Knicks want Steve Francis?

[Drake Remoray]

<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Chris Sheridan/ESPN - Steve Francis is being strongly sought by the desperate New York Knicks , who want to pair him in the backcourt with Stephon Marbury in a bid to save their season.

Two sources involved in the Francis trade discussions told ESPN.com on Tuesday that New York is actively pursuing Francis, who is being shopped full throttle by the Orlando Magic .

The Denver Nuggets remain in the hunt for Francis, but they are not the leading option as they were a few days ago. The Minnesota Timberwolves also were trying to stay in the mix, looking for a third team to take on players Orlando is not interested in.

New York was believed to be offering Penny Hardaway, Jamal Crawford and at least one other player, likely Trevor Ariza, David Lee or Nate Robinson, in a deal in which the Knicks would also take back center Kelvin Cato, whose $8.64 million salary comes off the cap at the end of the season.

Cato would have to be included along with Francis ($13.7 million) to provide a match for the salaries of Hardaway ($15.75 million), Crawford ($6.5 million) and the third player, be it Robinson ($1.2 million), Lee (860,000) and/or Ariza $640,000).</div>

http://www.realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives...r_francis_hard/

Do you think this trade works for the Knicks? I could see it working but I don't know how well. I don't think egos will be too much of a problem, I see more tension between coaching and confusion about who (Marbury or Francis) should be the PG or SG. I think this could work very well with some coaches, but with a Larry Brown type coach I don't know if this could work well. Before, I mentioned in regards to such a trade happening, a sort of two lineup platoon: Stephon leading one, and Steve leading the other. Anyway, at this point, what do we have to lose? Getting Cato in the deal isn't so bad either (if he's healthy) and his contract is expiring.

 

[Jerry West]

Another article, this time from the source:

<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Steve Francis is being strongly sought by the desperate New York Knicks, who want to pair him in the backcourt with Stephon Marbury in a bid to save their season.

Two sources involved in the Francis trade discussions told ESPN.com on Tuesday that New York is actively pursuing Francis, who is being shopped full throttle by the Orlando Magic.

The Denver Nuggets remain in the hunt for Francis, but they are not the leading option as they were a few days ago. The Minnesota Timberwolves also were trying to stay in the mix, looking for a third team to take on players Orlando is not interested in.

New York was believed to be offering Penny Hardaway, Jamal Crawford and at least one other player, likely Trevor Ariza, David Lee or Nate Robinson, in a deal in which the Knicks would also take back center Kelvin Cato, whose $8.64 million salary comes off the cap at the end of the season.

Cato would have to be included along with Francis ($13.7 million) to provide a match for the salaries of Hardaway ($15.75 million), Crawford ($6.5 million) and the third player, be it Robinson ($1.2 million), Lee (860,000) and/or Ariza $640,000).

The trade, if it were to come to fruition, would provide Orlando salary cap relief and at least one young starter for a franchise looking to rebuild around Dwight Howard.

The Magic will have Grant Hill's $16.9 million salary off their cap in the summer of 2007, and freeing themselves of their obligations to Francis would leave them well below the salary cap two summers from now when a bumper crop of free agents hits the market.

Another financial factor influencing the Magic's decision-making is the impending transfer of ownership control from Amway magnate Rich DeVos to his children. DeVos' son-in-law, Bob Vander Weide, will represent the Magic as their owner. Orlando has been unsuccessful in securing public financing for a new arena and is losing money under the weight of a nearly $67 million payroll. Francis is owed $49.3 million over the next three seasons.

When Francis' name first surfaced in trade rumors, there was speculation that the Knicks would try to trade Stephon Marbury for him. But a league source said team president Isiah Thomas envisions a Marbury-Francis pairing that would evoke comparisons to the Thomas-Joe Dumars guard tandem the Pistons won with in the 1980s, or the Walt Frazier-Earl Monroe backcourt the Knicks had in 1973 the last time they won the championship.

