The New York Knicks have had the 2010 NBA free agency period in their sights for quite a while.

LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh, among other superstars, were set to become free agents, and the New York Knicks are supposedly the ultimate free agent destination before the 2010 NBA basketball season starts.

The reality is, the New York Knicks failed to land LeBron James and couldn’t get Wade or Bosh either. The back up plan was to get Stoudemire and Johnson, but that failed, too. The Knicks ended up with only one big-name free agent, Amare Stoudemire. Stoudemire is a great player, but it is definitely not what the Knicks had anticipated.

The question now is, is Amare Stoudemire that much of an upgrade over David Lee? It’ll be interesting to see what he gets, but we’ll guess it’ll be somewhere in between $8-$12 million a year (especially if scrubs like Drew Gooden and Amir Johnson are getting $5-6 million a year).

Lee is only six months younger than Amare, and let the record show that while we like Lee, he posted 20-11 and 16-11 the last two years mostly because the Knicks had nobody in the frontcourt. Somebody has to collect those rebounds and score those garbage points. This is not to say Lee will be a bust at his next stop, but if he goes to a team with actual talent, we expect that scoring to be cut in half and then you basically have Troy Murphy without the range.

With the addition of Raymond Felton, the Knicks got a…

In case you didn’t know, yep, Amar’e Stoudemire is the latest big name free agent to switch teams.

The NBA is making some huge headlines already with still months before the new 2010 NBA basketball season begins. While the world awaits LeBron James and his decision on where he’d be playing come October, Amar’e Stoudemire already made up his mind after only a few hours when the free agency period officially opened.

The 6′11” power forward Amar’e Stoudemire and the New York Knicks have completed a five-year contract worth nearly $100 million, which means the Phoenix Suns are left with nothing but an aging Steve Nash and an overpaid forward in Hakim Warrick.

The New York Knicks and Stoudemire’s agent Happy Walters worked out the contractual language, a source said, and Stoudemire finalized the deal in an afternoon meeting with Knicks owner Jim Dolan.

“All done,” Walters said in a text message.

Stoudemire emerged from the meeting with Dolan and Garden officials, and met an assemblage of media with a Knicks cap and bold declaration: “The Knicks are back,” he said. Stoudemire became the Knicks’ primary power forward target on Friday, and the team is still trying to recruit LeBron James(notes) to join him.

Prior to committing to play for the Knicks, Stoudemire called Denver Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony to tell him he was…

Looks like New York City won’t be big enough for Derek Jeter and LeBron James.

The New York Knicks might want the Yankees to help recruiting LeBron James, but Derek Jeter doesn’t see the point. ”It wouldn’t make sense,” the Yankees captain said.

Knicks president Donnie Walsh wants as many New Yorkers as possible to help convince James to choose Madison Square Garden when NBA free agency opens July 1. LeBron James is a Yankees fan, and has a special pair of Yankee-styled Nikes.

”If there’s Yankees that want to help us, we would involve them,” Walsh told the New York Post.

James’ good friend Jay-Z echoed Jeter’s sentiment on recruitment. ”That’s his decision,” the hip-hop mogul and part owner of the New Jersey Nets said in a Rolling Stone interview. ”We’re friends, we’ve still gotta hang out! I don’t want to convince somebody to do something, then have to see him and say, ‘Uh, yeah, we’re 4-30 … sorry.”’

CC Sabathia is also friends with James, but admitted he didn’t know what he’d say to persuade James to pick New York.

”You don’t have to sell winning in New York,” Derek Jeter said.

When it was pointed out to Jeter that since he has won in New York, James could find out about how special it is, Jeter still didn’t budge. Jeter hypothetically compared it to if he were going to be recruited by one of the Los Angeles teams and Magic Johnson called him.

”If I were going to another baseball team, how would a basketball player help?” Jeter said. ”I don’t play basketball. I have nothing to do with that.”

Unaware of Walsh’s comments at the time he spoke about James…

Sorry, I couldn’t resist playing with some diehard Cavs fan’s emotions.

