As the first day of NBA free agency kicked off, twenty-five year old point guard Chris Duhon met with Knicks officials in Westchester . He was offered a two year deal worth more than $7 million.
"Chris has the same interest as they do," his agent, Kevin Bradbury said. "He sat down with Mike D'Antoini and talked philosophy. He has shown the ability to distribute the ball, but he can also shoot from the perimeter. He hasn't always been allowed to do that. His defense, of course, everybody knows about. That's unquestioned."
At first I questioned the move, with other point guards on the market such as Keyon Dooling, Sebastian Telfair, Carlos Arroyo and Jason Williams, there's the possibility of trading for Raymond Felton, Kyle Lowry, or Steve Blake. Landing Monta Ellis was a huge long-shot and with Baron Davis signing with the Los Angeles Clippers that dream is over. I would have liked to have seen the Knicks draft Jerryd Bayless or D.J Augustine to fill their point guard vacancy. Right now signing Duhon is smart because he is serviceable backup and would fit the mold under Mike D'Antoni's system.
"New coach Mike D'Antoni is high on adding Duhon to his system. In fact, when D'Antoni was the Suns' coach, he tried a few times to acquire Duhon as a backup Steve Nash,"-Newsday.
The 6?1 Duhon is an above-average on the ball defender, and can shoot from the perimeter (career 35% shooter from downtown), but has the pass-first mentality. One aspect I do not agree with is the maturity or leadership he would bring. It was cited that he was benched and suspended because of missing tape sessions, team meetings and oversleeping. When he received playing time he excelled, having games of 34 points (vs. the Warriors) and dishing out 15 assists (vs. the Bucks) with a 4-1 assist-to-turnover-ratio, he would be a quality compliment to Stephon Marbury. This could also pave the way for the Knicks to buy out the remaining $21.9 million dollars left on Starburys' contract. By the way, he is going to earn more than the entire Florida Marlins payroll. Duhon has only been in the league for three years and there is room to grow, especially in the new up-tempo system.
Jamal Crawford and Nate Robinson are offensive minded guards so bringing in a guard like Duhon addresses a huge need. I heard an interesting comparison by Brandon Tierney comparing the ex-Duke guard to Charlie Ward. It was rumored he could accept the offer as early as today, however, he plans to meet with the Orlando Magic, and free agents can not officially sign with their teams until July 9th. The Magic signed Jameer Nelson to a five year, $40 million dollar extension last season, so Duhon could price himself out of contention. Donnie Walsh should then focus his efforts to moving David Lee and Zach Randolph.
"Chris has the same interest as they do," his agent, Kevin Bradbury said. "He sat down with Mike D'Antoini and talked philosophy. He has shown the ability to distribute the ball, but he can also shoot from the perimeter. He hasn't always been allowed to do that. His defense, of course, everybody knows about. That's unquestioned."
At first I questioned the move, with other point guards on the market such as Keyon Dooling, Sebastian Telfair, Carlos Arroyo and Jason Williams, there's the possibility of trading for Raymond Felton, Kyle Lowry, or Steve Blake. Landing Monta Ellis was a huge long-shot and with Baron Davis signing with the Los Angeles Clippers that dream is over. I would have liked to have seen the Knicks draft Jerryd Bayless or D.J Augustine to fill their point guard vacancy. Right now signing Duhon is smart because he is serviceable backup and would fit the mold under Mike D'Antoni's system.
"New coach Mike D'Antoni is high on adding Duhon to his system. In fact, when D'Antoni was the Suns' coach, he tried a few times to acquire Duhon as a backup Steve Nash,"-Newsday.
The 6?1 Duhon is an above-average on the ball defender, and can shoot from the perimeter (career 35% shooter from downtown), but has the pass-first mentality. One aspect I do not agree with is the maturity or leadership he would bring. It was cited that he was benched and suspended because of missing tape sessions, team meetings and oversleeping. When he received playing time he excelled, having games of 34 points (vs. the Warriors) and dishing out 15 assists (vs. the Bucks) with a 4-1 assist-to-turnover-ratio, he would be a quality compliment to Stephon Marbury. This could also pave the way for the Knicks to buy out the remaining $21.9 million dollars left on Starburys' contract. By the way, he is going to earn more than the entire Florida Marlins payroll. Duhon has only been in the league for three years and there is room to grow, especially in the new up-tempo system.
Jamal Crawford and Nate Robinson are offensive minded guards so bringing in a guard like Duhon addresses a huge need. I heard an interesting comparison by Brandon Tierney comparing the ex-Duke guard to Charlie Ward. It was rumored he could accept the offer as early as today, however, he plans to meet with the Orlando Magic, and free agents can not officially sign with their teams until July 9th. The Magic signed Jameer Nelson to a five year, $40 million dollar extension last season, so Duhon could price himself out of contention. Donnie Walsh should then focus his efforts to moving David Lee and Zach Randolph.
Original Story:
