The New York Knicks don’t appear to be repeating their dream season from last year when they secured home court advantage in the first round.
Instead, it’s looking like they will struggle to even make the playoffs again, and they are teetering closer to missing the playoffs altogether.
There are a lot of reasons for this, but a lot of boils down to the team’s starters just not providing the boost needed to stay in games. It’s no secret by now that the Knicks boast one of the worst starting lineups in all of basketball, especially if you’re somebody who looks a the plus/minus stat. Julius Randle has also had a nightmare of a season when compared to the previous one.
Kemba Walker, one of the big signings of the offseason, has looked like a shell of himself, and it became clear the Knicks need a move or two to remain competitive.
Shipping out Kevin Knox, a failed lottery pick for the Knicks, in exchange for the Atlanta Hawks’ Cam Reddish appeared to be a smart move, but things aren’t as they seem.
Reddish has hardly appeared in any games for the Knicks, and now there is a report indicating that coach Tom Thibodeau didn’t want the team to make that trade in the first place.
Trouble Brewing?
GettyCam Reddish is reunited with former Duke teammate RJ Barrett.
Thibodeau, according to a source for the New York Post’s Marc Berman, didn’t want the team to make the trade for Reddish.
“From my understanding, Thibs didn’t want him and they did it anyway,’’ said the source.
While this isn’t confirmed officially, it does seem clear there is some sort of rift between the two because it doesn’t make a lot of sense for the team to make a trade for a guy just to only play him in blowouts.
Thibodeau has spoken about why he’s not playing so far, and he explained that it’s because he doesn’t want to simply remove somebody from the rotation to fit Reddish in.
“Everything was discussed, you know, we like who [Reddish] is,” he said back in January. “We like the talent. It’s a long season. You know, we traded someone who wasn’t in the rotation. So, you can’t keep adding to without taking someone out, or you know, you have injuries. Just have to be patient and work our way through it.”
It’s expected that the Knicks will make another before the February 10 deadline, so let’s take a look at who could be shipped out.
Lots of Veterans
GettyNew York Knicks guard Kemba Walker brings the ball up the court during a game against the Indiana Pacers.
Another report indicated the Knicks were shopping their veterans around the NBA in an effort to free up playing time for Reddish, and that includes Evan Fournier.
Fournier does have an expensive contract, but he’s a proven shooter and could provide a lot to a team if he’s not the first or second option like he is for the Knicks on some nights.
Walker and Alec Burks have also been floated around, but the Knicks have disputed the report that they’ll dump Burks just to free up playing time.
Burks has filled in at point guard a bit this season, so he’s a player the team highly values because they use him all over the floor.
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Knicks Went Over Tom Thibodeau’s Head in Controversial Trade: Report