And in case you didn’t get that, NO, he ain’t with the Knicks. Well, not yet anyway. But since he got yet another early vacation after the Celtics eliminated his Cavs from the 2010 NBA playoffs, you can’t help but wonder where will LeBron end up this summer when he becomes a free agent.

Yep, the interesting 2010 summer of LeBron James has officially begun and with the way the Cleveland Cavaliers lost their final three games with LeBron this year, it’s really looking like the king of Akron, Ohio is leaning towards moving on.

Oh and in case you missed LeBron’s final three games with the Cleveland Cavaliers this year, it wasn’t pretty. Up 2-1 in their series with the Boston Celtics, the Cavaliers lost three straight, including that humiliating 32-point loss to the Celtics in Game 5 to set up what turned out to be their final game in this year’s postseason wars.

The Boston Celtics made sure that Game 6 would be LeBron’s final game with the Cavaliers this year alright. Led by Kevin Garnett who got 22 points and 12 rebounds and Rajon Rondo who had 21 points and 12 assists, the Celtics came up with a 16-4 run in the second half to put the Cavs away.

Now, everybody from Cleveland will begin scanning…

Well, at least Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo says keeping Bosh is a priority.

That’s despite the fact that there are rumors claiming that the Toronto Raptors are planning to deal Chris Bosh to the New York Knicks for David Lee in a sign and trade deal once the 2010 NBA playoffs are over.

For now, Colangelo claims he plans to do everything in his power to keep Chris Bosh in Toronto and convince the five-time NBA All-Star to play with the Raptors for at least a few more years.

With perhaps the biggest free agency period ever to hit the league for quite some time coming, the Toronto Raptors could be on the verge of losing their prized forward. With the big guns of the NBA testing free agency all at the same time, with the likes of LeBron James and Dwyane Wade also free agents at the end of the playoffs, Bosh is likely to move on in search of greener pastures.

Of course, Colangelo claims the grass isn’t always greener elsewhere.

”It comes down, really, to what he’s looking to achieve out of free agency,” Toronto Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo said in a wide-ranging, hour-long state of the union address.

”There’s the thought and speculation that he wants to be a No.1 guy; we have that. If he’s content being a No.2 guy then there are other options for him.”

”This city is a place that has grown fond of him and I think…”

LeBron James finally got what he wanted.

Once were done with the 2010 NBA basketball season, LeBron James will be wearing no.6 for his next campaign. That’s right, he finally made the bold decision of switching his jersey number from number 23 to number 6 official.

The Cleveland Cavaliers superstar just beat the deadline and is dead serious in honoring Michael Jordan. ”I’ve done it,” LeBron James said in an interview. ”I already sent it in. I’m going to be No. 6.” James first floated the idea in November, saying he wanted to switch from 23 out of respect for Jordan.

”I just think what Michael Jordan has done for the game has to be recognized some way soon,” LeBron James said. ”There would be no LeBron James, no Kobe Bryant, no Dwyane Wade if there wasn’t Michael Jordan first.”

”He can’t get the logo, and if he can’t, something has to be done. I feel like no NBA player should wear 23. I’m starting a petition, and I’ve got to get everyone in the NBA to sign it. Now, if I’m not going to wear No. 23, then nobody else should be able to wear it.” he said.

James would wear 6, the number he wore while leading the U.S. to Olympic gold in Beijing in 2008. He has worn it in Cavs practices over the past two years. But it has other special qualities to him.

”My second-favorite player was Julius Erving, and he wore No. 6,” James said. ”I wore 32 in high school because Dr. J wore it at first. My first child was born on Oct. 6, it’s my Olympic number, my second child was born in June.”

The last big-name player to change numbers without changing teams was…

We’ll find out soon enough.

After failing to acquire another legitimate player to help Dwyane Wade before the trading deadline expired in the 2010 NBA basketball season, the Miami Heat should consider going to their initial plan of getting a free agent in the offseason.

While the New York Knicks, the Chicago Bulls, the Washington Wizards, the L.A. Clippers, and the Sacramento Kings made a surplus of combined trades to give them major cap relief after the season, the Miami Heat were caught on the sidelines watching their advantage fade away.

