Knicks Fan here

[Purdman]

Hi Warriors fans.
I am a New Yorker who used to eat Tim and Chris burgers (or was it Chris and Tim?) when i lived in Fremont from age 4-9. I'm a huge Knicks fan so I am very excited with the sign and trade, while still very sad to be losing such a great player as David Lee.

Anyway, I do my own Knicks Blog, and would like to do a post with some Warrior die hard fans comments about the 3 guys the Knicks got. So any and all opinions would be welcome. Anything like annoying habits they have, little entertaining anecdotes, what you like best about them, etc.

From what i've read about Anthony Randolph, he can really rebound and block shots. True? The Knicks need someone to fill in for Lee's rebounding, since Amar'e is sub par, and they've been desparate for a shot blocker for a while. Can he play center? What are your main complaints about him? Can he shoot a jump shot? He is saying all the right things and really seems ready to step up. Should I temper my expectations? How is he in pick and roll situations?

Turiaf - Obviously a great teammate. He tweets a lot too. He can block shots, but does he have anything on offense or rebounding? Picking and rolling? Jump shot?

Azubuike - Is he a lights out shooter? How's his defense? Etc.

Really appreciate it.

[BW32]

Turiaf is never in position to rebound, don't expect him to board. AR is not a C and he is about 100 pounds away from beign one. Buike had a good streak of shooting but no he is not lights out, he is a good candidate, given the NY roster, to be right behind Gallo tho.

My only real complaint about AR was that he was often going too fast, he has trouble letting plays develop and overall he is very out of control.

[Future Coach]

here's a bit on each...

Regarding Turiaf:
- I do not agree with the above assessment that Turiaf is not a good rebounder, as I think he is more than a decent enough rebounder for a C/PF. I do however agree with the above assessment that he is often out of position, but that is only because he always had to slide over for the sake of providing help defense because no one would/could stop their man. Also, apart from players on rookie deals (ie Noah), you would have a hard time finding a center committed to give as much effort on defense that's on as good (or better) deal than Turiaf (~ $4 million/year). Very good value deal for a high energy player who has reportedly been a loved teammate everywhere he's been.
- You'll love Turiaf's personality. Great teammate and a very fun person who seems to make himself comfortable wherever he is. Little story, while at Gonzaga he played a game at/against Santa Barbara (UCSB) and after the game he eventually ended up at a party at a friend of mines house. Within a couple hours he was passed out drunk on my friends couch. Huge 6'9'' guy with dreads and all just passed out like it's nothing. Word is he woke up in the morning with a nice loud grunt with my friend and a couple roommates sitting in the living room eating cereal & watching tv around him. Then he was all real nice and appreciative for them letting him crash there like it was nothing without knowing any of them, like a real person would be. They all came away a big fan of his.
- The biggest thing for him this next season is how he heals from his injuries. If he heals well, I could easily imagine him starting the majority of the season for the Knicks (if Amare starts at PF and not C).

Regarding Azubuike:
- At times he's a good shooter, and at other times he's not as good. I guess you could say he's streaky, but not so much so that he gets real hot or cold at any one time. He's an active rebounder for his size and does crash offensive rebounds. He works hard on defense, though he's not the best defender. Pretty strong defender but his hands aren't amazingly fast. He has decent handles, but not enough to really bring the ball up the court. My guess is he will provide a similar game as Wilson Chandler and at a fraction of the price.
- Like Turiaf, much of Azubuike's success next season will be based on how he heals. Word a couple weeks ago was that he wasn't healing so quickly, potentially not being ready for training camp. If he heals well, he could make Chandler expendable and ultimately start in place for him. If not healthy, he's a rotation player. But, like Turiaf, he will provide more effort than almost anyone on a similar contract (excluding players on rookie deals), so another good value deal.

