The Knicks have acquired 24-year old shooting guard Corey Brewer from the Timberwolves for 21-year old power forward Anthony Randolph and 28-year old center Eddy Curry.  Shooting guard Corey Brewer played in 56 games (22 starts) for the T-Wolves this year and he was averaging 24.3 minutes, 8.6 points, 2.7 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.6 steals per game.  He has now played in 232 games (147 starts) in his first four years in the NBA and he is averaging 25.7 minutes, 9.1 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.3 steals per game.  Brewer will back up Landry Fields the rest of this season.

Anthony Randolph was supposed to be the key to the David Lee trade with the Warriors over the summer but it just never clicked for him in N.Y.  He played in 17 games (0 starts) for the Knicks this season and he averaged 7.5 minutes, 2.1 points, 2.3 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game.  Randolph only shot 31.1% from the floor this year as he has a complete bust for the Knicks.  Eddy Curry did not play in any games for the Knicks this season and he has only played in 10 games over the last three years for the Knicks.

UPDATE:  (3/1/2011) – The Knicks have bought out Corey Brewer, making him a free agent.  I think this was a big mistake by the Knicks as Brewer is likely to wind up with a playoff team.

The New York Knicks have acquired Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Shelden Williams, Anthony Carter and Renaldo Balkman from the Nuggets for Wilson Chandler, Danilo Gallinari, Raymond Felton, Timofey Mozgov, the Knicks first round pick in 2014, the Warriors second round picks in 2012 & 2013 and $3 million bucks.  26-year old Carmelo Anthony returns to N.Y. after playing his college ball at Syracuse.  He played in 50 games (all starts) for the Nuggets this season and he averaged 35.5 minutes, 25.2 points, 7.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game.  He has now played in 564 games (all starts) in his first 8 years in the NBA and he is averaging 36.4 minutes, 24.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.1 steals per game.  Anthony gives the Knicks a second bonafide star to team with Amare Stoudemire in N.Y. city.  34-year old point guard Chauncey Billups will take over for the departed Raymond Felton in the starting lineup.  Billups played in 51 games (all starts) for the Nuggets this season and he averaged 32.3 minutes, 16.5 points, 2.4 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 1.0 steal per game.  He has now played in 961 games (867 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 32.3 minutes, 15.5 points, 3.0 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 1.0 steal per game.  Billups is a shoot first point guard so the Knicks offense might change a little bit, but he is a clutch shooter as he has hit 44.1% from three point range so far this year.  27-year old power forward Shelden Williams played in 42 games (32 starts) for the Nuggets this season and he averaged 17.0 minutes, 4.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game.  Williams has now played in 286 games (63 starts) in his NBA career and he is averaging 14.4 minutes, 4.5 points, 4.1 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game.  Williams will give the Knicks some muscle and rebounding off the bench the rest of this year.  35-year old Anthony Carter played in 14 games (0 starts) for the Nuggets this season and he averaged 10.9 minutes, 1.9 points, 0.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game.  He has now played in 580 games (181 starts) in his NBA career and he is averaging 20.1 minutes, 5.0 points, 2.1 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.0 steal per game.  Carter will back up Billups just like he was doing in Denver.  26-year old Renaldo Balkman returns to N.Y. where he played his first two seasons.  Balkman played in 5 games (0 starts) for the Nuggets so far this year and he is averaging 8.8 minutes, 2.6 points, 0.8 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game.  Balkman has now played in 204 games (12 starts) in his first five years in the NBA and he is averaging 14.4 minutes, 4.2 points, 3.6 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game. 

The new guys didn’t come cheap.  26-year old Raymond Felton played in 54 games (all starts) for the Knicks this season and he averaged 38.4 minutes, 17.1 points, 3.6 rebounds, 9.0 assists and 1.8 steals per game.  The Knicks might miss Felton a little bit going forward as he was playing better than Chauncey Billups was for the Nuggets.  22-year old small forward Danilo Gallinari played in 48 games (all starts) for the Knicks this season and he averaged 34.8 minutes, 15.9 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game.  He played in 157 games (124 starts) in his three years with the Knicks in which he averaged 30.8 minutes, 13.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game.  23-year old SG/SF Wilson Chandler was having his best season for the Knicks.  He played in 51 games (30 starts) for the Knicks this year and he was averaging 34.5 minutes, 16.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.4 blocked shots per game.  He played in 233 games (180 starts) in his four years with the Knicks and he averaged 32.2 minutes, 14.0 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game.  24-year old rookie center Timofey Mozgov almost held up this deal before the Knicks relented and included him in this deal.  Mozgov played in 34 games (14 starts) for the Knicks this year and he averaged 13.5 minutes, 4.0 points, 3.1 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. 

The Knicks now have the star power that they have craved for a while in adding Carmelo Anthony but they paid top dollar to get him.

The Knicks have invited 24-year old small forward Shawne Williams to training camp. Williams was the #17 overall pick in the 2006 NBA Draft by the Pacers but he has never really made it in the NBA. Off court issues have dogged him for years but the Knicks are willing to give him a new start. Williams has played in 124 games (6 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 13.4 minutes, 5.2 points, 2.4 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game. This could be Williams’ last chance to prove he deserves to play in the NBA.

