The big news from this weekend centered around the Knicks' two talented but troubled stars, Zach Randolph and Stephon Marbury. Randolph's long-awaited exile appears to be delayed, at least for the time being. Alan Hahn:
Last month, Walsh and Grizzlies general manager Chris Wallace discussed a deal that would have sent Randolph to Memphis in exchange for center Darko Milicic and swingman Marko Jaric. The Grizzlies, however, also wanted Walsh to give up a first-round pick in the deal. With the Knicks' 2010 first-round pick already earmarked for the Utah Jazz as part of the Stephon Marbury trade from 2004 - the pick was originally traded by Isiah Thomas to the Phoenix Suns, who later traded it to Utah - Walsh does not want to give up any more draft picks.
We've talked about this side of Walsh recently. He's a patient fellow, and isn't going to settle for anything less than he set out for, even if it means relinquished opportunities. That'll be frustrating for those of us accustomed to Isiah's trigger-happy ways, but it's probably for the best. The one thing a rebuilding team needs is a hand in upcoming draft classes.
Meanwhile, Stephon Marbury has quietly returned to the news with a throw-in mention in a recent Times Article:
Most of the Knicks’ top rotation players from last season have been scrimmaging at the team’s training center. The group has included Jamal Crawford, Eddy Curry, David Lee, Nate Robinson, Jared Jeffries, Wilson Chandler and Zach Randolph, as well as the free-agent pickup Chris Duhon. The most notable absence has been Stephon Marbury, who is expected to be waived before the season.
(Tip of the hat to Ziller). That's an interesting time for that expectation to be expressed. Are they going to put Marbury through training camp or cut ties with him before the 30th? There has been at least some talk of other teams' interest, so why hold him hostage? If Steph is out the door, I would think things would get done by the end of the week. As things stand, the Walsh hasn't yet been able to smooth out some of the lumps in the roster, but there is still time for moves to be made.