The Battle For New York

It's not the battle for New York like many NBA Experts predicted but nonetheless, the battle for New York will continue on January 20th, Martin Luther King Day.

It's ironic that one that on the day The Great Dr. Martin Luther King was born -- the man that once had a dream of equality for us all -- we Knicks fans get to watch a group of selfish men attempt to look like a team and try to get a win against the suddenly hot Nets team who have 7 out of their last 10 games.

This situation is actually really surprising, yet really interesting. Jason Kidd, a 1st year Coach with zero experience has gotten his team to believe in him and each other. Meanwhile, the veteran Knicks Coach, Mike Woodson, has yet to get his players to buy into his message of playing with effort, heart, and basketball fundamentals. 

Coach Woodson is a defensive minded Coach which would be great if he had respect from his players. The NBA had to step in and fine JR Smith $50,000 before Woodson decided he had enough of JR Smith's antics. If Woodson can't control a player that comes off the bench, can he really control the entire team?

With the Knicks being 15-25, the answer is NO! So, on MLK Day, there is a dream to be realized for both New York teams. The questions is, which one will realize this year has turned into a nightmare?!

By Big Mouf

The Future of Dwight Howard

This blog post is long overdue. I predicted The Lakers would have no shot against San Antonio and after being SWEPT and suffering the worst home loss in playoff history in Game 3, this leaves the future of Dwight Howard up for discussion after his poor performance. I saw this coming. I may not have said it in these blogs, but I saw this coming from the get-go. But this is not what this post is about. What is the future of Dwight Howard? Will he stay, or will he go?

If he's smart, he'll go. Game 4 was a painful realization of what Dwight is in for once Kobe and Nash retire. And the future does not look very bright. Dwight could've avoided all of this and stayed in Orlando. But he had to cause a scene, get some people fired, and jump ship to Los Angeles. He's got nobody to blame but himself. I think he'll stay, but he should go, but where would he go?

Some people say The Dallas Mavericks would be a good fit. I think that would be a good fit for him as well.  I think an even better fit would be The Houston Rockets. It's almost the same sort of situation like he had in Orlando. He would have a great young roster around him with James Harden, Chandler Parsons, Jeremy Lin, Omir Asik, Carlos Delfino, Francisco Garcia. I think he'd fit in well with that team, give them a much needed boost and won't be all about one man like the Lakers was about Kobe Bryant. 

I've also heard grumblings about Atlanta, or Brooklyn. The Hawks are fine with Al Horford and I don't think Brooklyn would try for Dwight when they have Brook Lopez. 

My gut feeling says Dwight will fold under the pressure and re-sign with The Lakers, but if he knows what's good for him, he'll leave while he still can. No good can from staying. Unless he wants to be swept out of the playoffs for the second consecutive season, he can go right ahead. I think he can find another team better suited for him. If he's gonna go anywhere, I say either Houston or Dallas. Those two teams would be better fits for him.

Just my two cents.

Feel free to Comment.

By: Gerald "Showstopper" Prophete 

NBA Trades and Signings

A lot has happened in the world of Basketball. Probably more than we ever thought would happen. It's been a wild offseason with a ton of signings and other transactions that left us with our jaws dropped.

I feel like a refresher is in order. Time to remind the people just what's been going on and how it affects the NBA when it starts back up in the Fall.

Steve Nash signs with The Lakers


This was probably THE move that turned a lot of heads and left people stunned. It was a common knowledge that Nash would find his way out of Phoenix and try to win that ring that has eluded him for so long. Teams like New York, and even Miami were a possibility. But Nash has gone to The Lakers. The team with Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum leading the charge. This spells trouble for the NBA. The Lakers now have a Big 3 of their own: Steve Nash, Kobe Bryant, and Andrew Bynum. A case could be made for Ron Artest, but I don't think it's necessary. But The Lakers now have the potential to cause some serious damage in the NBA. They have the second best big man in Bynum, Kobe is getting old, but still playing at a superstar level and now one of, if not, the best point guard in the league in Steve Nash. It's going to be interesting seeing how Nash meshes with Kobe and Co.



Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis sign with The Miami Heat


Ray Allen: The man who made had a career best and made 45% of his three pointers this past season has taken his talents to South Beach. This move had to have been influenced by James, Wade, and Bosh. It's sad to see Ray Allen leave Boston so easily because they offered him tons and tons of money and the chance for another ring. That goes to show loyalty really doesn't mean much these days. Nonetheless, Miami just got even better on the offensive side of the ball. Ray Allen is one of the best three point shooters in the league and a solid defender at that. He's going to give Miami that extra boost of scoring when they really need it which can come in extremely handy.

