Chemistry 101 After a series of debilitating losses, talk of a mid-season trade has begun to pick up steam. Based on the total erosion of last year's budding chemistry, addition by subtraction may be the best way to move the franchise forward. Zach Randolph appears to be a likely candidate for relocation, but his $13MM salary for this season & remaining $48MM over the next three make finding a suitor a difficult task. Rather than continue the trend of trading bad contracts for even worse

deals,it's time for the Knicks brain trust to re-think their entire approach to building a roster.

Isiah Thomas' Knicks are a enigmatic group of talented players who have grown accustomed to losing. In a rush to get younger & more athletic, Thomas failed to factor chemistry into the talent equation and has squandered roughly $500MM in payroll.

Other than Malik Rose, no one else on the roster has significant experience playing winning basketball. The cornerstones of Thomas' tenure i.e. Marbury, Crawford & Curry have been mired in losing environments for the majority of their careers. Despite early success in Minnesota & a trip to the playoffs with Phoenix, Marbury's career has been defined by failure in New Jersey & New York. Crawford & Curry were both members of the "Horri-Bulls" team in Chicago that got progressively better after both players were traded to New York. Despite his all-world offensive talent, Crawford has yet to appear in a playoff game and Curry was deactivated with a heart condition just before the Bulls first post-Jordan playoff run. In rounding out the Knicks current starting five, Quentin Richardson & Zach Randolph have not faired much better during their time in the NBA. Richardson was a poster boy for a lottery-bound LA Clippers team for 4 seasons before getting a taste of winning in Mike D'Antoni's Suns offense for one season. Randolph was a part of a notorious Portland Trailblazers team remembered as the "Jailblazers" for their crimes on & off the court.

Jarred Jeffries (Wizards), Jerome James (Sonics) & Fred Jones (Blazers/Pacers) are all fringe players from marginally successful teams who have been major recipients of Thomas' generosity. Thomas has developed quite a track record for overpaying mid-level talent. He's also on the speed dial of general managers across the league looking to offload their financial mistakes. To his credit, Thomas has drafted solid players, but David Lee, Nate Robinson, Renaldo Balkman & Mardy Collins have been subjected to losing & the boos that rain down from the 400 section since they arrived. Rather the spare Randolph Morris & Wilson Chandler from the wrath of the Garden faithful by sending them to the NBDL, both get to witness one of the worst seasons in franchise history up close.

Individually, the Knicks are a team made up of phenomenal talents, but collectively they struggle to play well. For as much as Malik Rose tries to inspire his teammates with references to his two titles in San Antonio, his play - when given extended minutes - leaves much to be desired. What the Knicks need most are players with Rose's experience who can make major contributions on the stat sheet and in the locker room. Trading for the likes of an injury-prone Tracy McGrady or the volatile Ron Artest would only continue a trend that needs to be reversed.

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Former Knick, Marcus Camby leads the NBA in block shots averaging 3.8 per contest. The Knicks rank last in the NBA with a team average of 2.28 per game. After being traded from New York (along with the draft rights to Nene Hilario) for Antonio McDyess, Camby has gone on to win the Defensive Player of the Year award and ranks second in rebounds per game ( 13.9) this season.

-Greg Hutchins