Post by irish2u2 on Apr 12, 2022 1:58:21 GMT -5
Obviously this season has been a huge disappointment. There was a point this season when I couldn’t stand watching this team let alone talking about them. Like most everybody I thought the Knicks would be a playoff team and I was especially enthused at how management addressed obvious deficiencies from last year’s squad. Why the Knicks failed to improve this season or even make the playoffs is not a simple explanation. Was it the coach? Injuries? Players? Management? Better competition? Or all of the above? I’m taking “all of the above”.
I applauded the signing of Evan Fournier and Kemba Walker. I believe Fournier did his job. He shot well from the perimeter, he broke the Knicks team record for 3 pointers made in a season, he was the team’s third highest scorer at 14.2 PPG but he should have been better in both scoring average and shooting efficiency with more carte blanche to get his own shots. Fournier wasn’t a good defender but he wasn’t bad either. Kemba Walker was an atrocious defender and if he isn’t scoring 20+ PPG he becomes a liability. Now factor in Kemba’s balky knee. The thing is the Knicks needed Kemba Walker to be good more than they needed what Fournier brought to the team. Plus Fournier cost the Knicks 73 million dollars and to be honest didn’t we get as much if not more out of Reggie Bullock for a LOT less money? Reggie couldn’t get his own shot but he made up for that with his stellar wing defense. Put the right PG on the floor and you don’t need Reggie to create shots.
Obviously more went wrong. Randle had a career year last season but regressed this year and now there are questions about his attitude. I should remind everybody he will end up leading the Knicks in scoring, rebounding and assists for the THIRD year in a row. Still Randle managed to alienate a crowd that shouted “MVP” with regularity last season to a crowd that booed him this season. I still maintain there is something we don’t know that affected Randle this season. Maybe it was his wife. Maybe the new baby. Maybe an injury he didn’t disclose. But the fact is he is the Knicks #1 player and this team went from 10 games over .500 last season to 9 games under .500 this season. I have been Randle’s biggest fan but I have to say he is very much on the trading block this summer. But as we just learned from the Leon Rose interview with Mike Green (which was a total shocker in itself) that Julius very much wants to stay a Knick. Now how does that work especially after Obi Toppin went for 35 and 42 points in back to back games? Enquiring minds want to know.
Derrick Rose missed 55 games this season and that too was a huge factor. Nerlens Noel missed 56. Both were re-signed by management even though both had injury issues. I should remind everybody I was for bringing them back too. Not having Rose hurt more than not having Noel. Rose was a catalyst for this team and a guy who maybe prevents a lot of those third and fourth quarter scoring draughts, Then again Walker and Fournier were supposed to be that guy but you can’t tell me not having Rose didn’t hurt. The two other guys Rose signed, Alec Burks and Fournier only missed 3 games between them this season. Being available to play is a skill too.
I’m not mad at Rose, Scott Perry or World Wide Wes. They took calculated risks but I thought they were good ones and they were all reasonable deals. I do believe management needs to be more interactive with the fan base like tonight’s interview with Rose. Mike Green made the astute observation that when a team fails to meet expectations the coach and best player take most of the heat. We see how that works as the Lakers, a team that spectacularly failed to meet expectations way past what happened to the Knicks just fired their head coach Frank Vogel. Vogel is a good coach and the Lakers had major injury issues but he still got the axe. Will Tom Thibodeau meet a similar fate? I don’t think so. I think there are things he failed to do soon enough that might have made some difference but frankly the most positive parts of this season came at the very end when the youngsters got minutes. Thibs did play younger guys. He did expand his rotation. But Thibs also failed to adjust quickly to game circumstances and he’s in love with those older guys.
