Joe Johnson Coming To NY, Sign and Trade For Bosh?
From ESPN Insider:
Earlier this week, we talked about how Joe Johnson’s agent, Arm Tellem, could influence his client’s decision in free agency this summer. And in that same note, we provided quotes from Johnson saying even though he’s from a small town, he could see himself in a big city like New York. Now here’s the latest wrinkle from Frank Isola of the New York Daily News: Tellem, Johnson and the Knicks may already have an under-the-table agreement in place for Johnson to sign with New York in the offseason. Writes Isola: “There is a growing sentiment among opposing team executives that at the very least the Knicks will sign Atlanta’s Joe Johnson, whose agent, Arn Tellem, orchestrated the Tracy McGrady trade to the Knicks and has been friends with Walsh for 20 years. It’s called a ‘wink-wink deal,’ and even though it is against NBA rules, the practice does exist and is nearly impossible to police. ‘I think that’s a done deal,’ said one Eastern Conference GM.”
We just mentioned a report from Frank Isola of the New York Daily News which stated Joe Johnson could very well be a Knick next season. But here’s another nugget tucked in the same report: “If Walsh can’t land eitherLeBron James or Dwyane Wade but ends up with Johnson, another option is luring Toronto’s Chris Bosh in a sign-and-trade. Sources claim the Raptors would be open to such a deal if it included David Lee.” If Bosh decides to play in New York, this might be the best possible option for the Raptors. If they can land Lee, they’re getting an All-Star, a guy that can snag boards with the best of them and can score at a high rate as well. Obviously, he’s no Bosh. They’d be losing out on the better player. But it’s better than him leaving and the team coming away empty handed. As for the Knicks, a lineup featuring Johnson and Bosh could make some noise in the East next season.
Donnie Walsh with some cloak and dagger shit! Under the table deals, wheeling and dealing for Bosh. Over the past 3 or 4 weeks Donnie Walsh has easily been the most active GM in the league. Just hearing these rumors tells me the dude is on his grind trying to make sure the Knicks are completely revamped next season. Question is, as a Knicks fan, what would you prefer: A) locking up Joe Johnson as soon as free agency starts with basically an under the table agrement already in place, coupled with a sign and trade landing Bosh, or B) rolling the dice with trying to land Lebron? Obviously Lebron is the ultimate question mark, while apparently it seems Joe Johnson is there for the taking and Chris Bosh is 1 hundred billion percent leaving Toronto one way or another. Now obviously they could sign Joe Johnson at 12:01 once free agency hits, and still set their sites on LBJ. But if you’re forced to choose, would you take a guaranteed Joe Johnson/Chris Bosh tandem, or roll the dice on a 50/50 chance you can land Lebron?
Vote 1 for Johnson and Bosh is more realistic and still puts the Knicks at the top of the east, Vote 10 for Lebron should be target #1 before worry about anything else
(253 votes, average: 7.25 out of 10)
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“Just hearing these rumors tells me the dude is on his grind trying to make sure the Knicks are completely revamped next season.”
did you type that with a straight face? they play in the country’s biggest media market, where rumors are like aids in somalia.
I think a Bosh/Johnson package = death for the Knicks for the next 10 years. You’re better off just signing one. Signing them both gets your salary cap clogged with 2 guys who are just good enough to get you to the East Semi Finals every year, maybe the East Finals. Is Bosh/Johnson and whatever the Knicks fill around them much better than the current Hawks team?
the knicks need d. wade.
t. mac wants to stay on the knicks and while hes been pretty useless on the court, i have a feeling he will be on fire next season.
then we get bosh.
d. wade, t.mac, c.bosh starting lineup? i think so.
of course if we could fit lebron in there instead of t.mac then we would be all set. but lets not get all our hopes up.
bosh and johnson are better than whatever the knicks would cobble together if/when they miss out on lebron.
they put all of the chips in the middle of the table for lebron. they brought in d walsh to clear cap space. if they whiff on lebron then they’ll get what they get but they have a good shot/enough money available to get a lebron deal done.
Miss +3 over Tenn
Gtown -3 over Marq
Mich St -3 over Minny
Thank bigrips
lebron has been and is the goal…johnson is much older and is a fall back – he loves d’antoni and even said after the game last week he understand the market revolves around lebron and would go to the knicks for less money if LBJ wen there; so why rush to sign him and handcuff cap space at 12:01?
dwade may miss the playoffs and therefore could be looking elsewhere..lebron will have to contemplate a 36yr old jamison, no shaq and delonte in jail
best FA class, most money, biggest market, most famous arena, olympic coach, billionaire owner with huge media ties, savy GM….dont see that perfect storm settling at 12:01 after years of waiting for that day. not saying johnson isnt a great fit and thats not a great lineup – but you dont walk out with the homely chick 60secs after open bar starts!!!
i saw that gilbert arena will follow lebron and change his jersey to #6 next season – you think he will be called “six shooter” now instead of agent zero? or just be getting ass raped in jail by 6 dudes…
theres 0 chance they dont attempt to get lebron or wade first…..pairing lebron/wade with lee is a better tandem than johnson/bosh….plus there is no timetable on johnson, why do you have to commit to this now
pickett, i would agree that what you described is very comparable to current hawks team, but that hawks team is going to compete for a title, they arent the best team but they in the running
quest, couldnt agree more….no need to rush into anything
if they sign two big free agents lee is gone period they wont be able to afford him. if they get lebron or wade they wont get the other period because that would leave them extremely undersized and at a clash for stardom. a LBJ/Wade and Bosh/Amare/Boozer combo is the ulterior motive period, but honestly without even knowing LBJ’s and Wades’s intentions Joe Johnson is an obvious pick for third so setting up a “behind the scenes” deal to fall back on really isn’t a bad idea. put it this way would you be disappointed, yes, anything short of lebron would be a disappointment in NY but would you go to the games, yes you would, and you would enjoy them winning. Boston is falling off hard they are getting old and the magic aren’t to impressive either. The East isn’t what it use to be.
with johnson, bosh and supplements i think they will be a wrecking ball in the east, i don’t think they would be comparable to the hawks because i can’t compare a dominate player like bosh to the likes of Al Horford.