Good afternoon, amigos. The Knicks are down 6 straight, and face demon-coach and the Bobcats this evening. This will likely be another (the last) game that I miss, and hopefully somebody can recap if its not too grisly. In the meantime, some things worth looking at:

- A look at the Knicks' hope at avoiding the dreaded "vortex of suck". Summary: it could be worse. We could be demon-coach and the Bobcats.

- Tommy Dee lets us know that Chong Williams has been demoted to the D-League. The Knicks need this guy real quick.

- Why? This is why.

-The new "Knicks notebook" includes kind words from George Karl and a lefty three-point contest between Nate Robinson and Allan Houston.

- Mike D'Antoni wants Al Harrington to smile. I say he's gotta take that slimy-ass mouthguard out first.

That's it for now. Your 'Cats thread will be up in a little. Love y'all.

I try not to give fresh rumors too much attention, but I particularly like this one. From Tommy Dee at The Knicks Blog, talk on the Nets side of a New York-New Jersey deal of Nate Robinson for Sean "Chong" Williams. Though this is the only place I've heard the rumors, I'd be very interested to see if this goes anywhere. As much as I love Nate Robinson, he's a surplus guard who might not get to shine with Chris Duhon and Anthony Roberson around. Meanwhile, Williams just might make sense. Says Dee:

Attitude is something that the Knicks want nothing to do with, of course, and Williams is not a perimeter threat, something that Mike D’Antoni loves in his big men. But he can finish in transition as well as keep possessions alive with his active offensive rebounding ability.

His potential and athleticism, along with his defensive prowess, would fit a huge need for the Knicks. Should Eddy Curry show up out of shape and get under the skin of D’Antoni, a frontcourt rotation of Williams, Zach Randolph (who’s not going to Memphis) and David Lee, would be an instant upgrade.

I'm looking for one thing, and one thing only. Well, no. Two things. My original thought was that the Knicks need some damn shot blocking. Chong's swatting ability would certainly be a defensive upgrade over the low-altitude loafing of Eddy Curry and Zach Randolph. The second thing that I just thought of is that the addition of Williams would be a nice step towards replacing the entertainment value of Renaldo Balkman. While Humpty was a lovable space cadet who we assumed to be a stoner, Williams is a lovable space cadet who is, in fact, a stoner. If this source of Dee's knows what he's talking about, it's time for Donnie Walsh to give the Nets a call.