Isiah Strikes Again

Knicks GM Isiah Thomas is nothing if not consistent. If it's a day that ends in "y", then he's thinking about pulling the trigger on another ill-advised deal. He acted on his impulses again today by trading Penny Hardaway's expiring contract and coach Larry Brown's favorite doghouse resident, Trevor Ariza, to Orlando for Stevie Franchise. It's a typical Isiah move, adding salary and questionable character to his team while sacrificing its future, both in youth and cap flexibility. The league's 2nd highest-paid starting backcourt now resides in New York, in the personages of Francis and Stephon Marbury. Whaaaat? If creating internal headaches won basketball games, the Knicks would have about 70 wins right now (yes, I know they've only played 52 games). As it is, they're just going to have to settle for leading the league in wasted money. On the other hand, the Knicks are certainly worth watching just to see how many 8 second violations Francis and Marbury cause by fighting over who gets to bring the ball up the court.

Orlando, meanwhile, has been nearly as active as have the Knicks (although not nearly as shortsighted). They've built up plenty of cap room for the anticipated 2007 free agent bonanza, more than any other team, in fact. Plus, Darko and Ariza can now start their own "Why does Larry hate me?" support group! It's a win-win situation!