Knicks Name Glen Grunwald Permanent GM
The Knicks have removed the interim tag from Glen Grunwald's title and have made him the team's permanent executive vice president and general manager, tweets Al Iannazzone of Newsday. The team made the decision official today, saying that Grenwald is being rewarded for helping the club make the playoffs for the second straight year (Twitter link).
Grunwald was promoted to the interim GM role last June, replacing Donnie Walsh. The Knicks experienced some turmoil involving Carmelo Anthony and then-coach Mike D'Antoni earlier this season, but taking into account the drafting of Iman Shumpert, the signing of Tyson Chandler, and the waiver claim of Jeremy Lin, it's been a successful year overall for the team's front office.
Odds & Ends: Humphries, Carmelo, Woodson, Paul
Tonight's Clippers/Hawks game will affect playoff seeding, and the Hornets/Warriors contest has lottery implications. But the one to circle on tonight's schedule is Suns vs. Jazz in Utah, a game Al Jefferson calls the biggest of his life (via Brian T. Smith of the Salt Lake Tribune). A Utah win clinches the Jazz a playoff spot, while a Suns win would mean the two teams are tied for the eighth seed with one game remaining. Before the two teams get underway, let's check in on some other notes from around the NBA….
- Kris Humphries would like to re-sign with the Nets if possible, he tells Mike Mazzeo of ESPNNewYork.com. You'd have to think the Nets will prioritize Deron Williams, Gerald Wallace, and Brook Lopez over Humphries, though they could still have room for their leading rebounder.
- Carmelo Anthony endorsed Mike Woodson for the Knicks' permanent coaching job, as Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com writes. Amare Stoudemire echoed that sentiment later in the day, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv.
- Anthony told Frank Isola of the New York Daily News (Twitter link) that he believes his friend Chris Paul will eventually sign a long-term extension with the Clippers.
- Cavaliers coach Byron Scott is unsure whether he wants to bring Semih Erden back for next season, says Tom Reed of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
- A Bloomberg report details the role that nepotism is playing in the current players' union conflict, though executive committee member Maurice Evans downplayed the union's concerns on the subject (Twitter link).
Knicks Notes: Playoff Race, Chandler, Stoudemire
The Knicks look to rebound from a disappointing eight-point road loss to the Cavs on Friday as they take on the Hawks Sunday afternoon in Atlanta. The Hawks are looking to secure home-court advantage for the first round of the playoffs by finishing the season with a better record than the Celtics. Here's the latest from Mike Woodson's squad as the team heads into the final week of the regular season.
- Entering Sunday's matchup against the Hawks, the Knicks are tied record-wise with the Sixers but currently hold the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference playoff race thanks to a head-to-head tiebreaker against Philadelphia, writes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. A loss to the Hawks would drop the Knicks to the eighth seed and allow for the Sixers to move up a spot before taking on the Nets in Newark on Monday night. Based on current standings, the eighth seed would face the Bulls in the first round while the seventh seed would head to Miami to play the Heat.
- Marc Berman of the New York Post reports Tyson Chandler may be in need of some much deserved rest but could potentially find himself on the court this week to keep the Knicks starters in sync for the playoffs. Chandler, 29, has missed only two games all season as he's built a strong case for Defensive Player of the Year thanks to his intimidating presence in the paint. Unfortunately for Chandler, Woodson said on Friday that he wants to have all of his starters continue to play so that the team can build momentum heading into the playoffs.
- The Knicks need to find a way for Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire to effectively coexist on the court if they hope to make a run in the playoffs, contends Berman. With $65MM remaining on the oft-injured Stoudemire's contract, the Knicks have little recourse but to make the tandem work with three games remaining in the regular season. However, Woodson would consider removing Stoudemire from the starting lineup if Knicks co-captains Anthony and Stoudemire agree sending the former Suns star to the bench serves for the greater good of the team.
Eastern Notes: Knicks, Nets, Magic
With the Bulls' win over a listless Mavericks squad putting Chicago in position to secure the Eastern Conference's top seed with one more victory or a Heat loss, we'll check in with the rest of the conference to catch up on the latest stories and headlines.
- Howard Beck of The New York Times says Knicks interim general manager Glen Grunwald deserves some recognition for the way he has rebuilt the roster, perhaps even the NBA Executive of the Year award. Grunwald made the Knicks more defensively viable with the addition of Tyson Chandler, created buzz and excitement through the stellar play of Jeremy Lin and took a risk in J.R. Smith, who has become a solid contributor off the bench as the team's sixth man, among other key moves. Unfortunately for Grunwald, the award typically goes to an executive on a team near the top of their respective conference, not one struggling just to sneak into the playoffs in the season's final weeks.
