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Top Bloggers: Seth Rosenthal On The Knicks

September 22nd, 2015 at 5:15pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Anyone can have a blog about an NBA team, but some set themselves apart from the rest with the dedication and valuable insight they bring to their craft. We’ll be sharing some knowledge from these dialed-in writers on Hoops Rumors in a new feature called Top Bloggers. As with The Beat, our ongoing series of interviews with NBA beat writers, it’s part of an effort to bring Hoops Rumors readers ever closer to the pulse of the teams they follow.

Next up is Seth Rosenthal of SB Nation’s Posting & Toasting, where Seth is both the founder as well as the editor-in-chief. You can follow Seth on Twitter at @seth_rosenthal and click here to check out his stories. You can also follow Posting & Toasting at @ptknicksblog.

Hoops Rumors: Do you think that the Knicks will seriously entertain the notion of trading Carmelo Anthony? If so, what factor(s) would push the franchise in that direction? What teams do you think ‘Melo would be willing to waive his no trade clause for to allow a deal to get done?

Seth Rosenthal: I don’t think they will, but if they do, it will be because ‘Melo demanded a trade. That possibility shouldn’t even come up otherwise. It has to be his idea. Based on previous interest, I figure he’d like L.A. or Chicago.

Hoops Rumors: The specter of Isiah Thomas still looms large within the Knicks organization, and apparently will for as long as James Dolan owns the team. How real a scenario is it that Thomas would rejoin the Knicks front office? What sort of backlash would you expect from the fanbase if Thomas were indeed to make his return?

Seth Rosenthal: I don’t think Isiah will join the Knicks in any real, official capacity (“advisor” again? Maybe.), at least while Phil Jackson is president. If he did, I think that’d be the last straw for a lot of Knicks fans.

Hoops Rumors: Team president Phil Jackson didn’t land a top-tier free agent this offseason, but he did make some intriguing additions to the roster. Which free agent addition do you feel was the strongest, and why? On the flip side, which offseason addition is most likely to disappoint? Why?

Seth Rosenthal: I think Robin Lopez is going to make things easier for everyone. On offense, he’s fantastic at setting screens, making basic passes, and cleaning up around the rim — just opening space for the four other players. On defense, he holds his own and works well as part of a unit. I think he’ll fit wonderfully and earn that big contract the Knicks gave him as long as he stays healthy.

Since I think any reasonable person expects Derrick Williams to play pretty poorly, I reckon the signing most likely to disappoint is Arron Afflalo. He’s had a weirdly up-and-down career and doesn’t move like he used to, so it’s entirely possible his shot betrays him and he’s a possession-swallower on offense while offering nothing on the other end.

Hoops Rumors: The draft day trade of Tim Hardaway Jr. to Atlanta reportedly upset Carmelo Anthony, who was a fan of the young swingman. I happen to love this trade, and believe that Hardaway needed a change of scenery to continue to develop as a player. Plus, I really like the addition of Jerian Grant, who fits a clear need for the team. What are your thoughts on the trade, and do you think that Jackson gave up on Hardaway too quickly?

Seth Rosenthal: Yes, that’s a fantastic trade. Grant may or may not be an NBA player, but dealing one of the least efficient rotation players in the league — a guy whose production degraded with each opportunity — for a first-round pick of any kind is a coup. Maybe Hardaway just wasn’t happy or comfortable, but I had no faith in his ability to improve in New York.

Hoops Rumors: The Knicks had a top-five pick for the first time since 1986, when the team drafted Kenny Walker. The selection of Kristaps Porzingis at No. 4 overall this year was widely debated, mainly because of the time it will likely take for him to develop. What are your thoughts on the pick, and what kind of production do you expect from the young Latvian this season?

Seth Rosenthal: Kristaps wouldn’t have been my pick, but the fact that the Knicks took what some perceived to be a gamble and didn’t just invest their pick in the oldest, most established, “readiest” prospect tells me there will actually be some balance to their team-building approach. It was a good sign that Phil Jackson isn’t focusing exclusively on wins during Carmelo Anthony’s contract — he appears to be weighing short-term and long-term equally so there can be a team around ‘Melo *and* a team once he leaves someday.

