Finally, after much prodding from SU, the Knicks have signed Trey Burke to an NBA contract and send Ramon Sessions on his way. SU is not positive but it almost seems like they waited this long to minimize the payment of Sessions’ remaining salary for this year. The other theory out there is that the Knicks were looking to sign a player from Norway in order to tap into the international market as they have the best people and players but could not find a suitable point guard.
So, the question for Coach Jeff Hornaeck now is do you replace Sessions with Burke as the 12th player on the team and never play him? Or do you do something bold? Do you look to spread the court with another shooter? The Westchester Knicks allegedly play the same offense as the parent team so the transition should be easy. The bad news is that they have guaranteed Jarrett Jack’s contract for the rest of the season. The return of Hardaway helps a lot but SU says if you watch Porzingis, he is much better getting the ball in the flow of the offense vs. having to work hard in an isolation setting to get his shot. Surely, they have stats on where he is more effective but it certainly looks that way to me. Some say Ntilikina has hit the rookie wall and may need some down time. SU would put Jack on the bench but that will never happen. Anyway, let’s see starting today.
Gerrit Cole has been traded to the Astros so the Yankees did not get that 5th starter as of yet. SU is still fine going into this season with the current roster and giving the rookies a chance to shine. This is what made last year’s team so much fun to watch. However, Todd Frazier is still out there which scares me. The Mets made a smart signing with Jay Bruce (3 years for $39 million is very fair) and are supposedly looking at Adrian Hernandez. He likely has something left in the tank for a couple of years. We are only about a month away from pitchers and catchers reporting.
Nice win for Michigan over Michigan State on the road yesterday. They overcame Tom Izzo’s working the refs and won in a tough gym. SU asks how much is working the refs really a factor? It was interesting to see yesterday how many times the refs came over to chat with him throughout the game. It was almost like they had to justify every call to him. The game had a ridiculous number of foul shots and took about 2 hours and 40 minutes. Michigan was in the penalty after 5 minutes in the first half – this from a team that is at the top of the list for fewest foul calls. Michigan State pounds the ball inside and initiates contact. SU says just let them play and stop with the touch fouls. Maybe in the future they can put sensors on uniforms and use AI to make calls? Don’t laugh – the technology is probably pretty close and they could use the G-League to test it out.
The Patriots in another AFC Championship game. It’s an impressive run and it’s more than Tom Brady. Say what you will about the Patriots, they run a great organization with that type of track record in a league with a salary cap.
Sports Update Intergalactic 
What are the N Y Knicks identity?
The Knicks are a developing team that is finding its way one season at a time. Work in progress. They will need to continue to add pieces. If they make the playoffs this year, it’s a bonus but they are a quality player away. They can do better than Courtney Lee as a starter. But heading in the right direction.
There’s been reporting about some fractures in Patriot-land. The team is supposedly talking about the post-Brady era. Brady is supposedly planning for a post-football career. The rogue personal trainer is taking advantage of Brady and possibly other players. Maybe this is all happening. But the results on the field remain the same. What this team has been doing is truly unprecedented. And in a sport with a salary cap and and an impactful draft and free agency and frequent serious injuries, it’s pretty unbelievable.
At the end of the day, I don’t think that working the refs is a tremendous factor – however, you can see that the handful of “big name” coaches do seem to get the benefit of more sideline chats. I also think that some coaches are real micromanagers – and will be glad to get the next call (big or small) because they feel it will reverse the previous bad call. I’ve been going to tons of D3 games lately and I see that chess match mentality all the time.