I'm with you on Balkman. Ariza isn't comparable to Humpty. Ariza was fun, but people jumped to label him as a good defender only because he was long-armed and lanky. Balkman's much more active and shows much more dedication on D. He's also a far superior rebounder and a similarly apt finisher.

Also, I admittedly haven't seen all that much of Marcus Williams, but I haven't been impressed with what I've seen. Who got the best out of that draft remains to be seen.

OK, first let me apologize if my Freedarko post seemed aggressive. I intended it to have a more playful tone but I can see how it could be easily misread as hostile. Now that you have answered my email, allow me to respond to your answer.

1. Isiah Thomas deserves criticism for drafting Balkman if for no other reason than because HE COULD HAVE HAD HIM AT 29. Balkman was a unanimous second round pick on everybody's board. Why else would there be such an uproar about him going at 20?

2. I disagree. The Knicks need another PG because they don't have a true PG to begin with. Neither Crawford, Marbury nor the artist formerly known as Steve Francis (dropping 26 points is nice and all but how many games is he going to turn the ball over 7 times?) are pass first point guards. I have no idea if Rondo or Williams will ultimately pan out but they are pass first point guards who feed their teammates on a consistent basis. Doesn't it make infinitely more sense to take a shot at them at 20 and then use the 29th pick for Balkman?

3. I don't know if you've watched Ariza in Orlando but he's going to be a very good ballplayer (Balkman may too). There games are not identical but they're pretty similar. Ariza is a good defender. Just look at his steals per 48 minutes. Last time I checked, they had David Lee coming off the bench for rebound. Balkman may be redundant. The bottom line is that the knicks never would have taken balkman if they hadn't given away Ariza in the Francis deal (arguably the stupidest fucking move of the zeke era).

4. You want to talk about Eddy Curry, fine, let's talk about Curry. From what I can see, he can score down low as long as his defender decides not to front him or let him set up in the paint. So most of the time he can score. Most of the time. He can't pass out to the perimeter to save his life so it almost doesn't matter that he commands double teams. His defense is completely inexcusable. And this is our franchise player. This is the guy we're building around.

5. I'm sorry, Channing Frye IS a stiff. What makes you so certain that NBA GM's want him? If they want him so badly, why is he still here? Zeke was looking to deal him at the deadline. Everyone wanted David Lee. I think you made your own point. He doesn't bang. He doesn't defend. Since last year, he's beefed up a little and the result is that he's a step slower. Curry is a low post player and Frye should thrive with him occupying the paint. He can hang out at the foul line extended or the top of the key and pop 18 ft. jump shots. He hasn't excelled. When Curry is out, he should be low post threat. He isn't. He's 6'11' and gets 5.4 boards per game. He's not even terrible, he's just incredibly mediocre. Yet the champions of Isiah Thomas talk about him like he's one of the bright young studs that will resurrect the franchise. If they can trade him in the off-season for the solid but not great Drew Gooden, they should do it in a heartbeat.

6. The Knicks improved play is more a testament to the horrendous job that Larry Brown did mind-fucking his players and scrambling the rotation on a consistent basis. That the Knicks are slightly below mediocre in the Eastern Conference is not something to get excited about.

7. You're missing the point. Whether it's a lottery pick or not, the KNICKS SHOULD HAVE THEIR OWN PICK. When the knicks made the trade for Eddy Curry, both teams thought that the knicks would be markedly better. So why was Zeke incapable of preparing for the worst? Why did it never occur to him to make last year's pick top 4 protected? Why did it never occur to him to make this year's pick top 10 protected? If you think that this would have held up the deal, you're crazy. the Knicks had won 30 something games the year before last and with the addition of eddy curry, there's no way the bulls thought that they would get worse. The Knicks could have Aldridge at power forward right now instead of Channing Frye (who sounds like an investment banker from Greenwhich, CT. But that's neither here nor there).

When the day is done, I LIKE Renaldo Balkman. I just refuse to except his selection and the knicks improved record as evidence that the team is on the right track. It's like FOX hailing the efforts of the US Military in Iraq after a minor victory in Basra or Fallujah. That country is fucked and so, sadly, is our beloved team

Hey, I didn't take offense to your comments on FreeDarko - you called me out, and I'm willing to step up. You made some good points.

On taking Balkman @20 instead of 29: Yeah, I would like Marcus Williams and Balkman slightly over Balkman + Collins. The company line from Isiah is that he thought the Suns (at #21) wanted Balkman.

Which makes some sense, because the Suns like hustle players who are good finishers and don't need to touch the ball. It would have been interesting to see Balkman on the Suns - would he be on the bench? Or would he be Marion-lite?

Anyway, so Zeke supposedly took Balkman at 20, and the Suns then sold the pick to the Celts (who took Rondo). It is quite possible no one, not even the Suns, were gonna take Balkman. But if there really was a possibility, I would rather have Balkman + Collins than Williams.

You say they need a true point, but who is to say Williams (or Rondo) is better than Collins? Only when Collins get more playing time will find out what he can do. I agree that Williams is more talented, but conditioning (more so than character) issues bothered me. No NBA guard should ever have a higher body-fat% (12% according to Greg Anthony during the draft) than a regular joe like me.

And I will go on record and say this - Rondo is not going to last in this league unless he develops a jumper. It's awful. In the SEC last year no one guarded him, because his jumper is so bad. How is he going to succeed in the NBA? I don't see him being in the NBA in three years unless he works really hard at that.

Curry can't pass well, nor does he defend well. Agree. But he's growing and learning everyday. At the begin of the season double teams would led to travelling violations or other turnovers; now he's learn how to step through the double and draw a foul. He's learning how to go with his left as well as with his right. He's learned alot this season - take it from someone who has watched almost every game this season. Can he learn to pass out of the double team? Yeah. If so, then he will be a top five center.

You can't learn rebounding, but like you said, that's what David Lee (and Balkman, Jeffries, and the guards, who are above-average rebounders at their positions) are for. Which is why the Knicks are a top rebounding team in the league, despite having a poor rebounder at center.

Channing Frye - I agree with you. He should stay at the free throw line, and hit the baby 10-15 footers. Instead he's been more in the 18-20 range this season, pissing me off. But he is young, cheap, and well-taught (4 years in college). So yes, he has trade value. He can continue to grow, and maybe get back to doing what he does best, or he can become trade bait. Either way he has value, and that's better than Marvin Williams (#2 pick that draft), or Martell Webster (#6). He's equal in value to Charlie Villanueva (taken just in front of Frye). So it was a good pick.

I agree that Isiah should have lottery-protected last year's pick, but...
a) Would the Bulls have gone for it?
b) The Knicks would still owe the Bulls a pick, and actually I would rather give up last year's #2 than any pick in this or a future draft. Precisely because of what you said - you never know when the bottom will fall out. So what if the bottom falls out next season (everyone gets injured), and that pick is a #2? Would you rather have given up the #2 in the weak '05 draft, or the #2 in '08's stronger draft? Remember, you can't keep top-3 protecting picks forever....

The team was f*cked before Isiah came in. He had to clean house and take chances - see the post above (The Big Picture). Whether or not those gambles pan out (and IT IS TOO EARLY TO SAY!), he rolled the dice. So my question to you is this: Instead of using hindsight, what would you have done? What strategy would you have used from the get-go to rebuild the team Layden left behind?