 on contracts for picks.

* So apparently the Knicks are keeping themselves free to get rejected by Giannis Antetokounmpo in 2021. Nice.

* Are the Knicks going to be the worst 3 point shooting team in the league again?

* Do Nets fans realize that Kevin Durant is not going to play next season? D'Andre Jordan may be their biggest signing. That team was always beat up down low. Now they actually have a DPOTY center to compliment all the shooters they have. The Nets will be a good team next year, but I don't think they're winning a championship. If Kawhi Leonard returns to Toronto, they're still the favorites, even when KD comes back.

* I have been saying since before the season ended that the Nets put themselves in better position to sign free agents. If you want to lure max players, then you need to have a winning product ready for them. No one goes from 17 wins to championship in a year like that. I have no idea why James Dolan and Steve Mills were even talking about that to fans. They set themselves up for ridicule. And from what I hear, the Knicks realized pretty quickly that they did not have any shot to land either Kyrie or KD. Scott Perry was in LA when KD was signing his contract in NY. The Knicks not wanting to offer the full max has nothing to do with anything since KD didn't even take the full max in Brooklyn.

* I feel like this sub was too busy going through the stages of grief that they never made it to the acceptance stage when it came to the Kristaps Porzingis trade. Only now do I think it's starting to dawn on people how painful that trade was. Yes, it may have been necessary at the time given that KP didn't want to stay, but the fact that it got to that point is tragic in itself. It meant that the Knicks had to start their rebuild over again and that they don't have a franchise player. Hopefully Barrett turns out to be good, but imagine how different things would be if we had KP and RJ Barrett going into next season. It hurts thinking about it and tbh, I don't know why I follow this franchise anymore.

* I defended Steve Mills and advocated for him to get the job of team president after they fired Phil Jackson. Mills has had a fair chance now. He lost Kristaps Porzingis, promised fans two max free agents, then lost out and turned over most of the roster with filler contracts. I don't know who would take over after him, but I'm ready to move on now. I'm not going to mention his past of signing bad contracts as GM (Joakim Noah, Carmelo Anthony's no trade clause, Tim Hardaway Jr.) or his regretful decision to hire Isiah Thomas or his involvement in the Anucha Brown Sanders sexual harassment case in which the Knicks were found liable and fined $11.5 million. He was lucky to even have a job with this organization after that last bit and I guess his second stint could have been worse, but it really wasn't good and I'm ready to move on.

* David Fizdale is also on the clock now. I'm not that impressed with this roster, but it's the Eastern Conference and I would like them to at least compete for a playoff spot now, I guess.

