Knicks Trades to Set Up a Playoff Push?

The media has been critisizing the NBA trade deadline deals for a good day or two now, so I figured I'd do a quick sound off on the topic as well. A brief review of my feelings on the Knickerbocker's moves, if you will.

The Knicks sent Malik Rose to OKC in exchange for Chris Wilcox, and a combo of Thomas/Roberson/James for Larry Hughes of Chicago.

Some very solid moves by Donnie Walsh, and I think the majority of Knicks fans will agree.

First, Jerome James, who probably hasn't played since high school, is finally gone. Roberson's a nice guard who can do a couple of things with the ball here and there, but the fact is D'Antoni never gave him playing time and so his departure is a wash. As far as Tim Thomas, he's a guy who you can't hate on because he plays well at times, although certainly nothing special, and so I couldn't care less that he's gone either.

Then you have Malik Rose. Another player who rode pine at least 90% of the time, and served ZERO value on the team. Good riddance to 'em all!

As for the new blue and orange ballers; Larry Hughes and Chris Wilcox. Hughes fills in as a decent scoring and defending 2-guard, and while he's a "me first and shoot first" kind of player, maybe fitting into the new offensive system will help to improve the quality of his game. Not to mention, he was in Chicago's dog house, and so moving to NYC and making a playoff run should be plenty of motivation to get this guy going. Don't forget, Hughes got that big contract back in the day for a reason...he isn't too far removed from his impressive days in Washington along side Gilbert Arenas.

Wilcox brings a big, athletic presence down low. An obvious upgrade over Malik. He's not one for shooting the ball, but can certainly clean up and finish underneath the basket. I think setting him up down low with D-Lee will be quite entertaining. Chris Duhon must be thrilled to have another option to look to in the paint. Pick and rolls, anyone?

Overall, these moves are in no way "Earth-shattering." They weren't designed to free up more cap space for the summer of 2010, but instead set the Knicks up with a chance to win today. Walsh gave up absolutely nothing in these trades, and in return brought in a couple of players who can only make the squad better. As a Knicks fan, I am completely satisfied.

Perhaps the most interesting move, or non-move, of the trade deadline was Walsh holding onto Nate Robisnon, when it seemed he was destined for Sacramento along with Jared Jeffries. Nate is one of my favorite players to watch, and brings excitement and energy to the floor night in and night out. While getting rid of JJ and his contract would've been great, it would've been sad to see Nate go for a few million bucks to improve position in a free agent market that is still another season away. Walsh backing out of this deal says a couple of things to me. For one, he thinks the Knicks can make the playoffs this year (and Nate fits into that equation), which we as fans should want, right? Two, he is comfortable at this point in time with where the team stands in the salary cap for 2010. Finally, Nate the Great, aka KryptoNate, aka Lex Luther, aka the Artist formerly known as Nathaniel Robinson, is in the Knicks future plans, at least to some degree.

I agree with Knicks fans and sports writers who feel like the opportunity to rid the team of Jeffrie's salary should've been strongly considered, and I'm sure it was. It would've been another $6 million off the books, which could only help in the pursuit of offering 2 max contracts down the road. However, I want the Knicks to win now if they have the chance. Why settle on two busted seasons if you don't have to? I enjoy watching the Knicks play good basketball and win games. It's been so long since we've seen something even close to respectable on the Garden floor, and even though we're not on our way to a ring, the respectability is back. They've yet to play their best ball this season, and meanwhile find themselves only a few games out of the final playoff spot. So, you make a couple of well calculated, minor deals to upgrade the talent on the roster and see where things go from there, and that's exactly what Walsh accomplished.