(Wednesday, December 19, 2018 12:54:35 AM)
The Philadelphia 76ers and New York Knicks both experienced nights they would like to forget in their last game.
(Tuesday, December 18, 2018 5:20:00 PM)
Tyson Chandler doesn’t think the Knicks have an ownership problem and is bullish about their chances to land a superstar in free agency, most especially because of Kristaps Porzingis.
“They have a chance to land a big-time free agent to pair with Porzingis and after that I think it can happen real…
(Tuesday, December 18, 2018 10:29:01 PM)
PHILADELPHIA — Maybe the one-game break will do some good for cold-shooting guard Tim Hardaway Jr. Hardaway, who missed the Knicks’ disgraceful 128-110 blowout home loss Monday versus the Suns with a sore heel, has been upgraded to questionable for Wednesday’s game against the 76ers. With Kristaps Porzingis still in the final stages of his…
(Tuesday, December 18, 2018 9:55:43 PM)
Tyson Chandler was one of the Big Three — Carmelo Anthony, Amar’e Stoudemire and himself — when he was with the Knicks from 2011-2014. Now, he plays with the Big One — LeBron James — as a member of the Lakers. Life is good. “It’s been incredible coming to the Lakers,” Chandler said before his…
(Tuesday, December 18, 2018 3:58:41 PM)
PHILADELPHIA — Emmanuel Mudiay didn’t speak to the media last season while playing with Denver — that’s how miserable and shaky he was there. Now the former errant-shooting point guard is playing loudly on the court and making the Knicks think hard about their point-guard future. During a 9-23 campaign, the 22-year-old from Dallas has…
(Tuesday, December 18, 2018 6:37:57 AM)
During a 7,500-word piece published Monday morning, Knicks owner James Dolan sounded less passionate about winning the NBA championship than in the past. The eccentric Knicks owner came across as more detached. Beaten down by hostile fans. Dolan has many other interests going on in entertainment productions — in the process of building two state-of-the-art…
[NYTimes] Nets 115, Lakers 110: The Nets, Playing at Home, Wrestle the Spotlight From the Lakers (Wednesday, December 19, 2018 5:16:29 AM)
Jarrett Allen’s block of LeBron James set the tone, and D’Angelo Russell got some revenge against Los Angeles as the Nets won their sixth in a row.
[NYTimes] Jarrett Allen Refuses to Be on LeBron’s Poster (Wednesday, December 19, 2018 4:59:19 AM)
The second-year center for the Nets joined an exclusive club by blocking a dunk attempt by LeBron James. Blake Griffin knows just how James feels.
(Tuesday, December 18, 2018 11:30:04 PM)
LeBron James was asked about the possibility of teaming up with Carmelo Anthony on the Lakers following Tuesday’s loss to the Nets.
(Tuesday, December 18, 2018 9:24:10 PM)
The NBA season isn’t even halfway done, but speculation about the impending 2019 free agent class is already buzzing, especially around Warriors F Kevin Durant.
(Tuesday, December 18, 2018 9:10:55 PM)
The Duke freshman flies a little too high on a block.
(Tuesday, December 18, 2018 9:35:18 AM)
Kevin Knox has put up solid offensive numbers recently, but the Knicks rookie is looking to get more aggressive and spread out his scoring.
93 replies on “Knicks Morning News (2018.12.19)”
Great night for the tank, and we didn’t even play.
You know that this totally sets them up for an out of nowhere win tonight over Philly, right? 🙂
If it comes from our young guys balling out, so be it. If it’s a Kanter Special, to hell with that.
There is no way we’re beating Philly tonight. None whatsoever.
I guess that weird little 3 game win streak obscured the fact that we might have the worst roster in the league, including for me. Never let anyone tell you you’re not bad enough.
