those with a twitter account, Knicks are having a contest to basically watch the game at a suite with the 1969-70 championship squad next week...

Today, as I officially say good-bye to the Houston Rockets, one of my greatest regrets is that I was unable to bring Rocket fans a championship during my time here in Houston. This great city has been my home for over six years. Three of my kids were born here and this is where CleRenda and I will continue to raise our children. It is where we call home. Over the years, I have received so much support from the communities throughout the city, on a personal level and for my Foundation and Darfur School Programs. I have nothing but sincere gratitude for the city of Houston and the generous people who live in it.

I have tremendous respect for Leslie Alexander and have enjoyed playing for the Rockets over the last six years. It has definitely been the most profound part of my career. I’ve learned a lot about myself from various situations, both good and bad that have occurred here. It was my hope when I came to Houston that I wouldn’t leave, but I do understand this is the business side of basketball.

I wish the current Rockets team nothing but success this season. They are a great group of guys, tremendous teammates, and very talented on the court. One of the highlights of my career has been playing alongside Yao, a truly exceptional player and human being. I have great respect for him as an athlete and as a friend, and will remember fondly our time playing together.

As for me, I can’t wait to get back on the court to continue doing what I love to do. I am excited to be headed to New York and look forward to wearing a Knick uniform. I know that I can and will contribute to this organization. It’s a dream to play in New York and there is nothing that compares to playing in the Garden. Knick fans are some of the most knowledgeable and passionate fans in the league, and it will be an honor to play in front of them and to play for the great city of New York.

To all my fans who have backed me throughout all these years, I can promise you one thing, that my desire to play and to win has never been as strong as it is today. No amount of road blocks, injuries and critics could stop my need to play ball. It is who I am and what I do.
I am on to the next chapter of my career and I thank you again for taking the ride with me.

- Mac

thenyknicks

- Just in: Meet & Greet Invite from LJ ($40 includes tkt to Legends Night + tee).

Alan Hahn

The Knicks interest in Tracy McGrady is obvious from the salary cap relief standpoint, especially because of the $9.5 million in savings that came out of the three-team trade before the deadline.

But what McGrady also brings to the Knicks is that these last 29 games are now worth something. It's been a long day and I'm pretty tired, but I'm not anywhere near the state of delerium that would lead me to even try to suggest McGrady, with one microfracture-repaired knee and a potbelly physique, leads a ridiculous charge to a playoff berth. This gang is 7 1/2 games out, Fixers. Be sure to mix well that dose of reality in the Kool-Aid today. And hate me for being right.

But it's not a total loss. No this will be interesting, to say the least. McGrady is a megawatt talent who, in the few times Rick Adelman let him off the bench in December, proved he could still put up strong numbers. His shooting touch is still there, as is the natural ability to create offense, either for himself or others.

The Knicks want to see just how much he has left and if it may be worth a little piece of their precious cap space this summer as they rebuild this roster.

"All the options are open now," Donnie Walsh said in regards to McGrady being an option for next season.

Maybe if there were a few more games left, maybe if the deficit wasn't already so steep, maybe if there weren't five back-to-backs left and maybe if 17 of the last 29 games weren't on the road, there might be a chance.

Maybe if the Knicks weren't somehow even smaller after these trades, weren't so obviously weaker defensively (if that was possible).

But, again, it'll be very interesting. Why?

For one, after the offense was downshifted to allow Chris Duhon to play at his gear, get ready for the return of Seven Seconds or Less. If not for any other reason but because the Knicks will need to run and score as much as they possible can to overcome the fact that they can't/won't defend. Perhaps Mike D'Antoni needs to put a "Foul Jar" in the locker room and after each game, whoever played over 20 minutes and didn't get at least four fouls must put $1,000 in the jar. Then tell the players the money goes toward a post-season party for the beat writers. We'd be making it rain if guys kept letting opponents get to the rim like the Bulls did in that third quarter on Wednesday night.