On the positive front is the play of RJ Barrett, Mitch Robinson, Obi Toppin, Immanuel Quickley and some of the younger guys like Quentin Grimes, Jericho Simms, Myles McBride and the brief glimpse of Cam Reddish before going down with a season ending injury. I honestly don’t care about the draft much. I see very few difference makers and no chance to get a pick high enough to grab one. I do think we might have the players necessary to be a playoff competitive team. There are logjams. There are question marks starting with the head coach himself. Our record sucked but in most games the Knicks were competitive and they didn’t quit on their coach. But Thibs has to adjust his philosophy. Dramatically. When the Knicks played their best two things happened. They shared and moved the ball. They also played impressive up tempo basketball. Obi and IQ had a lot to do with that improvement in uptempo basketball. IQ has the highest plus/minus on the team. Things accelerate when he is on the floor and especially when paired with Obi whose ability to get down the court ahead of everybody else after a Knicks defensive rebound which is nothing short of remarkable. Two things happened to Obi and IQ. Both shot the ball better after making adjustments. Obi especially showed dramatic improvement in his 3 ball shooting by changing his release point and shooting a flatter shot. IQ penetrated more and found his shooters. He also showed dramatic improvement in using his left hand. Mike Green pointed out a large majority of NBA players play their personal best games in April. I think he is right. Obi and IQ ended their seasons brilliantly but I think you need to step away from the numbers they posted and look at how they posted them. First off they got minutes. They also gained confidence and both players mixed up their games impressively. Obi’s amazing ability to transition from defense to offense and IQ’s increased free throws, assists and better shooting all bode well for the future.
IQ should be the Knicks starting PG. He already has a connection with Obi and Mitch and he’s learning when to pass and when to shoot. He’s a good ball handler who can navigate in traffic though he won’t be confused with Curry, Paul, Ball or Irving. Still he gives the Knicks a good sized PG with the ability to penetrate and score or dish plus three point range. He still needs work on his handle and decision making but the raw material is there and he’s cheaper than the solutions we might get like Jalen Brunson. We took a chance on Kemba so no more veterans on the other side of their career trajectory. The Knicks have IQ, Rose and McBride. I believe they can do the job which brings us to Randle.
I’m positive I’m not the only Knicks fan excited by Obi Toppin’s potential. When he gets minutes he produces and with an effective 3 point shot and his ability to transition so quickly from defense to offense plus his athletic ability and some work on rebounding and strength Toppin could be a star. But what about Julius Randle? I don’t have a clue what the Knicks will do with Randle. The biggest question mark is Mitch Robinson. I want to keep him. He’s just 24 and he showed great improvement this season after a bit of a rocky start. I think once he got completely healthy and comfortable with his added bulk he played extremely well. I don’t recall him shooting a jumper but a couple of times he showed some nifty ball handling. The kid still has ceiling so sign him outright or let the market determine his worth but keep him.
Looking at our roster we have 9 players under 25 years old. The core players in this group of youngsters are RJ, IQ, Mitch, Obi, Cam, Grimes, Deuce and Sims. Likely the Knicks will add another quality young guy in the draft. North of 25 are Randle, Burks, Fournier, Rose, Noel and Gibson. I don’t include Feron Hunt or Ryan Arcidiancono because they won’t be on the roster next season. IMHO Fournier and Burks are prime time trade material. So too is Randle but unlike some of my fellow fans who blame everything on Julius I want something back for him. As one of 5 players to hit 20/10/5 and at just 27 years old Randle has value. I personally don’t think Obi is fully ready yet but if the Knicks trade Julius I want a PF back.
So here is what I want this offseason.
Another stellar draft.
Keep management. One more year.
Ditto for Thibs.
Keep Mitch.
Keep Rose.
Keep Taj.
Either keep Burks or Fournier but maybe not both though trading both wouldn’t tear me up. I really like the Grimes kid.
If the Knicks are going to trade Randle then get something major back. If not figure out a way to play him, Obi, Mitch and Cam in the front court. There are a LOT of mix and match combinations I can think of especially using Randle in the post and Obi at SF.
Stay away from Brunson in free agency who is a good enough PG but he’ll get overpaid. Stay all in on IQ.
The Knicks have a lot of trade chips. Use them wisely. Look to the west and monitor the Donovan Mitchell situation closely.
Players.
IQ needs to work on ball handling and decision making. Obi needs to get stronger so he can rebound and defend better.RJ must continue his upward improvement arc with an emphasis on using the right hand and raising his shooting percentage. I love how he uses his length and strength to bully smaller players and his finishing has gotten better. He’s already a good defender, rebounder and passer but now he must become an Alpha. Two words to Mitch Robinson. Jump hook. To the rest of the team keep working hard and grinding. Going 12 and 7 in their last 19 games since the All-Star break I saw some positives though that blown 21 point lead to the Nets at home still burns. I don’t see any players I love in free agency. I do think if the Knicks develop their youth like they did this year it will make a huge difference. I don’t think RJ is a #1 option type guy but as a Robin he’s perfect. The Knicks can pull a trade for Batman but stay away from Anthony Davis or Bradley Beal and concentrate on the one skill set a superstar needs the most. The ability to stay on the court.