Rashard Lewis, on the other hand, is a different breed as well. The man is a lean 230 pounder that also the uncanny ability to shoot lights out. He was one of the integral parts of the Magic's trip to the NBA Finals in 2009. Rashard is one of those players than can provide the mismatch for opposing teams, can post up when he wants, but won't shy away from shooting a perimeter shot. He's a well-rounded ball player on both sides of the ball, and with his strength, Miami got a tad bit better on the defensive side of things.



Jason Kidd signs with The New York Knicks


New York Knicks fans all around the world were beyond happy with this pick. Not only do they get to keep stars like Novak and JR Smith, but they've added a seasoned veteran in Jason Kidd who just helped Dallas capture their first ring last season. Up until Jeremy Lin got injured, there never really was a true point guard on The Knicks. The Knicks were better when they all shared the ball and Carmelo didn't take 40-50 shots a game. Jason Kidd is going to bring stability to this team and restore a balance that was missing within The Knicks towards the end of the season and into the playoffs. For the sake of Knicks fans, Kidd hopefully is the last piece to help get this team a ring........as soon as he gets cleared of his DWI charges.



Joe Johnson signs with The Brooklyn Nets


The Brooklyn Nets are playing no games this offseason. They've resigned Deron Williams, kept Humphries and Lopez, but now they've reeled in a pretty big fish: Joe Johnson. The man who was arguably the best player The Atlanta Hawks had on their team has signed with Jay-Z's Brooklyn Nets. This move was a warning to the NBA that this team is ready to no longer be the team that people deem as an easy win. The Nets have been bad for far too long. They've got more than enough firepower to be at least considered a contender heading into this season, or at least have a shot at making the playoffs. Joe Johnson has just reassured that fact if it wasn't already clear.




Jeremy Lin signs with The Houston Rockets


The Linsanity Era is over in New York and the craze will now make its way to Houston. I always thought Linsanity was a tad bit overrated and would die out eventually. Sure, Jeremy Lin had a pretty good stretch of games and made The Knicks look like a force in the process, but when he ran into The Miami Heat, things never were the same. I'm sure The Knicks felt the same way and had no intention of bringing him back despite what other stories reported. They felt like Lin was a one-hit wonder. Well, I'll give Lin this: he did make The Knicks good for a stretch. There was the emergence of Steve Novak and everybody on the team got a piece of the ball and had their moment in the sun. Lin was no ballhog to make a long story short. I'm a bit nervous about his move to Houston. Is Houston really sold on Lin being the answer after just having one really good stretch of games, or does Houston see something else that nobody else does?




OJ Mayo signs with The Dallas Mavericks


Last season, The Dallas Mavericks were on top of the world. They had just won the franchise's first NBA Championship and spoiled the first year of the Miami Heat Big 3. Fast forward a year later, they were swept out of the first round by Oklahoma City and now almost all the players that helped capture Dallas' ring is gone. Jason Kidd is gone, Jason Terry is gone, Tyson Chandler is gone, and JJ Barea is gone. Only person left is Dirk. But now Dallas has salvaged something from all this wreckage and managed to steal one of Memphis' best players from them. I don't know how Memphis fans feel about this move, or even if they care at all. Dallas is pretty much starting over with Dirk and OJ Mayo is the first step. Dallas has not handled their situation very well. But this was a wise first step.


Other Notable Transactions


Eric Gordon signs with The New Orleans Hornets
Lamar Odom and Grant Hill signed with The Los Angeles Clippers
Kurt Thomas and Raymond Felton signed with The New York Knicks
Houston Rockets signed Marcus Camby
Brooklyn Nets signed Jerry Stackhouse
Boston Celtics signed Jason Terry




For more information on NBA Trades and Signings along with notable free agents, go to the links below. And of course, you can count on Sports Monarchy to bring you the latest in NBA Offseason news!

http://www.nba.com/news/transactions/2012_13/


http://www.nba.com/freeagents/2012/


Oh and before I forget, Dwight Howard is STILL with The Orlando Magic. So much for that trade he's been complaining and wanting so badly. And people get on Lebron James' case.



Feel free to Comment.


By: Gerald "Showstopper" Prophete