"It could be great, or it could be a disaster," said one source, describing the Knicks as "really pushing" to acquire Francis as they trudge through a losing streak that ballooned to 10 games with their drubbing in Dallas on Monday night. With a record of 14-37, the Knicks are in danger of going into the All-Star break with the league's worst record. Only Charlotte (14-39) is worse.

The Knicks had been linked to Francis last week in a reported three-way trade also involving Denver in which Francis would have ended up with the Nuggets. That rumor produced a flood of subsequent reports involving Denver forward Kenyon Martin, including another offer involving Hardaway that would allow the Nuggets to lower their payroll -- though it wouldn't necessarily bring long-term cap relief.

New York also has had discussions with the Portland Trail Blazers involving Hardaway, whose contract is one of the few expiring maximum deals this season of the type that are annually dangled in February before teams seeking cap relief. Dallas forward Keith Van Horn's $15.7 million salary comes off the cap this summer, but Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has said his team has no interest in trading Van Horn to the Raptors for Antonio Davis, who also has an expiring contract and was dealt by the Knicks to Toronto for Jalen Rose in a deal that will allow the Raptors to move well below the cap this summer.

The Chicago Bulls have had no luck in their efforts to move Tim Thomas and his expiring contract of nearly $14 million. The Bulls are expected to offer Thomas a buyout if they can't trade him, and he is hoping to sign with a playoff team prior to March 1, the deadline for players to eligible for the postseason. </div>

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2331008

 

[Mr. J]

They're after all big name players regardless of:
a) Whether they fit

How big their salary is
c) Who we give up
Basically, it's trying to restore some of the support and hope. I expected Francis rumors LONG before these clowns from ESPN reported about him.

This is a hit or miss scenario for the Knicks. This could either be a great move or a complete disaster. Marbury and Francis is a very intriguing backcourt. Touches, I assume, will be the main problem people are going to say.

 

[thedude9990]

i say this to my friend whos a knicks fan becasue he always comes in saying the knicks want who ever, WHO THE HELL DONT THE KNICKS WANT! honestly every time theres a big name out there for a trade/freeagents u always hear the knicks have interest

 

[GatorsowntheNCAA]

If you give us Lee and Ariza, I think I would do the trade. A protected 1st would definetely do it for me. (like lotto this year, top 10 next year, top 5 the following, then top 3 the following). I like the idea of getting a 15.75 million dollar contract off of the books after this year. THe only part of it that I don't like is getting Crawford. He's very talented, but he will steal more shots from Dwight. Dwight needs to be the #1 guy.

 

[NJNetz]

I think the Knicks are better off having Marbury than having Francis.

 

[phunDamentalz]

ugh. your starting backcourt is Marbury and Francis. i can REALLY see that working out well. 2 basically one-on-one players running the show...wow.

 

[Chutney]

2 semi-point guards equals 1 true point guard? I don't think so. That combination would be fun to watch, but it could easily turn ugly.

 

[Drake Remoray]

Interesting news with the strong possibilty of a trade between Orlando and Detriot. Does this make the trade with New York that much more likely or not?

 

[j0se]

...Francis has 3 solid years left in his contract, he's never brought the right attitude to any team he's been with...and he's known...well I'm afraid to tell you this...but people know him as a cancer.

The man is almost 30...we're not going to win now...so why does Isiah continue to destroy the cap until 2010? is that fair for us who want to start rebuilding another path, instead of Isiah's circus rebuilding process?

You know its a depressing period in Knicks history when the Knicks are looking at Steve Francis as the solution to the Francise.

 

[Run BJM]

Sounds like a good trade for Orlando, especially if they get Lee and Ariza. Orlando would be loaded with young talent; Nelson, Ariza, Lee, Howard, and Vasquez could come to America some day...

 

[bbwAce]

Francis and Marbury in the same backcourt? I feel sorry for Rose, Curry and Crawford cuz they're never gonna see the ball...Francis is basically a carbon copy of Marbury so I dont see how he would drastically change the Knicks' fortunes...

