Smith would soar as a Jet by Kevin Zikaras
The terminally disgruntled WR Steve Smith, currently of the Carolina Panthers, has had a roller coaster career. He has appeared in a Superbowl, training camp fights, pro bowls, and most recently trade rumors. With what started as a for sale sign being placed on the front lawn of his mansion in the Carolina area, has planted a growing seed in the head of GMs around the league that Smith would be happier somewhere else. With Carolina in a re-building stage, the departure of an unhappy superstar with character issues makes sense for the Carolina team. A new coach and impressionable young QB already with question marks surrounding his off-the field decisions, this star wideout may be helping Ron Rivera make his first important personnel decision if he decides to force his way out of town.
This opens the door for wide receiver needy teams around the league to follow this developing situation with perked ears. The Jets qualify as one of those teams. The Jets have questions, that cannot be answered until the lockout is lifted, about WRs Santonio Holmes, Braylon Edwards, and Brad Smith. Holmes has made big catch after big catch throughout his career. Edwards has already won over the fans by saying he will take less money to stay with the team. Brad Smith will likely walk, but his replacement was drafted in Jeremey Kerley, who will fill the void as kick returner/slot receiver that Smith will leave.
The Jets have publicly come out and said that they will work to keep as many of these big name targets as they can, but they would be better off taking the cheapest one of the two and going after Smith. Throwing to a big play receiver in Edwards or Holmes on one side, with Smith on the other side, Kerley lined up in the slot, and a healthy Kellen Clemens up the middle will give the Jets a balanced and potent offensive attack. Steve Smith has had some trouble in the past, but so did Holmes and Edwards before they came to New York. Once the two troubled wideouts became part of the jets organization they became ideal citizens. I would expect Smith to do the same. He would be happy again, he would be on a team that is poised to make another late playoff push, and he would be able to buy a much smaller place in Manhattan.
The question becomes how much the Jets are willing to give up or spend to acquire a pro bowl receiver. Is Steve Smith, at age 32, worth the 14 million dollars a year and a likely 3rd and 5th round draft pick? If he were to force the hand of the Carolina Panthers to release him, would he be willing to accept less, or at least a contract that is less now, to play in a much better situation in New York? These are all situations that Mike Tannenbaum and the New York Jets should look into, and these are all questions that make my job look easy.
This opens the door for wide receiver needy teams around the league to follow this developing situation with perked ears. The Jets qualify as one of those teams. The Jets have questions, that cannot be answered until the lockout is lifted, about WRs Santonio Holmes, Braylon Edwards, and Brad Smith. Holmes has made big catch after big catch throughout his career. Edwards has already won over the fans by saying he will take less money to stay with the team. Brad Smith will likely walk, but his replacement was drafted in Jeremey Kerley, who will fill the void as kick returner/slot receiver that Smith will leave.
The Jets have publicly come out and said that they will work to keep as many of these big name targets as they can, but they would be better off taking the cheapest one of the two and going after Smith. Throwing to a big play receiver in Edwards or Holmes on one side, with Smith on the other side, Kerley lined up in the slot, and a healthy Kellen Clemens up the middle will give the Jets a balanced and potent offensive attack. Steve Smith has had some trouble in the past, but so did Holmes and Edwards before they came to New York. Once the two troubled wideouts became part of the jets organization they became ideal citizens. I would expect Smith to do the same. He would be happy again, he would be on a team that is poised to make another late playoff push, and he would be able to buy a much smaller place in Manhattan.
The question becomes how much the Jets are willing to give up or spend to acquire a pro bowl receiver. Is Steve Smith, at age 32, worth the 14 million dollars a year and a likely 3rd and 5th round draft pick? If he were to force the hand of the Carolina Panthers to release him, would he be willing to accept less, or at least a contract that is less now, to play in a much better situation in New York? These are all situations that Mike Tannenbaum and the New York Jets should look into, and these are all questions that make my job look easy.
