Ever pull out some old clothesline or rope and find it full of a million knots? That's pretty much what Donnie Walsh found when he inherited the Knicks from Isiah Thomas. Donnie undid two of those knots by trading Jamal Crawford and Zach Randolph in separate deals with the Warriors and Clippers. In return, the Knicks are getting Al Harrington, Cuttino Mobley and Tim Thomas.
The deal doesn't make the Knicks any better or worse... but they've all got contracts that are up before that magical 2010 season... so the deal makes sense from the Knicks perspective. They're not winning the title this year or next... so why not try to rebuild the right way?
My question for the Clippers is... why? I can get why the Warriors pulled a deal for Crawford. He fits their system better than Harrington. It seems like both teams benefit. The Clippers seem to have just done the Knicks a favor without really helping themselves. Why would anyone take on Randolph's contract?
One quick thought on that 2010 season: Someone is gonna get screwed... hard. It's simple math. More teams are preparing for that season than there are premium free agents available. At least 2 or 3 teams will have spent the next few years getting ready for that off-season... and none of the big-name free agents will sign with them. You know what that will lead to? Overspending on the next tier of free agent and screwing their franchise over for years. GM's who miss out on LeBron or Wade will be desperate to make a splash... and next thing you know Andrei Kirilenko is getting way more money than he's worth.
