Danilo Gallinari

You ask me what the key to tonight is? The 3 things I will tell you are Gallo, Wil, and LeBron's favorite baseball team.

How much of an impact will tonight have on LeBron for 2010? I say we MAKE IT have a huge impact.

For starters, the Knicks need to show LeBron that he has some solid pieces here. Gallo needs to shoot the eyes out of the hoop tonight so LeBron sees the potential of the second coming of Dirk to play with. Then if Wil comes out and shows the sparks he has shown over the past few seasons (he averaged 14 & 6 as a 21 year old) - even just one or two of those moves that make you say "Wow! Look at his athleticism" it will go a long way.

LeBron was quoted today in the Post saying "It doesn't matter where I'll be, I'm good enough to help a team win basketball games." He truly, and correctly, believes this to be the case (see 2009 Cavs Roster). It doesn't matter who is around him, but it would be nice for him to know he has a few good pieces to get to a top team in the East in 2010. Then he can have a championship caliber team when Eddy and Jared's $17 mil come off the books in 2011 for the next Knicks big free agent signing.

The other key to tonight- as said here earlier- is the New York Yankees. I'm hoping for all the big Yankee names to be there. Bring them out on the court before the game, congratulate them during the timeouts, show each player individually every chance you can get, keep on that all night. Oh and get a camera on LeBron during it- imagine the uproar if LeBron was seen clapping- or just even smiling- we all know how much he loves the Yanks (he also reportedly texted Jeter, A-Rod, & CC after they won).

So tonight, remember the keys:
1. Yankees, Yankees and more Yankees.
2. A heavy dose of Gallo.
3. Empire State of Mind.
4. A Coaching mistake by Mike Brown and a good night from Mike D.
5. Wilson Chandler shows up.
6. Hot Chicks sitting courtside.
7. No Goofing around.
8. A Knowledgeable Crowd.

Good article by Chad Ford on the future of the Knicks and Gallanari's potential impact:

Knicks GM Donnie Walsh said something to me this summer that I haven't been able to get out of my head.

Walsh said that the future of the Knicks lies with Danilo Gallinari ... not a certain free-agent-to-be superstar in Cleveland that Walsh can't talk about.

From Walsh's perspective having the cap room to lure a free agent wasn't going to be enough to lure a top talent to New York. Nor was having the most player-friendly coach in the league, Mike D'Antoni.

The best players in the league want to play with other great players, Walsh reasoned. The Knicks need at least one other potential superstar on their roster to help convince a top-tier free agent that New York has a shot at winning in the future.

With the cap expected to drop considerably next season, Walsh's dreams of adding two stud free agents has become a fantasy. Unless the Knicks can move Eddy Curry or Jared Jeffries for an expiring contract this season, they just won't have the money to pay two elite free agents.

So given the Knicks' general lack of talent, who is the other potential superstar that could lure a free agent to New York? Walsh said, matter-of-factly, Gallinari.

Gallinari spent most of his rookie season resting a bad back and Walsh was ripped for passing on Eric Gordon and Brook Lopez for Gallinari.

But Walsh felt like Gallinari was a special player -- another sweet-shooting European forward a la Dirk Nowitzki. If Gallinari could show his potential this season, Walsh reasoned, he has enough star potential to lure an elite free agent this summer.

Three games into the season, Gallanari is making Walsh look like a prophet. He's averaging 22.7 ppg. He's already drained 18 threes and is shooting 50 percent from behind the arc. He's actually a decent defender. Not bad for a 21- year-old kid basically in his rookie season. While three games doesn't make a season, Walsh has to be pleased with what he's seeing. If Gallanari can keep it up, the Knicks may have an important key to winning the free agent sweepstakes this summer.