Regarding Randolph:
- He really could be a "diamond in the rough," or he could just be rough. He has a very good looking skill-set for his size. He handles better than anyone else in the league his size. A decent comparison could be Odom, who would work well in Pringles system. The issue with Randolph is he is so raw. Very skilled, but no one ever really taught him how to play. He's not consistent with anything he does on the court yet (except be inconsistent I guess). He can handle, but sometimes he over-handles and turns it over. He can run up the floor with very good speed, but rarely does so if the balls not in his hands. He can be a very good help-side defender, but he's rarely in the correct help-side position. Overall he has quick enough hands to be a good shot blocker, but his basketball IQ is so low that he's susceptible to racking up fouls from falling for shot fakes. He can pass pretty decently, but he often has his head down when he has the ball so he's not seeing the passing lanes. When other aspects of his game are working (when he's playing well), he seems to have a lot of energy for rebounding, but when he's not playing so well he seems to mope around at times. With all that said, there are times when he looked like he was ready to start dominating games. Unfortunately that feeling would fade too quick. He's super raw and for the most part it seems like he really needs to work at slowing himself down, as he's often a little reckless/out of control.
- Randolph should not play center. At his biggest he's a PF, and at his quickest he's a lengthy SF. My guess is he will get just about all of Amare's backup minutes, as I don't see the two of them working too well together on the court at the same time. I hope he gets some playing time to play through mistakes in NY, because Nelson was not a good coach for him, but I could definitely see Pringles getting frustrated with him over time as well.


In any event, Knick fans should be happy they received far & away the most talent ever given up in a sign & trade deal.

[chriswashburn3]

BustAnthony is a little cry baby cries over spilled milk so keep a lot of Similac formula around and a bib

[ILOVEIT]

Turiaff was never in a postition to rebound because the Warriors guards let anyone with a basketball drive right down the middle lol

Problem is he'll likely have to do the same on the Knicks. AR and Amare are certainly not guys who know how to play defensively smart. Both are athletes who jump and do the amazing when smart will do just as well.

AR is either going to be a great NBA player or a "forever tweener". Think Ralph Sampson trying to dribble.

Knicks will have an exciting team with defensive lapses and turnovers followed by amazing dunks and blocks.

Funner to watch...record won't improve by much...

[statsman]

In any event, Knick fans should be happy they received far & away the most talent ever given up in a sign & trade deal.

Gotta love the hyperbole and melodrama around these parts.

[Coxy]

BustAnthony is a little cry baby cries over spilled milk so keep a lot of Similac formula around and a bib

[shazam_guy]

Jeez, why are you encouraging him, Coxy? That one smiley is going to mean a few dozen more posts out of this guy.

[Coxy]

I like them. They are fricken hilarious. Such nonsense and dribble is a great laugh around here really.

[shazam_guy]

Randolph never got a groove going here, but whether because of Nelson's unfair dislike of him or his own problems has been debated ad nauseam. (That means "for a long time", ChrisWashburn3.) He has an amazing possible upside and he's fun to watch. Beyond that, well, NY fans will find out before we do.

Turiaf is a not-great rebounder, a very good shot blocker, and an extremely likeable guy with lots of energy both on and off the bench.

Azubuike's a little Maggette (can't pass, not much of a defender, loves to bull-rush the hoop) but a MUCH better outside shooter than Maggs ever was, esp. on the 3 ball.

If Randolph turns out good, it will have been a great trade for the Knicks. Even with the risk that he won't, it looks a lot better to me than most of the trades they've made in the last few years.

[Lone Star]

Some tidbits on Azu:

Was nicknamed "The London Gentleman" by Andris Biedrins

Likes to create hip hop beats, that was a couple years ago so I am not sure if he does that anymore.

He has the biggest nostrils I have ever seen on an NBA player.

Some tidbits on Turiaf:

He watched Kobe jump over a speeding car.

Every game it looks like his shorts are going to fall off, but amazingly they never have... at least in a game I was watching.

Some tidbits on Randolph:

Was considered "Basketball Jesus" by some posters on this board.

Lamar Odom once said that looking at Randolph playing was like looking at himself when he was younger. (not the exact quote, but something like that)

Was also nicknamed "IT", by many because many Warrior fans, myself included felt that Randolph had the "IT" factor.

[Adonalmao]

Regarding Randolph:
- He really could be a "diamond in the rough," or he could just be rough. He has a very good looking skill-set for his size. He handles better than anyone else in the league his size. A decent comparison could be Odom, who would work well in Pringles system. The issue with Randolph is he is so raw. Very skilled, but no one ever really taught him how to play. He's not consistent with anything he does on the court yet (except be inconsistent I guess). He can handle, but sometimes he over-handles and turns it over. He can run up the floor with very good speed, but rarely does so if the balls not in his hands. He can be a very good help-side defender, but he's rarely in the correct help-side position. Overall he has quick enough hands to be a good shot blocker, but his basketball IQ is so low that he's susceptible to racking up fouls from falling for shot fakes. He can pass pretty decently, but he often has his head down when he has the ball so he's not seeing the passing lanes. When other aspects of his game are working (when he's playing well), he seems to have a lot of energy for rebounding, but when he's not playing so well he seems to mope around at times. With all that said, there are times when he looked like he was ready to start dominating games. Unfortunately that feeling would fade too quick. He's super raw and for the most part it seems like he really needs to work at slowing himself down, as he's often a little reckless/out of control.
- Randolph should not play center. At his biggest he's a PF, and at his quickest he's a lengthy SF. My guess is he will get just about all of Amare's backup minutes, as I don't see the two of them working too well together on the court at the same time. I hope he gets some playing time to play through mistakes in NY, because Nelson was not a good coach for him, but I could definitely see Pringles getting frustrated with him over time as well.

