Chris Sheridan writes Sunday about a perfectly plausible plan that could sabotage the Knicks' plan to sign LeBron James and another free agent while improving their own roster at the same time.
Sheridan notes the news that Chris Bosh would welcome a sign-and-trade with the Knicks. The likeliest scenario, he writes, would be Bosh for David Lee. "Presumably, James would tell the Knicks who he would want to play alongside him, and if James asks for Bosh, the Knicks really have no choice but to go along," he opines. The Knicks could at that point offer Lee a sweet deal, say "a six-year deal with a $10 million starting salary and 10.5 percent annual raises, which would add up to nearly $76 million, and then trade him to Toronto".
But he suggests Rod Thorn could throw a monkey wrench into the mix. "Imagine the Nets told Lee: 'Look, David. We are willing to give you a five-year contract with a $13 million starting salary with 8 percent annual raises (which adds up to $75.4 million), but we need an answer in the next hour. You going to take it? Or leave it?'" If Lee accepted, the Nets would still have enough cap space to sign a maxed out player...and Bosh would be unlikely to accept $30 million less to sign as a free agent with the Knicks. It'd also make New York less attractive for LeBron.
Far-fetched? Thorn once gave Mikki Moore a half-hour to decide on an offer and the Suns made Steve Nash such an offer in 2004.