Whoa, I guess I had a lot of thoughts.The Russian-Iranian Union is very worried about the hawks in Washington. The Kremlin and Tehran claim that they are fighting extremism, while Moscow “almost” acknowledged that it is sharing the obtained intelligence with the Afghan Taliban for the sake of defeating IG (forbidden in the Russian Federation), foreign experts write. Iran also offered its “peacekeeping services” in the relevant field. What is it: a new axis of instability in Afghanistan? And is it not time for Washington to oppose the expansion of Russia to Afghanistan? For this, the strategy “fight first, then speak” would be suitable.
About this narrative in the publication "The Hill" Jason M. Brodsky, columnist, policy director at United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), a nonprofit propaganda organization founded in 2008, which aims to prevent Iran from getting nuclear weapon.
Jason Brodsky suggests that "the next battleground with Iran and Russia" will be Afghanistan.
The discussion about the future position of Washington in relation to Tehran has so far revolved around three main “nuclear options”: the legitimation of the deal; cancellation or suspension; direct retreat from the transaction. The dispute came to a critical point: the trump administration, inflamed in earnest, completed its “long-awaited revision” of the policy regarding Iran.
But what is behind the flashy headlines in the press? The menacing line extends far beyond Iran. Here, for example, Afghanistan. This hot spot may become “hotter”.
The “union of the ungodly,” as the author calls the rapprochement between Russia and Iran, which happened “at the cemetery of empires,” shuffles across the planet, looking for problems in all unstable regions and trying to be “firefighter and arsonist. Without a comprehensive strategy aimed at this new “axis of instability”, the fire in Afghanistan will flare up even more, says the expert.
Afghanistan is a playground for imperial games. It was in this country that the Americans waged and wage the longest war. What is its result? Nothing nice! According to the special inspector general for reconstruction of Afghanistan, 11,1% of the country's areas are still under control. This is May data for 2017. And this is two percentage points higher than in May 2016 of the year!
Against the background of a deteriorating security situation, the Kremlin and Tehran are convincing the world that they are "on the front line in the fight against extremism." Moscow “almost recognized”, the expert ironically says that “he shares intelligence information with the Taliban,” but he does this for the sake of fighting the “Islamic State” and remains committed to the peace process. The same applies to Iran, which recently offered its “peacekeeping services”.
Russia and Iran are playing a double game, the author is sure. If you believe the American newsthen, US officials, relying on intelligence data, are claiming that Russia has transferred “cash and weapons” to the Taliban. And this trend has “accelerated over the past 18 months.” Defense Secretary J. Mattis even publicly condemned such a line of Moscow during his October visit to Afghanistan.
Reports by Afghan local officials confirm official statements by the US authorities. Kunduz provincial authorities say that small arms, rocket launchers, ammunition and cash come to the Taliban from Russia through Tajikistan. It is also alleged that "Putin has provided the Taliban with a mobile clinic and drugs to treat the wounded Taliban militants in Helmand". Moreover, Russian military advisers allegedly “arrived in the northern province of Baghlan to support the Taliban movement (by the way, the Taliban is banned in Russia).
Tehran is also not just an observer: the "mullahcracy" systematically undermines the efforts of the Afghani Ghani administration, the analyst said. In January, 2017, Afghan regional officials accused Iran of obstructing government projects in the area of ​​water and energy resources. At the same time, Tehran allegedly used the Taliban. According to the Governor of Helmand Province, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) provided the Taliban with modern mortar systems to attack the state infrastructure: the water resources of the Helmand River should be diverted "in the interests of Iran."
The expert concludes: despite the “growing evidence” that Russia and Iran “are agents of destabilization,” their role is clearly absent in Trump’s strategy regarding US actions in Afghanistan. In a recent talk on containing Iran, both Afghanistan and the Taliban were only briefly mentioned.
President Ghani, of course, does not like the way "foreign forces" put pressure on his government. And what is America doing here?
Follow the recommendations of the expert.
First, Trump’s team would be wise to adopt a “fight first, then talk” strategy. Trump must use additional leverage to move towards the peace process. It seems that Iranians and Russians are now pursuing a “parallel strategy”: there are reports from high-ranking Afghan officials that the Kremlin supports the Taliban, using Iran as a “fuse” to expand their influence on future peace talks. Putin and the supreme leader of Iran are contributing to the rapid advance of the Taliban with money, material means and labor. Therefore, the deployment of new American troops in Afghanistan "would be a step in the right direction."
Secondly, Washington needs to use its influence and economic assistance from the Ghani administration to enhance the economic development of the extremely poor Shiite communities of Afghanistan. According to the World Bank, 39% of Afghans live in poverty; about 70% of working age population are illiterate; youth unemployment is 28%. The US State Department in 2016 pointed out Shiite discrimination in Afghanistan, religious and national discrimination. It comes to "extortion of money" by the method of "illegal taxation", "forced hiring and forced labor" prevail. Physical abuse and detention are common phenomena.
Such encroachment on civil rights has led to the fact that the Shiites of Afghanistan have become susceptible to the influence of Iran. Thousands of people were gathered here by Tehran for the war in Syria. They were promised housing, a monthly allowance (600 US dollars) and even the possibility of employment in Iran after the completion of the mission!
Finally, President Trump must come to the realization that Russia is "a geopolitical adversary, not a partner."
The Kremlin, according to Brodsky, plays in Afghanistan