Back on point: McGrady. He'll probably begin as a two guard, which will allow Wilson Chandler to move to the four spot, where he's more comfortable (and better suited). You could see flashy playmaker Sergio Rodriguez, whom the Knicks were thrilled to get in the deal, supplant Duhon as the starting point guard. El Chacho (or, if you prefer the more American moniker, S-Rod) can use these 29 games as a showcase for himself, as well, in D'Antoni's system. The Knicks are going to need a point guard this summer.

But the main thing to see is if McGrady can be the go-to guy, the LeBron, the Wade, the Carmelo, the Dirk . . . the Kobe, the Knicks have so sorely lacked all season and for the better part of the past decade. Does he still have this in him?

Trainer Tim Grover, who has worked with McGrady since his Rockets exile in late December, says the microfracture issue -- his surgery was a year ago -- should not be a factor. But we've seen with players who come out of microfracture surgery that explosion is usually the biggest loss. Running and moving isn't as much of a problem, but the explosion the player was so used to -- and what was so much a part of their game -- just never returns. McGrady had great explosion, as Shawn Bradley once found out, but can he get it back again at the age of 30?

"It normally does [impact explosion]," Grover said of microfracture, "but I think we were able to combat that quite a bit. Give it about 10 days and you'll be able to see how explosive he really is."

Grover's only concern with McGrady in these 29 games has to do with his basketball timing. "From a conditioning standpoint, he's going to be fine," Grover said. "Get a couple of practices under his belt. Health-wise, he's 100 percent. But, listen, you can only run a person on a treadmill so much. You can only have him go through drills and have him do different things, but when you're out there playing five-on-five against guys 250 pounds and up and taking contact, that's something I just can't simulate this time of year."

Grover says McGrady has worked out "five times a week" since December and when he wasn't at Grover's ATTACK Athletics facility in Chicago, "I sent one of my trainers with him" when McGrady was home in Houston.

So it'll be interesting, for sure. Each game, down to No. 82, will be a look at a once-superstar player trying to regain his level and prove to the rest of the NBA that he still belongs among the game's elite and, of course, he is worth another multiyear contract.

It'll be interesting to see when a team has to guard a 6-8 shooter who can handle the ball at the top of a pick-and-roll how they then defend a 6-9 player who can cut, catch and finish with either hand. And how they defend that without leaving one of the NBA's best three-point shooters on the perimeter and also keeping an eye on that kid with the pogostick legs crashing back door from the weak side.

It'll be interesting to see how the supporting cast looks with a leading man.

[pic - click to view]


Alan Hahn

Two desperate NBA entities collided Thursday in a moment of need that served as the feature event in one of the busiest trade-deadline days in NBA history.

In joining the Knicks, former exiled All-Star Tracy McGrady gets the Garden stage - and Mike D'Antoni's wide-open offense - to showcase himself for free agency this summer. And in McGrady, the Knicks gain a means of ensuring that they, too, will get a lot of attention in free agency.

The Knicks acquired McGrady from the Houston Rockets and point guard Sergio Rodriguez from the Sacramento Kings in a three-team deal in which Jared Jeffries ($6.8-million salary in 2010-11) and rookie Jordan Hill ($2.7 million) went to the Rockets to create $9.5 million in salary-cap savings for next season.

The Knicks will have more than $30 million in cap space to use in the final step in the plan Donnie Walsh laid out when he was hired in April 2008: rebuilding through a star-studded free-agent market this summer. "It puts the franchise in position where it can build a contending team," he said. "That's what the goal was."

The Kings sent Kevin Martin and Hilton Armstrong to the Rockets, the Rockets sent Carl Landry and Joey Dorsey to the Kings, and the Knicks sent Larry Hughes to the Kings. The Rockets also obtained the right to swap 2011 first-round picks with the Knicks along with the Knicks' 2012 first-round pick.