I applauded the signing of Evan Fournier and Kemba Walker. I believe Fournier did his job. He shot well from the perimeter, he broke the Knicks team record for 3 pointers made in a season, he was the team’s third highest scorer at 14.2 PPG but he should have been better in both scoring average and shooting efficiency with more carte blanche to get his own shots. Fournier wasn’t a good defender but he wasn’t bad either. Kemba Walker was an atrocious defender and if he isn’t scoring 20+ PPG he becomes a liability. Now factor in Kemba’s balky knee. The thing is the Knicks needed Kemba Walker to be good more than they needed what Fournier brought to the team. Plus Fournier cost the Knicks 73 million dollars and to be honest didn’t we get as much if not more out of Reggie Bullock for a LOT less money? Reggie couldn’t get his own shot but he made up for that with his stellar wing defense. Put the right PG on the floor and you don’t need Reggie to create shots.
Obviously more went wrong. Randle had a career year last season but regressed this year and now there are questions about his attitude. I should remind everybody he will end up leading the Knicks in scoring, rebounding and assists for the THIRD year in a row. Still Randle managed to alienate a crowd that shouted “MVP” with regularity last season to a crowd that booed him this season. I still maintain there is something we don’t know that affected Randle this season. Maybe it was his wife. Maybe the new baby. Maybe an injury he didn’t disclose. But the fact is he is the Knicks #1 player and this team went from 10 games over .500 last season to 9 games under .500 this season. I have been Randle’s biggest fan but I have to say he is very much on the trading block this summer. But as we just learned from the Leon Rose interview with Mike Green (which was a total shocker in itself) that Julius very much wants to stay a Knick. Now how does that work especially after Obi Toppin went for 35 and 42 points in back to back games? Enquiring minds want to know.
Derrick Rose missed 55 games this season and that too was a huge factor. Nerlens Noel missed 56. Both were re-signed by management even though both had injury issues. I should remind everybody I was for bringing them back too. Not having Rose hurt more than not having Noel. Rose was a catalyst for this team and a guy who maybe prevents a lot of those third and fourth quarter scoring draughts, Then again Walker and Fournier were supposed to be that guy but you can’t tell me not having Rose didn’t hurt. The two other guys Rose signed, Alec Burks and Fournier only missed 3 games between them this season. Being available to play is a skill too.
I’m not mad at Rose, Scott Perry or World Wide Wes. They took calculated risks but I thought they were good ones and they were all reasonable deals. I do believe management needs to be more interactive with the fan base like tonight’s interview with Rose. Mike Green made the astute observation that when a team fails to meet expectations the coach and best player take most of the heat. We see how that works as the Lakers, a team that spectacularly failed to meet expectations way past what happened to the Knicks just fired their head coach Frank Vogel. Vogel is a good coach and the Lakers had major injury issues but he still got the axe. Will Tom Thibodeau meet a similar fate? I don’t think so. I think there are things he failed to do soon enough that might have made some difference but frankly the most positive parts of this season came at the very end when the youngsters got minutes. Thibs did play younger guys. He did expand his rotation. But Thibs also failed to adjust quickly to game circumstances and he’s in love with those older guys.
On the positive front is the play of RJ Barrett, Mitch Robinson, Obi Toppin, Immanuel Quickley and some of the younger guys like Quentin Grimes, Jericho Simms, Myles McBride and the brief glimpse of Cam Reddish before going down with a season ending injury. I honestly don’t care about the draft much. I see very few difference makers and no chance to get a pick high enough to grab one. I do think we might have the players necessary to be a playoff competitive team. There are logjams. There are question marks starting with the head coach himself. Our record sucked but in most games the Knicks were competitive and they didn’t quit on their coach. But Thibs has to adjust his philosophy. Dramatically. When the Knicks played their best two things happened. They shared and moved the ball. They also played impressive up tempo basketball. Obi and IQ had a lot to do with that improvement in uptempo basketball. IQ has the highest plus/minus on the team. Things accelerate when he is on the floor and especially when paired with Obi whose ability to get down the court ahead of everybody else after a Knicks defensive rebound which is nothing short of remarkable. Two things happened to Obi and IQ. Both shot the ball better after making adjustments. Obi especially showed dramatic improvement in his 3 ball shooting by changing his release point and shooting a flatter shot. IQ penetrated more and found his shooters. He also showed dramatic improvement in using his left hand. Mike Green pointed out a large majority of NBA players play their personal best games in April. I think he is right. Obi and IQ ended their seasons brilliantly but I think you need to step away from the numbers they posted and look at how they posted them. First off they got minutes. They also gained confidence and both players mixed up their games impressively. Obi’s amazing ability to transition from defense to offense and IQ’s increased free throws, assists and better shooting all bode well for the future.
