Knicks sign Morris

[Mac]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2809958


How the hell did they pull that off???? What kinda crazy loophole is that? The Cavaliers should have tried to get this guy, he'd be better than Jones atleast. I wonder what teams were after him and what kind of offers were made.

 

[James]

I saw that, and they explained it because he left to enter the draft last year, didnt get drafted and went back to school, im glad he got to the NBA, he is a good guy and his AAU team was sick, Him, Dwight Howard and Josh Smith on the Atlanta Celtics, he was the only one who didnt make a name for himself on the next level, best of luck to Morris.

 

[Maximus]

he is a good guy

Well the "good guy" just screwed the hell out of Kentucky. The AD asked him to wait until they found a replacement for Tubby and he said he would. The AD explained that they also needed a few days to analyze how his departure would effect their spring semester progress report. Without notice he called and said he had signed with the Knicks. The real killer is that Kentucky now may be subject to a scholarship penalty because he is dropping out before the completion of the semester.

"I got my 1.8m...thanks for nuthin Kentucky!!!":thumbdown

 

[Mac]

O well.

 

[cdt]

If someone offered you 1.8m to play in the NBA there is no way in hell you'd say "I'm interested but gimme a few days"

That'd be stupid...you don't postpone that kind of money..

 

[Mandingo]

You don't postpone it but I'm sure the Knicks would have understood his position if he explained. This fella isn't a man of his word and if i was on his team i wouldn't want anything to do with him.

 

[Maximus]

If someone offered you 1.8m to play in the NBA there is no way in hell you'd say "I'm interested but gimme a few days"

That'd be stupid...you don't postpone that kind of money..

That's fine, but don't lie to the school about it.
It's stupid to assume he wasn't talking to the Knicks or other NBA teams for the last few weeks or months. I'm sure this offer has been on the table for a while. It's also stupid to assume that he couldn't have worked something out with the Knicks to not screw Kentucky. All he had to do is say "hey Zeke, I'll agree to the contract, can I have a few days...I gave them my word."

Why screw your school? I know, I know, he owes the school nothing.
Then why screw your teammates? It may cost them a scholarship which will hurt an already struggling program.

 

[cdt]

I agree but I mean he tried getting to the NBA once and it didn't work so I'm sure he's got himself in his best interest right now and did what he thought was best for himself..

 

[Mandingo]

Seems Boozeresqe to me.

 

[James]

Apparently Tubby was treated bad, the team is out of the tournament and lots of players have already declared for the draft, he wasnt going to be back next year, so what bearing does him staying have on a new coach? I dont understand. He was probably pissed about how his coach was treated so he peaced out. People are so quick to judge others actions, but im sure if they were in that situation, they would do the same thing.

 

[Mandingo]

I have a bit of integrity so if i said i was going to do something i would do it.

 

[Maximus]

Not sure what you don't understand. Again, they may now get scholarship penalties as a result of him not finishing the semester. He may not care about the next coach or the AD, but if they lose a scholarship it will hurt his remaining teammates. Kentucky may not have had any options even if he had waited a couple of days, but he said he would give them time to explore ways to avoid the penalties...so he should have honored his word.

People are so quick to judge others actions, but im sure if they were in that situation, they would do the same thing.

Am I quick to judge others that break their word? Hell yes. And I wouldn't do the same thing. He knew he was leaving...he should have said as much. People are so quick to give athletes a pass on lying just because there's money involved.

 

[Cavs1]

Ya know he coulda left mid-season to go to the NBA if he wanted...I'd say he didn't screw Kentucky over.

 

[James]

Am I quick to judge others that break their word? Hell yes. And I wouldn't do the same thing. He knew he was leaving...he should have said as much. People are so quick to give athletes a pass on lying just because there's money involved.

Im not trying to start a whole e-debate, but what it comes down to is personal morales and values, who knows what his family situation is, maybe he has a kid, maybe he has a sick family member and needs to get that money now, i know AI had a simmilar situation when he was in college, i dont know his situation, but like someone else said, if he wanted to screw them over, he would have left midseason, im sure the departure of Tubby Smith had an effect on his decision. Maybe he felt that "they treated Tubby like trash, ill let them get there's. Is that train of thought right? no. But he is a man, therefore he can make his choice, but part of being a man is accepting responsibility for your actions.

 

[Maximus]

but what it comes down to is personal morales and values, who knows what his family situation is, maybe he has a kid, maybe he has a sick family member and needs to get that money now,

I have no problem with him leaving...NONE! One more time, my problem with him is that he sat across the table from the Kentucky reps and lied to them. If he needed the money and had every intention of signing with the Knicks immediately. then tell KY. They made a request, "[Randolph] indicated that it was a fair request," Kentucky athletic department spokesman Scott Stricklin told The Post. Where are the "morales and values" in that?

His contract is pro-rated for this year, he gets 150K this year and 810K next year. He definately hurt his situation by pulling the trigger quickly. Most teams had no idea he was going to do this so quickly since Kentucky reps were telling NBA teams that were inquiring that he was waiting. The bidding war was pretty limited to Toronto and the Knicks. He left a lot of money on the table...but his dad wanted him to play in NY for marketing reasons. Complete coup for Zeke, he just got a free first round draft pick. A damn shame the Cav's couldn't have gotten him, it would've made up for us not having a pick in a deep draft.