Amar'e had some very interesting things to say yesterday, to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic, while he was playing ball at US Airways Arena, his old haunt.
On the contract offer from the Suns which required him to play an average of 28 minutes in his last two years:
"It was fair from Robert's standpoint. I understand his concerns, which were injuries and health. There are no hard feelings at all. From a security standpoint for myself and with as much work as I put in on the court, I was after a greater goal. It was a fair offer from his standpoint. We still talk and have a good friendship. The greater goal was to have a sense of security. I didn't want a football deal (with some or all of the money non-guaranteed). I want a NBA deal. That's what I ended up getting."
On rebuilding in New York:
"My goal is to do what I did here in Phoenix - to rebuild. "The year we traded Stephon (Marbury), Penny (Hardaway) and Googs (Tom Gugliotta), the next year we rebuilt. The question ownership asked to me was, 'Who do I want - Jason Kidd, Steve Nash or Kobe Bryant?' I said Steve. Over Kobe. At the time, Kobe had a reputation for being selfish and Steve was the ultimate point guard. I felt like that's what we needed. We had Joe Johnson and Shawn Marion. We just didn't have a PG to control tempo. Kidd was banged up after microfracture (knee surgery).
"I was pretty good for the three years before we got Steve. We're going to be OK. These young guys are not quite used to working hard. We're going to get them over the hump. We can be as good as we want to be. In order to be a great leader, you must follow first. I've been able to follow Steve, Grant Hill, Shaquille O'Neal and Penny. Now I feel it's time for me to lead these young guys to success."
According to one report, Anthony Randolph has bulked up to 225 in preparation for the upcoming season. He referred to himself as previously being a "stick." We should be excited to see him in person soon, especially to clarify the image posted in this YouTube video a couple of days ago showing a somewhat thin Randolph hanging out at a neighborhood bball tourney. If this is actually two days ago, he still looks a bit slight to me. To you?
While Russia national team coach Dave Blatt announces that he is quitting because of politics, his center Timofey Mozgov has started stringing together some highlights in the World games as shown by the following video. The Russia team is now 2-1 after MozGov scoured the weak Ivory Coast team (0-3) with 19 points on 8-10 shooting and 5 boards in 21 minutes of play. Some fans have started to breath a sigh of relief. Unfortunately, I have no tape of that game yet. But we have this, highlights from Russian win against Puerto Rican, from BadboyPav (also of The Knicks Blog). Note our old friend Renaldo Balkman, of the PR team, gets Mozblocked in this one. What do you think?
I don't think the Knicks brass are too happy with Leo Rautins after reading this. Via Toronto Sun (QMI Agency)
ZMIR, Turkey -- It's not carved in stone, but the likelihood is Andy Rautins has played his final basketball game at the 2010 world championship.
A knee injury that got aggravated Sunday in a loss to Lithuania kept Rautins in street clothes for Tuesday's game with France. Head coach and Andy's father, Leo Rautins said Tuesday night his son was probably done for the duration.
"The pain is too restrictive and he's got a high threshold," the senior Rautins said. "He has played through a lot of (crap)."
Worse from Leo's perspective, he feels he probably asked a little too much of his son.
" I feel like I compromised that father/son relationship (on Sunday)," Rautins said. "I know him so well. Put it this way. If it were any of my other players, I might not have played him when I did.
"Because I know him, I figured I could see things and know where to draw the line and I think I crossed that line, which I would never cross with any of the other guys because, obviously, I don't intimately know them. The one advantage I have with Andy is that I do, but I think I crossed that line. It's just not worth it."
Even without Rautins in the lineup, the Canadians came within seconds of knocking off France, but there's no doubt his presence will be missed on the floor the remaining two games if, indeed, he is done.
(The Knicks, for what will hopefully become more than a summer tradition, recently signed Patrick Ewing, Jr. to another training camp contract. Ewing, who was selected 43rd by the SacKings in the 2008 NBA draft, had an excellent summer. Junior, as he is affectionately referred to by Knicks fans who watched him grow up and would love to see him play in the regular season, was impressive in the Orlando Summer league where he averaged 11.3 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. Immediately thereafter he joined the Knicks in Las Vegas and averaged 4.8 points in 11.3 minutes per game. During the Las Vegas Summer League, Knicks Fanatics caught up with the Ewing, Jr., who was gracious and open to a wide ranging interview on topics from his NBA hopes to his father's coaching and artistic abilities. )
Knicks Fanatics: How are you doing and feeling from your last injury?
