Trade winds swirl; Knicks trade G Crawford and F Randolph

I woke up this morning to the news that Jamal Crawford had been traded to Golden State for F Al Harrington. It came as a bit of a surprise as the move came out of left field. Harrington to the Knicks has been rumored for awhile but the Warriors wanted no part of Eddy Curry. There were no indications that this deal was a possible one until the deal went down this afternoon.

My first reaction was 'YAY 2010', but after reflecting a little bit I'll miss Jamal Crawford. I realize that Crawford was a very flawed player (the guy's shot selection for the most part has been absurdly bad, and his defense is bad as well), but he was an exciting player who gave us a lot of nice moments on an otherwise awful team. He always played hard, never griped or complained about the situation and was a true professional. He tried to be a leader in what was a dead end of a basketball team, and I respect him for that. He did all he could, and I'm glad he is now thrust into a decent situation out on the West Coast, and it's close to home for him. He was my favorite Knick player, and while it is in the best interests in the team, it's still tough to see him go. I appreciate him, and wish him the best of luck in Golden State.

I honestly don't see the fascination with Al Harrington, but I'll definitely trust Mike D'Antoni's judgment over my own. He's a decent player but has never really been much more than that. His numbers have been incredibly consistent over the years though, and he reminds me of a more talented, and MUCH tougher Boris Diaw. He can handle the ball, he can shoot it, he can defend a little, he has a bevy of different talents. We'll see how it works itself out, but Harrington is good enough to not consider this deal a TOTAL salary dump. Was it done to get under the cap for 2010? Yes it was. Is Al Harrington the equivalent of a bag of used baseballs? Nope, he at the very least, is a decent player who can contribute to the team's well being the next couple of years.

Then later on in the day, a trade that was in the works the entire day finally was made official as Zach Randolph was shipped to the Clippers for a bag of baseballs which come in the form of Cuttino Mobley and Tim Thomas. Both of these fellows are roster placeholders for the next two seasons. Tim Thomas, while I absolutely despise him, can actually contribute in D'Antoni's system as he proved in Phoenix. Cuttino Mobley is just......blah. He is just a placeholder who can hold his own a bit on the court.

This trade was a salary dump and there is absolutely no doubt about it. The Knicks have been trying to find a sucker to take Randolph's contract for the longest and they finally found someone to oblige in doing so. As talented as he is (as evidenced by his 20 and 12 average this season), his contract was simply unbearable due to the fact that moving Eddy Curry's contract will be like moving mountains. I like the trade simply because it means a transition and it brings hope. Coming into the day, we had very little chance to make a splash in the 2010 year of the Unbelievable Free Agent Class. Now, as I head off to sleep soon, the Knicks are arguably the favorite to land LeBron James. Given what the Knicks are enduring right, could you really ask for more? I still think D'Antoni and Walsh have another move up their sleeves. Stay tuned.

All in all, this was a great day for the New York Knicks.