I don't have much to say about last night's Knicks-Bobcats match-up. I watched the whole thing, but it was hardly an interesting game. New York got by with juuuust enough defense against the league's worst offensive squad and a solid game from Wilson Chandler (19 points on 7-15 shooting), together with some timely free throws by Chris Duhon and Nate Robinson, was sufficient to eke out a victory. Some measure of revenge was once again acheived against the face-eating demon-coach's new team. Also:

- Jared Jeffries deserves some recognition for being generally disruptive on both ends. He had three blocks and three steals on defense, which is excellent, and had three turnovers and a number of wild attempts on offense, which is just what we expect. Great.

- Barnesgasm mentioned this, and I agree-- I don't think I've ever seen a game with so many overshot layup attempts. Nearly everybody had at least one occasion to drunkenly slap a chip shot off the back rim. On one drive, it actually seemed like Chandler was trying to penetrate the backboard with the ball. It was more than a little confusing.

- To make up for it, Chandler dunked in and around Emeka Okafor's mouth in the first half. This brought two things to mind: First, Emeka Okafor must be this era's Shawn Bradley. Like, seriously. It's probably just a result of his being one of the few big men left in the league with enough sack to challenge shots, but it's still pretty funny. Second, I think there should be a Dunk Reaction contest, and I think Nate Robinson would win it. When there's a ferocious dunk, all teams do the "everybody pretends to be trying to run onto the court while one or two guys hold them back", but Nate takes it to another level. On this particular jam, he stood up, grabbed his head, and pretended to faint Baptist minister-style, with Malik Rose catching him from falling to the ground. I think Nate would have that contest locked up, with maybe only a slight challenge from Channing Frye's karate.

- Duhon: 15,8, and 3 steals. Lee: 13, 16, and a block. When they've got it going, the Knicks win games. (Moreso, when they play the Bobcats, the Knicks win games, but don't worry about it).

- I love Ryan Hollins. More than anything. I'd love to see him join the Knicks. He's a big, shot-blocking center, you know, so that's cool. There's more, though. He's unbelievably and delightfully demented. I enjoyed two years ago when he registered 3 fouls and a goaltending violation in one minute, and in this one he didn't disappoint. While flailing at a rebound, he managed to crack his own teammate, Gerald Wallace (perhaps the most concussion-prone player in basketball), on the head with a stray fist. Like, to the point where Wallace collapsed to the ground in pain. Anyway, Ryan Hollins in the Knicks is a must. Come for the shot-blocking, stay for the potential to have teammates maimed.

Why, you ask, am I recapping a relatively meaningless basketball game at 6 a.m.? Well, I've been up since 4:00 tending to a brand new labrador puppy that alternates between being almost impossibly adorable and driving me to want to make little black mittens out of it. We just got over an hour or two of the latter. So, to the tiny dog that just spent 40 minutes barking at my foot...this recap's for you. Asshole.

The Suns recently shipped Boris Diaw and Raja Bell to Charlotte in a deal that had many scractching their heads. From the venerable Alan Hahn, though, we get a little idea why that trade might have gone down.

A person with knowledge of the Suns-Bobcats trade said the deal was accomplished in time to allow both players to be trade-eligible by the deadline. NBA rules say traded players cannot be moved again for 60 days. The deal was done Dec. 10, which means they can be traded again Feb. 9.

Another source has said the Bobcats have maintained interest in Eddy Curry, who has yet to play this season because of a bone bruise in his left knee. The Knicks - who are owned by Cablevision, which also owns Newsday - could flip Curry for Diaw, who are close in salary. Diaw's deal goes a year longer than Curry's, but it would save the Knicks $2.2 million in cap space for 2010.

Bell makes $5 million this season and the Knicks do not have a reasonable match - unless the Bobcats are interested in sending another player (say, Sean May's $2.6-million expiring contract) to match Malik Rose's $7.6-million expiring deal.

What do we think of this, kids? I've never been a huge Diaw fan, but he's a D'Antoni favorite and he'd be another relatively big body to put on the floor (less Jared Jeffries!). His contract is pretty lengthy, though, and that has to be considered, even if he's an improvement over Curry. In the forthcoming summer of LeBron/Wade/Douby, Boris would still be on the payroll.

I don't care too much for Raja Bell either. If FreeDarko gave him a spirit animal (which they wouldn't because he's Raja Bell), it would probably be a deer tick. That said, he's another D'Antoni homeboy, and he'd contribute the defense and shooting that we were expecting from Cuttino Mobley. Oh, and his deal expires before 2010. If there was any throw in, I think I'd rather take a chance on Ryan Hollins, the big, gangly giraffe-bird of a center on Charlotte's bench. I remember one time a couple years back when he goaltended like four consecutive shots against the Knicks. We could use that kind of energy.

Why the Cats would want Curry is beyond me (unless the demon-coach is trying to relive that 23-59 season in NY), but I think I'd be pretty pleased with this deal. It saves a little change in the future, and would usefully fill a roster spot currently occupied by dead weight. Either way, it couldn't go down until February, so don't get your panties in a bunch just yet. Thoughts?

Update: Hold up a sec. I'm NOT down if David Lee's involved. Not at all.