Unfortunately Zion, Bol^2, and Morant continue to be the only prospects I can really get excited about (and even with Bol I irrationally worry about injuries with that frame). I wouldn’t be upset with Barrett but I still haven’t quite come around on him. Low STL%, mediocre AST/TO, and FT% all scare me a bit, and watching him play you can’t help but think he’s a classic Knick in all the bad ways. As for Reddish…yikes.
I generally agree, except that I would still find a way to get pumped for Barrett. He’s still at least a legit prospect. For instance, I was really not a fan of Wiggins after his mediocre as fuck freshman season, but if you told me before the 2014 draft that the Knicks would draft Wiggins at #4, I would still be pumped about it. Wiggins has been majorly disappointing as an NBA player, but as a prospect, he was still a good one (just not a particularly impressive #1 pick).
Would you guys trade down if Bol Bol is on the boards? If a team wanted him I wouldn’t be upset if we got back Reddish/Barrett/Morant + another future first.
(EDITED FROM LONG WINDED FIRST DRAFT)
Is anyone excited about the idea of Bol and Porzingis (and Mitchell) together? Or would you rather trade that pick if Bol is the BPA? Or trade Porzingis and do a deep rebuild around Bol?
I think it’s great how fun it is to watch the sloppy scrappers we have but still are only 1.5 games out of last place in the league.
Well now there is.
I’ve wondered the same thing myself Hubert. I don’t necessarily see a reason you can’t be successful with both Bol and Porzingis, assuming Porzingis one day turns the potential into production. Of course, the fact that that’s a legitimate concern with Porzingis would force me to at least listen to offers for him.
I’m generally a big advocate of taking the BPA, but if both Morant and Bol were on the board I would have a tough time getting on the front office for taking Morant. When you have a glut of legitimately good prospects at one position things can get pretty messy.
The Philly situation with Embiid/Noel/Okafor is a cautionary tale. They lost a good player in Noel for some mediocre second rounders, and while Jahlil Okafor sucks, at one point he had some value and yet they wound up having to dump him with sweetener!
Cronin didn’t say it. We’re fine.
Bol Bol is a great prospect but yeah, pairing him with KP is risky. I think he’s worth more than Morant and a future first.
Is anyone else worried about Morant’s build? He seems fragile to me and his gait is a bit awkward.
Right now, it’s really a 3 or 4 player draft depending on how you feel about RJ Barrett. There are people out there that are hyped about Reddish (which I totally don’t understand) and Nassir Little aka the new Marvin Williams.
The obvious prize in this draft is obviously Zion; dude’s a future superstar in the NBA and is as sure a thing as any player in the last decade. I’d put Bol Bol #2. Don’t really understand the concerns playing him next to KP unless you’re worried that he’ll be an injury risk due to his frame like KP is.
I think Morant over Bol would be an easy choice. The way we’d get backed into Bol is if we’re 4th and Zion, Barrett, Morant go in front of us.
NBA teams have historically been better served using players who complement each other than they’ve been putting two players with similar skill sets together. Even all time greats like LeBron and Wade struggled with their redundancy. Twin Towers lineups, in particular, have rarely been fruitful.
How serious is Bol’s current foot problem? Just a tweak, or longtime concern?
The Knicks keep missing out on the prize picks and settling for guys at 8 or 9 or so. How ’bout finally getting lucky and landing #1? Draft seems like Zion and a few nice consolation prizes.
If this is shaping up like a four-player draft, it’s only fair we pick 5th.
People still think that Porzingis is a franchise savior, which is incredible since he’s a uniquely-tall player who had a major knee injury that doesn’t seem to be healing all that quickly. Even the most optimistic Porzingis lover has to admit that he hasn’t been working on his game at all for nearly a year, so believing he’s going to come back like Adrian Peterson (not to mention the difference between playing RB and playing basketball) is foolish at best.
Whatever your thoughts about his defense, his offense has been all upside and very little production. The rebounding is never going to happen, especially after an ACL tear, and given his reputation, he’ll either get a huge high-risk contract or be insulted by a sub-max contract and hit the open market for some team who thinks he’s the final piece.
