More Iman Shumpert and Celtics rumors, more minutes restriction grumbling and lineup weirdness

Good morning, friends. The Knicks don't play again until Tuesday night, but every stretch between games this month has been filled with enough rumors to constitute a mini-offseason. Here's what they've been chatterin' about over night:

1. From the look of things, the Knicks have responded (via Marc Berman) to Frank Isola's report about Iman Shumpert's summertime knee surgery by clarifying some things:

A league source confirmed Shumpert actually had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee in mid-to-late August, which was not announced by the Knicks. It was on the same knee in which he tore his ACL and meniscus during the 2012 playoffs. But a source said the clean-out was so minor he didn’t need crutches afterward. However, the team didn’t announce it, abiding by Shumpert’s wishes.

A source said the surgery’s late date wasn’t good timing because it ruined the chance for Shumpert to participate in a portion of the offseason workout program with the assistant coaches and the early part of voluntary scrimmages at the Knicks’ training center.

So: 1. August, not July. 2. They're echoing the idea that Shumpert himself didn't want the surgery announced. 3. They're also confirming that the timing of the surgery was problematic. So, there were three knee surgeries this summer (or were there more!?!?!) and the way we found out about them was a little weird in all three cases. I don't know what to make of that. Whatever.

2. In the wake of the Knicks' supposed interest in taking Rajon Rondo from the Celtics and the Celtics' supposed LOLing at the very notion, we hear Boston reportedly wouldn't mind taking Amar'e Stoudemire's contract off the Knicks' hands as long as the Knicks would take the even more cumbersome (duration-wise) contracts of Gerald Wallace and Courtney Lee in return. And just that. I can't imagine why the Knicks would want to participate in such a trade.

3. And, in closing, here's a fun one:

Shumpert, Metta World Peace and Pablo Prigioni should be in the eight-man rotation and where that leaves Amar’e Stoudemire, no one knows. Poor Amar’e is a shell of his former self but it doesn’t help that Dolan and Lisa Callahan, the team’s medical director, are in charge of telling Woodson how many minutes Stoudemire and Martin can play.

The minutes restriction is a sore subject for Stoudemire and Martin and a source of frustration for the rest of the team.

According to one player, the team thinks the entire concept is counterproductive and another example of nonbasketball people — Dolan and Callahan — stepping on Woodson’s toes.

"Woody’s hands are tied," said one Knick. "It’s a joke."

That's a player giving an anti-management quote to Frank Isola. Somewhere, James Dolan wonders aloud if he can trade everyone on the Knicks just to make sure that anonymous player gets what he deserves. Anyway, this follows Martin and Stoudemire grumbling about the minutes restrictions themselves. It's tough. Amar'e in particular has been little help in his short stints. The question then is whether increased minutes (perhaps alongside better defenders...like Martin! That pairing had a nice stint at the beginning of the fourth quarter against Atlanta) would help Amar'e shake off rust and make himself useful, or just compound the problem.

4. Also in here: Isola thinks the Knicks will move Shump to the bench and start Martin because of a directive from above Mike Woodson. Oh.

That's about where things stand. It's all a little weird. I'll have some fishy links up later, I think.