(Monday, February 12, 2018 6:21:00 AM)
A Long Island basketball coach is a finalist for the Junior Knicks Coach of the Year award, for his work with a youth league that welcomes children of all abilities and aims to keep players off the streets.
(Sunday, February 11, 2018 9:50:51 PM)
INDIANAPOLIS — The Knicks unveiled their brand-new point guard and young backcourt pairing. It showed some promise, but overall, the team didn’t have the speed or athleticism to keep up with Indiana.
(Sunday, February 11, 2018 8:43:30 PM)
INDIANAPOLIS — Emmanuel Mudiay and Frank Ntilikina have a couple of things in common and already have started to bond. Now the Knicks hope they will build some on-court chemistry.
[NYTimes] On Pro Basketball: Milos Teodosic Is for Real, Even if That Cheeseburger Story May Not Be (Monday, February 12, 2018 7:59:09 AM)
The 30-year-old N.B.A. rookie from Serbia is producing plenty of highlights as a Los Angeles Clipper. But stacks of beef for breakfast? No way, he says.
[NYTimes] Cavaliers 121, Celtics 99: On Paul Pierce’s Night, LeBron James Steals the Show (Monday, February 12, 2018 1:07:38 AM)
The Celtics had a postgame ceremony planned for their former All-Star player, but a blowout win for the Cavaliers made the night far less celebratory.
(Sunday, February 11, 2018 7:35:33 PM)
INDIANAPOLIS — Kristaps Porzingis still wants to somehow be part of All-Star Weekend, even if he’s on crutches in New York next Sunday. As hokey as it might sound, Porzingis is sending boxes of his new “Zing Bars” special delivery to Los Angeles to distribute to his Team LeBron teammates. “I won’t be playing this…
(Sunday, February 11, 2018 7:19:22 PM)
INDIANAPOLIS — The Knicks have three point guards aged 25-and-under who need grooming, particularly 2017 lottery pick Frank Ntiliikna and 2015 lottery pick Emmanuel Mudiay, who made his Knicks debut versus the Pacers Sunday. As a result, the Knicks are considering bringing aboard former point guard Pablo Prigioni as a developmental coach, according to two…
(Sunday, February 11, 2018 2:34:16 PM)
INDIANAPOLIS — Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek made good on his promise to play all four of his point guards, but it wasn’t enough to topple the Pacers. Though newcomer Emmanuel Mudiay rang up an impressive double-double in his Knicks debut, the club suffered its sixth straight loss in a 121-113 defeat to Indiana at Bankers…
(Sunday, February 11, 2018 11:37:17 AM)
INDIANAPOLIS — You can call them “The French Connection.” Maybe there’s some karma with newly acquired Knicks point guard Emmanuel Mudiay joining French rookie Frank Ntilikina. Mudiay said he, too, is fluent in French, having grown up in the Congo, and they already have been bonding in that language. The trade for Mudiay had raised…
[NYDN] Mudiay impresses in debut, but Knicks fall short in loss to Pacer (Sunday, February 11, 2018 2:28:22 PM)
For many New Yorkers, Sunday’s Knicks game was unwatchable in the first quarter.
[NYDN] Emmanuel Mudiay is ready for ‘a new beginning’ with Knicks (Sunday, February 11, 2018 1:02:52 PM)
Emmanuel Mudiay labeled it twice in his first interview since joining the Knicks: “A new beginning.”
[NYDN] MSG networks experience blackout due to ‘technical difficulties’ (Sunday, February 11, 2018 11:47:40 AM)
The Rangers and Knicks have both been tough to watch as of late. On Sunday, they became literally unwatchable.
[SNY Knicks] Mudiay records double-double in Knicks debut (Sunday, February 11, 2018 10:45:00 PM)
Newly-acquired point guard Emmanuel Mudiay recorded a double-double of 14 points and 10 assists in his Knicks debut in Sunday’s 121-113 loss to the Indiana Pacers at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
[SNY Knicks] Knicks’ losing streak reaches six games with 121-113 loss to Pacers (Sunday, February 11, 2018 7:48:16 PM)
The Knicks’ losing streak reached six games with a 121-113 loss to the Indiana Pacers on Sunday at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
[SNY Knicks] Tonight’s game: Knicks vs. Pacers, 5 p.m. (Sunday, February 11, 2018 2:57:35 PM)
The Indiana Pacers are poised to finish strong before the All-Star break.
