Author: Brian Cronin

2021-22 Game Thread: Knicks Now Get to HOST The Magic. Hoo Boy, This is Gonna be Rough

Brian Cronin 248 Comments

The Knicks host the hapless Magic for the second half of a home and home after the Knicks annihilated the Magic in Orlando and now get to host them at MSG. It’s going to be rough (but good for the Knicks’ winning record).

Taj Gibson returns tonight, but Nerlens Noel is still out.

Man, what is there even to talk about before another drubbing? What can we do a poll on? Maybe something about the Knicks’ awful opponent?

First…

ARE THE KNICKS STILL ON PACE FOR 56 WINS? Yes, my prediction is looking excellent at the moment.

Let’s go, Knicks!

Now here’s the all-poll content…

Who will be the best player on the Magic this season?

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2021-22 Game Thread: Knicks @ the Orlando Double Whammies (Terrible AND Injured)

Brian Cronin 176 Comments

The Knicks head to Orlando for the first game of a home and home against a rebuilding Orlando Magic team that is starting two rookies and has this for an injured list at the moment:

PG Markelle Fultz (left knee) out
SG Gary Harris (right hamstring) out
PF Jonathan Isaac (left knee) out
SG E’Twaun Moore (left knee) out
PF Chuma Okeke (right hip) out
PG Michael Carter-Williams (left ankle) out

That’s a whole lot of their only decent players.

So that means that the Knicks are getting them at a perfect time for a home and home! Can you say 3-0?

ARE THE KNICKS STILL ON PACE FOR 56 WINS? Yes, my prediction is looking excellent at the moment.

Now for the all-poll content…

When Noel is healthy enough to play, who will start at center for the Knicks?

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Let’s go, Knicks!

2021-22 Game Thread: Knicks vs. The Team That Gifted Them Fournier and Kemba For…Reasons

Brian Cronin 451 Comments

Welcome to the start of the 2021-22 NBA season, everyone! The Knicks kick off the season with a home game against the Boston Celtics at Madison Square Garden.

The Knicks will be thin in the frontcourt as Taj Gibson will miss the game due to the birth of his child and Nerlens Noels will miss the game due to a sore knee (not foreboding at all) and Mitch obviously can’t be counted on for a full game at this point.

The Celtics are not an easy team to beat even with their odd offseason, as they still have probably the two best players on the court in Tatum and Brown (I guess Randle is close to Brown, perhaps?), but the Knicks should still take this one.

As part of our all-pol content, I’ll ask how many minutes we’ll see a Randle-Obi 5/4 tandem tonight.

How many minutes will Obi and Randle play together as the 4/5?

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Let’s go, Knicks!

The “How Many Wins Will The Knicks Have In 2021-22?” Prediction Thread

Brian Cronin 148 Comments

Ah, the truest sign that time is actually passing, we have another “How Many Wins Will the Knicks have?” prediction thread, a Knickerblogger tradition as valued as never being willing to kick anything to the curb or debating whether end of the Dallas Maverick bench player Frank Ntilikina is any good.

So let’s all make our bets as to how many games the Knicks will win in 2021-22!

As is my wont, I will guess high. The offense looks excellent and as we saw in the preseason, Thibs will do anything to win a preseason game, can you imagine what he’ll be like with 82 regular season Game 7s? Combine that with the Sixers looking to be worse with Ben “working out in his sweats with his phone in his pocket because he doesn’t want to lose millions by sitting at home” Simmons and the Celtics choosing to sort of kind of keep their powder dry for the 2022-23 season, I think there is room there for the Knicks to be at least as good as the Woodson Hawks, and let’s throw in a few more wins on top of that for Thibs not being the type of guy who blames a player for making a pass to a dumb player who then made a terrible play instead of blaming the dumb player who made the terrible play.

So that brings me to 56 wins as my prediction.

Let’s hope, like last year, that my optimistic prediction turns out to be still low.

As part of our all poll content (which we, of course, all know is the REAL reason why the Knicks had such a great year last year. All of those polls really inspired them), we have a poll for your predictions, as well.

How many wins will the Knicks have in 2021-22?

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NY Post: Knicks pick Rokas Jokubaitis could join NBA sooner than expected

Brian Cronin 224 Comments

From Marc Berman:

Maybe Lithuanian combo guard Rokas Jokubaitis won’t turn into a European “stash” pick after all.

After the Knicks’ second Las Vegas summer-league practice, Jokubaitis, selected 34th in last Thursday’s NBA draft, said it’s still an “option” to come this season, though he’d have to be bought out from his Spanish League team.

That club, Barcelona, is allowing the lefty Lithuanian to play three summer-league games for the Knicks.

“Yeah, there is an option,” Jokubaitis said on a Zoom call Friday. “But it will be very, very intriguing thing. I’m into Europe. But if something will go very well plans could be changed, would change. I don’t know what to expect, but I’m looking forward to summer league and we’ll see how it will go. Right now the plan is to go to Europe, but you never know in basketball, because basketball is a sport where anything can happen.”

I don’t even get this debate. So, Barcelona will let him play three games and if he has somehow proven himself in three games (which is absurd), they’ll let him buy his contract out and the Knicks can sign him to a two-year deal using the room? That doesn’t sound like it makes a whole lot of sense period, no?

But hey, I’ll be looking forward to seeing him play!

By the way, it’s kind of funny how his shitty Olympics has seemed to get a lot of people to sour on Vildoza. Way too small of a sample size, people!

As part of our all-poll content…

Do you think Rokas Jokubaitis will be on the Knicks roster this season?

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ESPN.com: Julius Randle agrees to 4-year, $117 million extension with New York Knicks

Brian Cronin 372 Comments

From Woj:

New York Knicks All-Star forward Julius Randle has agreed to a four-year, $117 million contract extension — elevating his deal’s total value to five years and $140 million, his agents, Aaron Mintz and Steven Heumann of CAA Sports, told ESPN.

The extension includes a player option on the final season in 2025-26.

Randle had a remarkable, breakthrough season for the Knicks, earning the NBA’s Most Improved Player award and second-team All-NBA honors on his way to leading the franchise back to the playoffs with a fourth seed in the Eastern Conference.

Randle could’ve waited for his contract to expire next season and signed a new $200 million deal, but extending now off his current $19.8 million salary for 2021-22 gives the Knicks financial flexibility to shape the roster and allows him to commit through his prime to a franchise and city he has come to adore — and one that has come to adore him.

Gotta give Rose a lot of credit for convincing Randle to leave roughly EIGHTY MILLION dollars on the table in this deal. NBA players typically don’t do stuff like this, so while I’m sure part of it is just Randle’s personality (the guy is clearly committed to the Knicks, even to the detriment of his own paycheck), you have to give Rose credit for playing off of Randle’s personality to get him to agree to this way below-market value contract.

Now, of course, if Randle goes back to his 2019-20 level of play, this contract is an overpay, but I think even one season of 2019-20 play after his 2020-21 level of play would still get him the mega-max, just due to the lack of free agents out there who have ever made second-team All-NBA.

Anyhow, very good move by Rose. Now there’s no reason not to lock Mitch up, so go get him an extension!

As part of our all-poll content…

If you were in Randle's shoes, would you take this extension?

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