From a risk perspective, I think you take a high lottery pick (not future pick, but a concrete one) and move the goalposts. If Zion and Morant are off the board, you take BPA if thats Bol.
@18
Of course, the year KP was drafted, the media declared it a 3 player draft and laughed at the Knicks for having the fourth pick. However, the Knicks then got “lucky” with KP.
However, it is a lot easier to get lucky picking 4th than 8th or 9th… So yeah, let’s get in the top 4 at least!
I’d trade KP tomorrow for a top 3 2019 pick.
Yeah, there’s now quite a bit of anecdotal evidence that there’s quite a bit of a diva in KP. Hopefully not too much, but…
And that draft was terribly executed! Just to remember:
KAT (ok)
Russell (meh)
Okafor (astoundingly bad)
KP (ok, maybe)
Hezonja (huge lol)
WCS (not bad)
Mudiay (little lol)
Stanley Johnson (blah)
Kaminsky (ouch)
Winslow (uhm)
Turner (good)
Lyles (useful)
Booker (ok, great value at 13, terribly overrated now)
Cameron Payne (lulz)
Such a terrible lottery.
@16
There’s obviously overlapping skill sets between Bol and KP but I think they’re still pretty complementary. Offensively, they seem pretty similar but I don’t think that’s a bad thing. Having two ball dominant wings who need the ball in their hands isn’t ideal but these two are good 3-point shooters who should also be able to finish at the rim. I think you can build a pretty good offense around that. Defensively, they probably aren’t ideal, particularly against teams that go small, but with their length and shot-blocking ability I’d think that we’d have a pretty strong defense no matter what and Bol seems to be a strong rebounder based on his college numbers which is important playing next to KP.
@23
Which tells me how important it is for very bad teams to “tank” and get as many shots in the top 4 as possible…
🙂
21,
would you really trade kp for a top 3 pick?
On the way into work today, I found myself contemplating a KP+TH2+future unprotected #1 for AD in a sign and trade at the mega max. Can include other assets, but this year’s #1 is a dealbreaker, and more that one #1 is a dealbreaker. Thoughts?
I would not trade KP for a #3 pick in this draft unless I was 100% sure it was going to be Zion.
Honestly from a value perspective, KP for a top-3 pick is a no brainer. Getting a top prospect at a rookie scale deal instead of KP at 5/$156M would be an almost unobjectionably good idea.
Emotionally, on the other hand, I fully understand why people might think it’s time to end the Charlie Ward steak.
I love KP but yes, I would do that if only because it would allow us to keep rebuilding for one or two more seasons. We could forgo 2019 and 2020 and focus on 2021 as a season where we get a big time free agent. Of course, if we did that, stretching Noah would have been for nothing but we would then not have to move Lee or Hardaway and could just let those contracts play out.
This is what I asked Santa for.
What is THJ’s injury exactly?
The proposed AD/KP trade would require KP to agree to an extension in New Orleans, though, right? Seems like that wouldn’t be something he would want to do.
@34
I think there’s something wrong with his heel.
I dunno, with his ACL, would he take the QO and risk over $100 mill?
Alternatively, could NO make the deal with the understanding that they would trade KP and his current deal to another team for more picks/assets?
But if they’re just looking for picks, they might be able to get more for just AD straight up without having to take back THJ, right? Taking back THJ and KP actually makes some sense if they intend to continue to contend, but if they’re going to blow it up post-AD, then THJ would be an albatross on them the same way he is on the Knicks.
As for whether KP would risk taking the QO, I have no idea what is in that dude’s head. 🙂 He is an enigmatic dude.
I’d do that NO trade! Why would they, though? Are they pretty sure that AD wants out?
Stretching Noah sure does seem to indicate that the FO wants to get a big name player this next year. Please, just not a trade for Wall.
