The Knicks Off Season Was...A Success (continued)

We all know about the signing of Amare Stoudemire, but can people realize that what we got for David Lee is perhaps better than having David Lee to begin with?

Call me crazy, but I’m about to make a believer in all of you David Lee admirers out there. Don’t get me wrong—I love Lee and will respect him as a player, but you cannot argue with me and tell me you wouldn’t want this freak of an athlete in Anthony Randolph at $12 million less than we’d have to pay Lee.

Perhaps you are unaware of Randolph’s skill-set. Maybe you didn’t see too much of him hidden in Golden State. Well in case you haven’t seen video on him here’s a link for you: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyffO6Bp_80 .

OK, so hopefully you’re with me know after watching that video. If not here’s an interesting tidbit of information...he's 20 years old.

That’s right, 20.

Oh and by the way, Gallinari, he’s 21. And yeah, Wilson Chandler, he’s 23. And Amare Stoudemire? He’s almost 28 and is the oldest player on the team. Not to mention Raymond Felton (26), Toney Douglas (24), Bill Walker (22), and newly signed Russian big man, who for all we know could be a monster, Timofey Mozgov (23). The team’s average age is a mere 24 at the moment. All players are ready to contribute and some of them are budding stars in the making.

Couple that notion with cap space that can net us at least one if not two max players (i.e. Carmello and Paul), then you got one hell of a ride ahead of you.

So Knicks fans, buckle up. Get ready, cause we’ve got a team that is ready to play and ready to grow in star power for years to come. We have young talents, assets, and tons of cap space in place to make a run against those three queens in Miami moving forward. The only negative may be getting good at the wrong time, but we are used to that in New York (back in the MJ days). We say bring it on and let’s go. It will sure be a lot more interesting than the last decade.

On top of all that, Eddy Curry’s contract is finally coming off the books after the next season as the Knicks look forward to finally ridding themselves of a haunting figure both in looks and in contracts.

Despite all the efforts to rid themselves of Curry’s contract, the Knicks finally can view him as an asset due to his expiring deal. They can either choose to trade him for value if they find themselves in contention near the trade deadline, or simply hold on to him and reap the benefits in next year’s top-heavy free agent class featuring Carmello Anthony. With Curry alongside potentially Azubuike, and Mozgov expiring, the Knicks will find themselves with enough money to spend on one max free agent unless they deal other players along the way.

If you look a few years down the road, we only have five guys on our current roster who are under contract (Stoudemire, Felton, Gallinari, Randolph, and Douglas). Those are five names that Knicks fans need to get familiar with because guess what—that is a promising young core for any team, let alone the dormant Knicks of the last decade to possess. Not to mention other possibilities who are due to expire before then in Wilson Chandler, Bill Walker, and Timofey Mozgov, who are all promising on different levels.

Essentially, the Knicks have eight players who are ready to play and who are all for the most part ready to evolve into big names. On top of that, they possess the necessary role players and rookies that every championship team needs (Turiaf, Azubuike, Rautins, Fields, Jordan).

When was the last time we had a team that was this young, exciting, fresh, and talented? When was the last time the Knicks had a future rather than a past?

I implore you Knicks fans to not lose hope and to realize that this off-season was truly a success despite what anyone believes or says. The Knicks did their best to acquire LeBron, but they full well knew it was a long-shot and that plans B, C, D, E, and even F were nothing to spit at. For all we know, the outcome of this off-season in Donnie’s mind was plan Z.

But guess what? Donnie’s plan Z was better than Isiah’s plan A ever was (if he ever even had a plan). In essence, the Knicks have truly come a long way. To even be mentioned in the LeBron sweepstakes was an accomplishment, considering what Donnie inherited.

When all is said and done, coming out of the historic 2010 off-season the headlines will go to Miami. Perhaps on a nationwide angle, the Knicks were losers. But if you are an educated Knicks fan, and have witnessed throughout the past two years what was endured, you will see the positives and consider this off-season a victory.

The Knicks now have the assets in place and the cap space flexibility to build a contender for years to come. Heck, we may even see a true revival of the Knicks and Heat rivalry to a point where it exceeds the predecessor of the mid 90s. That alone is something to look forward to. In Donnie, we will always trust.