As for Kristaps himself, I’ve been really pleasantly surprised by the little I’ve seen of him. He moved so well in Summer League and particularly impressed with his defensive timing and footwork. I don’t think he’s going to be a consistently positive player in his rookie year, but I believe he’s ready for minutes, and I think there’s some chance he becomes a star. Definitely seems like he has the temperament to become one — it’ll just be a product of how seriously he and the Knicks take his development.

Hoops Rumors: And finally … it’s time to get your 2015/16 season prediction for the Knicks. What do you think the team’s overall record will be, and if you think the playoffs are in the cards, what seed will they earn?

Seth Rosenthal: I see them at somewhere between liiiiike 33 and 38 wins? And I figure they’ll be on the edge of the playoff race, maybe just narrowly missing it in the 9th or 10th seed. Which is fine.

Knicks Sign DaJuan Summers

September 22nd, 2015 at 4:32pm CST by Zachary Links

TUESDAY, 4:32pm: The signing official, the Knicks have announced.

MONDAY, 9:44am: The Knicks have agreed to sign DaJuan Summers, according to Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports (on Twitter). Summers’ agent, Brian Elfus of Impact, has confirmed the deal.

Summers, 27, last appeared in the NBA in 2012/13 when he saw a handful of minutes across two games for the Clippers. Prior to that, Summers spent two seasons with the Pistons and also had a stint with New Orleans in 2011/12. For his NBA career, Summers has averaged 3.3 PPG and 1.0 RPG in 9.9 minutes per game.

While he has yet to make a real impact at the NBA level, Summers played well in 29 games for the D-League’s Maine Red Claws in 2012/13, averaging 18.0 PPG and 7.6 RPG in 33.1 minutes per contest. He has also performed well overseas with stints in Italy, Ukraine, and Spain. Summers auditioned for the rival Nets back in June, but it turns out that he’ll be signing with New York City’s other club.

Knicks Sign Travis Trice For Camp

September 22nd, 2015 at 4:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

SEPTEMBER 22ND, 4:30pm: The signing is official, the team has announced.

SEPTEMBER 10TH, 12:12pm: The Knicks have agreed to sign undrafted Michigan State point guard Travis Trice to a one-year, partially guaranteed contract, reports Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Trice was with the Heat during summer league, but he’ll be with New York this fall, joining four others who have partially guaranteed deals with the Knicks, plus 13 players with full guarantees, as our Knicks roster page shows.

Trice was a largely unheralded draft prospect, falling outside of ESPN’s rankings, but he showed a knack for outside shooting with the Spartans, nailing 39.5% of his three-point attempts in his four years of college ball. The 6’0″ 22-year-old brought that stroke with him to the summer league, canning five of 14 total attempts. This past season was his only year as a full-time starter at Michigan State, and he averaged 15.3 points, 5.1 assists and 1.8 turnovers in 33.6 minutes per game. However, his 36.9% three-point shooting was the worst mark of his college career.

The Knicks will probably keep Langston Galloway on his partially guaranteed contract, and Thanasis Antetokounmpo, in whom New York invested the 51st overall pick in 2014, would appear to have the inside track on the 15th regular season roster spot despite his lack of a full guarantee. So, Trice faces long odds to stick around for opening night. The Knicks can claim the D-League rights to as many as four of the players they cut at the end of the preseason, so Trice appears to have a better shot of remaining with the organization that way.

Do you think Trice is capable of making a regular season contribution for an NBA team? Leave a comment to let us know.

