Re Noel – people have loved him here for years. I have followed him since high school. The reason we don’t miss much when he is in for Mitch is that he’s a pretty good player himself.

I don’t understand why a guy like Noel can’t get a real contract but if we can bring him back for 7 million that would be fantastic.

Agreed, the two-headed hydra gives the Knicks a real advantage in the middle on defense. I’d love to see it continue next year.

Other than the bricked free throws RJ played so great in the 4th quarter. Really some of the most encouraging play I’ve seen from him yet.

Your o is the only thing supporting that.

Understood. Some metrics say Mitch. Some say Noel (DBPM). On/Off says they are similar. I don’t trust much of that anyway. Those numbers are all over the place. To my eyes Mitch makes fewer “he’s a kid” mistakes this year, but I think he’s still a bit greener than Noel. His athleticism and talent should eventually make him the clearly better defender too. But that’s why I am saying you have to improve another position a lot more than what Mitch will eventually give you over a replacement to consider a trade. Right now, Noel is handling the job fine and we are playing well without Mitch.

The mostly likely scenario is we stay with Mitch and Noel leaves at the end of the season because IMO he’s improving his value a lot. We are only going to keep one.

DRed:
Reggie Bullock, 9 points on 11 shots in 26 minutes or Frank Ntilikina 5 points on 2 shots in 11 minutes

Frank is the probably the natural replacement for Bullock. If we upgrade that position, then he’s that guy but off the bench. I am still a firm believer that he’s going to be good role player eventually with the potential for being a key role player. The problem we have now is that the clock is ticking. He’s lost so much time over the years to injuries and sitting behind dregs like Mudiay, his progress has been delayed. He’s going to cost too much to keep and he’s going to be hard to trade for the same reason. If I thought he was treated well in NY, I’d suggest that maybe we can figure out a way to pull a Payton and sign him back cheaper because he loves NY. But If I was him I would have asked for a trade 2 seasons ago when it could have been done for a couple of 2nd rounders or something.

but right now imo Noel is the better more professional defender.

Your o is the only thing supporting that.

But having Noel to back up Mitch and step up when Mitch has been hurt has been great for the team. They’d be screwed right now without Noel.

Z-man:
Westbrook is inefficient but he’s still a force. He puts pressure on opposing defenses and still gets tons of rebounds and assists.

Westbrook has always been his best when he feels disrespected and have something to prove, but I thought this time he was too far gone in terms of athleticism to turn it on. His stats are still a horror show but it’s been fun seeing him play well again. One of the least efficient stars that I can still enjoy watching.

BigBlueAL:
Dunno how the hell Noel is gonna be able to bounce back tomorrow night but helluva effort by him tonight.

He’s had on and off injury issues that raise a red flag for what I am going to suggest (ducks), but I have been saying all along that we don’t lose much with him on the court instead of Robinson. Robinson is younger, more athletic, more of a lob threat, and has more upside, but right now imo Noel is the better more professional defender. He also scores efficiently on low volume even not at the same level as Mitch.

That’s why when a trade for a star comes up I mention Mitch. Unless you think Mitch is going to expand his offense a lot and become a serious two way player over time, if you put Mitch in a package with a pick or two and land a legitimate star player at another position, you don’t lose much at C and immediately get way better at another position. It just has to be the right player (young enough and legitimately good enough) and you have to trust that Thibs and company have a good idea of how Mitch’s development is going beyond just dunking. You don’t want to trade away a two way star C or a Gobert, but you can live with trading away a good but replaceable player for a huge upgrade elsewhere.