Patrick Ewing, Jr.: I'm doing great. My leg has come a long way since I was last in New York. My leg is feeling great. It is 110% now. I've taken the whole year off instead of part of it which helped me get my strength back. I feel great. I'm in shape, lost a lot of weight. So everything is good for me, How do you feel your game is coming along here with the Knicks after playing in the Orlando Summer League where you started a few games, correct?
Yeah, I started games in Orlando. My game is coming along fine. I think summer league is not about who starts or who finishes the game. You just want to get out there and play positively. You know you don't want to play badly. In Orlando, I got to do a little bit more because my dad was obviously the coach so he let me loose a little bit, but at the same time management wanted to see me do a lot of things. The Magic wanted to see me do some more stuff, so they allowed me to play more of a role out there.
Out here [in Las Vegas] coach is definitely letting me do a lot of things. I'm playing the four out here, guarding threes. In the system here, the three and the four are almost like the same thing so it really doesn't matter. I feel like I'm playing good out here. Coach D'Antoni is letting me play. He's not restricting me from doing anything.
I was just checking out a site named Bare Knuckles when I ran across this video posted as One of the worst football failures you will ever see. The blogosphere is a place of excessive hyperbole so there is no way I expected this video to live up to the billing. It does and its a laugh worth sharing this morning. Have a good Sunday folks.
Good morning folks. Here are a couple of Hot Links to start your BBall morning.
Our bloggin Bloguin cousins at Project Spurs has a nice piece on the Spurs hankering for Charles Oakley after Dennis Rodman left. In 1996 the Spurs wanted Oakley
Patrick Ewing, Jr. has been signed to a non-guaranteed training camp contract. New York Times
Ball Hype Is Dead! Pour out a Little Liquor for BallHype. After a dramatic transformation, the Digg-site for sports blogs, Ball Hype, disappeared from the scene, Ben Koo, the CEO for Bloguin, offers an insightful analysis of the site's demise.
Carmelo Anthony and new Knicks shooting guard Kelanna Azubuike have something in common.
Neither likely will be available for the Knicks when training camp opens Sept. 25.
Amid another contradictory Internet report, the Nuggets are not accepting trade offers for Anthony. And Donnie Walsh told The Post he has no...
Rudy Fernandez continues to lobby for a trade to New York, but the Knicks either can't or won't make a trade for the Portland shooting guard. According to a team source, Knicks president Donnie Walsh recently rejected a three-team deal that would have sent Anthony Randolph to Indiana, a first-round pick to Portland and Fernandez to New York.
Ronny Turiaf might be the right choice to play at center next to Amar'e Stoudemire, mainly because Turiaf, at a burly 6-10, is the type of player who thrives in doing the dirty work. He'll bang, he'll use fouls and he'll make an effort on the glass, which will be the most important skill the Knicks will need out of whomever they play at the five.
Carmelo Anthony is making it known that New York is his preferred destination, but the Knicks may not have the assets to satisfy the Denver Nuggets, according to a person familiar with the negotiations. "What do they have?" a Nuggets source said. "That makes it tough."
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Bloguin is the revolutionary blog network specifically focused on helping bloggers get the most out of their websites. We're currently working on building a large network of online communities and hope to expand our blogging coverage to include a wide range of topics. 
The Bloguin Network allows advertisers to promote their products and services to our ever-growing number of visitors. We offer both site-specific ad placements as well as the ability to run a network-wide campaign. If you're interested in working with Bloguin to meet your advertising needs, please contact us.
The Bloguin Network is always looking to expand. We're specifically looking for blogs in the sports, entertainment, and video games field, but are open to adding any type of quality site. If you're a blogger and interested in joining our network, please fill out our application form.
The Bloguin Login gives you full access to everything our network has to offer. Your name and password will work for each and every one of our sites. Signing up is simple, and will allow you to post in all our forums, create member blogs, and access other cool features! What are you waiting for? Create an Account! 