New York Knicks: NBA Champs 3012 by Kevin Zikaras
The demise of the Spurs and Lakers in the early rounds of the 2011 playoffs further exemplified the value of athleticism in today’s NBA. Take a look at the teams still remaining in the playoffs and you will see the basic structure of what wins in the modern era. A super quick point guard, athletic wingmen willing to play defense, and at least one key scorer all but guarantees you a spot in the semis.
The New York Knicks lack 2 of these three critical components. Throw in a coach with a system built for crowd-pleasing scores as opposed to wins, and you’ve got yourself a recipe for disaster.
JJ Barea’s quickness and the "top 10 greatest player" Dirk shredded the defending champs, a developing Mike Conley and an inspired (former Knick) Zach Randolph put the nail in the coffin for the AARP Spurs, and Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant showed the NBA though they may be young, they are and will be very dangerous.
Derrick Rose’s MVP season single-handedly carried the injury prone bulls to a number 1 seed (and although this season may have taken years off Rose’s life, an Eastern Conference Finals appearance will be worth it to Bulls fans). The second most athletic team in the league, the Atlanta Hawks, is always dangerous in the playoffs with the skilled athletes they have. The one armed Rajon Rondo has shown, for lack of a more appropriate word, "cojones" and quickness throughout the playoffs, and the most athletic team in league history, the Miami Heat, will go on to win the NBA championship bringing more than just their talents back to South Beach.
Athleticism prevails in this NBA more than ever.
In what many thought would be a tough first round matchup involving two big Northeast cities, the Celtics swept right through New York pushing Donnie Walsh back to the drawing board. The Knicks may have garnered millions of dollars in revenue gains throughout the duration of Melo’s contract due to his affinity with the fans, but without the pairing of an elite athlete at point guard the Knicks are doomed for years to come.
Fans can rumble all they want about Chris Paul coming through free agency in 2012, or the Zen master Phil Jackson coming back for one more run bringing the triangle with him, but neither of these options solves the long-term issue. Speed. Quickness. Even Superman flying up from Orlando wouldn’t make the Knicks a championship team. I personally would buy season tickets immediately if that happened, but unless Dwight really works hard on his ball-handling and quickness, that too may be useless.
See you next millennium Larry O’Brien!
The New York Knicks lack 2 of these three critical components. Throw in a coach with a system built for crowd-pleasing scores as opposed to wins, and you’ve got yourself a recipe for disaster.
JJ Barea’s quickness and the "top 10 greatest player" Dirk shredded the defending champs, a developing Mike Conley and an inspired (former Knick) Zach Randolph put the nail in the coffin for the AARP Spurs, and Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant showed the NBA though they may be young, they are and will be very dangerous.
Derrick Rose’s MVP season single-handedly carried the injury prone bulls to a number 1 seed (and although this season may have taken years off Rose’s life, an Eastern Conference Finals appearance will be worth it to Bulls fans). The second most athletic team in the league, the Atlanta Hawks, is always dangerous in the playoffs with the skilled athletes they have. The one armed Rajon Rondo has shown, for lack of a more appropriate word, "cojones" and quickness throughout the playoffs, and the most athletic team in league history, the Miami Heat, will go on to win the NBA championship bringing more than just their talents back to South Beach.
Athleticism prevails in this NBA more than ever.
In what many thought would be a tough first round matchup involving two big Northeast cities, the Celtics swept right through New York pushing Donnie Walsh back to the drawing board. The Knicks may have garnered millions of dollars in revenue gains throughout the duration of Melo’s contract due to his affinity with the fans, but without the pairing of an elite athlete at point guard the Knicks are doomed for years to come.
Fans can rumble all they want about Chris Paul coming through free agency in 2012, or the Zen master Phil Jackson coming back for one more run bringing the triangle with him, but neither of these options solves the long-term issue. Speed. Quickness. Even Superman flying up from Orlando wouldn’t make the Knicks a championship team. I personally would buy season tickets immediately if that happened, but unless Dwight really works hard on his ball-handling and quickness, that too may be useless.
See you next millennium Larry O’Brien!