Injury Notes: Jennings, Melo, Durant, Love

September 21st, 2015 at 8:17pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Brandon Jennings is “not close” to being cleared, sources tell David Aldridge of NBA.com. He is currently shooting and running on a treadmill at 60% of his body weight, but the Pistons need to see more before he’s cleared to begin non-contact drill on the court, Aldridge adds. Jennings ruptured his left Achilles tendon last January and the Pistons have made a few additions at the point guard position since. Detroit traded for Reggie Jackson at last season’s deadline and handed him a five year, $80MM deal this offseason. The team also added Steve Blake to reinforce the position. Jennings will make slightly over $8.34MM during the 2015/16 season, which is the last year of his current deal.

Here are some more injury notes that Aldridge passed along in his column:

Carmelo Anthony looks like he’ll be ready for the start of training camp. He has been playing full-court, 5-on-5 with his Knicks teammates for the last few weeks.
Kevin Durant has been cleared to participate in training camp. The expectation is that he will be ready to handle a full workload of minutes once the regular season starts.
Kevin Love has not yet been officially cleared to return from a dislocated left shoulder injury that he sustained in the first round of the playoffs last season, but he has made significant progress.
New addition Wesley Matthews has not done any full-court work yet, but the expectation is that he will be cleared to start doing some work on the floor when Dallas opens camp next week.

Atlantic Notes: Vujacic, Harper, Celtics

September 19th, 2015 at 10:10am CST by Eddie Scarito

One benefit of the Knicks signing Sasha Vujacic is his knowledge of the triangle offense, which he is ready to share with the other members of the team, Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com writes. “Of course, of course. I was always someone that helped players on the court. We have a lot of rookies and a lot of younger players –- I still consider myself young by the way -– so we have a great mix of guys and I’m looking forward to teaching them and giving them help,” Vujacic told Begley. “I don’t want to be a teacher because we have a coach that will lead us towards something [but] if there’s going to be anything needed for me to show or do I’ll be more than happy to do so.”

Here’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

Knicks team president Phil Jackson is looking for the veteran to be a game-changing shooter off the bench for the team this season, Begley adds. “Except for a 10-day contract with the Clippers in 2014, Sasha hasn’t played in the NBA for four years, but at age 31 he still has plenty of game,” Jackson said. “He’s a classic streak-shooter who, when he’s zeroed in, can totally change a game in three minutes. He’ll be a significant force for us coming off the bench.”
Justin Harper‘s one-year deal with the Nets is for the league minimum and is non-guaranteed, Eric Pincus of Basketball insiders relays (Twitter link).
In a look at the Celtics‘ 2015 draftees, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com believes that Jordan Mickey will make the biggest impact this season, noting that at some point, injuries or inconsistent play by those ahead of him on the depth chart will create an opportunity for him to log significant minutes. Blakely also notes that if R.J. Hunter can demonstrate himself to be an adequate defender and shoot with a relatively high level of confidence, he could easily wind up as the biggest steal of this year’s draft.

Knicks Notes: Porzingis, Galloway, Isiah

September 17th, 2015 at 12:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

Phil Jackson‘s concerns about the slender frame of Kristaps Porzingis have fueled the fire of this year’s No. 4 overall pick, as Porzingis made clear Wednesday, writes Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News. Jackson had expressed worry to Charley Rosen of ESPN.com that “like Shawn Bradley, who was nevertheless a pretty good player, KP might almost be too tall for the game.”

“Yeah I saw it. I don’t know what to say. I guess that’s what Phil does, gets us to work hard and fired up. That fired me up. I’m like, ‘I’m not Shawn Bradley,’ you know?” Porzingis said, according to Bondy. “I want to be better than Shawn Bradley obviously and be stronger than him, but I’m a different player.”

