Mcdaniel Traded To Knicks

NEW YORK - New York Coach Pat Riley said the Knicks needed a post-up small forward to take the scoring burden off Patrick Ewing.

Well, he got his man.

The X-Man cometh.

The Knicks began their long-awaited personnel overhaul by trading second-year forward Jerrod Mustaf, guard Trent Tucker and two second-round picks (in 1992 and 1994) to the Phoenix Suns for high-scoring small forward Xavier McDaniel, who played for the Seattle SuperSonics from 1985 until he was traded to Phoenix last Dec. 7.

The deal gives the Knicks a bruising and potentially dominant frontline. McDaniel, an aggressive, 6-foot-7 inside scorer and rebounder, fills Riley's demand for a post-up small forward who will serve as the first option in his offensive sets, and complement Ewing and power forward Charles Oakley on the boards.

"I'm working on my Xs and Os, and we just took care of one of the Xs," said Riley, who is in Charleston, S.C., preparing for the opening of training camp on Friday. "It was a trade that we had to make. We needed to complement the outside shooting of Kiki (Vandeweghe). It's a great trade for New York. We're bringing in one of the toughest small forwards in the NBA."

The X-Man, the fourth player chosen in the 1985 draft, has averaged 20 points and 7 rebounds in his six-year NBA career. He was traded from Seattle to Phoenix for forward Eddie Johnson and two No. 1s.

JORDAN SNUBS BUSH -- WASHINGTON - The NBA champion Chicago Bulls got praise from President George Bush, but the question afterward was, where was Michael?

Michael Jordan, the Bulls' star guard, skipped the ceremony in the Rose Garden of the White House yesterday and nobody seemed to know why.

Coach Phil Jackson shrugged his shoulders and didn't respond when asked why Jordan didn't show up to shoot hoops with the president.