[SNY Knicks] Kanter’s playoff hopes continue to hang by a thread (Sunday, February 11, 2018 9:35:47 AM)
Even Enes Kanter, who has consistently said the Knicks would make the playoffs, can’t look at the standings anymore.
68 replies on “Knicks Morning News (2018.02.12)”
One of the stories above says the Knicks are recruiting Prigioni to help develop their point guards, but the Nets are recruiting him too. His style was so different than Mudiay or Burke’s, it would be really interesting to sed what he could do with them.
Got to watch a little of the game yesterday and then went back and tried to watch as much of Mudiay/Frank as possible.
You can really see how this could work – and by that I mean if either of these guys could learn to shoot the ball or, you know, convert a layup, they could be really good together. Both 6’5″+ with near or actually 7′ wingspans, theoretically switchable on both offense and defense.
When I look at Mudiay I really, and I mean really see Lance Stephenson- the way he moves, body type, everything. And Lance was really awful until his age 22+ season and while he hasn’t really been amazing since, he’s clearly an NBA player and is playing a lot of minutes on a team that’ll probably make the playoffs. The weirdest thing about Mudiay is with that body and athleticism, why can’t he finish at the rim? But that was the same thing with Lance, and honestly with a lot of young guards. Russell Westbrook shot 47 and 53% from 0-3 feet his first 2 years in the league, and it wasn’t until his age 22 season that he got above 60%.
Anyway what I was really impressed with was Mudiay’s court vision. He had 10 assists and could’ve had many more if someone could hit a shot. And Frank looked really comfortable out there playing with him.
On defense though – yikes. Mudiay looks pretty awful. I wonder whether this is coachable or not.
Berman seems to think Pablo Prigioni may come back as a developmental coach. That would be pretty interesting.
Gonna be really hard to move up in the lottery. Literally all the teams ahead of us are trying actively to lose except for maybe Brooklyn.
If they get Pablo as a coach I think I’ll be in love with the Knicks forever.
My sweet Pablito, master of sneakiness and cerebral play <3
I mean watch this
Fuck it, make Pablo the head coach
Pablo should be head coach, GM, owner, and whatever else he wants. He’d probably still be the best point guard on the roster too.
I’d say we have a small shot at moving up only because Brooklyn, Chicago, and Orlando have the 17th, 24th, and 25th hardest remaining schedules in the league while we have the 8th (by combined winning percentage of opponents). Hopefully down the stretch we “rest” guys while Brooklyn does everything it can to not hand over a great pick.
Is there any chance some FO is stupid enough to not pick Doncic first? If we get into the top 3 (decent chance if we jump to 6 or 7) and Doncic drops to 2 or even 3, we’re golden.
@7 – There are teams who I believe will select Ayton 1st if they win the lottery
@8
That’s pretty much the only other possibility besides the kings picking young first because Ranadive wants his own Steph Curry
@7 – beggars can’t be choosers. If we get into the top 3, I’d pick Doncic but would happily take Porter, Trae Young, Bagley, or Ayton also. Bagley would literally be a perfect fit with KP. Monster rebounder, quick enough to probably guard 3’s and 4’s. Ayton + KP would be a really interesting twin tower look.
Ah, to dream. Honestly, I’d be thrilled if we pick in the top 7. Doncic, Porter, Trae Young, Bagley, Ayton, JJJ, Bamba all seem like pretty safe bets, and even the next 3 of Carter/Bridges/Bridges look like good bets.
@7
Absolutely. I’d not trust any of Memphis, Phoenix, Sacramento, Orlando and Chicago to do the right choice between a pizza and a pile of shit
Mudiay is a career .326 three point shooter, which is needless to say, alarming.
Yesterday, he was 0-3. Watching him shoot those 3’s, he was leaning in and falling over the line like he didn’t have the strength to shoot a normal jump shot. Kind of weird, most guys in the NBA have the same shooting form whether it’s a 15 footer or a 25 footer.
