3-point line be adjusted, or is the game fine with the current layout? Are there any other changes that you suggest be made to help make a more exciting and diverse on-court product? Take to the comments section to share your thoughts and opinions. We look forward to what you have to say.

The NBA season is entering the homestretch with approximately six weeks to go in the regular season. With most teams near or at the 60-game mark, it’s not too early to call some of them underachievers.

Glancing at the standings, there are six teams that best fit that category. The Rockets certainly qualify, as they head into the week one game under .500. No one could have expected a team led by superstars James Harden and Dwight Howard to be floundering.

The other Western Conference team that easily qualifies as a major disappointment is the Pelicans. They were supposed to be on the upswing with Anthony Davis leading the way and Alvin Gentry taking over as head coach, but they’re currently 12 games under .500.

The Eastern Conference has its share of disappointments as well. The Hawks entered last season’s playoffs as the conference’s top seed but they’ve come back to the pack this year with a 33-27 record.

The Bulls are loaded with big-name veterans but it’s been a rocky campaign in the Windy City. They head into their final 24 games just two games above the .500 mark and in some danger of missing the postseason.

Any team with John Wall at the controls should be better than the Wizards’ current 28-30 mark. Washington is on the outside looking in for a playoff berth.

Entering training camp, it seemed like the Bucks were on the upswing with young pieces surrounding free agent prize Greg Monroe. Instead, Milwaukee is wallowing at the bottom of the Central Division, 11 games under the .500 mark.

This leads us to our question of the day: Which team has been the biggest underachiever this season?

Please take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions on the subject. We look forward to what you have to say.

The trade deadline deal that sent Markieff Morris to the Wizards brought to a close to the unhappy relationship between the power forward and the Suns organization. The bad blood between the two sides had begun last summer with the trade that sent Marcus Morris, Markieff’s twin brother, to the Pistons. The siblings had inked rookie scale extensions mere months earlier with designs on playing alongside one another, a dream that was scuttled with Marcus heading east.

But it wasn’t merely the notion of playing for different teams that upset the brothers, Marcus told Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher recently. “Everybody thinking that we’re upset because we don’t get to play with each other,” Marcus said. “Kieff can’t deal with adversity? We’re from north Philadelphia. This isn’t adversity. This is betrayal.” The alleged betrayal that Morris refers to is that of Suns team owner Robert Sarver, who had maintained a close relationship with the twins, not providing them with any advance warning that one was about to be traded, according to Bucher’s article.

Today’s topic for discussion is not about the Morris twins directly, but rather about their argument that they should have been informed prior to the deal being consummated. Do franchises owe it to players to inform them they are about to be dealt?

The majority of us can’t fathom earning what NBA players do, so it is sometimes easy to discount the human element involved in any form of player movement. Don’t forget that many of these players have families whose lives are impacted by trades and that isn’t a trivial concern. Keeping this in mind I can certainly empathize with the Morris twins, though I don’t necessarily agree with how they have conducted themselves since Marcus became a Piston. The flip side to this argument is that any deal between two or more teams is a fragile thing that is never officially done until the trade call with the league office is complete. What if a player who was told he was about to be traded took to social media to express his feelings about the pending deal? This is something that could kill the negotiations or make them significantly more difficult to complete.

What do you have to say on the matter? Are you of the opinion that because of their exorbitant salaries, NBA players aren’t owed any warning or input when they are being discussed in a potential trade? Or do you sit on the other side of the fence and believe that teams owe it to players to keep them 100% in the loop regardless of any potential secrecy risks? Take to the comments section to share your thoughts and opinions. We look forward to what you have to say.

We saw quite a bit of activity during the final days leading up to last Thursday afternoon’s trade deadline, though there were no earthshaking moves.

The biggest names in the rumor mill — Dwight Howard, Kevin Love, Blake Griffin and Pau Gasol — stayed put. There were still some eye-catching trades.

The Pistons and Magic fired an early salvo as Detroit acquired a young, prolific scoring forward in Tobias Harris in exchange for point guard Brandon Jennings and power forward Ersan Ilyasova. Both were previously coached by Scott Skiles and can help Orlando’s playoff push while giving the Magic flexibility this summer. Jennings has an expiring contract, and Ilyasova’s contract for next season isn’t fully guaranteed.

The Clippers dealt away Lance Stephenson to the Grizzlies for Jeff Green, giving Los Angeles coach Doc Rivers a better scoring option at small forward.

The Grizzlies were also involved in a three-team deal earlier in the week, sending shooting guard Courtney Lee to the Hornets.

The Thunder picked up a quality guard in Randy Foye from the Nuggets, shipping out guards D.J. Augustin, Steve Novak and a couple of second-round picks for him.

The Wizards made a significant frontcourt move, acquiring talented but controversial power forward Markieff Morris from the Suns. Phoenix received Washington’s first-round pick (top-nine protected) and a couple of veteran power forwards, Kris Humphries and DeJuan Blair (who was waived).

Channing Frye was shipped by the Magic to the Cavaliers, giving the Cavs a stretch four at their disposal for the playoffs. Orlando got rid of Frye’s contract, which runs through the 2017/18 season, while also receiving Jared Cunningham and an unprotected second-round pick.

The Trail Blazers received the Cavaliers’ top-10 protected 2018 first-round pick as an incentive to take Anderson Varejao‘s contract off their hands and help their luxury-tax situation.

This leads us to our question of the day: Which team made the best trade last week?

Please take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions on the subject. We look forward to what you have to say.

The Thunder possess the most dynamic 1-2 punch in the league in All-Stars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Both players have stayed healthy this season and, not surprisingly, put up big numbers. Durant is averaging 27.7 points, 7.9 rebounds and 4.5 assists while Westbrook, the All-Star Game MVP, has been a triple-double machine while averaging 24.1 points, 7.6 rebounds and 10.0 assists.

Oklahoma City collected 40 wins before the break and have a realistic shot at 60 before the playoffs. With Durant and Westbrook leading the way, the Thunder would seem a like a major title contender in almost any season.

Instead, the amazing consistency of the Warriors and Spurs has relegated the Thunder to an afterthought. A Western Conference finals matchup between those powerhouses seems almost inevitable, given that both clubs have been invincible at home and show no signs of letting up.

Is there anything Oklahoma City can do to change that perception? Perhaps adding another starting piece by this week’s trade deadline could make people think twice about the Thunder’s chances of upsetting the Spurs and Warriors and reaching the NBA Finals.

Seemingly, the Thunder have enough “bigs” to compete with the other top echelon teams with Serge Ibaka, Steven Adams, Enes Kanter and Nick Collison giving them impressive depth at power forward and center.

Oklahoma City could use an upgrade at the wings. The shooting guard spot has been an issue for the Thunder, with Dion Waiters seeing the most action at the position. They could also seek a starter-quality small forward and go smaller with Durant playing more minutes at power forward. That would help them match up better with the Warriors, who use Draymond Green at power forward and even center at times while “downsizing” their units.

This leads us to our question of the day: What player should the Thunder target in trade talks this week?

Please take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions on the subject. We look forward to what you have to say.