So, Bill Walker's pretty good, eh?
by Seth on Mar 2, 2010 2:42 PM EST
in Miscellaneous
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PrintI was a little facetious about it in last night's "recap", but Bill Walker actually looked really nice last night. Amid last night's parade of follies (incidentally, it's 2010. If you still aren't taking the Knicks' incompetence and humiliation in stride, I'm impressed that you lasted this long.), Walker really shone. Bill put up a career-high (by a longshot) 21 points on 9-14 shooting in 35 minutes. He showed a striking blend of strength and craftiness when attacking the rim, as well as remarkable accuracy (if not impeccable form) on mid- and long-range jumpers. It was hard to gauge Walker's D in the context of an extraordinarily feeble team defensive effort, but he more or less avoided humiliation, even when matched up with LeBron James. He's built like a tank, can jump through the roof, and is surprisingly polished. To summarize, he is a shiny, flying tank. The indispensable Big C posted some video, in case you managed to avoid last night's game.
If you got to watch Walker in high school or caught a glimpse of him while salivating over Mike Beasley at Kansas State, you probably knew all of this. The popular wisdom is that Walker was a lottery-type talent if he didn't have knee problems and piss on towels.
Why does any of this matter? Well, you might have heard that the Knicks plan to make it rain on some of the league's brightest stars this summer. As a result, there might not be much cash left to fill in the cracks with rotational players. That being the case, Walker's sub-million dollar option for each of the next two years could be enticing. In his short Knick career, Mr. Bill has looked to be a most promising rotation player, and if the trend holds up, he'd be something of a steal at that value. In today's opus on the Knicks' salary cap situation (which is well worth a read, especially if you intend to grace us with your insight into the Knicks' free agent plans), Larry Coon notes that Donnie Walsh must make a decision on Walker by July 7. It'll be interesting to see how Walsh plays that, particularly considering that New York certainly won't have any of the big names locked up by that date.
Either way, Walker's a guy to keep an eye on for the rest of this season. Sit back, watch the shiny flying tank go to work, and forget your worries. You'll be much happier that way.
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Consistency.
Walker and Sergio have exceeded all sorts of expectations. Can they exceed what NatRob did? And that’s consistency? Merely coming to play ever game, regardless of whether the shot’s falling?
Bill Walker’s talent is undeniable. In his high school class…he was right up there with anyone…ANYONE as far as talent.
He was one of those HWSNBN types when he was a toddler too.
Walker’s getting a chance. I don’t expect greatness from him. But consistency is all I’d want out of him.
Dude is a hella athlete and for real…the Knicks may have just finally found a steal instead of getting anally violated in their trades (pause)
Master of the squeegee
Mr. Depend(s)able!!!!
For under $1mil, I’d hope Walsh decides to hold onto him. We are gonna have a lot of roster spots to fill.
"you're the Rod Thorn in my Chris Bosh side."
by Chris Child's Fist on Mar 2, 2010 4:17 PM EST reply actions
I look at it this way, if we basically assume we netted out Jordan Hll for Walker
I’m feelin’ pretty good about that after watching him last night.
Oh yeah. Fire Dantoni.
Great cap article.
Thanks for the link. Personally, I like the idea of going after one max free agent, keeping Lee, inking Surge to his qualifying offer (or even signing him to a multiyear offer for a little more than that) and picking up a really good rebounder.
As for keeping Walker, I think it’s a no-brainer. His contract is so cheap that I it won’t cost any more than the cap hold would have if they waive him. Unless they’re absolutely sure they can sign a better player for the minimum, I think they’ll keep him.
Hey, if he turns out to be a good player in this league, that Robinson trade is going to go down in history as a steal for us.
How about that Toney Assist to Bill? Is Walker the first NBA player named ‘Bill’ since Bill Bradley?
bill cartwright
billy owens
twitter.com/aighttho
http://aightthen.tumblr.com/
by stingy d on Mar 2, 2010 9:22 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
bill laimbeer
twitter.com/aighttho
http://aightthen.tumblr.com/
by stingy d on Mar 2, 2010 9:23 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
I blocked that piece of shit
right out of my mind.
That said, his peculiar combination of bruising inside defense/rebounding and outside shooting would be just D’antoni’s cup of tea.
not picking up bill walker would be a shocking decision.
Walker makes up for the fact that we didnt get that #1 so many of us wanted from boston. If they offered their #1 for him now, I would not take it. I had NO idea we were getting this guy in the trade. Happy Surprise. Looks like it will be one to put in the win column for Donnie.
damn
You guys are getting a little too excited here…it was just one game, gotta give him some more run and see if he’s consistently this good. I like his game, but don’t want to get too optimistic/caught up by him
i liked his game in the cleve game
but it seemed like most of his jumpers werent contested..especially the mid-range
glad to see he can show he can make those, but like most are saying…lets see some consistancy
his ability to finish at the rim is where i applaud him. he uses his body well in layups and can dunk with strength. which means he will be fouled! lol and “and 1’s” will be apart of his resume if he proceeds to get minutes.
spot duty for house(give him the lesser nate robinson role).. and more of bwalker
hey all
the knicks site just posted an article on curry.. quoting dantoni saying if EC keeps practicing(he practiced fully tuesday) that he will see the court." not necessarily tonight against detroit, but i see(or more realistically, i hope) curry will be a “big” and play that way too.
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