The 7’2″ Porzingis, who’s gained 11 pounds this summer eating at least 5,000 calories a day, said that he declined to play for the Latvian national team at the Eurobasket tournament this month because the Knicks encouraged him not to, Bondy also notes. See more on the blue-and-orange here:

Langston Galloway‘s partial guarantee jumped from $220K to $440K when he remained on the Knicks roster through Tuesday, as our schedule of contract guarantee dates shows. Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders first reported the guarantee structure. Galloway now has the league’s fifth-largest partial guarantee for this season.
The success Isiah Thomas has had with the New York Liberty, whom he secretly began working with in January before the team announced his hiring in May, probably hasn’t increased his chances to return to the Knicks, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post. Officials with MSG indicated to Berman that owner James Dolan still has no desire to reinsert Thomas, with whom Dolan is friends, into the line of fire as Knicks president. Thomas and Knicks GM Steve Mills, whom Jackson wants as his successor in the team president’s role, aren’t close, Berman notes.
Porzingis was New York’s top offseason addition, Tommy Beer of Basketball Insiders opines, in an offseason in which the team’s free agent acquisitions simply weren’t of the caliber that Jackson was hired to make, as fellow Basketball Insiders scribe Lang Greene also writes in the site’s season preview.

Atlantic Notes: Nets, Knicks, Sixers

September 13th, 2015 at 7:30pm CST by Will Joseph

Subtracting Deron Williams, who was waived after he agreed to a buyout of the final two years of his contract, paying him roughly $27.5MM of the $43.5MM he was owed, allows the Nets to be under the luxury tax for the first time since moving to Brooklyn in 2012, but without Williams, the Nets enter the season with one of the league’s weaker point guard rotations, the New York Post’s Tim Bontemps writes on Facebook. That’s one reason why the Nets will likely fall short of making the playoffs, Bontemps adds.

Here’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

Knicks first-round draft pick Kristaps Porzingis was the team’s best addition this summer, writes Tommy Beer of Basketball Insiders, because size and shooting ability of Porzingis gives the rookie superstar potential. Kevin Seraphin, who signed a one-year deal with the Knicks, was also a good addition, Beer adds, because Seraphin should be able to provide the team with some much-needed rim-protection.
Sixers GM Sam Hinkie‘s unconventional approach should allow the team to land multiple cornerstones and become one of the better up-and-coming teams in the league after this season, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders opines in a season preview of the team. As Kennedy notes, Hinkie has been able to stockpile several draft picks and young assets by being willing to take on bad contracts and help teams free up cap space.

Atlantic Notes: Anthony, McRae, Larkin

September 11th, 2015 at 6:47pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Despite some speculation that the Knicks would be willing to entertain the idea of trading away Carmelo Anthony to the Suns in exchange for disgruntled forward Markieff Morris, it’s not a deal that is likely to ever come to fruition, Ken Berger of CBSSports.com writes. New York hasn’t had internal discussions about trying to get Anthony to waive his no trade clause and hitting the reset button on the franchise, Berger notes. Team president Phil Jackson is also likely aware of the value of a superstar like ‘Melo in the league, and how it would be virtually impossible to recoup an acceptable return for the star, the CBS scribe adds.

Here’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

The Sixers have made their required tender of a one-year, non-guaranteed, minimum salary offer to Jordan McRae, which will allow the franchise to retain his draft rights, Derek Bodner of DraftExpress relays (Twitter links). McRae, who was selected with the 58th overall pick in 2014 by the Spurs and was dealt to the Sixers on draft night, has not signed the tender yet, though he is expected to attend training camp with Philly, Bodner adds.
The appeal of playing in New York and the team’s system are two reasons why Shane Larkin felt comfortable signing with the Nets this offseason, Brett Pollakoff of The Sporting News writes. “At the end of the day, the Nets situation was the most appealing for me, just because of the way they play. Their style of play really fits my game well, and I like the New York area,” Larkin told Pollakoff. “I like being in the city. So staying up here was definitely a plus, and just the opportunity that the Nets presented me with — what [GM] Billy King was telling me, what coach [Lionel] Hollins was telling me, how they want me to play, what they want me to do for the team — it just put everything over the top. That’s pretty much why I decided to stay in New York and play for the Nets.“

Rivers: Clippers Unlikely To Trade Jamal Crawford

September 11th, 2015 at 2:52pm CST by Chuck Myron

Clippers coach/executive Doc Rivers said today that it’s unlikely the team will trade Jamal Crawford this season, the last one on the swingman’s contract. Rivers made his remarks to host Fred Roggin on The Beast 980 radio in Southern California (audio link), as Dan Woike of the Orange County Register passes along via Twitter. The Clippers were reportedly exploring trades involving the two-time Sixth Man of the Year shortly before the draft, with other reports this summer indicating that the Heat, Cavs and Knicks have held interest. Crawford has helped fuel the rumors on social media, tweeting in July that he wished he was a free agent, as I noted when I examined the 35-year-old’s trade candidacy.

