Donnie Walsh

UPDATE: We've found its always a good thing when there are conflicting reports and rumors going around when it comes to making deals. Apparently Donnie was at Dolans 4th of July party tonight and Amar'e Re-tweeted a report that Donnie was there, but changed Dons name to Joe to help out with his story... anyway, again could be nothing but interesting

Those who have been watching the news wire have heard that the Knicks were flying to Cleveland tonight to have another meeting with LeBron and that the Knicks had a second meeting with LeBron Saturday. Well Donnie confirmed Saturdays meeting, but as for tonight he said that the rumored meeting was not true.

ESPN's Chad Ford Reports:

New York Knicks president of basketball operations Donnie Walsh is a patient man.

The Knicks completed their presentation to free agent LeBron James on Thursday and followed it up with presentations to Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh on Friday.

As of Sunday night, they still aren't sure where they stand.

"I have no idea," Walsh said. "I think that almost all of these guys have been tight about what their intentions are. All the meetings we had were really good. They were informative. But I didn't get an indication in what their interest was. The agent would say they're interested. And that's where we are. We are waiting to hear. With those guys you can afford to be a little patient."

Walsh did confirm that the Knicks' sent assistant GM Glen Grunwald to Cleveland for a second meeting with LeBron's agent, Leon Rose, on Saturday. But he said the meeting was just to clarify the team's cap situation both this year and the next.

"We didn't get into it in our first meeting the way we wanted to," Walsh said. "We just wanted to make sure they had all the information."

Walsh, however, denied a report by The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer, that the Knicks were meeting again with James on Sunday night.

"We don't have any other meetings scheduled with LeBron," Walsh said. "I'm in New York. Unless someone is there without my knowledge, no, we're done."

Walsh also said that reports of the Knicks striking a deal with free agent Amare Stoudemire are premature.

"He spent the weekend in N.Y. with his agent," Walsh said. "He went to some baseball games. [Coach] Mike [D'Antoni] met with him today to talk basketball and some personal issue this morning. We're meeting with him tomorrow. We haven't sat down and talked contract [with] him at all."

Walsh said the team is already exploring other free agent plans should LeBron, Wade and/or Bosh say no to the Knicks, saying the team had a plan "B, C, D, E and F."

He also addressed the idea that if the Knicks strike out in free agency with the top three of James, Wade and Bosh, that they might just save their money for next year.

"You could put it off until next year, but it's tough to do, especially with the direction we've been going," Walsh said. "But you can do it. At the very least, you have to start building into place some of the supporting cast now. If we can't get the stars this summer, we're at least going to put some players into place that will complement."

Most headlines read "Knicks Accquire Tracy McGrady," but what they should read is "Knicks Clear an Additional $9.5 Million in Cap Space for 2010."

What a day. One of the most influential days in Knicks history might not be July 1st, 2010 anymore, it may now have turned to February 18th, 2010, the day the Knicks cleared enough cap room to sign two max players.

Yes LeBron got a new running mate in Jamison, but really, this will not sway his decision. No wonder Amare somewhat-publicly stated that he did not want to go to Cleveland. I mean, who in their right mind would not want to go play with LeBron James become the key piece to winning a championship- perhaps he had some information...

As Marc Berman put it: "Donnie Walsh is “all in” for this summer.

Walsh opened up another $9.3 million of salary-cap space — giving the Knicks a projected total of $32 million to play with — in acquiring former superstar Tracy McGrady and Kings backup point guard Sergio Rodriguez yesterday in a three-team blockbuster with the Rockets and Kings."

Mike Vaccaro writes:
"Though he never said as much, Walsh had a three-step plan to getting the Knicks where they needed to be in time for his third year on the job:

1. Blow up the foundation. This was done by jettisoning Isiah once and forever, by hiring D’Antoni, and by serving early notice that two full seasons would be set aside to sacrifice for what was necessary.

2. Clear out the decks. In other words, do precisely what he did yesterday. Make sure every nickel is available by the stroke of midnight July 1.

3. Sign two max-contract players. Which really means this: Get LeBron James’ name on a contract, and a sidekick to be named later.

And that, of course, is the part that, starting at 12:01:01 on July 1, will make what happened this week seem like a vacation. It is a very clear, crystal thing to be a Knicks fan now. Forget this year. Forget the draft, because there’s no first-round pick this year and there may be none in 2011 or 2012, too, after yesterday’s transactions.

Focus on one thing.

Focus on July 1, 2010. The day the Knicks are either reborn or given a blindfold, a cigarette, and a shove into the abyss."

Oh and a side note- he was able to move nuisance Nate Robinson to Boston, perhaps disrupting the chemistry in Boston for a second time (see Marbury 2009).

The countdown continues... 131 Days.

If Donnie Walsh is able to pull the trigger on this move, he becomes Isiah, but in a good way (if that is even possible?).

The Isiah era has scarred us all so badly; it made the team we know and love just putrid over the past few years while also hurting our future. Right now we would be looking at this "lost" 19-32 season saying we possibly have a long-shot at Wall, but instead, Utah does. Unfortunately, Isiah believed so much in his moves, he assumed that 2011 pick would be in the 20s - or at least late teens. Never in his mind did he think we could be lottery bound again. If that was the case, it wouldn't be the worst thing to lose it.

