The Knicks have been a hapless franchise since the departure of Carmelo Anthony. They have been in a state of perpetual rebuilding, unable to make any progress out of their purgatory of being a mediocre franchise.
In recent times there has been a changing of the guard in the front office: Leon Rose has been hired as the president of basketball operations, and Tom Thibodeau has been hired as head coach. To commemorate that, we laid out how to rebuild the Knicks so that they can make the playoffs and become a contender in the East.
1. New York Knicks Need Shooters
This is the modern NBA. In the modern NBA, you need some form of spacing. Instead of signing capable shooters, last season the Knicks decided to sign a large amount of power forwards. Taj Gibson, Julius Randle, and Bobby Portis are all great players in a vacuum.
However, we aren’t in 2004. You can’t start 3 big men and hope that they can grind it out in the post. That sort of strategy in the modern day doesn’t work: see 76ers for reference, with Ben Simmons, Joel Embiid and Al Horford all on the same team.
For the Knicks to be successful, they absolutely need some spacing around RJ Barrett: RJ can use his athleticism better inside and take more efficient shots if he doesn’t have a big clogging the driving lane every time. Getting some shooters signed is the key to any successful team.
Some possible targets in the offseason include Davis Bertans, Joe Harris and Danilo Gallinari. They are all high volume 3 point shooters whose contracts expire this offseason, and anyone of them will help the Knicks get closer to the playoffs by providing valuable spacing.
2. Get An All-Around Point Guard
An all-around PG that can do everything is not exactly an easy find. The Knicks need a PG that can facilitate well, shoot off the catch and in general, do anything that is expected out of a complementary player. The two ways that they could acquire them would be either through the draft or through trade. A name that comes to mind is one they’ve been linked with before, Lonzo Ball. While not so great in the bubble, he shot 37.5% from three and got around 7 assists a game.
With his re-worked jump shot and natural facilitating ability, Lonzo Ball could be the main playmaker on the team without being the main scorer. An amazing 2nd or 3rd option that focuses on assisting his teammates.
The other way that they can acquire such a player is through the draft. Tyrese Haliburton, who averaged 15.2 ppg, 6.5 apg, 5.9 rpg in college, seems like a perfect candidate. He has also shot over 40% from beyond the arc. While college ability doesn’t necessarily translate to the NBA, game sense does and Haliburton doesn’t lack basketball IQ. He makes the right reads and is just a really good playmaker. His FT% which is 82.2% on the season also bodes well for his shooting, as this is a traditional way of seeing whether his jumper will translate to the NBA.
Whether the Knicks get Ball or Haliburton or whoever doesn’t matter: as long as they can get an all-around PG that can set up his teammates for dunks at the rim or open threes.
3. More Minutes For Mitchell Robinson
The reason the Knicks need to sign some shooters so badly is because they need to start Mitchell Robinson. On the season, his stats look pedestrian: 9.7 ppg, 0.6 apg, 7.0 rpg. He has also only been playing 23.1 minutes a game. When you look closer, you will also realize that Robinson has shot a staggering 74.2% from the field. When someone is scoring that well, you start them. Even if most of his points come from lobs and easy baskets, that is insanely good efficiency. Robinson is also amazing on the defensive end, being able to block shooters beyond the arc with his athleticism and length.
In the future, Robinson could develop into being a player similar to Rudy Gobert or DeAndre Jordan: his defense and athleticism is absolutely tantalizing.
The detractors from Robinson will point out that he gets into foul trouble a lot and that he shouldn’t play more minutes until he learns how to commit less fouls. He’s never going to learn if he doesn’t get real minutes. If the Knicks are serious about developing their young players, they’ll clear space in the frontcourt so that Robinson can get more minutes.
He should be playing at least 28 minutes a game, to fully evaluate whether he can be a starting center. I have full confidence that he can be an amazing starter and garner All-Defensive selections: he just needs the Knicks to give him some minutes first.
4. Trade Julius Randle
To preface this section: it’s not like Julius Randle is some scrub. He averaged 19.4 ppg along with 9.7 rpg, almost at the 20/10 mark. He often gets tunnel vision and misses open teammates, along with being a black hole on offense which holds the ball often. Unless the Knicks do get that point guard that can be the main ball handler and facilitator, then Randle should be traded to another team, as he doesn’t quite fit the mold of the current NBA.