His options would be limited. If New Orleans acquired KP, said “you’re our guy, here’s a 5 year mega max”, he’d be pretty crazy to turn it down.
If New Orleans was willing to go for that trade I’d make sure to push it through to the league office before their acid trip was over
Would you not? The extension needs to happen this summer or the Knicks probably lose him to free agency for nothing. So either you pay $156M to a guy who hasn’t played a minute of basketball since February 6th and still has no return timetable, or you risk losing him for nothing. THIS SUMMER.
I doubt there are any teams dumb enough to give up a pick that will yield an elite, uninjured prospect on a 4-year, cost-controlled contract for a guy who had the same oPIPM as Zaza Pachulia and will be rewarded a max based solely on his reputation and height.
It would be like the Leonard for DeRozan trade. DeRozan is as distant from Leonard as KP is from Davis, but the Spurs didn’t want to rebuild. Same with the Butler trade. If that’s what the Pelicans want to do, KP would make sense. It’s still an extreme long shot.
But boy, the trickle down effect… Obviously Durant becomes extremely possible. You’d probably be able to get Kyrie to change his mind in a minute, too.
Why do I dream? It makes watching Mudiay so much harder to bear.
You know what… No. I’m not even going to entertain this. The Lakers could easily build a better package around Ingram.
so we have our back against the wall with regard to KP. more good news
That explains some of the reversion in his play of late. Frankly, they should just let him rest a bit more.
Yes.
I like him, don’t get me wrong. But he’s no superstar (yet?) and there’s no evidence he will ever be. If you want to win a ring, sooner or later, you have to execute these “simple” steps:
1) Draft well
2) Give the max only to true superstars – if possible, trade every other max-demanding players before any extension occurs
3) Until you find a real superstar (via draft or trade – beware of free agency!), try to win as many deals as possible; even the smallest ones can make the difference one day
4) If you have a barren roster, tank as hell. Only when you have the pieces in place, stop tanking.
Given that KP is not a true superstar, step 2) tells you that it’s probably smart to trade KP for a top 3 pick.
KP’s inevitable max (ugh) is what’s forcing this management to focus only on next year free agents class: after that max, we’ll be toast if we don’t draft in the top 4 or we don’t land Kawhi or Durant in free agency (chance of the latter happening: 0.0001%).
@44
The Celtics too, and both teams can offer a much clearer path to contention if it comes down to Davis deciding in any capacity.
I think that the media’s inflated opinion about KP could be a weapon for us. For the non-analytical savvy fan, KP >>>>>>> Ingram + any other Lakers players combination.
(I’d trade KP for Ingram, Hart and a future 1st in a heartbeat).
Now this is a problem. The media love to wax poetic about Celtics players in the wonderful Stevens system.
How short everyone’s memory is…
The Celtics could only build a trade around Tatum. Nothing involving Brown, Hayward, or the Kings pick would top KP’s perceived value (which is much higher than what we think of him). They would probably give up Tatum for AD but I can see Ainge holding him back and only making an offer in which he’s the clear winner.
The Lakers would give up Ingram or Ball in a heartbeat. Either one of them plus Hart or Kuzma probably beats KP and Timmy, unless Demps really has a hard on for unicorns.
@51
Are you referring to last season’s November?
Yeah, you would be dumb to not trade KP for a top 3 or AD if it was possible. It’s just not possible.
Do you guys realize that since Ewing in 1985 we’ve never moved up in the draft lottery?
Can we get another frozen envelope this year Adam Silver?
Wesley Matthews for Timmy and a second?
I am. Not saying he IS a superstar, but you said there’s no evidence. I think a TS of 58% on 33% usage, with more than two blocks per game and a 42% 3-point average constitutes evidence. Sustainable? Possibly not. Given the ACL tear, maybe probably not. But it certainly was superstar play.
I would make that trade, but I don’t know why Dallas would want a worse, more expensive, and signed for longer player.
