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Yes, I keep forgetting how weak overal the east still is. Were they in the west they would be the 10th seed

Here's the best analysis of the trade I've seen:

(http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/insider/columns/story?colu...)

Is it too early to call him Starmelo? Probably.

While the parallels between the Knicks' megadeal for Stephon Marbury seven years ago and the nearly completed trade for Carmelo Anthony are jarring -- from the involvement of Isiah Thomas, to the inclusion of nearly every useful New York asset going forward, to the bizarre justifications about "making New York matter again" and the like, to the acquisition of a player with great offensive value and minimal defensive motivation, this one has to give Knicks fans some trepidation. Especially if, as some have suggested, this trade ends up costing the Knicks GM Donnie Walsh and Isiah regains control.

There's one massive, glaring difference, of course -- Melo isn't Marbury. He's won playoff games, he has the best clutch stats in the business, and he's not going to spontaneously self-destruct in a live Internet performance. Anthony isn't the top-10 talent some have claimed him to be in the hours since the trade -- he's 22nd in PER in a fairly typical season for him, and nearly all his value is in his offensive stats so it's hard to argue my system is underrating him -- but he's durable and productive and, at 27, likely to stay that way for a while longer.

So you can spin this one either way, depending on what you think about the other pieces in the deal. Which takes us to today's big question: Who are all these other guys, anyway?

The Knicks gave up nearly half their roster -- six players -- in order to land Anthony from Denver, while four other Nuggets and a Timberwolf also changed uniforms. They may not want to make plans past Thursday, as at least a couple of them seem likely to be dealt again before the trade deadline.

Unlike Melo, whom we've heard about incessantly for months, we've learned almost nothing about the other 11 players involved in the deal. It's time to change that. Let's take a look at what New York gave up, and the other side players associated with today's trade:

Danilo Gallinari: The best "asset" in the deal besides Anthony, even if he isn't the best player right now. Gallinari is only 22 and will be on his rookie contract for another year; while he doesn't rebound much and is a below-average defender, he can play both forward positions and space the floor with his deadly outside shot.

Additionally, he's a much more potent driver than people realize, averaging six free throw attempts a game this season. Gallinari's outside stroke has abandoned him a bit this season -- he's at just 34.7 percent from downtown -- but looking at his release and his 89.3 percent mark from the line, I strongly suspect that's a short-term blip.

Is he a star? No. He's more like a really good third option -- a Rashard Lewis, let's say -- and a really easy player to fit into any system because he can play two positions and spaces the floor for everyone else. And with trade talk swirling around Gallinari already, his real value to the Nuggets might be the draft pick or other assets they can get in return.

Wilson Chandler: At 23 he's already a pretty good player and could get better. Chandler spent much of his time in New York paying either the 2 or 4, but his natural position is the 3. He'll line up there for the Nuggets, and although he's a restricted free agent after the season Denver has given every indication it intends to keep him.

Chandler is a strong driver who also has a decent outside shot, but two dimensions really hurt him. First, he's spectacularly bad at drawing fouls, generating just two a game on 14.3 field goal attempts. Second, he's not creating much for anyone else. Basically, he's a destitute man's Melo -- his best skill is creating a large volume of shots at a league-average efficiency rate. The Nuggets will get his prime years, but as with Gallinari his ceiling seems more like "good st

Timofey Mozgov: Most famous as the victim of an epic Blake Griffin throwdown, Mozgov is seen by some as an intriguing prospect despite being neither particularly young (24) nor particularly talented. He's huge at 7-foot-1, 250 pounds, and reasonably mobile, so he has some defensive value. However, he averages a foul every six minutes and owns a limited offensive repertoire.

Basically, he's a backup center and is compensated as such. Mozgov's inclusion is only a problem if the Nuggets talk themselves into him being more than that. So why did they push so hard for him? Perhaps they are lining up another trade with Mozgov as a key component.

Raymond Felton: In the midst of a career year at 26, Felton got All-Star talk during the Knicks' early-season run of success before hitting a wall at the start of January -- perhaps from overuse, as he has played 38.8 minutes a game. He's shooting 3s in far greater numbers than he did in Charlotte; unfortunately he's also missing the great majority of them, shooting 32.8 percent from distance. He's made up the difference by shooting better on 2s.

Felton has two other strong suits: leadership and defense. He's one of the league's most well-regarded teammates for his positive attitude and basketball acumen, and he's one of the few decent defensive players on either the Knicks or Nuggets. He's also capable of playing off the ball at shooting guard -- not that you'd want him doing it full-time at his height and with such an iffy long-range stroke, but it's a viable option to bust out in key moments.

Felton's long-term future in Denver is a question mark, given the presence of point guard heir apparent Ty Lawson. In fact, it's not clear yet whether Felton will be a Nugget all week or will be moved on to a third team by the trade deadline.

Chauncey Billups: Knicks fans need to get very familiar with a term called "True Shooting Percentage." Billups is only shooting 43.8 percent this season and is at 41.8 percent for his career, but because nearly half the attempts are 3-pointers and he draws fouls at a massive rate, Billups still is among the leaders at his position in TS percentage.

At 34 he's slowed down remarkably little, but he's definitely slowed down. Billups' PER is his worst since 2003-04 even though he's shot unusually well compared to his historic norms (career highs of 44.1 percent on 3s and 92.3 percent from the line); he's creating fewer plays, grabbing fewer rebounds and turning it over more.

