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I just came across this excellent analysis of the Knicks’ big trade by Kevin Pelton at Basketball Prospectus:

Friday may have been a first in NBA history: The dismantling of an above-.500 team by trading its top two scorers on the same day. If that alone isn’t unique, then this surely is–that both trades made by the 6-5 New York Knicks have been unanimously praised.

New Knicks President of Basketball Operations Donnie Walsh completely transformed his team’s future cap situation with a pair of trades sending out the contracts of Jamal Crawford and Zach Randolph, both of which ran through the 2010-11 season, as well as throw-in Mardy Collins. In their places, New York adds three players–guard Cuttino Mobley, forward Tim Thomas and post Al Harrington–whose contracts end after 2009-10. That summer, as you may have already heard and will hear somewhere around 84 million times over the next two years, features a star-studded free-agent class highlighted by LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and Amaré Stoudemire. Today’s deals have positioned the Knicks to be major players in the summer of 2010.

In dealing Randolph and Crawford, The Knicks made a choice to break up a core that was playing .500 basketball, and looked early to have a credible chance at the playoffs. But, as promised, GM Donnie Walsh and coach Mike D’antoni are building for the future at the expense of right now.

Isaiah Thomas, for those who are wondering, is doing his part too. Since his “resassignment” he’s has no doubt been providing “meaningful input” to Walsh.