In a separate deal yesterday, the Knicks sent Nate Robinson and Marcus Landry to the Boston Celtics for veteran Eddie House, D-Leaguers J.R. Giddens and Bill Walker, and a conditional future second-round pick.

All told, the Knicks traded six players in two days - Darko Milicic was dealt to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Brian Cardinal on Wednesday - to reshape a team that is 71/2 games out of a playoff spot with 29 games to go. Or should we say a team that is 29 games from something Walsh has been planning for almost two years.

"It took a lot of work to get to this stage. I would say everybody feels happy about it," Walsh said last night after the busiest trade-deadline day in franchise history.

Walsh had talked with Rockets GM Daryl Morey since Sunday about the framework of a deal involving McGrady and shedding Jeffries' $6.8-million 2010-11 salary. Morey believed he could get more value for McGrady, who has an expiring contract at $23 million, the league's highest salary this season. Walsh was extremely wary about his end of the deal, which involved giving up Hill, the No. 8 overall pick in the draft last season, plus a future first-round pick.

Enter Kings GM Geoff Petrie, who was looking to move Martin's hefty contract so the Kings could build around Rookie of the Year candidate Tyreke Evans. On Wednesday night, Petrie reached an agreement with Morey on the exchange of Martin and McGrady and then reached out to Walsh to complete the rest of the deal. Arn Tellem, the powerful agent who represents McGrady, had a hand in networking the teams with the intention of ensuring that McGrady would wind up with the Knicks.

Asked if the Kings saved the deal, Walsh replied, "Probably."

With the Kings including Martin in the deal, Walsh was able to quell his concerns about mortgaging the future by protecting the 2011 pick if it becomes the first overall and the 2012 if it falls in the top five. With all that cap space, the Knicks - who are owned by Cablevision, which also owns Newsday - should believe their days in the lottery are over. But Walsh saw the mistakes of the past - giving up two unprotected lottery picks for Eddy Curry in 2005, not to mention that this year's first-round pick was given away in the Stephon Marbury trade in 2004 - and did not want to leave the same kind of legacy.

McGrady flew to New York last night and is expected to be in uniform for tomorrow's game against the Thunder at the Garden. It would be his first game since he played eight minutes against the Magic on Dec. 23, right before the Rockets decided to dismiss him from the team while they considered trade options.

McGrady, making a comeback from microfracture surgery, worked out with renowned trainer Tim Grover in Chicago - he was there Tuesday when the Knicks played the Bulls - and according to Grover, he is ready to go. "Put him in a uniform and let him play," Grover said. "He's ready."

With Marcus Henry

[pic - click to view]


Alan Hahn

Just think, the hardest part is still to come.

Donnie Walsh on Thursday excavated another $9.5 million off the 2010-11 salary cap, which frees up more than $30 million in cap space for this summer's long-awaited Knicks renovation.

They already had enough space to make LeBron James a maximum contract offer, but now the NBA's biggest market is a lot more dangerous because it can build a team around James with the leftover cash.

Meanwhile, the Cavaliers worked furiously before the deadline to make a major addition - forward Antawn Jamison - to put even more talent around James, hoping it pushes the Cavs to a championship that most expect would be enough to keep LeBron from leaving.

Make no mistake, the Cavs are extremely concerned about the lure of the Garden, New York and now the virtual clean slate the Knicks will have on July 1.

And that's exactly the plan.

Walsh struggled all week with giving up a young a.sset in rookie Jordan Hill and a 2012 first-round pick - essentially mortgaging the future - to accomplish the cap savings goal. But by making the deal, a clear message was sent to James and the Cavs.

"Two words," a Western Conference general manager said.

"All in."

As you keep vigil in this ongoing LeBronathon, let's correct one misguided a.ssumption. Even with all of that cap space, there technically won't be enough room to make two maximum-contract offers to free agents this summer and still fill out the roster without going over the cap. So those visions of LeBron and his buddy Dwyane Wade tossing alley-oops to each other the way they did last Sunday in Dallas probably are going to remain limited to All-Star Games and Olympics.

