Observations Through Three With three-quarters of the season complete, the time for a complete roster & front office evaluation has come. Everyone from the players, coaches and front office personnel to the medical staff & public relations executives have contributed to making the circus a year long event at Madison Square Garden.

When evaluating the remaining players on the roster, several statistics stand out. Jamal Crawford - the team's best player - has posted a career high of 20.8 ppg this season, however when you factor in his 20.5 shot attempts per contest, suddenly the feat is not as impressive. Crawford's backcourt mate, Nate Robinson has increased his scoring output in three seasons in the league, from 9.3/10.1/12.6 ppg while only averaging 22.6 minutes per contest. Robinson's 45 point outburst against the Trail Blazers shows that despite his size, he is a force on the offensive end. Unfortunately, the 5-9 dynamo has yet to make a similar impact on the defensive end. Robinson's speed & athleticism are unmatched, but his 0.8 steals per game average show a lack of commitment to pressuring the basketball. In 52:15 of action against the Blazers, Robinson notched 1 steal to going along with his 16-28 shooting night. As for the team's third guard, Mardy Collins, it's noteworthy that he notched another DNP-CD despite Crawford being out with an injury. With Marbury out indefinitely, Mardy Collins should be given an opportunity to prove if he's a solid rotation player or the second coming of Rick Brunson.

In the front court, Eddy Curry is an effective low post scorer, but his averages of 2.8 defensive rebounds & 0.5 blocks in 29.5 minutes a night make him a liability. David Lee, Zach Randolph & Quentin Richardson's output on the glass make up for Curry's ineptitude on the boards, but Lee (0.3), Randolph (0.2) & Richardson (0.2) struggle mightily in the shot blocking category as well. As a result of their defensive shortcomings, the Knicks rank last in the league in total blocked shots and 27th overall in steals.

Now that Isiah Thomas has given way to the youth movement, we can fully evaluate Wilson Chandler & Randolph Morris' ability. Thomas appears to favor Chandler over second year forward, Renaldo Balkman. Much like Trevor Ariza before him, Balkman was labeled as the athletic, do-it-all small forward the team has craved since Anthony Mason's departure. Moreover, Thomas went out of his way to compare Balkman to a young Dennis Rodman last year. This season, Balkman has seen a steady decline in playing time. Although Chandler's game mirrors Balkman's in many ways, Chandler is a superior outside shooter. Balkman's career averages of 50.4% from the free throw line & 15% from downtown make Chandler a far better replacement for Richardson in the starting lineup.

While the players bear much of the blame for this season's performance, they are far from being solely responsible for this debacle. Even with 7 coaches on staff, the team's playbook is limited and their court awareness is poor. Considering the team's propensity for losing games by double-digits, particularly after back to back games, one can only wonder if strength & conditioning coach, Greg Brittenham is doing his best to keep the players fit. The hideous patch on Jamal Crawford's shoulder leads one to believe that Roger Hinds & Anthony Goenaga may need a course in advanced sports medicine.

As for the PR & communications staff, it would be nice if Jonathan Supranowitz & crew looked the other way once and let a player give a candid interview. Thomas & Marbury's strained relationship has become Page Six material, yet the sound bites from their sessions are painfully boring. With 19 games left on the season, I'm sure Isola, Berman & Hahn would pay good money for a "ship be sinking" quote from a player planning his escape out of the World's Most Famous Arena.

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-Greg Hutchins