how did we end up with 90+ million dollar salary

[thefuriousfive]

I tried doing research on this but came up empty handed. I was wondering what kind of exemptions were deployed by IT, and the stipulations on Marbury and Curry's contracts, and anything pertinent. I'm just trying to inform myself.

[knicksNOTslick]

I tried doing research on this but came up empty handed. I was wondering what kind of exemptions were deployed by IT, and the stipulations on Marbury and Curry's contracts, and anything pertinent. I'm just trying to inform myself.

-Allan Houston (doesn't his contract still counts against the cap?)
-Trading expiring contract after expiring contract for max contract players who don't live up to what they're being paid for.

[thefuriousfive]

well i understand IT made some awful moves. I need to know the specific step that got us to where we are and how we got here. know what i mean?

[JohnStarksTheDunk]

I tried doing research on this but came up empty handed. I was wondering what kind of exemptions were deployed by IT, and the stipulations on Marbury and Curry's contracts, and anything pertinent. I'm just trying to inform myself.

-Allan Houston (doesn't his contract still counts against the cap?)
-Trading expiring contract after expiring contract for max contract players who don't live up to what they're being paid for.

Nope. Houston's contract already expired. The same year as Penny's I think.

[gavran]

I tried doing research on this but came up empty handed. I was wondering what kind of exemptions were deployed by IT, and the stipulations on Marbury and Curry's contracts, and anything pertinent. I'm just trying to inform myself.

-Allan Houston (doesn't his contract still counts against the cap?)
-Trading expiring contract after expiring contract for max contract players who don't live up to what they're being paid for.

Nope. Houston's contract already expired. The same year as Penny's I think.

One year later, but still ages ago.

[albert]

You can also look at Howard Eisley, Shandon Anderson, Glen Rice and others..

[kosmovitelli]

I tried doing research on this but came up empty handed. I was wondering what kind of exemptions were deployed by IT, and the stipulations on Marbury and Curry's contracts, and anything pertinent. I'm just trying to inform myself.

The Knicks were under the cap in 1996. They signed Houston and Childs as free agents and acquired Larry Johnson large contract via trade. Then they gave Ewing a 4 year $68M extension one year later ensuring the team would be over the cap until 2001.
I think Ewing's large extension was a mistake but we were a contender and after acquiring Houston, Childs and LJ we were in win now mode. We were trying to win a ring as long as Ewing had something left in the tank.
Patrick Ewing's contract was due to expire in 2001, Allan Houston had an early termination option the same summer (he exercised it), they combined for $23M. Larry Johnson's contract was due to expire in 2003 (he retired for medical reasons in 2001).
We should have let Ewing's contract expire and either let Allan Houston walk as a free agent or resign him to a reasonable contract. Considering we already had Sprewell, the best option was to trade one of them for a PF/C but we didn't.
Scott Layden made two huge mistakes : trading Ewing for crap and resigning Houston for $100M. That's where our front office completely lost the plot.
Layden compounded the Ewing mistake by trading Rice for Anderson and Eisley one year later.

Big mistakes were made in 2000 and 2001. Layden inherited of a bad cap situation and a good team. He left the Knicks with a bad cap situation and a bad team.
When he was hired in september 1999, if we standed pat, the Knicks had a shot to be under the cap in july 2003.
When Isiah was hired in december 2003, the Knicks had a shot to be under the cap in july 2007 (or july 2006 if Houston retired for medical reasons).
When Donnie was hired in march 2008, the Knicks had a shot to be under the cap in july 2011.
Now we will be under the cap in 2010.

Ernie Grunfeld put the team twice over the cap in 1996-1997 when he signed, resignd or acquired Houston, Childs, LJ and Ewing. Overpaying and mismanaging the cap happened under his watch but the BIG difference is the team was winning at the time.
Layden also overpaid and fuc*ed up with our cap situation when we were still winning (Ewing, Rice, Anderson, Eisley, Spoon in 2000-2001 in a desperate attempt to remain a playoff team) but he failed to realize in 2001 that our championship window had closed and it didn't make any sense to overpay and keep on being over the cap by $40M. Although he made another mistake in 2002 (McDyess trade), Layden made all his crappy deals for overpaid vets with long contracts while the Knicks were still a playoff team. It was a desperate attempt to remain competitive.
Isiah was even more stupid as he inherited of a lotto team and still overpaid, tried to win now and pushed the Knicks to a whopping $126M payroll in 2007.

1998-1999 : $69,400,000 (salary cap : $30,000,000)
1999-2000 : $71,340,801 (salary cap : $34,000,000)
2000-2001 : $73,556,256 (salary cap : $35,500,000)
2001-2002 : $85,457,889 (salary cap : $42,500,000)
2002-2003 : $93,452,376 (salary cap : $40,271,000)
2003-2004 : $89,444,816 (salary cap : $43,840,000)
2004-2005 : $102,442,544 (salary cap : $43,870,000)
2005-2006 : $126,610,272 (salary cap : $49,500,000)
2006-2007 : $117,024,192 (salary cap : $53,136,000)
2007-2008 : $96,190,114 (salary cap : $55,630,000)

[Starksfor3]

....and that is why Kos is the man.

[Papa Midnite]

....and that is why Kos is the man.

+1