Gallinari has chance to standout in summer league

BY ALAN HAHN

This won't be a real NBA debut, but for Danilo Gallinari, the coming
week at the NBA Summer League is a chance to make an important first
impression.

The Knicks' first-round pick, taken sixth overall, was roundly booed
by the New York crowd on draft night. Fans will get their first look
at the 19-year-old Italian star when the Knicks' summer league team
begins play Monday against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Cox Pavilion on
the UNLV campus. The game, which tips off at 4 p.m. EDT, will be aired
live on MSG Network.

The team will begin practicing in Las Vegas tonight and will be run by
assistant coach Phil Weber, the former Long Island Lutheran standout
who followed Mike D'Antoni here from the Phoenix Suns. D'Antoni will
be on hand and Donnie Walsh will arrive Sunday.

Walsh says he doesn't put a lot of emphasis on performances at the
summer league, but instead is more interested in mingling with the
executives from the 20 other NBA teams that participate in it. After
signing guard Chris Duhon, Walsh said earlier this week that he is not
finished retooling the roster He will remain involved in trade talks
throughout the summer with an eye on jettisoning some of the bigger
contracts (read: Stephon Marbury and Zach Randolph) while also filling
holes in the roster.

It's worth mentioning that before guard Baron Davis finally agreed to
a five-year, $65-million contract with the Los Angeles Clippers
yesterday, his representatives checked out the Knicks' interest in
him, a source told Newsday. In May, Newsday reported that Davis,
before he decided to opt out of his contract with the Golden State
Warriors, reached out through intermediaries to see if the Knicks had
any interest in acquiring him in a trade.

"It clearly seemed that New York would have been Baron's first choice
if there were a fit," said a person with knowledge of Davis'
situation.

Walsh never got too deeply involved in pursuing Davis because the
Knicks, with an eye on being under the salary cap by 2010, would not
commit contractually to anything beyond 2010 in a sign-and-trade
scenario.

There are other situations still brewing. The most notable involves
another Warriors guard, Monta Ellis, who is a restricted free agent
and, according to multiple sources, has a desire to play in D'Antoni's
system. A person with knowledge of the situation said a sign-and-trade
is a long shot, however, because a third team would have to be
involved to make the deal work for both sides. The Miami Heat and
Cleveland Cavaliers are in hot pursuit, just in case Warriors
executive Chris Mullin decides to trade Ellis.

Walsh plans on staying involved in all of the talk but likely will put
more emphasis on making smaller moves to improve specific areas of the
team, such as perimeter shooting. Long Islander Wally Szczerbiak is
being shopped by the Cleveland Cavaliers ( the Nets reportedly
declined a trade that would have sent the rapidly declining Vince
Carter and his hefty contract the other way), and he fits in so many
ways. Szczerbiak is an excellent shooter and, perhaps just as
important, he has an expiring contract.

Summer hoops

The Knicks' roster for the NBA Summer League, which begins Monday in
Las Vegas.

Veterans you know:

PG Nate Robinson - MVP of last year's summer league will play for a
fourth year

SF Renaldo Balkman - Needs to show something after a disappointing
sophomore season

PG Mardy Collins - Could find himself buried deep among veteran guards

SF Wilson Chandler - Coming off scary knee sprain after solid finish
to season

PF Danilo Gallinari - First look in his North American pro debut

Keep an eye on:

PG Von Wafer - Former Florida State guard has bounced around NBA
(Lakers, Clippers, Nuggets and Trail Blazers) and D-League.

The rest of the team:

SG Dan Grunfeld (Stanford) - Former GM Ernie Grunfeld's son

PG/SG Antonio Graves (Pittsburgh) - Also playing for Miami in Orlando
summer league

PG Marcus Hall (Colorado) - Undrafted rookie free agent

SF Delonte Holland (DePaul) - Put up huge numbers in Italian League


PF Brandon Hunter (Ohio) - Also an Italian League player

PG Antoine Johnson (Albany) - Played in CBA and in Turkey

F/C Paul Miller (Wichita State) - Previous training camp invitee
played in Poland

PG Anthony Roberson (Florida) - College teammate of David Lee, he
played in Israel

C Zhang Songtao (China) - Project 6-11 center from Chinese Olympic
team

The schedule

All games will be played at the Cox Pavilion at UNLV and will be
televised on MSG Network. All times are EDT.

Monday vs Cleveland, 4 p.m.

Wednesday vs. San Antonio, 4 p.m.

Friday, July 18 vs. Phoenix, 4 p.m.

Saturday, July 19 vs. Charlotte, 4 p.m.

Sunday, July 20 vs. Minnesota, 4 p.m