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I was able to track down the 2011 NBA champions New York Knicks GM Dez and ask some questions about the state of his team and what they are looking to accomplish this year.
Q: 2011 NBA Champs. 2012, missed playoffs. How did we get here? What happened?
Well initially it all started with last years FAcy. I knew it would be tough resigning the whole team, much rather the starting 5 itself, being we were so limited with cap space. In return, we decided to go with a quick rebuild once we struck out on Noah as well as resigning Beverley. The Kobe/Cousins trade happened out of the blue and kind of kick started the rebuild.. after losing Bev, we turned and traded Chandler for a package that included Lawson. My intent was to still compete for the playoffs and I think we would have made it if Carmelo hadn't gone down after 50 games being we were just 5/6 games out. I'm happy with the current roster but it can be better.
Q: What does this team need to do to get back to the NBA Finals?
All starts with improving our defense. We were at the bottom of the league in every category defensively last year. To fix that we brought in an All NBA defender in Joakim and expect for him to anchor our defense. But we still have a ways to go. We also have to stay healthy, we struggled to find a rhythm with all the injuries last year. We won't be Detroit defensively, but we will be better.
Q: Are the Finals a realistic goal for this team in 2013? What are the teams goals this year?
As of right now, with how the East has improved its tough to say, we need our young guys to take that next step in training camp and become more then just role players. We've been working with DeMarcus extensively over the offseason, mainly his conditioning and ball handling/jump shooting. We're going to really look for him to assert himself on the offensive end this year. We believe we have all the pieces to compete, its making them fit and finding the right game plan thats tricky. But the season is long, and coach D'Antoni has already proven he can do it before. We have full confidence in his ability to do it again.
Q: This team looked drastically different last year than they did on that championship team, along with more recent moves that have further shaken up this squad, what is this teams identity? Do they have an identity?
In a league were it seem teams are shifting to a outside focus, more and more three point attempts, we want to focus on more of a mid range/inside-out type of offense. Now I know analytics will tell you those are the worst types of shots...but tell that to Melo lol, tell that to Cuz lol. We have guys who can knock down 3s too, but we want to spread it out offensively and play what we call well narrated defense. Communicate communicate communicate, we're not the most athletically gifted lol but we have guys that are savvy.
Q: Word on the street that SG JJ Redick is on the block and will likely be moved. Is this something he asked for or is the team looking to get a different type of player to play SG?
As of right now JJ is a Knick and we're happy to have him, he was extremely efficient for us in the little time he had to learn our playbook last season. Very cerebral player who makes almost no mistakes when it comes to the offensive end. With that said, we're always looking to improve and JJ has shown the dedication to improve and its only right we allow him to show and prove. We expect to enter the season with him on our roster and expect a big season from him.
Q: The team currently sits at -21m in cap space, dancing fairly close to the hard cap, do you have plans to keep dancing that dance or are you looking to cut down on salary?
This is New York baby, if you ain't tip toeing the hard cap you ain't trying lol. Nah we always keep that in mind but as of right now its not a concern. There's always time to maneuver a few contracts. We are looking ahead to resigning Ty Lawson and JJ Redick and expect to have to shed cap, but it depends on performance first.
Q: The east has Carmelo, LeBron, Wade, Curry, Rose, Paul and now Durant, how hard is the east? Would you rather be in the west?
Conference is a beast, but we welcome it. Reminds you of the days Pat and those guys battled nightly with the likes of MJ, Shaq, Zo, and those teams. We fully believe Melo stands toe to toe with anyone in the league. We've beat everyone of those guys in the playoffs already so there's no reason not to believe we can do it again. Wont be easy, but it makes the story that much better.
I wanna thank Dez for taking some time and answering some questions on the Knicks, and best of luck to you on your season. I know the Knicks are always a team on people's radars.
Q: 2011 NBA Champs. 2012, missed playoffs. How did we get here? What happened?
Well initially it all started with last years FAcy. I knew it would be tough resigning the whole team, much rather the starting 5 itself, being we were so limited with cap space. In return, we decided to go with a quick rebuild once we struck out on Noah as well as resigning Beverley. The Kobe/Cousins trade happened out of the blue and kind of kick started the rebuild.. after losing Bev, we turned and traded Chandler for a package that included Lawson. My intent was to still compete for the playoffs and I think we would have made it if Carmelo hadn't gone down after 50 games being we were just 5/6 games out. I'm happy with the current roster but it can be better.
Q: What does this team need to do to get back to the NBA Finals?
All starts with improving our defense. We were at the bottom of the league in every category defensively last year. To fix that we brought in an All NBA defender in Joakim and expect for him to anchor our defense. But we still have a ways to go. We also have to stay healthy, we struggled to find a rhythm with all the injuries last year. We won't be Detroit defensively, but we will be better.
Q: Are the Finals a realistic goal for this team in 2013? What are the teams goals this year?
As of right now, with how the East has improved its tough to say, we need our young guys to take that next step in training camp and become more then just role players. We've been working with DeMarcus extensively over the offseason, mainly his conditioning and ball handling/jump shooting. We're going to really look for him to assert himself on the offensive end this year. We believe we have all the pieces to compete, its making them fit and finding the right game plan thats tricky. But the season is long, and coach D'Antoni has already proven he can do it before. We have full confidence in his ability to do it again.
Q: This team looked drastically different last year than they did on that championship team, along with more recent moves that have further shaken up this squad, what is this teams identity? Do they have an identity?
In a league were it seem teams are shifting to a outside focus, more and more three point attempts, we want to focus on more of a mid range/inside-out type of offense. Now I know analytics will tell you those are the worst types of shots...but tell that to Melo lol, tell that to Cuz lol. We have guys who can knock down 3s too, but we want to spread it out offensively and play what we call well narrated defense. Communicate communicate communicate, we're not the most athletically gifted lol but we have guys that are savvy.
Q: Word on the street that SG JJ Redick is on the block and will likely be moved. Is this something he asked for or is the team looking to get a different type of player to play SG?
As of right now JJ is a Knick and we're happy to have him, he was extremely efficient for us in the little time he had to learn our playbook last season. Very cerebral player who makes almost no mistakes when it comes to the offensive end. With that said, we're always looking to improve and JJ has shown the dedication to improve and its only right we allow him to show and prove. We expect to enter the season with him on our roster and expect a big season from him.
Q: The team currently sits at -21m in cap space, dancing fairly close to the hard cap, do you have plans to keep dancing that dance or are you looking to cut down on salary?
This is New York baby, if you ain't tip toeing the hard cap you ain't trying lol. Nah we always keep that in mind but as of right now its not a concern. There's always time to maneuver a few contracts. We are looking ahead to resigning Ty Lawson and JJ Redick and expect to have to shed cap, but it depends on performance first.
Q: The east has Carmelo, LeBron, Wade, Curry, Rose, Paul and now Durant, how hard is the east? Would you rather be in the west?
Conference is a beast, but we welcome it. Reminds you of the days Pat and those guys battled nightly with the likes of MJ, Shaq, Zo, and those teams. We fully believe Melo stands toe to toe with anyone in the league. We've beat everyone of those guys in the playoffs already so there's no reason not to believe we can do it again. Wont be easy, but it makes the story that much better.
I wanna thank Dez for taking some time and answering some questions on the Knicks, and best of luck to you on your season. I know the Knicks are always a team on people's radars.
