You know it's the summer when ladies' man Chris Duhon is making news. Here's what they're saying out in the ether about Duhon's two-year deal with the Knicks ...

Straight Bangin': "In the past few seasons, as the Knicks devolved into an embarrassment and distraction, Stephon was a symbol of all that ailed the club. His effort was inconsistent and his emotion was usually summoned to service for grandstanding or spite. ... So now the Knicks turn to ... a career backup whose best moments are usually a surprise to the audience. Given that Mike D'Antoni made Steve Nash into an (undeserving) two-time MVP, perhaps he will make Duhon something better than serviceable. But really, it likely doesn't matter. Though I tire of the constant class-of-2010 speculation — after all, not every team can sign LeBron, Dwyane, and Bosh, and we are, you know, two years away still — this seems like a maneuver meant to position the Brickers for a run at one of those ballyhooed prizes."

Martin Johnson, The New York Sun: "The Duhon signing also most likely spells the end of Stephon Marbury's tenure as a Knick. The embattled point guard has said all the right things since D'Antoni's hiring two months ago, but Marbury is the very definition of a shoot-first point guard, which is not what the new coach wants quarterbacking his team. When D'Antoni took over in Phoenix a quarter of the way though the 2003-04 season, he inherited a team directed by Marbury. The guard was sent packing a mere 13 games later for draft picks and role players with expiring contracts. I think the Knicks have held on to Marbury so far this offseason to see if any deals could be swung, as Marbury's $22 million contract expires after this season. But the locals need cap relief more than any other team, so buying him out and reducing the payroll for next season seems the most prudent approach."

Commenter "Bwizzle" at KnickerBlogger.net: "I like the signing. I am not worried about the money issue; the two factors that are key are length of contract and culture change. We have him for two years, perfect time to test him out and see what he has without locking up money for the upcoming free agents. Second, and more importantly, the culture had to change. The leader on the floor is the point guard and as one source said, both Walsh and D'antoni realize how unpopular "Starbury" is. This was crippling the teams on the court play because no one wanted to play with this guy. With Duhon you have a floor general that can spread the floor, play some defense and distribute the ball. That's exactly what a point guard should do."

Matt Moore, FanHouse: "Duhon does have some potential. He scored 34 against Golden State this year (but then again, who didn't score against Golden State), and had 22 against Milwaukee. He also had a whole lot of the dreaded DNP-CDs. He's solid in some spots, brilliant occasionally, terrible in stretches, and mediocre a lot of the time. However, you have to wonder how much of that was the coaching in Chicago which was less than supportive of guard play. Compare that with D'Antoni's speed-first guard system, and this could turn out well."

Third Quarter Collapse: "I was never thrilled with the idea of the Magic replacing Dooling with Duhon, so this news comes as a relief to me. But if the Magic are unable to retain Dooling — at least six other teams have contacted him — they will have no other choice but to target shaky veterans like Jason Williams or Anthony Carter to back-up incumbent point guard Jameer Nelson. More likely, they'll wait to see what swingman Corey Maggette, the biggest remaining prize in this year's free-agent market, does before making an offer to anyone else at any position."

Blog-a-Bull: "... is it Duhon's fault that he was so often over-used and mis-used? Not really. As purely a backup PG who'd get only 10-12 minutes a night, he'd be fine. He doesn't turn the ball over, can hassle opposing PGs effectively, and he'll give you one game a year where he hits a half-dozen three-pointers. Maybe given limited minutes and strict instructions when to shoot ... he'd be especially effective. But this contract is the second multi-yeared-and-millioned deal he's received in his career, and it's the essence of what is wrong with having Chris Duhon on your team: someone, likely in a decision-making position, will look at his skill set and 'intangibles' (though that strangely clashed with his off-court habits) and think that since he's an 'unselfish' and 'smart' player, that more minutes is a good thing. It's not. Duhon gets praised as a 'pass-first' point guard. But he's not 'pass first'. He's 'ass first'. His most preferred style of play is to play like ass. Then pass, then shoot. Oftentimes never getting to that third one, crippling your offensive flow, and ticking me off."

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