SOURCE: Las Vegas Sun

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At 100-1, the Knicks certainly aren't one of the favorites to win the title, but the betting marketplace did have a favorable reaction to New York's acquisition of Randolph, who came over with guards Fred Jones and Dan Dickau in a deal for Steve Francis and Channing Frye.

The Knicks also selected Wilson Chandler from DePaul with the 23rd pick, but it was Randolph (23.6 points, 10.1 rebounds last season) who drove the adjustment in the odds despite his history of off-the-court antics. Randolph has been arrested for driving under the influence, suspended for punching a teammate in practice, and this past season was found to have visited a strip club in Portland after requesting a three-game bereavement leave to attend a funeral in Indiana.

There's also a question of how he'll meld on the court with fellow big man Eddy Curry, and whether either will deign to play any defense.

The Knicks and Celtics commanded the only two "downward" moves in the NBA future book after the flurry of draft-week activity, and just two other teams - the Washington Wizards and New Jersey Nets - saw any shift in their odds. The odds on Washington and New Jersey drifted up slightly, from 50-1 to 60-1 to win the league title and from 17-1 to 20-1 to win the Eastern Conference.

The Wizards drafted guard Nick Young from USC, a talented player but one who does not fill the team's need for a powerful presence up front.

The Nets ended up with Sean Williams, who had been kicked off his Boston College team after a checkered college career. Former NBA coach John Lucas, who has been working with Williams, told the Boston Globe before the draft: "(Williams') issue is, he just wants to smoke some weed sometimes - and you can't," adding, "I would venture to say he hasn't smoked any more weed than a lot of the other guys who are going to get drafted. The difference is he got caught."

There was no movement elsewhere in the NBA future book - not at the top, where the Dallas Mavericks and Phoenix Suns remain 7-2 co-favorites followed by the San Antonio Spurs at 5-1, and not with the Blazers or Sonics, who both remained at 60-1 even after making the first two picks.

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