Thursday Longcomb Sawfish

Good afternoon! I hope you're having a thursty Thursday. I am sitting on a couch. My dog is asleep on her back next to me. My bird is eating a leaf of basil I just gave him. Various bugs and microbes are doing their things. The pope is probably somewhere eating whatever it is popes eat. A burrito, perhaps. Chipopele. Let's look at some links I've collected over the last few days.

- There are sawfishes and there are sawsharks. This is a sawfish, which is a ray with the blade of a chainsaw attached to its face. It doesn't chop wood with its saw snout, but it does feel around for stuff and dig up/rip up prey with that thing. And it looks awesome.

- Frank Isola wrote this thing today, and I think that thing falls short of describing the situation it cites. Phil Jackson was unusually candid for a Knicks official when asked Wednesday about Carmelo Anthony. He basically said he hopes Melo will follow through on his expressed willingness to take a pay cut, and if he does, that would be great, and if he doesn't, that would be great, too, because the Knicks can go another way. I liked hearing that.

Isola points out that Jackson makes a ton of money himself, and that his words may upset Melo and Melo's representation. Regarding the first thing: Jackson's salary has nothing to do with this. He's getting paid a ton of money because the Knicks felt desperate for his services. His salary has no effect on anyone else's salary. It's not like the Knicks can't afford to pay a coach because they maxed out Phil Jackson. So, regarding the second thing: Jackson's point was that the Knicks AREN'T desperate to retain Melo. Melo's salary does have an effect on the way the rest of the team can be be built. He should take a pay cut if he wants the Knicks to build something good around him. If he doesn't want that, he should leave, and Jackson feels the Knicks will be okay if he does. Isola warns "publicly asking Melo to take a pay cut may be the beginning of the end of Anthony's time in New York," to which I, and perhaps Jackson, say: I hope not, but if so, fine.

- My friend Robby Kalland made all the Knicks in Oregon Trail and shit got GRISLY. I laughed many times.

- A child's crayon-drawn representation of Knicks storylines is better than pretty much everything I read and write about the Knicks.

- I went on a podcast earlier this week! I showed how profoundly uneducated I am about current playoff teams and how nearly-as-uneducated I am about the Knicks and the upcoming offseason.

- This is terrific work from after Game 1 of Pacers-Hawks explaining how the Knicks proooooobably wouldn't have managed that upset the way the Hawks did. The lineups and the guard strength just aren't the same in New York.

- Trey Kerby with a Woodson goatee.

- Got buried, but Kenyon Martin will have (or maybe already had) ankle surgery to remove some bone spurs. The phrase "bone spurs" has always made me wince. Sounds so painful.

- Bub Sluppermub on the new "When the Garden Was Eden" documentary and how shiiiiiiit we need that spirit back.

- Check out how Knicks shooters performed from far away and how certain Knicks performed late in the shot clock.

- This has been mentioned many times, but here it is graphically: We hope Phil Jackson does more with the coach/GM searching than just turn to those who have already worked beneath him. His "coaching tree" does not bear fruit the way some other legendary coaches' have.

- Hey, so, about injuries hurting the Knicks this season...

Have a good 'un.