GREENBURGH, N.Y. — While the future of the Knicks’ roster remains unclear, Kenyon Martin says he would like to return next season.
“Would I love to be here again, yes,” Martin, 35, said here Monday. “But we’ll see. Stranger things have happened. I would definitely love to be back.”
By JEREMY WOO
Special to ZAGSBLOG
CHICAGO — In what was a stressful week for many, nobody at the NBA Draft Combine had more fun than Steven Adams.
Seven feet tall in shoes and weighing over 250 pounds, the New Zealand native cuts an imposing figure — but Adams was all smiles Friday as he discussed his draft preparations. The Pitt product enjoyed himself all week, particularly going through interviews with potential employers.
“It’s been awesome,” Adams said. “[Teams] just want to get to know me and my background. They all have their own interview styles. Dallas had a sports psychologist who tries to mentally torment you — I found that fun, it was really different.”
Theo Pinson, the Rivals No. 15 player
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3D3OEB7hopk&w=560&h=315]
Roy Hibbert’s monster fourth-quarter block on Carmelo Anthony at the rim may well have been the difference between the Knicks forcing a Game 7 on Monday night and them going on summer vacation.
“It was a helluva block, big play by Hibbert,” Anthony said of the Pacers’ big man’s one-handed stuff when the Knicks led by two points in Game 6 in Indiana.
“That block I think spearheaded that momentum run that they made.”
Led by Brooklyn native Lance Stephenson, Indiana went on an 11-2 run and closed out the Knicks, 106-99.
The Knicks skipped Lance Stephenson in the 2010 NBA Draft, not once but twice.
And on Saturday night, the Brooklyn native finally got a measure of revenge.
Three years after then-Knicks and current Pacers President Donnie Walsh opted to take Andy Rautins and Landry Fields in the second round of the 2010 Draft ahead of Stephenson, he went off for a playoff career-high 25 points and 10 rebounds to help the Pacers oust the Knicks from the Eastern Conference semifinals, 106-99, in Game 6 in Indiana.
By JEREMY WOO
Special to ZAGSBLOG
CHICAGO — Every NBA draft has its unknowns, names full of intrigue and potential, boom-or-bust players who can make general managers look like a genius or help get them fired.
From the high-major studs to the European imports, all hoped to increase their stock this week at the Chicago Pre-Draft Combine. And all things considered, perhaps the most enigmatic player in the gym was Norvel Pelle.
Standing nearly 6-foot-11 in shoes, with over seven feet of wingspan and a 9-foot-1 inch standing reach, Pelle certainly looked the part of an NBA prospect. Though only 207 pounds, you couldn’t help but notice his raw athletic ability. The upside was obvious.
By DAVE SPAHN
Special to ZAGSBLOG
CHICAGO — Count two former Syracuse players among those who would love to see the ACC Tournament come to Madison Square Garden.
“It would be great having the conference tournament there,” former Syracuse guard Michael Carter-Williams said at the Chicago Pre-Draft Combine. “The Garden is a great place to play. It would help us [Syracuse] a lot. There would be a lot of Orange there.”
As covered in this earlier story, the ACC is investigating moving the tournament to New York at some point after 2015, when their current deal in Greensboro, N.C., expires.
