The drama continues in New York as Beno Udrih has requested a trade: “League sources say the 31-year-old veteran communicated his wishes to the Knicks in recent days and the team will try to honor the request. Udrih signed with the Knicks over the summer for the veteran’s minimum at $1.27 million. At the time, Udrih hoped to be a part of the Knicks’ three point guard rotation along with Raymond Felton and Pablo Prigioni. “I kind of feel like when I do the right thing, it’s not the right thing in some people’s eyes. It’s just tough. It’s easy to point fingers when the team loses. But it comes down to, we are a team, we lose together. No matter who makes a mistake or who doesn’t, it’s still a team loss,” Udrih said on Dec. 25. “So I think all of this stuff should be kept out of the media and not call certain people out or something. We’ve just got to go out there and fix it and watch video and fix it as a team.””
The Washington Wizards are interesting in trading for Greg Monroe: “One player who has been mentioned in trade rumors throughout this season is Greg Monroe, the young power forward who will be a restricted free agent this offseason since he couldn’t agree on an extension with the Pistons. It’s no secret that Josh Smith is better at the four, and it’s possible that Detroit moves the valuable Monroe to upgrade another position and slide Smith over to power forward. One team that is interested in Monroe is the Washington Wizards, according to multiple league sources. It’s becoming clear that Washington is planning to pursue Monroe, either through trade or free agency. Prior to joining the Pistons, Monroe starred at Georgetown for two seasons so he’s no stranger to Washington. The Wizards have $41,458,760 in guaranteed commitments for next season, since Marcin Gortat and Trevor Ariza among others are in the final year of their contracts.”
Bad news out of Denver, Danilo Gallinari has been ruled out for the remainder of the year: “Nine months after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee,Denver Nuggets forward Danilo Gallinari will miss the entire 2013-14 season after having reconstructive surgery on Tuesday. Gallinari, 25, is expected to be able to return to the Nuggets early in the 2014-15 season, sources said. Shortly after suffering the knee injury in an April 4 game against theDallas Mavericks, Gallinari had surgery to repair a torn meniscus but the ACL reconstruction was delayed. There had been a belief on the doctor’s part that the ACL could be strengthened to play again without the traditional procedure, but that never happened, sources said. Nuggets surgeon Dr. Steve Traina performed the surgery in Denver on Tuesday morning. He did not perform the initial procedure. Gallinari had the initial knee surgery done at the Steadman Clinic in Vail, Colo. The initial procedure to correct the ACL injury was called “Healing Response.” It was later determined full reconstructive surgery was needed. Nuggets general manager Tim Connelly called the initial procedure “insufficient” in a statement on Tuesday afternoon.”
Breaking news, Rajon Rondo still isn’t crazy about the Miami Heat: “Now Rondo, who missed nearly a year with a knee injury, is back, and he’ll play Tuesday night when the teams meet up again at AmericanAirlines Arena. But does the Celtics guard think the rivalry is dead, with former Celtics Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce playing in Brooklyn after being dealt there last summer? “I mean, that’s a tough question,” Rondo said after practice. “It’s not a rivalry. But I still don’t like those guys.” Another reporter tried to steer the interview in another direction, with a question about Rondo’s restrictions on minutes. Rondo answered the question, saying that his 20-minute limit — five minutes per quarter — probably would stay the same Tuesday. Then he turned back to the other reporter, the one who mentioned James.
“To go back and answer your question, I don’t really like anybody I play against,” Rondo said. “That’s just the type of attitude I approach the game with. It’s a business. It’s a game. We’re not friends on the court. Afterwards it’s a different story, but while we’re playing, I’m trying to win.” Also, he said, there’s not just one thing he doesn’t like about the Heat.
“A lot of things upset me about Miami,” Rondo said. “Let me go home and write [them] down. Nah, just we’ve had some great battles in the past.
“When you play a team — I could say the same thing about the Knicks or the teams we’ve battled in the past, the Game 7 series — it’s a grind. You’re competing. It’s a competition. There’s just some teams you just don’t like.”
Phoenix! That is where Melo should threaten to leave for in free agency.
That may be the only destination that will scare James Dolan to the point of trading him for a loss, to a team of his choice.
The Lakers could be even worse that the Knicks, not to mention a coach who doesn’t like him.