Jeez, I didn’t even realize Davis/Lakers buzz was on the front page of ESPN.com
How is a package centered around Brandon Ingram better than a package around KP? What exactly do people see in Ingram? Is it his lousy shooting? His 0.024 WS/48? His -0.4 VORP? Dude’s overrated as fuck.
I wonder if Melo will land with another team this year? I can’t believe he hasn’t gone somewhere else already.
They see him as somewhere between Giannis and Durant, which is laughable given his performance this year (now playing alongside the best player of the last 20 years, and the best passing big man since Magic). As always, fans and pundits (and front office staff!) are more excited about upside than production. If I can package Ingram and a #1 for Davis, I do it in a split-second, no discussion, no second thoughts.
Also, how did we miss this?
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/zion-williamson-is-the-best-college-basketball-player-in-at-least-a-decade/
I know he’s not going to keep that BPM but holy hell, he is the #1 pick by a country mile.
It’s KP and Hardaway at north of $50mm vs Ingram or Ball plus Hart or Kuzma at around $12mm. I know Ingram is overrated but I’d take the Lakers package.
+1
Is this because of his reputation or because you think he’s still a viable NBA player?
It wasn’t sustainable. We know that because he then put up a .498 TS% on 31.6 USG% the following month. Then a .517 TS% after that.
So if there’s evidence that he can play like a superstar, there’s a 28-game sample after last November that he is decidedly NOT a superstar.
From that ESPN article…
I swear to god, if the media starts acting like Jaylen Brown, Terry Rozier, and 4 draft picks outside the top 12 in a weak draft is a good trade for Anthony Davis, I’m going to lose my mind.
It better cost Ainge Tatum, Brown, and his two best picks.
“It better cost Ainge Tatum, Brown, and his two best picks.”
whats a package remotely close to that return?
I think swinging for the fences is not where we should be at. We need to see this team make sensible decisions. Look at IND. They’re always quality. They quietly did so well getting Oladipo and Sabonis for George when it became clear he wasn’t staying.
There’s a correct offer for KP. It may not be a max considering his injury. Make it. If he rejects it, look to make a value trade. You don’t have to do a number on another team, just get value back. Is Oladipo better than George? Is Oladipo plus Sabonis good compensation? Hell yes.
Knicks need to have plan A being sign KP and get him healthy and productive. They need their present roster to continue to improve under Fizdale, which I think is happening despite Monday’s low moment. They need to use their cap space to make smart decisions and decide whether to resign their own or find improvements. They need to draft a quality player.
In short, they need to evaluate talent in a smart way, develop it, draft it, shop for it. When we got Melo I was psyched but then it was Sheldon Williams and teams like DEN just had waves of talented young players. We need a critical mass of good players…
Are you asking who could compete with that? It’s probably the best offer. Ball, Hart, and the Lakers pick.
All I’m saying is that a package headlined by Brown and picks outside the top 12 is garbage. Even we can top that.
This is a fun article from P&T’s matthew miranda:
https://www.postingandtoasting.com/2018/12/18/18125499/the-knicks-wont-sign-a-big-free-agent-next-summer-thats-ok
Yeah, which is why I said it possibly/probably wasn’t sustainable. I get that you need to be negative about him – overrated! – but the point was simply that he COULD be, not that he was.
Even with people more excited upside I still don’t get why anyone would like Ingram more than KP.
He really is! I was saying on reddit the other day that Zion is as sure a thing as any player in any draft going back to Oden/Durant. I love Zion. Praying we have a chance to draft him.
Sure, but I wouldn’t call any of those trades are for a package centered around Ingram, they just happen to include him. Really, of the 3 other Lakers listed I’d say all are better than Ingram.
And from this month, I’ve learned that Mudiay could be Chauncey Billups 2.0. COULD be, right?