The Knicks have signed 29-year old shooting guard Roger Mason to a 1-year, $1.4 million dollar deal. Mason played in 79 games (5 starts) for the Knicks last season and he averaged 19.2 minutes, 6.3 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. He has now played in 346 games (88 starts) in his NBA career and he is averaging 19.2 minutes, 7.2 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. Mason is a good long range shooter as he has hit 38.1% from three point range in his career. I really like this signing for the Knicks as Mason will bring some scoring punch off of the bench.

The Knicks have signed 26-year old point guard Raymond Felton to a 3-year, $25 million dollar contract. Felton played in 80 games (all starts) for the Bobcats last season and he averaged 33.0 minutes, 12.1 points, 3.6 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 1.5 steals per game. He has now played in 399 games (369 starts) in his five years in the NBA and he is averaging 34.9 minutes, 13.3 points, 3.4 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 1.4 steals per game. This was a good signing for the Knicks as Felton gives them another quality player.

The Knicks have done a sign and trade deal with the Warriors. They signed 27-year old power forward David Lee to a 6-year, $80 million dollar deal and then they sent him to the Golden State Warriors for 20-year old power forward Anthony Randolph, 27-year old PF/C Ronny Turiaf, 26-year old SG/SF Kelenna Azubuike and a second round pick. Lee played in 81 games (all starts) for the Knicks last season and he averaged 37.3 minutes, 20.2 points, 11.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.0 steal per game. He played in 368 games (210 starts) in his five years with the Knicks and he averaged 30.1 minutes, 13.0 points, 9.6 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 0.8 steals per game. Lee was a good player for the Knicks but this was a trade they had to make because they brought back three players that they like.

Anthony Randolph has the biggest upside of the return the Knicks got in this trade. Randolph played in 33 games (8 starts) for the Warriors last season and he averaged 22.7 minutes, 11.6 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.5 blocked shots per game. He has now played in 96 games (30 starts) in his first two years in the NBA and he has averaged 19.6 minutes, 9.2 points, 6.0 rebounds, 0.9 assists and 1.3 blocked shots per game. The sky is the limit for Randolph who is just starting to scratch the surface of his potential. SG/SF Kelenna Azubuike is the kind of open court player that Coach D’Antoni loves. Azubuike played in 9 games (7 starts) for the Warriors last season and he averaged 25.7 minutes, 13.9 points, 4.6 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.0 blocked shot per game. He has now played in 205 games (84 starts) in his four years in the NBA and he has averaged 24.4 minutes, 10.6 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. Azubuike has hit 40.9% of his shots from three point range in his career and the Knicks will take advantage of that. Ronny Turiaf will be a solid backup center and power forward for the Knicks this season. Turiaf played in 42 games (20 starts) for the Warriors last season and he averaged 20.8 minutes, 4.9 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.3 blocked shots per game. He has now played in 294 games (69 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 17.9 minutes, 5.5 points, 3.9 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.4 blocked shots per game.

I think David Lee is the best player in this trade but I think in the end it will help both teams as the Knicks needed more players.

The Knicks have signed 27-year old power forward Amare Stoudemire to a 5-year, $100 million dollar contract. Stoudemire played in 82 games (all starts) for the Suns last season and he averaged 34.6 minutes, 23.1 points, 8.9 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 1.0 blocked shot per game. He has now played in 516 games (499 starts) in his 8 years in the NBA and he has averaged 34.3 minutes, 21.4 points, 8.9 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.4 blocked shots per game. I really like this signing for the Knicks as Stoudemire is a great fit in Coach D’Antoni’s system from their days together in Phoenix.

UPDATE: (7/9/2010) – This was actually a sign and trade deal with the Suns. The Knicks have sent the Suns a $16.5 million dollar trade exception plus a conditional second round pick. That is not much of a price to pay for securing Amare Stoudemire for the next five years.

23-year old rookie center Jerome Jordan will be acquired by the Knicks on July 8th. He was the 44th overall pick of the NBA Draft. Jordan played in 35 games (all starts) for Tulsa last season and he averaged 15.4 points, 9.1 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 2.3 blocked shots per game. He played in 133 games (119 starts) in college and he averaged 11.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 2.5 blocked shots per game. This has the potential to be a nice pickup for the Knicks.

23-year old point guard Sergio Rodriguez has left the Knicks to sign a 3-year deal with Real Madrid in Spain. Rodriguez played in 27 games (8 starts) for the Knicks last year after coming over in a trade with the Kings and he averaged 19.7 minutes, 7.4 points, 1.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game. The Knicks got him to bump Chris Duhon out of the starting lineup but Rodriguez never seized his opportunity. Rodriguez played in 285 games (22 starts) in four years in the NBA and he averaged 13.2 minutes, 4.3 points, 1.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. The Knicks shouldn’t miss him too much as they are in the hunt for a new starting point guard this summer.

34-year old shooting guard Cuttino Mobley did not play all year for the Knicks before getting cut because he has a heart problem. He has likely played his last game in the NBA. Mobley has played in 747 games (581 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 37.0 minutes, 16.0 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.2 steals per game. It’s hard to see a guy like Cuttino Mobley’s career end this way because he was a solid basketball player.