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Crawford, Harrington face former teams as Knicks host Warriors

Nov 29, 2008 - 11:22 AM Golden State (5-11) at New York (7-8), 7:30pm EST

NEW YORK (Ticker) -- The New York Knicks - or at least the fan base that supports them - should give the Golden State Warriors a warm welcome when they visit Madison Square Garden on Saturday. After all, it was the Warriors who helped facilitate the Knicks' chances to land LeBron James in two summers.

The clubs put together a trade earlier this month, with the Knicks acquiring Al Harrington and sending Jamal Crawford to the Bay Area. The most important part of the deal, of course, was the cap space it opened up for New York in the summer of 2010 - when James and a bevy of other marquee free agents hit the open market.

In a separate deal made the same day, the team dealt leading scorer Zach Randolph and reserve guard Mardy Collins to the Clippers for Tim Thomas and Cuttino Mobley.

As for the here-and-now, the trades have done little to help the Knicks' present situation. They have lost three of four since making the move - and five of six overall - and so far seem to have lost the offensive explosiveness that made them one of the league's early surprise teams.

In two games with the Knicks, Harrington has shot just 13-for-40 (32.5 percent) as the team lost both games by a combined total of 32 points.

As for the Warriors, they were eager to be rid of Harrington - not just because of his notoriously erratic shooting but because he was unhappy with the team and had repeatedly asked to be traded.

His replacement on the roster, Crawford, has also struggled with his shot while making the adjustment to head coach Don Nelson's system. He was just 5-of-17 for 18 points in the Warriors' 119-111 loss to the Boston Celtics on Wednesday.