Since the NBA is, for the time being, still locked out, that Las Vegas "Impact Basketball League" will proceed as scheduled starting next week. It's a two-week long thing in which players of all different calibers will compete, get in game shape, and, most importantly, have fun and practice good sportsmanship! Perhaps because Chauncey Billups is one of Joe Abunassar's bestest bros, the Knicks will be well represented. Via my friend Mike Prada, here are the Knicks attending:
Chauncey Billups
Shawne Williams
Roger Mason Jr.
Iman Shumpert
Josh Harrellson
Jared Jeffries
Here's the full press release, if you're interested. I see a few merits to this endeavor. For one, Chauncey Billups can get a head start on tutoring Iman Shumpert (Lesson 1: When and where Extra E likes to poop). More broadly, this is an early opportunity for Shump and Jorts to tangle with professional players. The lockout prevented them from getting summer league action, but this appears to be a similar format with superior competition. And, really, if all these guys show up, it'll be a pretty impressive batch. Shumpert, for instance, could match up with John Wall, Stephen Curry, Kyle Lowry, and a number of other excellent guards. He could face Billups, too, I suppose, although another neat possibility is that the Knicks could field a team of their own. They've got a pretty deep, well-balanced representation, not to mention a hilarious mix of guys.
Anyway, this won't be televised or anything, (as far as I know) but I assume we'll get some dispatches on how things are going. This should be a chance for some Knicks to make some progress together, so I'm all for it. Just nobody get hurt, please.