Time to see what Donnie is made of

It’s time for new New York Knicks’ president Donnie Walsh to make his first real decision on player personnel. Yes, he was the one at this years draft. Yes, he made the decisions not to cut or trade Stephon Marbury. He did make the decision to sign Chris Duhon to be his starting point guard. But the regular season is almost here and it’s time for the real decisions to start. And no Knicks fans, I’m not talking about the decision on whether or not to keep Patrick Ewing Jr. The decisions that have to be made are very time sensitive, as there is an NBA deadline of October 31st to offer contract extensions to players who could become restricted free agents. The Knicks have two very valuable players who could become free agents if they are not extended, David Lee and Nate Robinson. Does Donnie guarantee them a future in the Big Apple, or take a chance of losing them next summer.

Only thing certain right now is that Donnie does have interest in the two players. He’s said before that he likes both players but needs more time to evaluate. “A lot of it is, what advantage do we get for doing it right now?” Walsh said. “I’ve seen three exhibition games. Before that, we won 23 games. So, it just depends.” As the new man in charge that’s the perfect thing to say. He saw what the guys did last year, we all did. But don’t you want to wait a little while and see how these players perform in the new system. Players with their abilities might of worked well in Isiah Thomas’ system but may not be as productive in Mike D’Antoni’s system.

There haven’t even been any discussions yet between Walsh and the players or agents. Mark Bartelstein, the agent for David Lee, said, “We haven’t had any discussions, so we haven’t really thought about it too much. David and I just decided he’s going to put his focus toward helping the Knicks win and recapturing the city of New York.”

Earlier in this article, I quoted Walsh where he said “what advantage do we get for doing it right now?”. Well when it comes to David Lee you could be saving your organization a significant amount of money. Lee was already becoming a solid player at the end of the 2008 season, averaging 10.8 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. Even more impressive was that over the final two months of the season those numbers rose to just under 13 points and 10 rebounds a game. He clearly got better with the increased experience and increase in shots. Well in D’Antoni’s system he’s looking like a player on the verge of stardom. After 3 preseason games, he’s averaging 19 points and 10 boards a game. So much for Mike thinking a few years ago that he wouldn’t be a good fit for his system. But with the Knicks current roster, Lee fits the wide open model the best. And is without a doubt a player the Knicks CAN NOT let hit the open market. Lee at least has a good attitude about it all.

“I feel like I’m playing great ball right now, I feel like our team’s got a chance to be good this year, and I think I’m going to be a big part of, hopefully, a year where the Knicks are going to the playoffs,” Lee said. “That’s really all I can worry about.”

When it comes to the little man, Nate Robinson, I could agree waiting and taking your time to evaluate. I’ve always enjoyed watching the kid, he’s a nice spark off the bench and brings a level of excitement to the crowd. But the keyword there is bench. He’s a nice role player and won’t be a starter here in New York. A player like that, I’d take the time and evaluate him over the season. See if he has what the coach wants in his players.

There is actually one more player who the Knicks have to make a decision on and that is Wilson Chandler. It’s almost a certainty the team will pick up his option for the 2009-10 season.

To sum things up really quick, the Knicks have decisions to make by October 31st on David Lee and Nate Robinson. Does Donnie Walsh show why he’s getting the big bucks and make the right calls on his first big personnel decisions? I think he’s got to get that deal done with David Lee. If Lee flourishes then leaves in free agency because of money, I’ll already be holding up my FIRE DONNIE sign!

Like what you read? Then follow us on TWITTER for more updates

Tags: NBA, New York Knicks