- The Nets have many decisions to consider in terms of free agency, the draft and their coaching staff as they head across the Hudson River to Brooklyn, writes HoopsWorld's Alex Raskin. After unsuccessful attempts to acquire talent like LeBron James and Nene, the Nets may look to keep their current roster together and hope to get incredibly lucky during the draft by landing a top-3 pick (otherwise it goes to the Blazers). With regard to Nets head coach Avery Johnson's future, Raskin believes it would be incredibly unfair to judge his performance thus far solely on his record as he should be afforded at least one more opportunity to prove his mettle.
- Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel reports the Magic are rallying around each other in the wake of Dwight Howard's season-ending injury. Glen Davis has emerged as one of the team's emotional leaders and has brought the locker room closer together as the team has adopted the grammatically-flawed phrase "We all we got." "We can't worry about the media. We can't worry about what's going on. We've got to understand 'all for one, one for all.' That motto and just that saying just puts us in a mind frame of just brotherhood."
Knicks Sign Dan Gadzuric, Waive Bill Walker
6:18pm: Jared Zwerling of ESPN New York gives his take on the Gadzuric signing, saying that the Knicks could have an eye on beefing up for their first round playoff matchup against Chicago or Miami.
4:58pm: The Knicks have made the move official, announcing in a press release that they've signed Gadzuric and waived Walker.
10:15am: The Knicks are planning to sign Dan Gadzuric, according to Al Iannazzone of Newsday (via Twitter). To clear a roster spot for Gadzuric, the team would waive Bill Walker.
Gadzuric joined the D-League earlier this season, where he has averaged 12.0 points and 11.3 rebounds in 12 games for the Texas Legends. The 34-year-old has appeared in 525 NBA games, spending the first eight seasons of his career with the Bucks before playing for the Warriors and Nets last season. He'll give the Knicks another option up front with Amare Stoudemire and Jared Jeffries out of action, and will be playoff-eligible since he hasn't played for an NBA team this season.
Walker, meanwhile, is in the final year of his contract, so the Knicks will only be on the hook for the remainder of this season's salary for him. After logging significant minutes in the first half, the 24-year-old underwent elbow surgery and has not been a part of the Knicks' rotation since returning.
J.R. Smith Expected To Decline Option
Shortly after he returned from China and signed with the Knicks, J.R. Smith told Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida that he anticipated picking up his second-year player option and remaining with the Knicks. I was a little skeptical at the time, since the option will only be worth about $2.5MM, and Smith should easily be able to land a longer and larger deal on the open market.
So it's not a huge surprise to see Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld reporting that Smith is expected to turn down his option for 2012/13. According to Kennedy, Smith will seek a multiyear deal, with the Timberwolves, Clippers, and Magic among the teams likely to have some interest.
If Smith does opt out of the second year of his contract, the Knicks will have difficulty re-signing him. Even if New York doesn't pursue a big-name free agent, the team may need to use its mid-level exception to retain Jeremy Lin, leaving little to offer Smith, who wouldn't have Bird rights.
When Smith came back from China, most of his NBA suitors could only offer portions of their mid-level or mini mid-level exceptions, meaning he had to sign for a discount to join the Knicks. In 2010/11, Smith earned $6MM+ for the Nuggets. While he may not find a multiyear guarantee that pays him $6MM+ annually, he should at least be able to easily exceed the $2.5MM on his option year.
Minor Moves: Luke Harangody, Jerome Jordan
We'll track the latest notable international and D-League-related transactions right here:
- Luke Harangody has been recalled from the D-League's Canton Charge, the Cavaliers announced today. Harangody was assigned to Canton on the weekend and helped lead the team to its first-ever playoff series victory. However, with the Cavs in need of healthy bodies, Harangody won't be on hand to help the Charge continue their postseason run. Having been assigned to the D-League the maximum three times already this season, the 24-year-old can't be sent down again.
- According to RealGM's transactions log, Jerome Jordan has also been recalled from the D-League, by the Knicks. New York's affiliate, the Erie BayHawks, were eliminated from the D-League playoffs on Monday, in spite of Jordan's 26 points.
Odds & Ends: Celtics, Raptors, Brown, Draft
It's an eventful night in the NBA with 11 games, many of which have playoff implications. There's been plenty of draft news as well, as teams look past the playoffs, and one item concerning the distant future, with the NBA announcing the Hornets will host the 2014 All-Star Game, just six years after hosting the 2008 event. The new ownership of Tom Benson had plenty to do with that, though he's already come up short in his quest to get the Jazz nickname back from Utah, as Brian T. Smith of The Salt Lake Tribune notes. If Benson ditches the Hornets name, it'll be a while before Charlotte could use it again, writes Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer. While nicknames won't be moving for a while, there's plenty of movement on other fronts, and here's the latest:
- A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com doesn't think free agents Roy Hibbert and Eric Gordon will switch teams this summer, but says the Celtics have interest in both (Twitter link).