About Mudiay: I’m worried about his inconsistency and mental lapses, not his game. The guy has the tools to play and when they click it’s okay. More often than not, though, he looks like Tony Wroten has switched hands.
I think some are underestimating how bad the Knicks are. We can certainly lose enough to get into the top 6 range. I mean, the Knicks have maybe 6 legit NBA players (all of whom have a magic flaw like kryponite) and the worst PG situation in the NBA. Some of the teams people rag on like Atl, Bklyn and Chicago have better rosters right now than the Knicks, including PGs who can dribble and score and run plays and everything.
Just look at shitty ATL. Schroeder, Bazemore, Prince, Collins, Dedmon. That’s a better starting 5 than ours. With the exception of SG, they’re better at every position.
Look at the Bulls: Dunn, Lavine, Holliday, Grant, Markennen, Valentine, Lopez, Portis, Vonleh. Which roster would you rather have?
My point is that we have no business ripping on other teams. We can outlose anybody.
@14 – trouble is we have a 5 win headstart on them. and they’re trying to lose also.
That’s a great clip of Prigioni. He was a lot of fun to watch.
Pablo would be a strong choice for a player development coach for the young PGs.
My 1st choice for that would aim a bit higher: Chauncey Billups.
i’m not sure if pablo would be good… the guy was incredibly low usage during his playing days and was also allergic to the paint… maybe he would teach different things but it’s a bit alarming that they might know what they need to fix out of these guys….
mudiay and frank don’t have issues passing the ball… they make good decisions with it…. they are just light on the explosiveness and creativity needed for the position…. they need more dribble moves… they need to get lower.. they need a floater game…. and they need to elevate better to finish…. the shooting part also needs to be worked on but is absolutely way behind in importance to the others….
Pablo Prigioni was very effective as a 35 year old NBA rookie with the athleticism of the armchair I’m sitting on right now. I think he could teach a thing or two even to Chris Paul.
Yeah, the question is not whether the Knicks are worse than the worst teams in the NBA, as they clearly are right up there/down there (however you want to phrase it) with the worst of the worst. The question is “Can they make up five games on teams also trying to lose in just 25 games? If they were chasing teams ahead of them in the playoff race and were five out with 25 to to, you would say, “Not likely,” right? Same difference here. Five games is a lot to make up in 25 games when the other teams are trying to lose, as well.
@14,15. Yep – I think it’s both possible we win the fewest games of any team from now until the end of the season AND that we don’t shift position at all. No-one below us will make the playoffs. So no incentive to win. Only Brooklyn equally lack the incentive to lose. We’ve got 25 games to go. We could go 5-20 – a good chunk worse than the worst current win percentage in the league, and someone below is would still need to win 10-11 out of 25-27 games to move past us.
Orlando has won (of 10 and Chicago and Brooklyn are both probably better than us and are closest in the standings. MAYBE if we really go all out and only win three or so more games we could get to 8th or 7th?
7th would be huge though as long as we don’t drop in the lottery. 7 really good players in this draft by mock consensus.
By the way, I think Ayton has finally become the consensus #1 out there. He’s always been the guy on the most #1s, but now he seems like the outright consensus #1. Bagley would be amazing because KP’s absence would allow them to develop the team with Bagley in mind and then have KP fit in when healthy. Bagley is one of those dudes where I fear for his development if he is not “the man” right away.
I’d prefer Doncic to Bagley, just noting that that would be a great upside of getting Bagley.
The odds that all 8 worse teams remain worse are fairly small.
You’d be surprised how quickly a gap of 4-6 GB can evaporate.
as far as developmental coaches…. we should really try to get tim grgurich… he just got canned when kidd got fired but he was the developmental coach for the bucks and is highly respected around the league… he’s a basketball lifer, 74, and is one of those no-nonsense type of trainers….
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/nba/bucks/2016/11/23/basketball-guru-grgurich-has-behind-the-scenes-impact-for-bucks/94222190/
we really need a no bullshit type of guy that has some flex with the players…. i feel like we have an organization filled with sycophants….
I think if we can somehow stay under the 29 win mark we will have a pretty decent shot at a top 5-6 pick.
That requires us to go 5-20 the rest of the way. We. Can. Do. This.