Defensively, Billups is pretty much a traffic cone for quick guards, but he has the size and strength to successfully check 2s and can switch on to bigger players. Since he was effectively traded for Felton, here's another number to consider: Billups played 32.3 minutes a game in Denver, while Felton played 38.8 for the Knicks. It's inconceivable that Billups can handle that much run at his age, so Toney Douglas or Anthony Carter will need to soak up the six-minute difference. Well, either that, or Mike D'Antoni will run Billups into the ground.

Anthony Carter: A veteran point guard who defends and leads but sure as heck doesn't score, Carter was something of a security blanket for George Karl in Denver for half a decade but has only played 14 games this season. At 35, he's no longer a viable rotation player but has use as a third point guard who can run the offense in a pinch and provides sage counsel in the locker room.

As a side note, Carter could technically blow up this deal because his contract permits him to refuse a trade. However, it won't stay blown up for long -- Denver can replace him with Melvin Ely, who makes the exact same money, if it comes to that.

Renaldo Balkman: An athletic forward who fell into disfavor in Denver and has played only five games this season, Balkman was included as a mini-salary dump (he has two years left after this one at a modest $1.675 million per) but may actually help with his energy and athleticism off the bench. While useless in the halfcourt and badly suited to D'Antoni's floor-spacing offense, Balkman is a good open-court finisher and a very good rebounder. Given how thinned out the Knicks' ranks are at the forward spots, he may see spot minutes in his return to the place where he started his career.

Shelden Williams: New York's likely backup center behind Ronny Turiaf, Williams is an effective, workmanlike rebounder and a physical defender. But offensively, he has hands of stone and a poor outside shot, and he can't elevate to finish at the basket. Also, Williams is just 6-9, so many centers can play right over the top of him. Basically, he's a "4.5" -- too small for full-time center duty but not skilled enough to play the 4 in today's game. As a fifth big man, he's not bad at all. As a rotation player, you've got a problem.

Anthony Randolph: An intriguing mix of shot-blocking skill, athleticism and ballhandling, Randolph has huge strengths but glaring weaknesses: He can't shoot and doesn't know it yet, he doesn't always play hard or practice with much verve, and he's light as a feather.

Randolph is also only 21 and averaged better than a point every two minutes a year ago -- an amazing feat considering he has no post game, no jumper and only the slightest inkling of the difference between a good shot and a bad one. He fell out of favor in New York and hardly played, but I would argue the positives outweigh the negatives and I expect Minnesota to give him plenty of rope the rest of the season.

Corey Brewer: A rail-thin wing who plays exemplary defense thanks to his length, effort and anticipation, Brewer nonetheless will be best-remembered in Minnesota for fans' blood-curdling shrieks of "No!! Noooo!!" every time he dribbled. Despite his entertaining ballhandling -- he either falls down or comes close virtually every time he puts it on the floor -- Brewer can help New York because he's a good defender on what's likely to be a very poor defensive team post-trade.

Nonetheless, it's possible he'll be moved to a third team. He's a restricted free agent after the season and, as a 24-year-old role payer, he's unlikely to move up in the world. But he's just competent enough offensively to make it worthwhile to play him for his defense, particularly on a roster like New York's.

Eddy Curry: Hopelessly out of shape, Curry will be waived upon arrival in Minnesota and is unlikely to set foot in the NBA again.

To sum up, the Knicks are giving up young guys with potential for past their prime stars. That always works out well...

I agree. Not to mention they could have positioned themselves for Chris Paul/Deron Williams types in later seasons, which they needed more of. It's like an odd type of lack of patience, they haven't grown into a contender this year, and even in the future Stoudemire/Anthony just isn't as good a collection of "stars" as Wade/Lebron/Bosh.

Pundits seemed to be saying that the Knicks would still have a shot at Paul or Williams...maybe even a better shot now.

Well, looks like Williams is off the table now. The Nets just made their own big trade, sending Favors, Harris, some draft picks, and some cash to Utah to get Williams.

As discussed before, the Knicks never really have/had a shot at Williams/Paul anyway.

We will see...honestly, I don't know what the financial structure that the Knicks have or what the collective bargaining agreement will be. However, if Miami can have Lebron, Bosh and Wade, its not totally out of the question that the Knicks could have three all-star caliber players.

Knicks win! Knicks win!

However, if Miami can have Lebron, Bosh and Wade, its not totally out of the question that the Knicks could have three all-star caliber players.

The big different is that the Heat guys all took slight paycuts whereas Amare and Carmelo pretty much went for as much money as they could which basically kills the Knicks chances of getting that 3rd big star and still having money for anything but D-leaguers.

However, if Miami can have Lebron, Bosh and Wade, its not totally out of the question that the Knicks could have three all-star caliber players.

The big different is that the Heat guys all took slight paycuts whereas Amare and Carmelo pretty much went for as much money as they could which basically kills the Knicks chances of getting that 3rd big star and still having money for anything but D-leaguers.

What...that can't happen if they have a shot at Chris Paul? Plus, the Knicks could also go over the cap and pay the tax...

I don't know...we'll have to see.

Still, I don't think the Knicks are contenders...Amare and Melo are go players...but I'm not sure have two scoring forwards that aren't stellar defensively is the best framework to build a championship winner upon.