I’m not earmarking $156M for a 7’3″ PF/C who hasn’t played basketball in 10 months, who tore his ACL, and who can’t rebound or score efficiently.
That article lost me when they advocated for 3/$30mil for Vonleh. Wut
No, again, that’s not what I said. I appreciate your difficulties with reading comprehension, but the point was that KP showed no evidence that he was capable of superstar production. I showed evidence that he was. Then I said it was possibly/probably not sustainable.
Bringing up Mudiay is a straw man and a poor argument in defense of an untenable position.
gotta love fiz keeping it “real”:
shhhhhh, quiet fiz, you’re not supposed to tell people your team sucks…he should have the whole team chanting at the beginning of each game – you are not your record, you are not your record…
the AD to Lakers talk/dream has been going on for a while now out here in so cal…yeah 2 of either kuzma, ball, hart, or ingram – plus a first seems pretty fair…
i mean seriously – anthony davis was born to be a laker…more than anything though, i do not wish to seem him in green…anything but green…
Push comes to shove I think AD was a better prospect than Zion is now given that he projected to be an elite rim protector/defender while still being a great offensive prospect. That said, Zion is the most dominant college player I’ve seen since Larry Johnson who was two years older, two inches shorter, and 30 pounds lighter.
At least Fiz has a sense of humor, gotta appreciate that over Horny and Fisher.
I still think Boston will make the move towards Davis, I think they’ll realize they don’t have a real contender this year and will try to make a move. They know the Lakers are not going to stand pat, they known Toronto and Milwaukee could very well just be better than them and Philly has a chance too, and there’s not a single player in the NBA who’s a better fit for their team than Davis. If I were them I’d easily offer Tatum + multiple firsts for AD.
I think Davis has been slightly underrated throughout the Pelicans struggles this year, but he’s once again having an unbelievable season. The narrative has shifted to talk about other players in teams with better records but AD is playing at MVP level once again.
@78
Shit, forgot about Anthony Davis. You’re right, Zion’s the best prospect since Davis, not Durant/Oden.
Fortunately, we don’t have to make that decision now. That’s why some of us would like to see him play 20-30 games this year. If other cases can be used as a guidline, it’s going to take him some time to shake off the mental and physical rust and find out where he’s at.
I still think you are wrong on his efficinecy and overstating the issue on rebounding.
There is a difference between a player that can hit 40% of his 3s, 80% of his FTs, and that is long and atheltic ecough to finish on lobs & OREBS vs. many other high usage low efficiency players.
Most of the others aren’t good 3 point shooters and can’t get to the basket much.
If Fizdale demands it, he could EASILY change KP into a higher efficiency player by focusing on 3s and adding in some P&R lobs, back cuts etc.. and taking out some of the Melo midrange and off the dribble stuff he was using last year when he felt compelled to be the #1 scorer and bail out bad possessions. Maybe he wouldn’t score 25 per 36, but he’d score 20 per 36 with a TS% in the 58% range. Whether that happens is another matter. I’d still rather have KP take some of those unavoidable off the dribble shots than Hardaway, Vonleh, Mudiay etc.. Put Durant or Irving on the floor with him, then those guys pick up most of the burden and he plays off them. That changes the math more if the coach and player have a brain.
Porzingis: 13 of 48 games of .582 TS% on 33.6 USG% is evidence that he is capable of superstar production
Mudiay: 9 of 24 games of .577 TS% on 26.6 USG% is not evidence of superstar production
I think you know exactly what my position is, which is that you can’t make positive claims about a sample that’s (1) small and (2) arbitrary in scope unless you are ready to do the same for any other sample of similar size and scope.
I’m sure there’s some rhetorical position on being able to make positive claims about Porzingis at age 22 but not other players at age 22, but I’ve yet to hear it.