The Knicks have more home games remaining than road games. They are going to win some games. KP was worth a lot, but I can’t believe Hardaway is going to keep playing this poorly (especially because he’s the anti tank when you don’t want him to be) and as flawed as Mudiay still is, he’s going to be playing really hard to prove himself. How much worse can he be than Jack? Mudiay/Frank/Burke is an upgrade over what we had most of the season. Lee will probably get fewer minutes, but Dotson isn’t total chopped liver.
@26 sure we can win some games. Just don’t do it more than 5 times.
They don’t have to remain worse, they just have to remain bad enough to not blow 5 game leads (or whatever you call it in a race to the bottom) on the Knicks.
They can evaporate quickly when one team is trying to lose and the others aren’t, but it seems like most of these teams are devoted to losing.
I think leaping Memphis and BKN are possible. Tyreke is allowed to play again and Russell is starting to round into form for BKN.
7th should be the goal for one of the top tier prospects.
Giving 30 minutes a game to Frank and Mudiay at this point could give us that extra tank boost.
I think Doncic and Ayton are viewed as the “can’t miss” prospects, with Bagley and Young (to a lesser extent) right behind. A top-3 pick in this draft would be ideal, but you also have wildcards like Porter (could end up the best player in the draft), Jackson Jr., and to a lesser extent, Bamba. So Top 6 feels like a tier, too. Below that, you have the Bridges and Carter.
So in summary, I really hope we can stay in the top 9, but moving up to the top 6 would be even better and could be possible. I think moving up to the top 3 would be tough at this point.
The top five are so damned exciting in this draft (presuming we’re talking Doncic, Ayton, Bagley, Young and Porter). I’d loooooooove any one of them on the Knicks. It’s hard to get too excited about Jackson and Bamba, even though they’re clearly good players (they’re at least kind of exciting). Then you get Knox, Sexton, the Bridges and Carter and they’re hard to get too pumped about (especially Carter – why would we even want the Knicks to get Carter? I’d just as soon pass on him period. He’s a good player, but he doesn’t seem to fit at all). If the Knicks end up with one of the Bridges, it is still a good thing (he’d honestly probably automatically become their best asset), but it’s not particularly exciting. The top five are all guys you can really get hyped about, so fingers crossed!
Yes, but Porter is a serious health question mark and Young… it would be tough to take another guard, but I guess if you’re at 3 or 4 and he’s sitting there, you can’t really pass on him, right??
@32
I think Jackson might be the best big in the draft, to be honest. He can guard 4-5 positions, shoots 40+% from 3 on good volume, and is a truly elite rebounder and shot blocker. His offensive game would be relatively limited in the NBA, since he doesn’t really put the ball on the floor, but I’ll take a mobile 4/5 who can play defense and efficiently stretch the floor over Ayton and Bagley (who are both defensively suspect and don’t shoot nearly as well from 3 despite having more well-rounded offensive games) any day. Plus, fit with KP (they’d be insane together and really complement one another on both sides of the floor and it’d allow KP to play center.)
I’m lowish on Bagley (dude really cant play D and can only block shots bc of superior athleticism versus college athletes), and Ayton is good, but I just dont see the two-way potential that I see with JJJr. Another thing is that JJJr. is young for his draft class—Ayton is over a year older than him (18.4 yrs vs 19.6 yrs)!
My personal ranking (not specifically for the Knicks) goes:
Tier 1
1. Doncic
Tier 2
2. Trae Young
3. JJJr.
4. Ayton
5. MPJr
Tier 3
6. Bagley/Wendell Carter
8. Mikal Bridges
9. Mo Bamba
10 Miles Bridges
Well this is why I’ve been screaming for the tank to have begun much earlier. How anyone thought this team was going anywhere is beyond me. But once again we just had to “wait til the trade deadline” before TPTB could determine we suck. Been a very frustrating century.
By the way, I think the Mudiay/Lance Stephenson comp is spot on.