But if they can sign James, the Knicks can involve him in the process of putting together the pieces around him. For instance, James really wanted the Cavs to trade for Amare Stoudemire before the deadline. Stoudemire, if he decides to opt out, could join him in New York. Very few GMs believe Stoudemire is a max contract player, so that shouldn't be an issue.

Even if the Knicks are unable to convince James - who by then likely will be a two-time MVP - to leave Cleveland, there still are some very favorable options.

They can use the cap space to target two All-Stars such as Joe Johnson and Chris Bosh, though you'd have to convince them to take less than a max contract or attempt to acquire one via sign-and-trade.

The extra cap room also allows a better chance to re-sign David Lee, though Lee will have several opportunities to consider around the league and also could be included in a sign-and-trade for one of the aforementioned stars. And the Knicks - who are owned by Cablevision, which also owns Newsday - can make a lot of upgrades via trades with their cap space and the value of Eddy Curry's contract, which expires after 2010-11.

The NBA sent a memo last summer to its teams warning that the salary cap - based on a poor economic climate - could drop from nearly $58 million this season to as low as $50 million in 2010-11. More recent projections say the cap could dip to $55 million. That $5-million swing is extremely important to the Knicks, obviously.

Walsh clearly wasn't taking any chances, which is why he mortgaged the future in trading Hill and the 2012 first-round pick to ensure the Knicks will have the space they need to make these past two years of sacrifice worth their while.

if only we could have see if the Kings would have taken Curry for Thomas since they are trying to get rid of him and are placing waivers on him

Players weren't exactly jumping for joy in the locker room on Thursday upon hearing that the team had acquired Nate Robinson from the Knicks.

Boston send New York a package that included guard Eddie House.

"I would've been fine if we hadn't ... we'll see whether that's the right decision or not," said coach Doc Rivers. "I like this team, I've said it over and over again. I didn't think we needed to make changes."

Rajon Rondo at first declined to discuss the trade, then opened up a bit.

"I don't know, I don't know," said Rondo. "I hope it's for the best. Eddie House can drop 20, 30 [points off the bench] too. But [the players] don't make decision, we just play the game."

Ray Allen didn't feel a trade was necessary.

"I didn't think we were bad," said Allen. "We were good."

Even Lakers coach Phil Jackson got in on the act, questioning Danny Ainge's logic.

"I really don't know about that," he said. "I have a great respect for House's game. I don't know what you can improve on that credible shooting skill that he has. House really has a strike factor in his game that can really disturb a team."

now that we have a PG capable of running...D'Antino says we're going to be doing just that once again....if we don't re-sign T-Mac, guess we gonna make Tracy be our CC Sabathia for the Brewers and make this n*gga work

alanhahn

D'Antoni on if McGrady will play right away: “Might as well, we’ve only got 29 to go." McGrady will be in uniform vs OKC if physicals clear.

alanhahn

McGrady speaks: "I know these guys are seven games out of the playoffs, but this is the team I really wanted to come to.”

More McGrady: "This is not the same Tracy from last season when I was hobbling on one leg. That’s not going to be me.

McGrady says if Knicks bring in LeBron or Wade, "I'd be a damn fool not to want to stay here . . . Money is not an issue [for me]."

TMac on NY: "Every player should want 2 play here...this frnchse hs been down so long, y not be part of something special and build it up?"

HowardBeckNYT

TMac was light-hearted and engaging in his first meet-and-greet w/NY media today. Seems very, very, very happy to be here.

HowardBeckNYT

TMac very aware of Knicks' cap plans. But said he'd happily re-sign for whatever's left if they get two max players (LeBron/Bosh).

HowardBeckNYT

LOL. But I've seen plenty of rich miserable guys in this league RT @jimguelda I'd be lighthearted and engaging if I was making $23 mil too!

The Knicks have officially waived forward Brian Cardinal.

New York acquired Cardinal from the Timberwolves earlier this week in exchange for Darko Milicic.

