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What will it take for Knicks to get LeBron?

Ken Berger

8:16 PM EDT, April 12, 2008

Despite the obvious allure of playing in New York and the millions of marketing dollars that would come his way, James is no shoo-in to bolt to the Knicks when he becomes a free agent in the summer of 2010. (Chuck Burton/The Associated Press / April 12, 2008)

There are plenty of contracts to shed and tea leaves to read until the summer of 2010 - the summer of LeBron. But it's never too early to start wondering what it will take for the Knicks to lure the player on his way to being the best of his generation to New York.

Six weeks ago, LeBron James made his last appearance of the season at Madison Square Garden. As usual, he was not shy about expressing his love for the arena and hinting about how special it would be to play there.

"Just the history, man," James said. "This is the mecca of basketball. Growing up as a kid, you see what Reggie [Miller] did here, what Michael [Jordan] did here, and the guys that played for the Knicks. It's like being part of history every time you come here."

What would it take for LeBron to come here as an unrestricted free agent two summers from now? A lot. Despite the obvious allure of playing in New York and the millions of marketing dollars that would come his way, James is no shoo-in to bolt to the Knicks.

According to several NBA sources, James wouldn't necessarily choose the Knicks over the other team that is scheduled to call the metropolitan area home sometime that same year. The Nets plan to be playing in Brooklyn in 2010 or 2011, and figure to have better complementary pieces and more cap flexibility by then. Throw in LeBron's much publicized friendship with Nets part owner Jay-Z, and you wonder what hip-hop star the Knicks would have to counter with to compete.

Donnie Walsh's first order of business this week will be to decide Isiah Thomas' future and begin a thorough search for a new coach and front office subordinates. Two people with knowledge of Walsh's thinking expect that process to accelerate rapidly once the Knicks close the regular season Wednesday against Walsh's former team in Indiana.

Those decisions are critical as Walsh tries to restore credibility and effective management to this wayward franchise. Despite outrage over Thomas' assertion that Knicks fans haven't had anything to be proud of since 1973, the simple fact is that the team that occupies the NBA's most storied arena in the biggest media market hasn't won a championship in 35 years.

At least the Nets have been to the NBA Finals this decade.

The Knicks and Nets each have seven current players under contract for the 2010-11 season. The moves each team begins making this summer will play a significant role in James' decision when he hits the free-agent market.

Clearly, the Knicks will have the better lottery pick this June, which is why speculation has begun in some circles that John Calipari's connection to hoops maven Wes Wesley could make Coach Cal a legit candidate to coach the Knicks. Wesley's association with top talent helped Calipari build a national power at Memphis and, the logic goes, he could play a role in Memphis point guard Derrick Rose following Calipari to New York.

I'm not buying that one, considering Calipari's unfortunate NBA past as the polarizing coach of the Nets. My money is on Walsh naming top assistant Herb Williams as his first coach, with Mark Jackson joining the front office. But no one really knows what Walsh will do until he resolves Thomas' future.

Ultimately, LeBron will go where he has the best chance to win, lest he wind up in the frustrating limbo Kobe Bryant has only now begun to escape in Los Angeles. And if the Nets really do complete their move to Brooklyn, the argument that the Knicks are the only game in town will go out the window.

The Marbury scenario

Now that Isiah Thomas' days with the Knicks - or at least his days in a position of any authority with the Knicks - are coming to an end, Stephon Marbury has announced that he wants to finish out his contract in New York. The only problem is, that's Donnie Walsh's decision, not Marbury's.

Walsh has said that he wants to meet with Marbury face-to-face after the season ends this week. He also said he will talk to players, coaches, and other staff to "find out what happened" to the Coney Island point guard this season. Walsh's impression from afar, according to people close to him, is that the Knicks' season was doomed once Marbury left the team after being benched by Thomas on a trip to Phoenix in November. That's a pretty astute observation. Not only that, it's correct.

One NBA general manager familiar with the challenges of having Marbury on your team said the best way to heal the Knicks' locker room is to buy out the final year of Marbury's contract, which is due to pay him $21.9 million next season.

"He's so wounded psychologically," the GM said. "If he's not going to play, you can't have that guy around. It's impossible. Now he's older, he's nicked up, and is not nearly as athletic as he was."

Marbury saying that he's putting off plans to finish his career in Italy because he feels he can play five more years in the NBA at a high level simply isn't credible. The best-case scenario for all parties involved: Negotiate a $15-$18 million buyout, double the savings in luxury tax, cleanse the locker room, and let Marbury find another team willing to sign him for the minimum. It's time for Marbury to say "Ciao" to New York.

MVP a two-man race

An unofficial poll of NBA writers around the country showed what everyone knew to be the case regarding the MVP: It's a two-man race between Kobe Bryant and Chris Paul. Bryant received 9 first-place votes and 4 second-place votes, giving him a slight edge over Paul (5 first-place, 8 second-place). Official votes are due April 17.

Miami hopes to get lucky

The Heat's loss to the Grizzlies Friday night wrapped up Miami's hold on the worst record in the league, and thus the best chance to get the No. 1 pick when the lottery is held May 20 in Secaucus.

"It'll be a great opportunity for us to do something, if, in fact, we get lucky," said Pat Riley, who is fully aware that having the most ping-pong balls doesn't always mean getting the best pick. (Just ask the Celtics, who missed out on Tim Duncan in 1997 and Greg Oden last year - although last year's fiasco worked out pretty well because it prompted Danny Ainge to trade for Kevin Garnett.)

What the Heat will do with the pick is very much undecided, according to Riley, who returned after several weeks of college scouting and said, "There is not a definitive guy right now, today. There isn't. There's no doubt that there's four or five guys that have illuminated their image."

Bucks get better with GM Hammond

The Milwaukee Bucks couldn't have done any better than John Hammond in their search for a new general manager. Hammond, Joe Dumars' longtime No. 2 man in Detroit, is more than ready to run a franchise. But before that could happen, some complicated issues related to the Milwaukee power structure had to be resolved.

Similar to the issues of final say and autonomy that Donnie Walsh negotiated into his deal with the Knicks, Hammond asked for reassurance - in writing - that some mid-level front-office officials who have handled legal and financial details for Bucks owner Sen. Herb Kohl would not be able to overrule him on personnel matters. The odd power structure, which is the reason Zach Randolph was not traded to Milwaukee at the February deadline, has been resolved, according to a person familiar with the situation.