My first thought on Prigs as a development coach was yes, absolutely do that. My second thought was do not fucking do that, hire someone with a proven track record, please.
i have it so far as…
1. doncic
2. young
3. jackson
4. carter
5. gafford
6. mikal bridges
7. troy brown
8. miles bridges
9. shae gilgous alexander
10. rawle alkins
michael porter is a wild card.. .but the back surgery is a scary thing so i have no idea how to rate him… he was right in the discussion for #1 before he got hurt…. ayton/bagley/bomba are really overrated in my eyes…. but i think it’s moot since i don’t think we’ll be in a position to make that mistake….
miles bridges and troy brown are basically equal to mikal so i have no problem being #10 since i’m pretty sure at least one of them will be there then and we’ll probably be focusing on a SF….
Jackson will be a fine NBA player. If the Knicks got him, I’d be happy. Same with Bamba. They’re just not particularly exciting guys. More like solid players than stars. Bagley and Ayton have more bust potential than Jackson, but have a lot more star potential, as well, and in the top five, I like to go for the highest upside.
I would take a risk on Porter at 4 or lower. He can do just about anything offensively, it seems. So much upside, and we need an SF.
I’m with Silky, JJJ would be my target big in this draft. A big who can shoot, rebound, protect the rim and guard the perimeter like a wing is insanely valuable in todays game.
KP’s getting the max and should be playing C going forward so I’d be comfortable going for fit at #3. Luka and Porter would go before him in other scenarios.
As crazy as it sounds, Bagley actually might be the player I’d pass on automatically. His BLK% is alarmingly low for a center in college. The ole eye test tells me that while it seems like there’s defensive potential there, he might be like Amar’e–a super athletic dude who just doesn’t have the instincts. His 3PT shot is coming along nicely which should round out his offensive game. I think he’ll be close to elite on that end. A good comp might be if Enes Kanter had a semi-reliable 3PT shot. That would be a good player for sure, but maybe one you don’t want to take with a top-5 pick.
I’m a little surprised you don’t like Carter. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if he’s a better pro than Bagley. He’s a better shooter, just as good of a rebounder, and a way better defender. He doesn’t have Bagley’s post moves, but how valuable is an elite post game these days anyway?
As for fit with KP, for a variety of reasons I don’t think it would be wise to take that into account. For one, we still don’t know what KP’s game will look like if he actually gets to where we want him to be. Maybe more importantly, we should probably see how he recovers from major surgery before we start drafting based on him.
I’ve said this before, but I think Robert Williams deserves more attention. He seems like like Capela to me, albeit shorter. We’ve been saying for a while that someone like that would…
First of all let’s tank with gusto! Then we’ll worry about our pick.
@BC – Jackson has a lot of upside, just not in the traditional star mold imo. He’s basically this draft’s Jonathan Isaac, but has shown more as a shooter and in his ability to create his own offense. There’s a decent chance that as he fills out he’ll be able to give you minutes at the 5 as well. I think he has superstar role player potential, which would be awesome.
I’m expecting KP’s ACL tear to hasten his move to the 5 and so adding a 4 who can spread the floor, rotate out to the arc on shooters, rim protect and is a solid defensive rebounder would be huge. Assuming Doncic is off the board, I might pick Jackson over anybody else.
Porter would fit in alot of ways also, but I have very little feel for his game since all I have to go buy is clips of him clowning kids in HS. I’m not particularly enamored with Bagley as I question his defensive ability as a 4 or 5.
Agreed I would probably take him before Wendell at 9 since he’s more of a 4 and can guard the perimeter. I liken him to an athletic version of KOQ which would be great for us.
I notice that there are a lot of people who believe that Ayton is not that good of a player and the only question I ask is, How much have you watched him play? DeAndre Ayton has the potential to be an out of this world player, when focused he is a good a defender as anyone in the NCAA. Yes, he does lose focus sometimes, but he is 18 years old what do you expect. I have watched a ton of his games and there are times that he is just amazing on defense. He can guard down low and on the perimeter and as for his offensive game. He has the mid-range jumper that Ewing had in his prime. If the Knicks have a chance to get Ayton and pass on him they will regret it. He will be a star in the NBA. As for Bagley, he can be good also but I have seen him disappear in games as well. But that can be said for all these kids, they are 18 or 19, they have no focus yet, no drive. They are used to getting by on their talent, the key will be who will be the one to put in the work.
