Amare Stoudemire to Join Knicks, But Will He Help?

The New York Knicks made their first free agent signing of this offseason. While an official contract can not be signed until Thursday, Amare Stoudemire has reportedly agreed to a five year deal worth the maximum $100 million.

So, what does Stoudemire bring to the Knicks? Not much more than David Lee provided last season. He does however bring New York basketball the star power they have not had since Patrick Ewing. Stoudemire already has the star name, the popular face. What did Lee do? Oh, nothing but average 20 points and 11 rebounds for the Knicks last season. He finished second in the league in rebounding. Stoudemire averages 21.4 points and 8.9 rebounds in his career.

So why spend the max money on Stoudemire if Lee can provide the same production? Good question. In my opinion, this is about getting a guy that brings star power so the Knicks offseason is not a complete bust.

Just about every Knicks fan has waiting for the 2010 free agent period, assuming they would sign LeBron James.

So, if King James does not sign with New York, they can now still say they were able to sign a star to build a team around.

Stoudemire has played in this system before, he played under coach Mike D’Antoni’s in Phoenix. The two sides reportedly had issues with each other back then. They met each other this past weekend and talked things out, putting all issues behind them. Do you trust these issues will not come back?

The Knicks and Stoudemire will now go out and continue trying to bring another star player to the greatest city in the world. He has already spoken to James’ people as well as Dwayne Wade. The Knicks would love to sign one of the group of James, Wade, or Chris Bosh.

Other rumors that have come up are the Knicks possibly working out a trade for guys like Carmelo Anthony or Tony Parker.

I would like nothing more than for the Knicks to become relevant in the NBA once again. The league is better off with a team in New York being competitive. Madison Square Gardner deserves a good team.

Stoudemire can not do it alone. He can score, but has never been known for his defense. For someone his size, he is not always a dominant force in the rebounding department either.

The Knicks need to continue rebuilding this team, but Stoudemire is indeed a very good start. It can’t stop here.