Amar'e got free-agent ball rolling
New York Knicks' Amare Stoudemire responds to questions during a news conference in New York. At the time, the All-Star forward agreed to leave Phoenix for a Knicks team mired in a franchise-worst stretch of nine straight losing seasons. (July 18, 2010) Credit: AP Photo/Frank Franklin II
OAKLAND -- When someone asked Mike D'Antoni recently if he ever felt his team was overmatched during his first three seasons as Knicks coach, he said nothing at first. Then he said everything with a smile that implied, "Are you kidding me? Of course."
He did acknowledge that there had been times early on when he had that overwhelmed feeling. "I think a lot of coaches feel that way. You start the season out, then reality hits you," he said.
Quickly, he added, "But when Amar'e got here we were not overmatched."
As for that bewilderment, "Last year, I did not feel that way. Ever."
Obviously, the Knicks are deeper, stronger and more confident than they were two or three years ago. All of that traces back to Amar'e Stoudemire. No matter how many players they add and how much success they have this season or in the next few years, it still will all go back to Stoudemire, a sturdy cornerstone.
That is a pertinent item every day for the Knicks, but it was especially so Wednesday night with their road game against the Warriors. The fact that Tyson Chandler was wearing a Knicks uniform, and not a white Golden State jersey, had everything to do with Stoudemire having been the first in the new wave of players who want to be Knicks.
Golden State was the other finalist in the bidding to sign Chandler, the defensively powerful center who became a free agent after helping the Mavericks to the NBA championship last season. The Warriors had an inside track, too, because he lives near new Golden State coach Mark Jackson in the offseason and the two have developed a close relationship.
But Chandler said again Wednesday morning that the opportunity to play in New York City pushed him to the Knicks. "And," he added, "to be able to play alongside Melo and Amar'e was just something I couldn't pass up."
Although he mentioned Carmelo Anthony and Stoudemire in random order, he knows the chronological order, and who ultimately will be remembered as the trail blazer.
"Amar'e definitely started it," Chandler said. "I can honestly say if this was three years ago, before he arrived, I don't know that I would have been so willing to run over here."
The franchise recognizes Stoudemire's importance, making sure he was announced a dramatic last at the open scrimmage/pep rally recently.
He was the first to take the plunge, when the Garden wasn't on the top of every free agent's go-to list. "Amar'e is that type of guy," Chandler said. "Amar'e is the type of guy who will take on the challenge. He doesn't mind the pressure. He doesn't mind putting the pressure on his shoulders, on his back. He has character and that's what makes him special in this league."