What Donnie is doing if he does give up the 2012 pick is the same type of strategy. He is saying that in 2010 we will pick up at least one proven all-star caliber player, and in 2011, we will pick up one more when Curry comes off the books. If this trade goes down, Donnie is saying that there is no chance that the Knicks are not a playoff team in 2011. If you look at it that way, you shouldn't mind making the move and getting rid of the #20-30 pick two years from now to make this deal work and allow us to sign two max players, or at least one max and some great role players.

Yes, we should keep the picks if it is at all possible, but if they're a deal breaker, then you have to include them and get the trade done. Walsh's plan is not based on Marbury, Crawford, Curry or ZBo, its based on any of the many established all-star team players that will be available in the next two years.

Donnie is the smart version of Isiah and all of us Knicks fans need to put 100% faith that he knows what he's doing.

Marc Berman wrote an article in the NY Post talking about Walsh's options and plans for the Knicks over the summer and into 2010- here are some of the important pieces to note/highlights:
*Possibility of LeBron signing an extension with Cleveland this season(doubtful, remember, this site is not the only place counting down the days):
"If King James passes[signing an extension], the Knicks can still cling to their fantasy of competing for James in 2010 and bringing along point guard Steve Nash as his sidekick with all their unprecedented cap room. Only James and Dwayne Wade, a warm-weather guy who probably won't consider the Knicks, are the two 2010 gems capable of turning a dead franchise around."

*The potential 2010 starting lineup if they sign King James:
"A 2010-11 starting lineup of Nash and Wilson Chandler in the backcourt, with James, Danilo Gallinari and David Lee up front could make the Knicks title contenders."

*"Walsh is unwilling to take on contracts past 2010, unless the player is All-Star material."

*Walsh wants the team in playoff position next season to help entice a free agent.

*Trade possibilities? (slim chance... but out there):
"As for free-agency/trades, the Knicks' best hope at a big score is if a team with a marquee 2010 free agent feels it must deal now instead of losing him for nothing. That could happen with Toronto and Chris Bosh, maybe with Phoenix and Amare Stoudemire and Nash."

I can honestly say I trust and think Donnie really knows what he's doing there and how to get it done. Haven't been able to say that for years, it may continue to hurt next season, but I see light at the end of the tunnel, at the worst, I see the team as back on track in 2010

Oh... and did you see the show LeBron put on the other night?- he is going to carry that team on his back (again) through the playoffs

Great Day for the Knicks- Unloaded multiple bad pieces from the Isiah Era and picked up 2 pieces that can help for a 2009 playoff push and have no effect on 2010.

Donnie just continues to show he got what it takes to make the right moves and still get where you want to go. Cavs GM Danny Ferry might want to start taking notes if he wants to keep LeBron (or add a big piece to his roster in the next 30 minutes)

update: 2:05
DONE DEALS:
"Marc Stein: Hopefully you've seen all the clarifications on New York's moves.

The Knicks have swung two deals.

No. 1: Tim Thomas, Jerome James and Anthony Roberson to Chicago for Larry Hughes.

No. 2: Malik Rose and cash to Oklahoma City for Chris Wilcox.

Just over an hour to go before the trade buzzer sounds . . ."

update: 1:55 pm
Not confirmed, but ESPN has also stated that The Knicks agreed to a minor trade Thursday with the Oklahoma City Thunder, swapping Malik Rose for Chris Wilcox.

"A source with knowledge of the trade disclosed it to ESPN.com, saying it was agreed to early Thursday afternoon. It was unclear whether there were any additional parts involved in the trade."

Link to the release: http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3918993

update: 1:37 pm

Chad Ford: The Chicago Bulls made their second big trade in two days on Thursday agreeing to send Larry Hughes to the Knicks for Jerome James and Tim Thomas, two league sources told ESPN.com.

1:25pm:
Marc Stein: Word is coming in that the Knicks are closing in on some new players.

It is not immediately clear if this would be two separate trades or a three-way exchange, but I'm hearing that Oklahoma City's Chris Wilcox -- who went back to the Thunder on Wednesday night when the Tyson Chandler trade was rescinded -- and Chicago's Larry Hughes are New York-bound.

To complete the transaction(s), Oklahoma City would get Malik Rose and Chicago would receive Tim Thomas, Jerome James and Anthony Roberson.

Trying to nail it all down for you.

A very good article by ESPN’s Chris Sheridan here:
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/columns/story?columnist=sheridan_chris&pag...

The supposed “bombshell” he refers to is actually not a bombshell it all – Stern simply stated that the salary cap will probably decreases a bit over the next few seasons. It is all hypothetical at this point. But either way – it only means a few million plus-or-minus towards the 2010 cap-number. As we have known for a while, there is no way the Knicks can keep both Lee and Nate Rob, regardless if the cap is at 60 or 57 million.

But the article does a great job of breaking down the Knicks 2010 cap-commitments; including the phantom cap holds that all too often gets overlooked.

First and foremost, let’s get this out of the way – there is NO way the Knicks commit any 2010 money to Nate Robinson. For reasons to numerous to list here; Nate is not part of the long-term plans for a championship franchise. He is simply too much of a gamble. So Walsh’s main goal for the next few days (and then next summer) is to try and pawn off Nate with Jefferies expiring contract. If they have to lose Nate for nothing in 2010, so be it – but Walsh and company will not let him eat into their Twenty-Ten plans.

As for D Lee – that is a whole different story…
Question is – would you rather lock up Lee at $10 million (you know he’d love to be here and you know what your getting), or take a chance (a CHANCE) at landing a guy like Joe Johnson or Dirk Nowitzki?