I recently made the case that the Knicks should spend their time and dollars on pursuing Dwight Howard over Chris Paul. The baseline assumptions were two-fold: (1) the team was not interested in pursuing any of the 2011 free agents; and (2) the priority had to be big man and defense over point guard and more offense.
Needless to say, then, I am very happy with the soon-to-be-completed signing of Tyson Chandler. He is literally the perfect compliment upfront to Stoudemire and Anthony. Someone who is focused on defense and rebounding and is a true center.
The weak spot is now in the backcourt, where the team is thin at both guard spots. I am relatively comfortable with the Fields/Shumpert combo at the 2, but point guard is truly the question mark -- Toney Douglas is the only one on the team. Therefore, where you have seen teams that play center-by-committee, the Knicks will inevitably play point guard-by-committee this season. The pick-up they seem to have focused on for now is Mike Bibby, who showed himself to be an underwhelming force in the playoffs last year for the Miami Heat. But, in making trade-offs, I will endure it if it means solidifying the front line.
My prediction/guess is that Steve Nash is now the object of desire next offseason. He lives in New York during the summer and might be amenable to signing the mid-level in order to get a final shot at a championship with his beloved Coach D'Antoni and pal from Phoenix, Amar'e.
All in all, a good week for my favorite basketball club. And, with any luck, 1973 will soon be updated to 2012 or 2013.
