I like Frye, and I think his regression after a very promising rookie year is absolutely misleading; to coin a new term in honor of the Isiah Thomas GM era of the Knicks, Frye has been NewYork-ized. Given Isiah's tendency to leave his fingerprints on every scoop du jour big name free agent out there and his owner's willingness to dole out all that crazy cash, he's heaped up those big name players via signings or trades; not surprisingly, many of them became shadows of their own selves upon joining that team. Stephon Marbury--remember his 23 and 9? It's now 16 and 5, for pete's sake. Quentin Richardson--remember his three point barrage with the Suns? His story is now three things: injuries, inconsistencies, and doghouse. Steve Francis and his Rockets glory days? His long stay there led hoopshype to even call him "a shadow of his own self" on his very own profile after his tenure in NYC. Jerome James--trashbag eruption against our beloved Kings? I don't even need to talk about his current state now. Maurice Taylor's stint? He eventually got cut, stunk it up in Sacramento, and already out of the league at only age 31. Malik Rose and his role player contributions in San Antonio? Useless in the hopeless quagmire that is the Knicks.
If anything, though, I've got to give Isiah recent credit for his drafting of youngsters, many perceived to be 2nd rounders who became 1st rounders who even became steals. But, to be more specific, it's his drafting of athletic hustling youngsters. David Lee has been a huge success, and Renaldo Balkman has shown flashes. Trevor Ariza, before pouting and leaving, became a very nice close to defensive stopper sort of player at New York, and his newest coup, Wilson Chandler, may be showing signs as well.
But back to Frye. He's still a nice perimeter player with long arms, mobility, and athleticism for the NBA, fitting today's brand of face-up big men really nicely. He's actually redundant to LaMarcus Aldridge to an extent, but I see where the trade rumors come from. Lean, lanky, face-up, talented. Useful for any team.