Chicago and New York were already expected to make a run for Dwyane Wade, but now they can offer him the chance to possibly play alongside LeBron James, Chris Bosh, Amar’e Stoudemire, or Joe Johnson.

”You pay attention and notice what’s going on around the league because you’re a player in this league, and there’s also a business factor,” Dwyane Wade said of teams looking to join the summer sweepstakes.

”But no team is more important than the team you play for, and seeing your team put itself in position to win at a high level for a long time.”

A Chicago Bulls tandem with Derrick Rose or any of those names would have to be enticing for Wade. If Miami isn’t able to convince him the team will contend next year, the Chicago native would have a hard time saying no to a Bulls offer like that.

Same goes for New York. Would Wade really pass up the chance to…

If they do, then you can bet your ass the Knicks will be the team to beat next season.

After getting the services of multi – time All – Star Tracy McGrady this 2010 NBA basketball season from a three team trade with the Houston Rockets and the Sacramento Kings, the New York Knicks were able to clear enough salary-cap space for the Knicks to possibly sign two maximum-salary free agents this summer.

That’s right, the New York Knicks could recruit LeBron James by giving him the option of choosing which other free agent he wants from the likes of Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade, Joe Johnson, Amare Stoudemire and Dirk Nowitzki.

However, getting LeBron James out of Cleveland won’t be easy since the Cavs, who own the league’s best record, bolstered their lineup with the addition of former Wizards forward Antawn Jamison. If Cleveland advances to its second NBA Finals stint in four years with LeBron, the odds of him leaving his home state figure to be diminished.

Sorry Knicks fans.

The New York Knicks aren’t the only team to clear cap space. The Chicago Bulls, a team featuring point guard Derrick Rose and a better core group of players than…

Great. That’s just what the Knicks needed, another overpaid guard to fuck up the salary cap.

After trading Nate Robinson to Boston, you can’t help but wonder, are these guys throwing the 2010 NBA basketball season away already? And what’s even funnier is the fact that the Knicks actually think bringing in a Tracy McGrady who is now merely a shell of his former self, the right move to make.

But when you come to think of it, this is probably a good business decision by New York Knicks gerenal manager Donnie Walsh. We all know the Knicks won’t be competing for the NBA championship this season anyway so the least they can do now is just put more asses inside Madison Square Garden and just like Iverson in Philadelphia, McGrady can be that guy in New York City.

Having a guy like Tracy McGrady can bolster interest to this ailing Knicks franchise. Of course, if they want to have McGrady for the next couple of years, they would have to give up key players within their team like Al Harrington and Eddy Curry at some point just to stay below the cap.

And since the Knicks are trying to clear up some cap space anyway for the highly anticipated 2010 free agency, those guys are as good as gone along with their hefty paychecks.

The first move New York Knicks general manager Donnie Walsh was looking into before the deadline was a three-team deal that involves both the…

We’re letting these out now before the trading deadline expires in a few hours.

The halfway point of the 2010 NBA basketball season only means one thing, this is that point of the season when teams have to make their final adjustments in their roster for that final push for a possible playoff spot come April.

And as far as that is concerned, we still have quite a few. With deals that sent Caron Butler to Dallas, Josh Howard to Washington and just recently, Antawn Jamison to Cleveland, we still have quite a few big names that could end up somewhere else.

Let’s start with arguably the biggest name out there on the trading block. And in case you didn’t get that, we’re referring to Amare Stoudemire. Stoudemire has been the topic for the past few weeks as his name continue to pop – up in trade talks for the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Miami Heat.

Now that Cleveland already has Jamison, the Cavaliers have left the pursuit for Stoudemire, letting the Miami Heat to make a move. I know Heat president Pat Riley is doing his best to land Stoudemire to pair him with his fellow All – Star Dwyane Wade.

We also have Ray Allen, who has an expiring contract with the Boston Celtics, in the middle of trade rumors. Boston continues to measure the veteran guard’s appeal on the market, but general manager Danny Ainge is unwilling to pull the trigger. Allen still is considered an important asset to Boston but as ya’ll know, you really don’t know for sure what the Celtics will do before…