The Jamal Crawford for Al Harrington deal can almost be justified. Crawford is easily the Knicks' most dynamic scorer — a slasher, quick-triggered shooter and fleet-footed penetrator whose various release points make him virtually unguardable. On the minus side are Crawford's often questionable shot selection, erratic accuracy and overly frenetic defense. Still, he possesses the exact skills necessary to thrive in Mike D'Antoni's go-go offense.

Operating in Don Nelson's laissez-faire game plan, look for Crawford to accrue the kind of numbers that will enable him to approach All-Star status.

Harrington is bigger (6-9, 250), capable of playing the small- and power-forward slots, plus the center position in a small-ball lineup. Even though he's primarily a jump shooter, Harrington is nearly as explosive a scorer as Crawford.

Harrington's on-court flaws include lackadaisical defense and a disinclination to throw himself into the battle of the boards.

Even worse, though, is Harrington's general attitude — he's absolutely convinced that he's a much better player than he really is. In fact, Harrington wouldn't be at all surprised if the Hall of Fame waived its eligibility procedures and enshrined him immediately. That's why he's demonstrably unhappy whenever he gets less than 20 shots and 40 minutes of daylight in any game — and his dour presence is contagious.

But, OK, if this trade is semijustifiable for the Knicks, the exchange of Zach Randolph and Mardy Collins for Cuttino Mobley and Tim Thomas borders on the absurd.

I've never been a big Randolph fan, but I concede that he's having a terrific year so far. He's shooting with uncharacteristic accuracy, bullying his way to important points in the paint and rebounding with at least semiferocity. Sure, he doesn't play defense, but this failing mainly goes unnoticed since all of his teammates have the same deficiency — which is why the Knicks are the worst defensive team in the league.

Collins is a good end-of-the-bench player who brings never-ending hustle.

Mobley and Thomas should fit in well with their new team because neither of them plays a lick of defense. Plus, Mobley is a streak shooter whose selfishness has become proverbial around the league. Meanwhile, Thomas is soft, clutchless and one of most egregious underachievers in the history of the NBA.

Unless Walsh has more deals up his sleeve, the Knicks will be even smaller and more defenseless than ever before. Who will guard opposing bigs? And how many rebounds can David Lee be expected to grab?

The speculation is that Walsh is merely adjusting the team's salary cap so they can make a big play for LeBron James in 2010.

Hmmm.

Let me get this straight.