My big board up to 11, because that hopefully encompasses the entire range of our pick:
1. Doncic
2. Young
3. Ayton
4. JJJ
5. Carter
6. Porter
7. Bamba
8. Robert Williams
9. Troy Brown
10. Bagley
11. Mikal Bridges
@45
My skepticism re: his defense comes from his mental lapses, which are hard to get rid of in a player because it’s predicated on that nebulous skill known as “defensive awareness”, and his historically poor block rates for a lottery big. Ayton looks good on defense when he’s locked in in college, but he’s gonna get roasted on switches and help defense in the NBA, where his athleticism won’t be as much of an advantage and his ability as a weak side shot blocker will be reduced. If you’re not getting blocks against guys 6 inches shorter than you while possessing an overwhelming athleticism advantage, that problem will only magnify in the NBA. It’s a big red flag.
His offensive game is super polished but frankly the fact that he’s an elite scorer from midrange isn’t what I want at all in a big. I want 3s and dunks exclusively, please. Jackson fits the modern game best out of all the available bigs.
Also somebody on The Ringer called Marvin Bagley a 7 ft Michael Beasley and I can’t unsee the comp now lol
I’m a fan of Ayton. He does a lot of switching already, guarding both bigs. And his shot isn’t broken – he has good form on threes, not that you need him to do that. He’s also fast on the break. I have him right behind Doncic.
i think jackson’s upside is fairly limited…. he doesn’t have the ball skills to be a truly good scorer…. his upside is on the defensive side which he has the potential to be a true game changer on that end… on offense it’s a bit of a disaster anytime he decides to put it on the floor… he basically has ibaka’s game…
that’s still a very very good player… and a worthy top 5 pick… but if you’re going to be a superstar you have to be able to generate offense for yourself… jackson is probably the safest pick in the draft aside from doncic though….
and the thing with ayton is defense… same as okafor…. not getting blocks is a huge deal for bigs since they have the most defensive responsibilities…. and he’s pretty timid on that end for what’s required…. it’s like he tip toes around and doesn’t go find the ball… and that can translate to the other end… right now he dominates because he can do what he wants on that end by just being bigger…. he’s not going to be as physically imposing against nba centers and so he’s going to have to adjust in certain situations and he’s going to run into more of those…
that’s kind of why steals and blocks are representative of lots of things on the court…. and part of that is reaction timing and aggression for the ball…. if you don’t know wtf is going on at one end of the court then you’re going to get lost in certain situations on the other end when the screws are put to you….
so ayton’s offense looks good now but there’s some doubts on his overall game since he should be dominant on defense and he’s not….
The standard strategy is that you should take the best player available, but I wonder if that strategy should be tweaked a little at the margin now. The results are more random with 19 year old kids than 22 year old kids. Fit should be probably be weighted a little higher than in the old days if the results are going to be more random.
It’s not like anyone is going pass on a sure fire stud, but if we like player x (SF) better than player y (C) and they are even reasonably close, we should take the SF over the C. The SF is going to wind up being the better player more often than in the past anyway despite our current view.
I only advocate for fit since we are 100% going to extend KP after next year. Aytons defense is worrying and I don’t like Wendell Carter enough to pass on the other guys who can play the 1-4.
Anyone who passes on Jock Landsdale will regret it. You heard it here twice.
Ayton looks the part out there. The word manchild comes to mind. Numbers seem stellar, if similar to Bagley’s. In terms of physical dominance he looks more the part than most recent #1’s, with the exception of AD. I sometimes get a little more of a rich man’s Kevin Willis than a poor man’s Shaq vibe but I would not be disappointed to seem him in blue and orange.
I’d take Doncic because of what he has shown already against grown men and also because I feel like he’s got some of that Manu magic to him, he’s just so heady. I know I would love watching him. But I couldn’t criticize anyone for taking Ayton. And we aren’t getting any of the aforementioned players, I know. So this is just some fantasy….
there’s probably more variance with 4 year seniors than 19 yo’s….. if you’re bad as a 19yo then you’re probably just bad…. if you’re a 4 year senior putting up good numbers… you’re probably not even good… i mean the best 4 yr senior in the nba is probably draymond? butler? everyone else came in the nba at a much younger age…
If you are interested in an in-depth read about the Fultz situation, here it is:
http://www.phillyvoice.com/what-has-really-been-going-markelle-fultz-shoulder-injury-broken-jump-shot/
RE the draft, if the Knicks stay or slide a bit in the lottery in the 9-11 range, Knox might be worth a look. He’s still very raw (just 18, I think) but apparently making big strides. He’s 6’9″ with potential at both the 3/4. Huge upside but also a bit more bust potential than a guy like Bridges.