 

[GatorsowntheNCAA]

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Rocket:</div><div class="quote_post">Francis and Marbury in the same backcourt? I feel sorry for Rose, Curry and Crawford cuz they're never gonna see the ball...Francis is basically a carbon copy of Marbury so I dont see how he would drastically change the Knicks' fortunes...</div>

Crawford would be coming to Orlando. You probably mean Qrich.

btw, now I heard potentially Tony Battie and Keyon Dooling instead of Cato with Cato going to Detroit for Darko and Arroyo. Would that make Knicks fans like it more? At least Battie and Dooling play.....

 

[hohoyoyoyo]

the sad thing is, the Knicks want everybody, and even if they get their wish granted, their team still won't make playoffs...sad but true

 

[Mr. J]

My sources are telling me as soon as the Magic get Darko they'll deal Francis.

So far the trade is looking something like this:

Crawford/Ariza/Penny for Francis/Battie

Lee could be added in the deal, but hopefully Isiah does all in his power to keep Lee a Knick. Being a player at FU plus his exciting play will definitely boost some ticket sales. Orlando will definitely push for him, but we'll just have to hold our ground. This trade is very close to happening. I'm expect this to go down.

 

[GatorsowntheNCAA]

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting MrJ:</div><div class="quote_post">My sources are telling me as soon as the Magic get Darko they'll deal Francis.

So far the trade is looking something like this:

Crawford/Ariza/Penny for Francis/Battie

Lee could be added in the deal, but hopefully Isiah does all in his power to keep Lee a Knick. Being a player at FU plus his exciting play will definitely boost some ticket sales. Orlando will definitely push for him, but we'll just have to hold our ground. This trade is very close to happening. I'm expect this to go down.</div>

Yep, that's what I'm hearing too. It should be interesting to see how the Magic roster looks tonight to see how close the deals are to getting done. We are definetely waiting on the Darko trade before we deal Francis.

Gators are UF

David Lee is a good energy guy that is a very good passer for a big guy. He does everything good, but nothing great. He'll be a valuable role player.

 

[norespect]

Another overpaid point guard who shoots first, dosen't make his team better, and has never been a winner......seems like a nice fit.

 

[j0se]

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Rocket:</div><div class="quote_post">Francis and Marbury in the same backcourt? I feel sorry for Rose, Curry and Crawford cuz they're never gonna see the ball...Francis is basically a carbon copy of Marbury so I dont see how he would drastically change the Knicks' fortunes...</div>


Your team is a mess, 2nd worst record in the West, T'Mac has just become a chucker, a ball hog and a lazy defender.

Build your team around Yao, not T'mac. T'Mac is a life long loser. Atleast Marbury has been to the playoffs with 4 different teams, having to be coached by 11 different coaches in his 9 year NBA career.


T'Mac is not a franchise player, you really don't know Stephon Marbury's game, he's the total opposite of Steve Francis.

Why did you ... the end of your post? Were you waiting to be slayed?

This is a forum full of frustrated Knick fans, so you better watch out what you type next time.

 

[Trip]

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting j0se:</div><div class="quote_post">Your team is a mess, 2nd worst record in the West, T'Mac has just become a chucker, a ball hog and a lazy defender.

Build your team around Yao, not T'mac. T'Mac is a life long loser. Atleast Marbury has been to the playoffs with 4 different teams, having to be coached by 11 different coaches in his 9 year NBA career.


T'Mac is not a franchise player, you really don't know Stephon Marbury's game, he's the total opposite of Steve Francis.

Why did you ... the end of your post? Were you waiting to be slayed?

This is a forum full of frustrated Knick fans, so you better watch out what you type next time.</div>
How did he badmouth the Knicks? He didn't make up anything and wasn't trolling. Just inputting his opinion, and you go crazy?

At least the Rockets will be good next year, I doubt you could say the same for the Knicks for the next ten.