"President of Basketball Operations Donnie Walsh announced today that the team has waived forward Brian Cardinal," the team wrote on their official Twitter page.

this was obviously happening, cost waaay less to waive this dude than it would for Darko, that's why Knicks did the trade with the Minnesota c*ckBlockers

Tracy McGrady is excited about landing in New York and hopes that he has a future with the Knicks.

McGrady says he'd even be willing to re-sign for less money if it means playing alongside superstars in New York.

"This is not the same Tracy from last season, when I was hobbling on one leg," said McGrady, who says he's healthy after microfracture surgery.

So how do you all feel about the trades and our situation for the future?

Howard Beck

GREENBURGH, N.Y. — Tracy McGrady’s arrival on Thursday may lead directly to David Lee’s departure in July. The issue is salary-cap rules.

By acquiring McGrady’s large expiring contract, the Knicks created nearly enough cap room to sign two superstars this summer. To use that cap room, they first have to renounce the rights to all of their free agents, including Lee.

That means the Knicks will forfeit Lee’s Bird rights, which allow a team to exceed the cap to keep one of its players. Once they are under the cap, they will also lose the midlevel exception, a salary slot worth about $6 million.

So if the Knicks sign two maximum-salaried players, say LeBron James and Chris Bosh, should they become free agents, there will be no cap space left for Lee and no way to keep him. They will have to fill out the roster with players making the N.B.A. minimum.

There are other possible situations. If the Knicks sign only one superstar, they would have about $16 million of cap room left. That would be enough to re-sign Lee (even without his Bird rights) and other players, a.ssuming another team has not signed Lee while the Knicks were chasing bigger stars.

The Knicks could also use Lee in a sign-and-trade deal, perhaps in a dual sign-and-trade for Bosh. However, renouncing his rights negates the sign-and-trade option. Timing is an issue: The Knicks will not claim their estimated $31.5 million in cap room until they have renounced the rights to all their free agents.

Alan Hahn

There's only 29 games left in the season, so there's no time to waste. Mike D'Antoni said this morning that Tracy McGrady will start in his Knicks debut tonight against the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Garden.

McGrady isn't sure if he can handle 30 minutes or more just yet, but insists he doesn't have any limitations as a result of his microfracture surgery.

"I don't look at it as I can't do this, I can't do that," he said. "I don't have any doubt. I feel once I'm out there and what I've been through as far as rehabbing and working out, I feel I can do everything I've done in the past."

McGrady will slide into the spot vacated by Jared Jeffries, who was sent to the Rockets as part of Thursday's nine-player, three-team trade. McGrady will move into the shooting guard position next to Chris Duhon, while Wilson Chandler, who had been playing the two spot most of the season, will move to power forward.

Sergio Rodriguez will back up Duhon for now, but that could change as Rodriguez gets more acclimated with the offense. It will be interesting to see if D'Antoni gets to a point where he tries rookie Toney Douglas next to McGrady as a shot-maker and defender once McGrady proves his conditioning is at the necessary level for the offense to run through him.

The Knicks are a lot smaller with this lineup, of course, as 6-10 swingman Danilo Gallinari is the tallest player in the starting five while Chandler (6-8) and David Lee (6-9) is the smallest frontcourt in the NBA.

Sergio Rodriguez on Knick trade


McGrady Wants to Be Part of Something Special With Knicks

depending on how things go, may start tonight or in a couple weeks but Duhon appears to be benchwarming bound and Sergi with TD backing him up may be the permanent rotation for the rest of the year and depending on who we get in the off season (i'm still saying we WILL get Ridnour) will be our PG rotation next season)........one of the main reasons for this trade was cause not only will it allow cap room for WHOEVER, it also gives the younger/bench warmers more minutes to see if they are worth keeping

any thoughts on who the rotation would be?

my guess is

1. Serg
2. Gallo
3. T-Mac
4. Chandler
5. Lee