With the KP uncertainty, the Knicks really just need to take the best overall guy, regardless of position, but they really need a couple of young 3/4 guys.
I was kidding about Jock but if Mike Muscala can be above average in the NBA I wouldn’t bet against 2018’s greatest Australian.
Last year Monk was the Guy I Didn’t Want. This year’s GIDW is Knox. Meh. He is so raw that it will take years for him to be any good, if he’s ever good; combine that with the Knicks’ player development history and he’s a big pass. Plus he has that stoned, clueless look on his face all the time.
tickets to be had for 8 bux tonight… whos going?
This feels like what someone could have written 20 years ago about Tracy McGrady lol
Years ago almost everyone played for 4 years (even the potential superstars). Coming right out of college you could narrow down the range of what you were getting because you had seen so much of them and they were several years into their development. Now you can too, but the older players are mostly mediocre or they would have come out sooner.
When it comes to 19 year old players, I could look at least year’s lottery class and I’m still not sure who’s going to be really good and who’s going to be a bust. There are several that everyone was high on last year that have been bad so far. There’s little guarantee which way their careers are going to go.
We have Mudiay and Frank on our team and I wouldn’t be shocked if either or both went one way or the other even though Mudiay is 3 years into his career. The probability gets lower as the years go by, but it’s not impossible that he becomes a top PG.
People were talking about Oladipo as a mediocre and disappointing player just last year and now we are hearing “star” and potential “superstar” about him because he exploded up.
When there is greater potential for an explosion up or big disappointment a few years out (like 19 years olds), your selection position has less value and your ability to select “best player available” is lower. So imo you should adjust your thinking.
It seems to me that the apparent mean for new NBA players to develop into their best form is around 4 years, with a variance/standard deviation of about 1-2 years (I’ll guess 1.5 years for simplicity). This assumes, of course, that the player is committed to self-realizing their potential. Oladipo’s timeline serves to validate this 4 +/- 1.5 years formula.
What this means is that I’m evaluating them on 3 criteria:
1. Prospective ceiling
2. The desire for self-realization. How badly is the kid gonna work for it?
3. Fit with the team, city, and organization
College used to provide this time until the Rookie contracts came to be (as a result of Larry Johnson’s insane deal). Now the league has to undertake that responsibility, hence the g-league and 2-way contracts. I’m glad the Knicks are utilizing are making use of this and are even going so far as to find player development coach(es) that will fit the organizational philosophy and vision.
Teams now have to be willing to work with their chosen younguns for 1-4 years (and be willing to replace them with better prospects when needed or possible) to get them to max NBA readiness.
This especially hold true for teams that don’t have the luck to draft the 5 or so rookie megastars (the +3 standard deviation guys) each decade produces.
Luka Doncic is tearing up the second best league in the world and he’s still only 18. You have to take him first.
@ 35 It’s “Been a very frustrating century” to be a Knicks fan
This + 100
Hah, let me know when he makes a Final Four. Then we can talk lottery.
college is not a good place to develop…. it’s probably really bad for you actually…. perceived development comes from the fact that as you get older.. your comp stays the same age and hence weaker… that’s why freshman year production is a lot more sticky than senior year production in most cases….
euro leagues are a bit different since comp is slightly better and you have a much bigger age gap but before age 23 it’s mostly similar difference…
if you’re a 4 year senior… you’re not really any more ready than a college freshman…. what matters more is how good you are … and how good you are is mostly informed by how well you do relative to your age to your comp…..
Now that I know that, I’ll be sure to start going to more games. I got my wife to sort of kind of be a Knick fan back in the pre-Melo years where $20 was the standard ticket price on StubHub for most games. We went to a bunch of games.
Early tip off tonight cronin
I posted it! 🙂