Knicks · Tyrus Thomas or Elton Brand.. Who would you sign? (page 3)

very skilled guy...Dejuan Blair is still unsigned

Blair is very good but he's got damaged knees. I don't know what his health status is now.

Bonn1997 wrote:Blair is very good but he's got damaged knees. I don't know what his health status is now.

He's healthy, he begged and begged for a trade past 2yrs, Spurs said no. I think he pissed Pop off somehow.

3G4G wrote:

Bonn1997 wrote:Blair is very good but he's got damaged knees. I don't know what his health status is now.

He's healthy, he begged and begged for a trade past 2yrs, Spurs said no. I think he pissed Pop off somehow.

Well he has no ACL in either knee

Bonn1997 wrote:

3G4G wrote:

Bonn1997 wrote:Blair is very good but he's got damaged knees. I don't know what his health status is now.

He's healthy, he begged and begged for a trade past 2yrs, Spurs said no. I think he pissed Pop off somehow.

Well he has no ACL in either knee

When given minutes he's played fine, has nothing to do with health. I do know when he started dabbling in the music industry is kind of when things went a little south for him.

Bonn1997 wrote:

3G4G wrote:

Bonn1997 wrote:Blair is very good but he's got damaged knees. I don't know what his health status is now.

He's healthy, he begged and begged for a trade past 2yrs, Spurs said no. I think he pissed Pop off somehow.

Well he has no ACL in either knee

They are unnecessary

I suppose Tyrus Thomas would be a broke man's old K-mart minus the passion

hasn't blair disputed the notion about him not having Acls. I think it was on 1st take.

yellowboy90 wrote:hasn't blair disputed the notion about him not having Acls. I think it was on 1st take.

I think he has no MCLs not ACLs

people should rejoice for Thomas his young so that means good. j/k

Is this question a trick question or just a flat out joke? I would take Brand all day every day. He is a perfect fit on this team, he brings rebounding, toughness, defense, a mid range jumper (so opposing bigs can't pack the paint), and vet leadership that may have some impact on Bargnani playing his best here. I wouldn't mind having both worst case scenario though.

Pundits were right all along on Brandon Roy's knees. And they were right about Amar'e Stoudemire.

Pundits aren't always right - they raised flags around the durability of Blair. However, in his years in San Antonio, he hasn't exhibited any signs of knee trouble. Maybe this is something coming down the road, but at the right price, and at a conservative contract length, he could give us everything Brand would & more. At his age (24), he plays with an extremely high motor and he's still hungry to prove himself.

The thing that always makes me wonder is the relative hunger to produce big (or not get cut) for the next contract vs the hunger for a ring. I think the former is a stronger driver of effort and performance.

We have solid steady vets who've made their money and are just going for the ring in our starting lineup. I want a different kind of hunger from our bench.

I'd take Thomas as I'm sick of seeing old players sit. Exhibit A: Jason Kidd & Camby

earthmansurfer wrote:I'd take Thomas as I'm sick of seeing old players sit. Exhibit A: Jason Kidd & Camby

Brand is 6 years younger then Kidd, and 5 years younger then Camby. Thomas probably sits because up to now he hasn't shown that he can play that well.

CrushAlot wrote:

earthmansurfer wrote:I'd take Thomas as I'm sick of seeing old players sit. Exhibit A: Jason Kidd & Camby

Brand is 6 years younger then Kidd, and 5 years younger then Camby. Thomas probably sits because up to now he hasn't shown that he can play that well.

I'm just scarred from last season. I wanted Lin back and instead got Kidd, Camby and Novak - cause that was a better deal. Kidd is retired, Camby and Novak traded. Not upset with Bargs though but we are still looking for a pg...

I do think Brand is the much better player but a) I don't want to push fate b) A change in scenery may help Thomas
OH and C) Doesn't look like Brand is accepting what we can offer.

I think this kid Jeremy Tyler has a supreme chance to step into his own this summer. He's spent the 4 years he should have spent in school playing professional basketball....he could have been in this draft if he went the traditional way. It would be a nice story if he did.

I want Brand but wouldn't mind Thomas for the min. He used to be ok but his last 2 has been horrible.

EnySpree wrote:

very skilled guy...Dejuan Blair is still unsigned

Liked him a lot in college and I still like him. Didn't realize he was still out there...You're right Eny -- very skilled and underrated. He's always reminded me of Larry Johnson somewhat (minus the 3-pt range). The knee thing is a non-issue for me -- he's played at a high level w/o ACLs for a long time now. So is the fact that he's slightly smaller than most PFs--never really a problem getting his shot off/finishing against much bigger players. I'm down for bringing this guy in man. He'd be a quality pickup, no question about it. Bring in Blair and re-sign Earl Barron. Done & done..

Wouldn't mind Blair or Maxiell. The Tler guy looks good too.

Not sure about Brand but Thomas is a bust.

GoNyGoNyGo wrote:Wouldn't mind Blair or Maxiell. The Tler guy looks good too.

Not sure about Brand but Thomas is a bust.

The Knicks seem content to allow their top choice for the mini-MLE--Brand, most likely--to take his time in making a decision. OK fine, but still work on some league minimum/vet minimum signings, starting with Earl Barron. Hopefully we're actively working that minimum angle like crazy right now -- bigs, a backup SF and a PG.

Regarding Blair -- I probably shouldn't say the lack of 2 ACLs is a non-issue. It's an issue -- less of an issue for us, however, if we can get him for the rest of the mini-ML or for the vet minimum perhaps. For that little amount of money, his pluses far outweigh this minus and he becomes a no-brainer imo.

Here's a good article on Blair I just found which goes over his knee problems in good detail:
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_p...

Over at Hoopshype on Blair's rumor page, I see that Jared Zwerling tweeted on July 3rd: "Hearing Kenyon Martin might field other offers this week. Also, for those asking, DeJuan Blair is above Knicks $ room."

Now that was over a week ago and Blair still hasn't signed anywhere yet. If the market's not there at his price, he's gonna have to lower his demands. Maybe then we can get involved. I think he fits here -- looks like he's done in SA (they have cap room yet haven't re-signed him. He doesn't get the PT he's looking for over there anyway--supposedly he's been asking SA to trade him for awhile now); other teams are probably scared by the knee situation which is why no one's biting at his price (which is what btw? anyone know? full MLE, mini-MLE?); you know Amar'e's not gonna last the whole season and even if he does, he's a 20 min/night player now anyway (PT will open up here) and the Knicks are good, 50+ win caliber, which should appeal to him. Not like we're some rebuilding team here...If we could ever get Blair and Earl Barron -- rebounding and big man depth would be covered and we could then turn our attention elsewhere -- backup PG & SF. Here's hoping we've at least reached out to Blair at some point and threw our hat in the ring. For what little we have to offer, he's worth the risk.

Imagine these final additions:

C - Earl Barron
PF - DeJuan Blair -- if not, I still like 6'10" Jordan Williams for extra size and rebounding here
SF - Ron Artest (sounds like he wants NY badly after being amnestied), Craig Brackins or Shawne Williams -- then maybe Tim Abromaitis as an extra shooter in the Chris Copeland mold
PG - Aaron Brooks, Roddy Beaubois or Charles Jenkins on a minimum deal