The annoying thing about Porzingis is that he could easily be a much more efficient scorer by just not vomiting up contested midrange shots or trying to be Durant by putting it on the floor himself. Addition by subtraction and all that. However, we’ve already seen this movie – Melo also had the tools to be a more efficient player, but he just couldn’t give up those contested heroball 20 footers. Maybe Porzingis is young enough to turn it around, but I’m not sure I’m willing to bet the max on that.
Yeah, if they assemble Kyrie, Tatum, and AD, I’m taking a basketball break for 8 years.
Ainge might have held onto his chips too long. All those draft picks he was owed looked a lot better when they were further away. He’s got two legit blue chippers in Kyrie and Tatum, but outside them it’s much more quantity than quality.
Here’s his entire current inventory:
– Gordon Hayward coming off a brutal injury with an AAV of $33mm
– Al Horford, who I love, but is not interesting to a rebuilding team
– Marcus Smart on a 4 year, $48mm deal
– Jaylen Brown, who isn’t good.
– Terry Rozier, who may be good but is about to be overpaid
– Robert Williams and Semi Ojileye, who are bit players
– Picks from Sacramento, LAC, and Memphis in a weak draft, with all those teams looking like they’ll be either in the playoffs or the low end of the lottery
That’s a shit load of nickels and dimes, and it’s hard to turn that into a dollar.
No way KP plays 30 games this year- he’d have to come back in early February for that to happen. Given that there’s still no timetable for his return so I’d be shocked if he’s back before the all-star break. I’d put the over/under at around 16 (March 10th return).
I’m pretty sure there’s some rule in place where they won’t be able to keep Kyrie and get AD, so at least there’s that.
I have to say Robert Williams numbers are really impressive though the sample size is tiny- 99 minutes. He’s basically a better Mitch- the dude’s averaging 6.2(!!) blocks and 12.4 rebounds per 36 without nearly as many fouls 4 per 36 as opposed to 6.7. And like Mitch, he’s super low usage but very high TS%. If he can stay anywhere near those numbers with more minutes then he’s another quality asset for the C’s.
That rule only applies to this year, D-Mar. Once Kyrie opts out of his contract this summer, they can be teammates.
I have no idea what’s going on. Heck, a few weeks back even the coach didn’t know he was already running. He may be jumping and taking light contact by now. They are keeping everying under wraps because they don’t want the press being a pain in the ass. It’s complicated by the fact that the Knicks don’t necessarily want to win games and KP doesn’t necessarily want to risk an injury without the extension.
Rama,
I totally get what you’re saying. The thing is, though, that to me you have evidence of someone being a superstar if high production lasts at least one full season (or a significant fraction of it if there’s a serious injury occurring).
A stretch of good play, even a month or two, is not proof of anything, especially if it happens in the first 20-something games of that player’s season. Teams adopt countermeasures after a while, and you have a superstar only if that guy is able to play at high level after those measures are implemented.
Now I don’t know for sure what’s the issue with KP (stamina? low basketball IQ on offense? a combo of those two factors?) but for three consecutive seasons his production dipped in a significant way after a great stretch. That’s not what superstars are made of.
There’s definitely a chance that KP will end up being a top 20 player in the league, but it’s not a good one as of now.
By the same logic Jeremy Lin would have been a top 10 PG by now. He’s just a serviceable player. If we go by available data, healthy KP’s most likely scenario is third fiddle on a playoff contender. Nothing to scoff at there, but definitely not the identikit of a max player for a terrible team. Give KP to the Rockets and you’d have a great situation for him. Give KP to the Bulls and they’ll win maybe four games more.
Yeah, AD was as blue chip as they have ever come. I’d want to be a Laker if I were him.
I was thinking about the Knicks lottery luck recently and back to that AD draft. Man Charlotte got completely hosed having one of the worst ever NBA records and still couldn’t win the lottery. We talk about the Knicks losing out in the draft, but to go 7-59 and still miss out on AD is pretty bad. Especially when the consolation prize is MKG. Our draft bad luck is mostly our own doing (i.e. those damn late season wins).