It's been just over four months since Donnie Walsh took over as Team President. After 24 years in the Pacers front office, Walsh has slowly begun to shape the future of the New York Knicks. Since being handed the reigns by Jim Dolan on April 2nd, Walsh has:

Demoted Isiah Thomas:

Although Walsh elected not to "Fire Isiah", he reassigned Thomas and subsequently dispatched his new $18M talent scout to Europe. Walsh relied heavily on endorsements from Thomas and the rest of the scouting department to make his first draft selection. For anyone who thought Isiah Thomas was out of the picture, think again.

Hired head coach Mike D'Antoni:

The signing of Mike D'Antoni shows Walsh's commitment to improving the product on the floor quickly. D'Antoni is well regarded as the league's most innovative head coach. His .650 winning percentage as Suns head man compelled Walsh to pounce soon after Phoenix's first round playoff ouster. D'Antoni may do little to restore the defensive intensity at The Garden, but Walsh is banking on him to reinvigorate the offense and increase the win total. D'Antoni inherits a team with talent, but one that's sorely lacking direction. With no Steve Nash & Amare Stoudemire-types to rely on, D'Antoni will be asked to earn every penny of his $24M contract by maximizing the talents of Jamal Crawford, Wilson Chandler & Nate Robinson. According to Phoenix Suns insider Dustin Chapman, D'Antoni "did a poor job making adjustments" particularly within the halfcourt set. If D'Antoni struggled to incorporate 14-time All-Star Shaquille O'Neal into his offense, developing Eddy Curry may not be on the top of his to-do list.

Drafted forward Danilo Gallinari:

Most Knicks fans we've polled are split on Walsh's decision to draft Danilo Gallinari 6th overall. Walsh admitted he never saw the 6-10 forward from Italy play in person before making the pick. Whether you're for or against the decision to go the Euro-route with the franchise's most important lottery pick since Patrick Ewing, here's one stat to keep in mind: 76 of the 450 players on NBA rosters last season were foreign. By 2010, approximately one-fourth of the NBA's players will have come from overseas.

The globalization of basketball has done wonders for the game and has brought a wide array of talent to the NBA. Considering D'Antoni's international playing experience, fluency in Italian & relationship with the rookie's father, there is no coach better suited to bring out the best in Gallinari. Gallinari's arrival should generate millions in gate & apparel revenue for Camp Cablevision. Whether he becomes a solid rotation player or a disappointment is another matter.

Signed guards Chris Duhon & Anthony Roberson:

The signing of Chris Duhon & Anthony Roberson signal a literal changing of the guard. As first reported by our own Anthony "Rice Balls" Donahue, Stephon Marbury has not been included in any of the marketing campaigns for the 2008-09 season. Duhon's coming off a difficult season where he was the Bulls third string PG behind Kirk Heinrich & Larry Hughes. While signing a pass-first guard was a smart move by Walsh, offering him the full MLE (2 years, $12M) was questionable. Additionally, Duhon was far from a model teammate in Chicago and D'Antoni is not known as a disciplinarian.

Roberson, who impressed the coaching staff with his shooting touch is set to play an Eddie House-type role. He last appeared in the NBA as a member of the Golden State Warriors in 20 games during the 2006-07 season and played in Israel & Turkey last year. Neither guard is considered an upgrade over Marbury, but if form holds, the team should see marked improvement in the win column if he leaves.

Traded forward Renaldo Balkman:

Balkman's trade to Denver shaves $1.3M off next season's payroll and picks up a 2010 second round draft choice in return. Considering Marcus Camby's trade value amounted to a second rounder, it's hard to argue that Walsh should have tried to get more in return. Balkman never became the Dennis Rodman-like force Isiah Thomas said he would be, but that's partly because of the glut of small forwards on the roster.

Next steps:

Much has been made of Walsh's efforts to move Zach Randolph. Randolph is set to earn $48M over the next 3 seasons. The Philadelphia 76ers & Los Angeles Clippers were seen as possible trade partners, but both teams moved quickly to address their needs at forward. The Memphis Grizzlies have been rumored as a trade destination for Randolph as he could replace the scoring & rebounding punch they lost in the Pau Gasol trade. Additionally, the Grizzlies are under the cap which makes them an ideal trading partner. Walsh may look to move Randolph during the regular season in the event he can't broker an optimal deal before training camp. Alternatively, Walsh may look to deal the contracts of Jared Jeffries ($19.2M remaining over 3 seasons) & Jerome James ($12.8 remaining over 2 seasons). He may be forced to add David Lee (due $1.7M for the upcoming season) to any deal that unloads a significant chunk of salary or imports an All-Star.

One factor Walsh has yet to publicly address is the need to acquire a defensive center that can play the two-man game with Crawford. Eddy Curry’s poor conditioning & shooting range limit his effectiveness outside of post-ups on the low block.

For those who watched the Suns offense closely, the high screen/roll is a staple of D’Antoni’s playbook. Moreover, the Knicks finished last in the league in blocked shots per game. In Walsh intends to fix this problem, he’ll have to do so via trade. Our sources tells us The Wizards are looking for more post scoring and have long been impressed with Curry’s power game. With Wizards GM Ernie Grunfeld looking for more minutes for the 6-11 Andray Blatche and factoring in the return of center Etan Thomas & draft selection of 7-0 rookie JaVale McGee, Washington may look to part with Brendan Haywood (10.6 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 1.7 bpg) in exchange. Haywood is set to earn $5.5M next season.

Early assessment:

In four months, Walsh has shown he has the patience of a saint and the willingness to outspend the competition when necessary. His crowning achievement thus far was persuading D'Antoni to come to New York when Chicago was clearly the better fit for him. He drew the ire of many by failing to acquire an additional draft pick when the likes of Mario Chalmers, Chris Douglas-Roberts & DeAndre Jordan were still available at the end of the first round. Walsh has yet to ship out a big contract or orchestrate a major trade, but there's still plenty of time before the season starts in November.

Garden Grasp approval rating: 70%

What do you think of Donnie Walsh's approval rating? E-mail us at gardengrasp@gmail.com. Select entries will be posted. Please include your name & city/state.