Kelenna Azubuike is looking less and less likely to be fully healthy in time for training camp. As long as he's uncertain and the starting shooting guard spot is up for grabs, the rumors linking Spanish guard Rudy Fernandez ("El Descontento"?) to the Knicks will persist. From what Alan Hahn says in his most recent Fix (subscribe!), it seems like the parties involved have made little to no progress.
The Knicks maintain a strong interest in Fernandez, who would solve their issue at the 2, but it'll be up to the Blazers to make it happen. From what I'm hearing, the Blazer hierarchy is none too pleased with Rudy and his agent, Andy Miller, who have gone public with their trade preferences. So several NBA insiders have suggested to me that Portland will exhaust all other options before they'd even consider doing Rudy a favor and sending him exactly where he wants to go, especially if the Knicks aren't offering anything they really want. And what they want is a first round pick. The Knicks could give them one, but not until 2014.
Nothing new there. The Blazers have wanted a first rounder since early August, and the Knicks have been without a first rounder since February. That's an insurmountable obstacle.
...or is it? Frank Isola's sources tell us that the Blazers got creative up in here, roping a third team into the deal.
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