- Frank Zicarelli of the Toronto Sun breaks down the Raptors' roster and predicts who'll be there next season and who won't.
- Longtime coach Larry Brown is pursuing the Blazers GM job even as he zeroes in on the SMU coaching gig, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
- ESPN.com's Chad Ford discusses the possibility that Kentucky senior Darius Miller, currently projected as a second-rounder, could climb up the draft board and make it six first-round picks for the Wildcats (Insider only).
- Al Iannazzone of New York Newsday rounds up Carmelo Anthony's comments on multiple radio shows today about the way new Knicks coach Mike Woodson has held him accountable (Sulia links).
- Mavs cast-off Lamar Odom leads Sam Smith's list of the biggest disappointments this year on NBA.com
- Chris Tomasson of Fox Sports Florida shares the results of an informal survey of 11 former MVPs, who give a slight edge to Kevin Durant over LeBron James in this year's race. The former players won't have official votes for the award; instead, writers and broadcasters will make the selection.
- Roland Beech of 82games.com crunches the numbers and determines Gilbert Arenas, taken in the second round by the Warriors in 2001, was the shrewdest draft choice in recent years (hat tip to Alex Raskin of HoopsWorld).
Knicks Notes: Chandler, Stoudemire, Carmelo
The Knicks' home winning streak under Mike Woodson was snapped at nine games at the hands of the Heat this afternoon. New York still holds the eighth and final playoff spot but are just two games ahead of the Bucks with six games left to play. You can find today's Knicks-related stories here:
- Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com says that center Tyson Chandler doesn't expect to miss any time after getting hurt during today's game. Chandler banged knees with Joel Anthony during the third quarter. In another article, Josh Newman (also of ZagsBlog) writes about how today's meeting could be a preview of a Knicks-Heat first round matchup.
- Newsday's Al Iannazzone noted Dwyane Wade's comments about how the return of Amare will create an adjustment period for the Knicks. ESPN New York's Christopher Hunt took a different focus with Wade's other postgame input, saying that they're tougher and better with Stoudemire in the lineup.
- Ian Begley of ESPN New York writes that the Knicks will need more than just Carmelo Anthony's scoring if they want to be competitive against any of the top seeds in the East during the playoffs.
- Moke Hamilton of SheridanHoops.com reacts to the Knicks loss, discussing the Heat's halfcourt struggles, the need for help for Carmelo, how the Knicks will fare with the return of Amare Stoudemire, and the team's identity defensively.
- Jared Zwerling of ESPN New York discusses pace as it relates to New York's lack of production in the fourth quarter.
Knicks Notes: Atlantic, Heat, Shumpert, Woodson
On a Sunday chock full of NBA action, let's first head to Madison Square Garden to check in on the latest news from the Knicks.
- While some pundits question if the Knicks will even make the playoffs, the team has its sights on stealing the Atlantic Division title from the Celtics, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post. Knicks head coach Mike Woodson wants his players hungry and believing in themselves that they can make up the three games that separate the Knicks and the Celtics in the standings. The Knicks are 9-0 at home since Woodson took over as the interim head coach of the team on March 14th and would be the fourth seed in the playoffs if they win the Atlantic.
- Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News says the Heat would face the Knicks in the first round of the playoffs if the season ended today but do not view them as an easy opponent. Lawrence contends LeBron James has too much respect for Carmelo Anthony as a player to publicly dismiss the Knicks' chances of giving the Heat a competitive series. The Heat head to the Garden Sunday afternoon in their lone Manhattan appearance of the season.
- Knicks rookie Iman Shumpert sat down with New York Post columnist Steve Serby and expressed his confidence in the Knicks with the playoffs looming. Not only does Shumpert believe the Knicks will make the playoffs, but the former Georgia Tech star expects his team will be able to compete with the Heat if the two teams are matched up against each other in the first round. In what proves to be a compelling interview, Shumpert discusses his love for defense and what it's like to guard some of the top players in the league.
- Mike Lupica of the New York Daily News makes the argument that Mike Woodson should remain the head coach of the Knicks heading into next season given his body of work. He's led the team to a 13-4 record since taking over the team and has gotten more out of beleaguered superstar Carmelo Anthony than Knicks fans ever thought possible. Lupica says Woodson has held the team accountable and developed a sound defensive system that was non-existent under former head coach Mike D'Antoni.