IQ should be the Knicks starting PG. He already has a connection with Obi and Mitch and he’s learning when to pass and when to shoot. He’s a good ball handler who can navigate in traffic though he won’t be confused with Curry, Paul, Ball or Irving. Still he gives the Knicks a good sized PG with the ability to penetrate and score or dish plus three point range. He still needs work on his handle and decision making but the raw material is there and he’s cheaper than the solutions we might get like Jalen Brunson. We took a chance on Kemba so no more veterans on the other side of their career trajectory. The Knicks have IQ, Rose and McBride. I believe they can do the job which brings us to Randle.
I’m positive I’m not the only Knicks fan excited by Obi Toppin’s potential. When he gets minutes he produces and with an effective 3 point shot and his ability to transition so quickly from defense to offense plus his athletic ability and some work on rebounding and strength Toppin could be a star. But what about Julius Randle? I don’t have a clue what the Knicks will do with Randle. The biggest question mark is Mitch Robinson. I want to keep him. He’s just 24 and he showed great improvement this season after a bit of a rocky start. I think once he got completely healthy and comfortable with his added bulk he played extremely well. I don’t recall him shooting a jumper but a couple of times he showed some nifty ball handling. The kid still has ceiling so sign him outright or let the market determine his worth but keep him.
Looking at our roster we have 9 players under 25 years old. The core players in this group of youngsters are RJ, IQ, Mitch, Obi, Cam, Grimes, Deuce and Sims. Likely the Knicks will add another quality young guy in the draft. North of 25 are Randle, Burks, Fournier, Rose, Noel and Gibson. I don’t include Feron Hunt or Ryan Arcidiancono because they won’t be on the roster next season. IMHO Fournier and Burks are prime time trade material. So too is Randle but unlike some of my fellow fans who blame everything on Julius I want something back for him. As one of 5 players to hit 20/10/5 and at just 27 years old Randle has value. I personally don’t think Obi is fully ready yet but if the Knicks trade Julius I want a PF back.
So here is what I want this offseason.
Another stellar draft.
Keep management. One more year.
Ditto for Thibs.
Keep Mitch.
Keep Rose.
Keep Taj.
Either keep Burks or Fournier but maybe not both though trading both wouldn’t tear me up. I really like the Grimes kid.
If the Knicks are going to trade Randle then get something major back. If not figure out a way to play him, Obi, Mitch and Cam in the front court. There are a LOT of mix and match combinations I can think of especially using Randle in the post and Obi at SF.
Stay away from Brunson in free agency who is a good enough PG but he’ll get overpaid. Stay all in on IQ.
The Knicks have a lot of trade chips. Use them wisely. Look to the west and monitor the Donovan Mitchell situation closely.
Players.
IQ needs to work on ball handling and decision making. Obi needs to get stronger so he can rebound and defend better.RJ must continue his upward improvement arc with an emphasis on using the right hand and raising his shooting percentage. I love how he uses his length and strength to bully smaller players and his finishing has gotten better. He’s already a good defender, rebounder and passer but now he must become an Alpha. Two words to Mitch Robinson. Jump hook. To the rest of the team keep working hard and grinding. Going 12 and 7 in their last 19 games since the All-Star break I saw some positives though that blown 21 point lead to the Nets at home still burns. I don’t see any players I love in free agency. I do think if the Knicks develop their youth like they did this year it will make a huge difference. I don’t think RJ is a #1 option type guy but as a Robin he’s perfect. The Knicks can pull a trade for Batman but stay away from Anthony Davis or Bradley Beal and concentrate on the one skill set a superstar needs the most. The ability to stay on the court.
I did get a huge kick out of all the excuses offered after being swept by the Celtics especially Kyrie trying to justify the fact the Nets spent all that money on a part time player.