Randle is at his best when he doesn’t have to create for himself all the time, and where his decisions are simplified. He just isn’t the type of primary scorer who will bring you to a championship. Randle is undersized and isn’t an amazing athlete at the NBA level: so a lot of the times his finishing will be lacking due to those factors. If the Knicks can get a quality player and some value for Randle then they should dump his contract and continue their rebuild.
5. Trade For Buddy Hield
Buddy Hield of the Kings is in a tough spot. After getting an extension last season, he has been benched for his defensive woes and is finding use as a spark plug off the bench. Buddy Hield isn’t in the shooters section simply because he is much more than that: he is a bona fide scorer who happens to be a sharpshooter, with a 3PT contest win as a bonus. His game will translate to a playoff environment since it is mostly shot creation from range as well as a decent amount of drives to the rim. His scoring has never been the issue.
The issue with Hield is his defense. There was a reason that the Kings benched him. Coach Luke Walton decided to play with a slower pace and play harder on the defensive end, leading to Hield’s benching. Luke Walton just isn’t a good coach. There is a high chance that Hield would flourish elsewhere where he could get bigger and better minutes on the ball. Why not the Knicks? Tom Thibodeau does emphasize defense, but currently he is lacking a bona fide scorer.
In his Bulls days, the bulk of the offense would be built around Derrick Rose. Thibodeau could run guard-based plays for Hield who would be able to score at a high level. Add Hield to Robinson, a solid PG and RJ Barrett, and you’ve got a bit of a young core going. If the Knicks are able to get Buddy Hield for a reasonable offer then there’s no reason that they shouldn’t pull the trigger on a trade.
6. Get Some Culture Vets
Every organization starts with its culture. This is the most recent of many years that the Knicks have been terrible. They just aren’t a well-run franchise. With the recent changes in the front office that could absolutely change. Change comes from the top down, and hopefully the changes that the Knicks have done will translate into more wins. To continue this process of change, the Knicks should sign some veterans who can help their young players develop the mindset to continue growing and developing.
Some solid veterans that the Knicks could look to sign include Goran Dragic, Fred VanVleet and Carmelo Anthony. All of those players have been on winning franchises, franchises that have won in the playoffs. Carmelo Anthony in particular would probably work out a reasonable contract with the Knicks, due to his longtime affiliation with the club and his status as a club legend. He has made it to the playoffs, and it seems natural that he come back and spend one of his final years at the club.
Goran Dragic is probably looking for his last contract, and Fred VanVleet looks like he is willing to bet on himself and go wherever pays him the most. The Knicks could throw any of them a solid contract after clearing some space so that they may influence culture and bring a winning mentality to the young Knicks.
7. Luxury Trades: Aaron Gordon, Caris LeVert Or Chris Paul
At the end of the day, the Knicks do need some star-power. There is no question that stars don’t want to come to New York for the Knicks as evidenced by Kevin Durant picking the Brooklyn Nets over them. As such, it is going to be way easier for the Knicks to develop their own homegrown star or to trade for one.
LeVert and Gordon are all solid developmental options: they both have good shot creation ability and can develop into something special. Aaron Gordon is a little lower on the shot creating spectrum but can still do it if called upon. Gordon has solid athleticism off the bounce and is a very good defender who can guard 1-4. Gordon can also shoot a little bit, although his efficiency from the 3 dropped from 34.9% to 30.8% this season. LeVert is a shot creator who can score at all 3 levels: he scores well at the midrange and can shoot decently from three.
LeVert is a traditional shooting wing. If the Knicks don’t get Hield, then LeVert is more than enough, on top of being better on defense than Hield. Gordon is one of the many bigs in Orlando’s rotation, sharing time with Jonathan Isaac, Nikola Vucevic and Mohamed Bamba. Orlando might want to trade him to facilitate the development of Isaac and Bamba in the future, especially if they can get other assets for him.
Chris Paul would be the best luxury trade. The all-star point guard can bring a little flair to the Knicks, as well as bringing some fight to the team. This year his team in OKC wasn’t expected to even make the playoffs, let alone take a contender Rockets team to 7 games. Trading for Chris Paul might bring a similar renaissance to a dispirited Knicks team, who hasn’t seen the playoff scene in years.
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