Interesting Harrington Article

[irish2u2]

www.nypost.com/seven/07252009/sports/knicks/harrington_living_dream_with_knicks_181276.htm

It seems Al is working real hard to be a better player especially in the 4th quarter when he largely disappeared. Al also states he expects to be the Knicks starting power forward in 2010.

Hmmmmm........

The biggest thing I gleaned from this article is the respect Harrington has for Walsh, his love of the metro area and his absolute belief he will be a Knick beyond this season.

I know I am the lone voice in the wind on this one but I hope Al is a Knick too. I think he brings a lot to the team and all his mistakes are easily correctable. I think the main things Al has to do is be a better team player at both ends, play smart and play tough in the 4th quarter. I don't think his skillset is easily repeated in this league and ultimately Al can be a valuable asset.

I love the fact he fesses up to his mistakes (he tells a story about getting a traffic ticket and the cop mentioned "Don't hang on the rim!" ; ) and more so I love the idea he is working hard to be in shape for camp.

[daglazer]

The interesting part f the article was the last quote:

"I can guarantee we won't win [just] 32 games unless everyone gets hurt," Harrington said. "If we're healthy, we can get 40-plus. Me and Jared Jeffries went through 16 games we literally gave away. We win half of them, you're in the playoffs."

If true, 40 is a reasonable goal.

Personally, I see 37 wins as most likely right now.

[irish2u2]

40+ wins depends mostly on better center play, which I fully expect, and the play of Gallo and Chandler.

Part of the reason we had such issues with people scoring at will down low was a lack of size in the post. The trio of Curry, Milicic and Hill solves that problem. If we can get some better recognition from our post defenders we make some stops and the size alone is a deterrent some of the time from guards doing a layup drill on us.

Gallinari and Chandler need to become significant contributors. End of story. I think the play of Harrington, Duhon and Lee (I fully expect him as a NY Knick next year) are reliable enough that just a little push from the other guys gets us over the hump.

I see a reasonably healthy Knick team winning 45 games.

[kgooglog]

Jul 25, 2009 11:14:01 GMT -5 irish2u2 said:

www.nypost.com/seven/07252009/sports/knicks/harrington_living_dream_with_knicks_181276.htm

It seems Al is working real hard to be a better player especially in the 4th quarter when he largely disappeared. Al also states he expects to be the Knicks starting power forward in 2010.

Hmmmmm........

The biggest thing I gleaned from this article is the respect Harrington has for Walsh, his love of the metro area and his absolute belief he will be a Knick beyond this season.

I know I am the lone voice in the wind on this one but I hope Al is a Knick too. I think he brings a lot to the team and all his mistakes are easily correctable. I think the main things Al has to do is be a better team player at both ends, play smart and play tough in the 4th quarter. I don't think his skillset is easily repeated in this league and ultimately Al can be a valuable asset.

I love the fact he fesses up to his mistakes (he tells a story about getting a traffic ticket and the cop mentioned "Don't hang on the rim!" ; ) and more so I love the idea he is working hard to be in shape for camp.

I found this article to be one of the best ones I've read this year, and to think it was penned by Mark Berman...

I saw a side of Harrington that I never saw before, and to hear the story of how he ran up to Walsh and said 'Make me a Knick", was heartwarming. Walsh, if I am not mistaken, and Al mentions this, was involved in just about, if not all of his NBA life. Obviously, there is a relationship that goes beyond basketball. Al and his wife are expecting their first child very soon, and I wish only the best for them.

Bill, I agree with you in that you probably are in the minority among fans in seeing Harrington as a Knick post 2010. I know you've mentioned having him come of the bench, sort of as that player who can get you points in a hurry, and if Harrington would show that he was indeed capable of 4-5 assists per game (my biggest criticism of Al's game is that he doesn't ever pass the ball) and would play some of the defense he is capable of, I may be in agreement with you.

However, I think that Al's age (He will be past 30 when 2010 arrives) may be a huge factor in retaining him for what he may be expecting as his last contract. Given the way Walsh has not ceded to David Lee's demands, Harrington will be expecting, as a minimum, $7,000,000 a year when his contract expires. And if Al is, in fact the starting SF on the Knicks once LeBron is here, something is seriously wrong.

I think Al Harrington is one of the best scorers in the NBA, a guy who can handle the ball on the drive, make the three-pointer with unbelievable consistency, and can drive to the paint for the spectacular play. He is an average rebounder for his position and, IMHO, does not seem to want to inculcate defense into his game, which, given that his early professional billing was that of a defensive player, is simply inexplicable.

However, a player like Harrington, is always coveted. He had a career year in scoring, is in the prime of his basketball life, and still has the hops of a guy 6-8 years his junior. I think he is a far more valuable trade chip than Knick player post 2010, and an under the cap team may want to ante up a first round pick in 2010 for him. If I'm wrong, the question is, how can we resign Harrington? What would be the numbers? Years?

I see Al being a good player for NY, but a Donnie Walsh has said, "a good player is contingent on how much you have to pay for him." This obviously doesn't apply to LeBron James, but it does apply to Al Harrington...