As if on cue, Fox News published this Which team is the biggest train wreck article shortly after Canis Hoopus wrote about how things could be worse…cough…Miami…cough.
According to the article by Randy Hill, there are 2, count them, 2 teams in worse standing than our beloved Puppies: the Heat and the New York Knickerbockers. Here, here. Yours truly really worries that the T-Wolves will end the season with a better record than both of these squads, thus reducing the number of ping-pong balls in the upcoming draft. That’s probably not the best thing to root for, but I did list maximizing ping-pong balls as one of the Wolves’ top 2007/08 priorities.
The Knicks are an interesting case study in badness. It’s not just that they have an uber-Kevin McHale (AKA Iron Range Ape) in Isiah Thomas or that they have massive amounts of dysfunction in their front office (see sexual harassment suit), but simply that they are so far beyond FUBAR’d with the salary cap that you really have to question the financial viability of taking on an additional $3-4 million dollar top-5 lottery pick in next year’s draft.
As it stands right now, the Knicks are locked into a stunning $91 million in guaranteed money in 2008/09. This money is stretched across 13 players: Stephon Marbury, Zach Randolph, Eddy Curry, Quentin Richardson, Jamal Crawford, Malik Rose, Jerome James, Jared Jefferies, Nate Robinson, Renaldo Balkman, Wilson Chandler, David Lee, and Mardy Collins.
Now, the NBA roster limit is 15 (active is 12) and if the Knicks choose to take and sign a 1st round pick (likely in the top 5), they are looking at $93-95 million with 14 players. 2 of these guys will then get paid not to play.
The 2008/09 NBA Luxury Tax level will be somewhere in the neighborhood of $69 million. This means that for each and every dollar a team spends above this mark, they will have to match it in tax payments. For your New York Knickerbockers, this means a grand total of $24-26 million will have to be paid in taxes should they sign a top-5 draft pick, pushing their total effective payroll close to $120 million. Granted, the Knicks make a shiite-load of money but you really have to wonder if even the big team from Gotham has a spending limit.
I’m not saying that the Knicks would be willing to part with a top-5 draft pick for a trade exception, Theo Ratliff, and 1 bad contract (although that phone call should definitely be made), but I am suggesting that the Knicks are probably going to have a high 2nd round pick this year and and the next. They have absolutely zero incentive to turn 2nd round money into 1st round money against the luxury tax and their high 2nd round picks should come at a very low cost. If the Wolves are unable to acquire a mid-high 1st rounder for the Mark Blount trade exception, they should definitely make a call to the Knicks in an attempt to get a $1-5 million dollar player and the team’s next 2-3 2nd round picks; which they could then invest in foreign-born players or border-line 1st rounders.
After testing the waters with either a Theo Ratliff, Sebastian Telfair, and the Blount TE for Quentin Richardson, Nate Robinson, and their 1st rounder, or (more realistically) Ratliff for Richardson, Jerome James, and their 1st round pick, the Wolves should attempt to trade the Blount TE for one of the following players and the Knicks’ 2008 and 2009 2nd round picks, as they will have zero use for them:
They should take back nothing less.
The Knicks are a terrible basketball team with no use for their high 2nd round picks. While the Wolves should definitely offer at least Ratliff for Richardson, James, and the 1st rounder, they should also be prepared to follow that up with a legit 2nd round deal involving the TE. As for the potential 1st round deal, ask yourself which is more valuable: paying $29 million over 2 years to Richardson and James or getting your hands on another top-5 pick? You could round out your starting lineup with a draft like that. Anywho, it’s just food for thought.
Until next time…