“Jamal’s a Clipper, and I’d be very surprised if he’s not a Clipper at season’s end,” Rivers said in his radio appearance, one in which he also denied rumors that president of business operations Gillian Zucker was exerting authority over basketball decisions.

The Clippers, under Rivers’ guidance as president of basketball operations, upgraded their depth this summer, trading for Lance Stephenson, and signing Wesley Johnson, Paul Pierce and Pablo Prigioni. Another trade sent Matt Barnes away, but the team re-signed Austin Rivers, Doc’s son. All of it would appear to put a squeeze on Crawford’s playing time, particularly if the acquisition of Stephenson proves fruitful.

The team has nonetheless been unmotivated to trade Crawford in recent weeks, as Woike observed late last month. The comments from Rivers today appear to indicate his confidence that he won’t change his mind as the season develops, in spite of the roster logjam. Crawford already saw his minutes drop to 26.6 per game this past season, his fewest since the 2002/03 season. Still, a lack of depth was a weakness for the Clippers in the playoffs this spring, so perhaps the new acquisitions will simply fill in gaps elsewhere.

Crawford is due $5.675MM this season, a relative bargain based on his past production. That salary would make it difficult for the Clippers to find decent value in return, since, as taxpayers, they’re limited to taking in no more than 125% plus $100K of his salary without attaching other players to him in a trade.

Do you think Rivers will reconsider his stance and deal Crawford before the trade deadline in February? Comment to share your thoughts.

Atlantic Notes: Galloway, Marshall, Nets

September 10th, 2015 at 8:16pm CST by Chuck Myron

Langston Galloway‘s emergence for the Knicks through a pair of 10-day contracts was one of the most surprising stories of last season, but even after he made 41 starts last season, the Knicks aren’t completely sold, as Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News details. He’ll compete with first-round pick Jerian Grant for playing time behind Jose Calderon, Bondy notes.

“I’m not satisfied at all. I’m just trying to make my mark each game that goes by and I’m definitely still trying to prove myself to the world that, ‘Hey, I can continue to belong in this league and continue to do the same thing I did last year,'” Galloway said.

Galloway’s latest contract is partially guaranteed for $220K, and that amount increases to $440K if he sticks on the roster through Tuesday, which seems a likely outcome. Galloway figures to remain on the team for opening night even though New York has reportedly reached a camp deal with undrafted point guard Travis Trice. See more from the Atlantic Division:

Kendall Marshall‘s new contract with the Sixers covers four years and is worth an even $8MM, reports Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). It’s front-loaded with a fully guaranteed $2,144,772 salary for this season, as Pincus also shows.
The Nets traded $500K in cash to acquire the draft rights to Xavier Thames, to whom they declined to make the required tender by today’s deadline, forfeiting those rights, as NetsDaily notes. Brooklyn has sent out $7.5MM in trades for draft picks since the start of owner Mikhail Prokhorov era in May 2010, and of those picks, only Bojan Bogdanovic and Markel Brown are on the roster, and the Nets retain the draft rights to only Juan Vaulet, this year’s 39th overall pick, NetsDaily also points out.
The Nets expect to have a D-League affiliate in Brooklyn for 2016/17, league sources inform NetsDaily for a separate piece, though GM Billy King said in June that the process will take a couple of years. In any case, the lack of an affiliate for this season, with so many young players on the Nets roster, is not ideal, as NetsDaily explains. Brooklyn sent two players on D-League assignment last season, both of whom ended up with the Celtics affiliate, as I noted earlier today.