honest, fair assessment. a sentiment which most lack when they post about randolph. props

[and1GS]

Here's my cliffnotes version of Turiaf/Azu/AR with 2 pros and 2 cons:

Turiaf
pro: very good shot blocker
pro: great teammate/chemistry guy
con: not a great rebounder
con: bad on offense

Azu
pro: useful if he plays 20 mpg at most, anything more and he becomes a blackhole and seems to only be out to "get his" and get the game over with
pro: good wide open 3pt shooter
con: doesn't really excel at anything
con: IMO he's a dime a dozen player, see CJ Watson and Anthony Tolliver's %s...Tolly has a horrid shot but he was allowed to take so many open 3s that his %s look average

AR
pro: electric player when he wants to be, can really generate highlights
pro: great rebounder and an above average ball handler for his size
con: immaturity...while injured he was out partying on a game night
con: lazy on rotations and he doesn't really have a niche on the court...should he be taking J's, posting up, or driving inside? he doesn't really know yet

In even more of a summary....

Turiaf - 7/8 rotation guy
Azu - scrub
AR - all potential at this point but he'll need a LOT of special attention from the coaches if he really wants to improve

[methdefense]

My take on this:

Turiaf: High energy guy. Its not that he's a bad rebounder, its just cause he tries to go for a block on every single shot that he doesn't box out more often. He hustles for every loose ball and offensive rebounds. Very expressive. He can't play big minutes. He's your guy you would like off the bench as PF/C.

Azubuike: All-Around guy. Good spot up 3 point shooter. Buike is rather exceptional on defense, He'll give you occasional spotlight dunks and blocks. Athletic and good rebounder for his size at 6-5. He played SF/PF in here but he more of 2 or 3. Overall good rotation guy. He probably rusty in the early season because was gone for most of the last season.

AR: High potential guy. We just saw glimpses of what he can be. Needs work on offensive assets. Inconsistent jumper. Very good shot blocker and athletic. He doesn't have a reliable ball handling skills but can be adept at it like Odom but partly because he wasn't an excellent decision-maker. Just needs a lot more experience on the floor.

[and1GS]

Nah it is that he's a bad rebounder. He doesn't really box out and he doesn't seem to try too hard in crashing the boards.

[methdefense]

Nah it is that he's a bad rebounder. He doesn't really box out and he doesn't seem to try too hard in crashing the boards.

Are you kidding? Turiaf treasures every damn rebound. I remember last season him being tired as hell, late in the game, fans were excited when he was able to come up with the ball on a good defensive end.

Isn't asking too much to a PF to both contest shots and rebound while being the only legitimate big man in this team at times last season?

[and1GS]

He was tired because euroball had sapped him of his health and his energy. He averaged 4.6 boards for us both years...and was usually the only big man on the floor...meaning any boards would be going to him. We were one of the worst rebounding teams in the NBA and despite what I just said, Turiaf is apparently a good rebounder?

Does not compute.

[methdefense]

He was tired because euroball had sapped him of his health and his energy. He averaged 4.6 boards for us both years...and was usually the only big man on the floor...meaning any boards would be going to him. We were one of the worst rebounding teams in the NBA and despite what I just said, Turiaf is apparently a good rebounder?

Does not compute.

Being 6-10 doesn't mean your a magnet to every miss basketball.

[Visigoth]

He was tired because euroball had sapped him of his health and his energy. He averaged 4.6 boards for us both years...and was usually the only big man on the floor...meaning any boards would be going to him. We were one of the worst rebounding teams in the NBA and despite what I just said, Turiaf is apparently a good rebounder?

Does not compute.

Being 6-10 doesn't mean your a magnet to every miss basketball.

No, but if you're the tallest guy there, whatever rebound the team does get will probably be through you.

Then again, Steph averaged more rebounds than he did this year soooo.

[Jstarks3]

speaking of not boxing out, you guys are gonna love david lee. lol.