10-15-2013, 07:56 PM
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#22
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Hall Of Fame
OVR: 44
Join Date: Mar 2003
Posts: 28,857
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Re: The 2014 New York Knicks: It Ain't Gettin' Easier
We all know Isola is a tool but he had a very interesting article about Shump. Clearly the fans aren't the only ones that notice the organization as a whole is being a giant douche to Shumpert.
We've pretty much had two good players in the draft in the last two decades - Gallo and Shumpert. We sure have a funny way of treating them.
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/ba...icle-1.1485720
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Iman Shumpert is Knicks' most promising player, so why are they messing with him?
Iman Shumpert’s famous high-top fade is gone, which is apparently a big deal because Shumpert, citing exclusive broadcasting rights, declined to discuss his new ’do.
“Check my Twitter, check my Instagram,” he said Monday. “I’m gonna release a video. I had a video getting the whole haircut and everything. I’ll release it soon.”
Shumpert may be onto something. The possibilities are endless. We could get video of Carmelo Anthony’s manicure or Amar’e Stoudemire’s next secret knee surgery.
Shumpert is the quintessential new-age professional athlete, one adept at both guarding his position and building his brand via social media. Does he take himself a tad too seriously? Sure, but most guys in the NBA do.
The problem, however, is that you get the feeling that his own organization doesn’t take him seriously enough. And that includes Garden chairman James Dolan as well as head coach Mike Woodson.
Having been usurped at small forward by Carmelo Anthony, Shumpert is in a battle to win a starting job at shooting guard.
It’s a strange contest to say the least, since Shumpert’s main competition, J.R. Smith, can’t run or jump yet. And once Smith, who had major knee surgery in July, is able to play again he’ll have to serve a five-game suspension for violating the NBA’s drug policy.
Thankfully, Shumpert doesn’t lack confidence because losing a job to a guy who can’t play could be rather demoralizing. Think of it this way: Woodson never said that Andrea Bargnani has to win the job from Amar’e, who happens to be the team’s highest-paid player.
The job was handed to the big Italian because the big albatross on Dolan’s payroll is hurt. That makes perfect sense. Messing with Shumpert is just plain silly.
You want to give Woodson the benefit of the doubt and chalk it up to the head coach trying to motivate a cocky kid, go right ahead.
“There are some things he has to clean up,” Woodson said on Monday, referring to Shumpert becoming a better pick-and-roll player and gambling less on defense. That’s fair.
But judging by the way last season ended, the player who needs to earn the trust of the head coach and prove he deserves a starting job would be Mr. Smith, the reigning Sixth Man of the Year
There are benefits to keeping Smith is his role as a backup. He enjoyed his best NBA season as a reserve and still led the team in total minutes. Once Smith is healthy enough to play, it’s unrealistic to expect him to be the player he was last year right from the start. It’s going to take time for Smith to get his fitness and game back to an NBA level. It took Shumpert a few months to find his form after making his debut last January following knee surgery the previous May.
But by the time the Knicks flamed out against the Indiana Pacers in the second round, Shumpert had emerged as one of the Woodson’s most reliable and effective players. Smith’s play was so underwhelming that he blamed himself for the Knicks being eliminated in six games. And yet, Smith is still under consideration to start even though he can’t start the season.
Shumpert is one of the few players on the roster with an upside. Ask most coaches and scouts to assess the Knicks and the two role players they usually rave about are Pablo Prigioni and Shumpert. It probably has something to do with Pablo and Iman being willing defenders and meshing well with Carmelo.
Paul Pierce could barely stand up when Shumpert was guarding him last April as the Knicks won their first playoff series in 13 years. Shumpert scored 17 points in the series-clinching win and then recorded a career-playoff high 19 points in Game 6 against the Pacers.
It was a breakout postseason for Shumpert and yet the Knicks made a curious decision to include him on their summer league roster. Shumpert went to Las Vegas for one game and then departed because of prior commitments — which reportedly infuriated Dolan, who never forgives and eventually trades. (See: Latrell Sprewell).
The kid has moxie. In the Knicks’ first preseason game, and just hours after Woodson said Shumpert was in a battle with Smith, the third-year guard hit all seven shots he took against the Celtics. At one point, Shumpert returned to the bench and told Kenyon Martin . “I’m (ticked) off early this year.”
Those words are open for interpretation. I’ll take it as Shumpert means business.
Let’s just hope the Knicks aren’t giving the business to one of their most promising players. |
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__________________
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